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i KNOW NOTHING about CB radio so

They don't cost much mate and i can't see what's complicated about fitting a CB . My lack of confidence comes from last years failure and my suspicion that i was sent a dud radio grows on learning your CB which came from the same shop at the same price in the same box - with a bracket . There was no bracket with mine .
 
I have given up trying to get mine to work - I think I might have blown it up trying! So, it a rage I ordered one of these hand helds, with a car kit.......
I know the range isnt great but it will only be used when with others (as long as they are not too far away!)
 
I should have done the same Steve as is i have no idea what i bought i just got fed up of looking so clicked buy on one that should fit in the dash cubby :crazy:

That satnav you were interested in is spot on by the way mate :thumbup:
 
I have given up trying to get mine to work - I think I might have blown it up trying! So, it a rage I ordered one of these hand helds, with a car kit.......
I know the range isnt great but it will only be used when with others (as long as they are not too far away!)
That Midland-Alan 42 Multi handheld is good, I had one of them as a spare until I lent it to someone who was CB-less and never got it back. I'm not sure what the range is but their fine in a convoy.
 
Right after reading god knows how many warnings not to transmit until all is good the swr meter instructions state -

"1. switch swr meter to FWD and with transmit button pressed adjust CAL knob for full scale deflection (SET)"

so whats the meter for - tuning after you have wired everything up and fried the bloody thing ?
 
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Right after reading god knows how many warnings not to transmit until all is good the swr meter instructions state -

"1. switch swr meter to FWD and with transmit button pressed adjust CAL knob for full scale deflection (SET)"

so whats the meter for - tuning after you have wired everything up and fried the bloody thing ?

My understanding is that the unit will only fry if you try to transmit without an antenna.

The meter goes between the unit and the antenna so (in theory) it can't/won't fry.
 
OMG no patch lead it was ordered but hasn't yet arrived :doh:

I have a join about half way between antenna and radio would i be safe and get a proper reading if i plugged the meter in there ?

It's probably 3 metres from antenna and about a metre from the radio cable length wise .
 
Maybe more pleasurable as well Shayne, it certainly beats the third option... JMHO of course
 
you're best checking the SWR as near the rig as possible really Shayne, often the coax can form part of the antenna sytem in mobile setups, it shouldn't in theory in a 'perfect' system, but often it does because things arn't often 'perfect' on vehicles.
 
More fun than electrickery Clive but it does get annoying when you have to keep reminding them that your not just a spectator !

I figured as much Pumpy it was a needs must question but the seller reckons it should be here tomorrow so i moved on to other things .

I have gone proper ott trying to work out what went wrong last time and can't find anything i might have done wrong , seat belts been unbolted , wheel carrier off and rear door panel off and -

CB INSTALL 002.JPG
 
A SWR meter is only an indicator and won't stop the rig from 'frying' if there's a bad mismatch with correspondingly high SWR readings. Many Ham radio rigs have a degree of protection built in and will limit power output in the event of high a SWR . Maybe the cheaper CB rigs don't have this?
Type of antenna and mounting location all affect SWR in addition to good grounding. Some antennas are tuned for bumper or gutter mounting and don't being mounted in the centre of the roof and vice versa.
 
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Well its in and on crackling away showing a digital readout and everything so i think it works . It came set to EC and i've had a little play about getting it to scan hoping to find a UK setting and maybe someone on air nearby who could confirm it does work . Nothing doing so do i have to read the instructions or can i pick a channel and hope to hear someone while i drive about ?
 
Well its in and on crackling away showing a digital readout and everything so i think it works . It came set to EC and i've had a little play about getting it to scan hoping to find a UK setting and maybe someone on air nearby who could confirm it does work . Nothing doing so do i have to read the instructions or can i pick a channel and hope to hear someone while i drive about ?
There should be a button on the front for swapping to UK band. You 'may' pick up someone as you drive along but that's never happened for me.
 
AM or FM button maybe , thats the one that sets it searching if you hold it down for a couple of seconds . I will have a read of the instructions later but i'm thinking there's no point in messing with it until we meet up Chas because i could spend hours messing with nobody to hear anyway .
 
I can hear Chas at maybe 50ft but he can't hear my reply , other than that we can chat away over the air while parked next to each other which is good for nothing .

Will see how my radio pairs up with Clives later today but I'm thinking I need a better antenna and that won't happen on this trip so does anyone have any suggestions for increasing the range of my current set up ?
 
If everything is right it should be much better than that Shayne, even a cheap rig/twig should get line of sight for a mile or more if it's set up correctly, you can tune a piece of wire and get better than that so I doubt it's the quality of the twig tbh.

clearly something ain't right, but it's not really fixable via the forum.

Is there an amature radio club near you? They're usually very helpful if you could get in touch and go to one of their club nights or something.

Failing that, check all the plugs are soldered correctly not just shoved/screwed on, check continuity of the plugs and cable, check the earth on the twig is good, clean up the Earth contact for the twig - scrape any paint/rust/dirt off underneath and use copper slip on it, recheck SWR and fine tune it, check the rig is set to the same frequencies as Chas.
 
It's not set to side band (SSB)? Don't know if that would give the result you're getting.
As Pete says, check all connections are sound and well made without any strands astray and well soldered.
 
I'm on EC channel 22 which is fm I believe and having forgotten to bring the CB instruction book I can't work out how to change from the EC option .
 
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