What Radio?

crossbowme

New member
I did a search and can't find a clear answer. Here's my question:

This summer I am driving to Alaska and then on to the Arctic Circle via the Haul road. People who use this road tell me it is imperative that you have a good CB with you for emergencies and access to truckers, your only life line. However, I know how limited CB's are but don't want to have two radios in my truck (life is complicated enough without that problem).

Are there combination CB/ham radios out there and if so which is a good one?

Thanks
 

Buliwyf

Viking with a Hammer
I know that getting them tuned up just kills them. My box stock CB's ran well until I sold them, my "tuned-up" CB's worked excellent for a while then started doing weird things. During testing we noticed no practical real improvment in range in between stock radios and boosted radios in Florida's flat Gainesville area. A friend of mine ran a Cobra 29 with a 300w Galaxy amp. It sounded great. I don't recall it sounding any better with the amp on.

A good mic is key. I believe I had an Astatic power mic that worked really well.

Side bands are nice in busy areas if you're traveling with another truck, you can avoid all the lackys and allmost have your own clearer channel.

I need a stock radio and antennae for my new (to me) truck. Will I ever run an amp.....maybe, maybe not. I have no idea what antennae to use. Maybe a simple 102" whip, naybe a shorter 4' Firestick. Maybe a Wilson. I'll mount it on the inside right bed rail on my F250.

The magnum S9 looks like a good radio once you get the 11m band turned on.

I don't know if CB and complete Ham coverage can be had in one radio? I'm starting with CB first, as that's most likely all I need.
 
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Buliwyf

Viking with a Hammer
I noticed that the Magnum S9 can be setup by myself. No radio geek hacks at all. Export mode unlocks 11m band and is as easy as moving a jumper.

I just want to avoid the "tuners" out there that more or less make factory radios worse.
 

fourfa

Observer
I drove the Dalton Highway last summer. It was in great condition the whole way. Averaged 40 mph. Carried two spares and didn't need either. Carried a ton of tools and didn't touch them. Never went into 4WD. Did not have a radio. Had to stop many times for mega-oversize haul crews to come around corners. Anyway just wanted to say, the road is probably not as hard as you think it is, and the radio is a lot less necessary than you think it is. But, if you just want a radio, that's cool too
 

CA-RJ

Expo Approved™
In my old Jeep days, I always had a cheap ($40) Uniden CB and a 4' Firestick antenna. Always worked great. If you have a truckstop nearby, they usually have great deals on both.
 

hochung

Adventurer
Lots of people free band their all mode all band radios to tx in frs, cb, and murs frequencies. Illegal...

But aside from legality, if you price out the radio tuner, and antenna setup to pull this illegal operation, you'll easily realize it's not worth it. Just get 2 radios.
 

crossbowme

New member
That's good news. The State site and most literature warns about CB's but I really want a ham radio. I have a spare for my truck and trailer and hope this will do. There will be new tires all around so I think it should be OK. We have similar roads in Maine just not as long. However, I will leave the Haul Road to go fishing.
 

Scoutn79

Adventurer
Just remember you need a license to operate a HAM radio...A HAM radio can reach out much much farther and be clearer than a CB and if you can find a repeater you can get even farther. My 2M mobile will easily reach 60 miles at 60 watts over flat terrain. Problem is not many truckers use HAM radios. On a road where you are likely to see more big rigs than cars a CB is probably more realistic even given the limited range (IRC 4 watts max by the FCC). In an area that is so void of roads all traffic is funneled into very few roads so just waving a passerby down in an emergency would work....Course it would be nice for getting road updates...I had an old Presidential series CB that would reach 10 miles easy over flat terrain with a 5 or 6 foot Firestik.
Darrell
 

corax

Explorer
As already stated, the FCC mandates that it's illegal to have CB channels and Ham capability in the same radio. If you don't want to mount 2 mobile radios, why not buy a hand held CB - you can connect an external mag mount antenna or get a better radio mount whip for better range

Just remember you need a license to operate a HAM radio...

Unless you only plan to use it in a true emergency - anything on the HAM freqs is legal in an emergency situation. Breaking down or killing time on a long drive doesn't count
 

montana.matt

New member
A different perspective maybe.... I've hauled freight up the "Haul Road" several times and appreciated that motorists had CB radios in their vehicles:)
If you don't want the clutter of 2 radios, grab a handheld CB (as was mentioned earlier) and keep it handy when you trek out on the Dalton.....
It's better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it:sombrero:
 

Buliwyf

Viking with a Hammer
I work over the road. And one of the things I've noticed is the only reason truckers freeband a 10m radio is to have a higher quality CB radio.

Just about every trucker has a freebanded 10m radio now. As long as your not a @#$%$% your fine. Every senerio where someone got in trouble for a 10m radio, that I've heard of, was someone being completely rude. And he had a few warnings well before the FFC cracked down on him. Any courteous professional should be OK and unnoticed.

Every once i n a while when I asked for a radio check: "Yeah, that Ham sounds nice." I'd ask if I was too loud or something?: "How could you tell?" "It just sounds really, really nice, regular CB's don't."

My Galaxy DX55 worked way better than any regular CB I've ever seen (until it lost track of which channel goes where). Way, Way better reception and obviously transmit. It sounded better, clearer. We tested it turned down to around 4 watts and it still was completely better than your average CB like my Cobra 148. I no longer have that radio in any vehicle.

Why can't Galaxy or Magnum make a 10m quality radio that ONLY goes to 11m at 4 watts and is therefore perfectly legal???

Why is the CB world such a pain???

Are there any legal CB radios that work as nice as a freebanded Magnum S9? I, as others, would rather be perfectly legal if that's an option.
 
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DaveInDenver

Middle Income Semi-Redneck
Unless you only plan to use it in a true emergency - anything on the HAM freqs is legal in an emergency situation. Breaking down or killing time on a long drive doesn't count
This stipulation is Part 97.403 and is specifically only invoked if the situation is life threatening (what is called "Station In Distress") when no other means (cell phones, CB, etc) are available. What is allowable without a license is unclear since the FCC has issued fines and confiscated radios from unlicensed operators in cases where the emergency wasn't /clearly/ life or limb and there were alternatives. The rules also talk about property protection and one might assume that means wildfires and the like.

If it comes down to someone living or dying, no one is going to second guess using whatever means you can. If you're invoking this rule to prevent being stuck overnight with a break-down, the FCC may fine you (depends on the severity I imagine and if any FCC monitors notice). That might be a fair risk along a remote highway, but it's not meant to substitute for being prepared with spare parts, clothes or food.

BTW, there is a special case for Alaska in Part 97.401 that gives hams on land or within 50 miles of shore emergency authority to use 5167.5 KHz at 150W PEP using SSB-SC, what hams generally refer to as USB. This is a shared allocation with other users, so you will be more likely to get a response but it's not meant for general use.
 
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