thinking of getting the 40$ cb from pilot

I started with a $40 CB was ok for shippers
so much noise 1/2 mile was all I was good for
until I got my cobra 29LTD classic

 

Well to put it simple, the smaller cheaper CB's will talk but as mentioned they don't have the same noise filtering in them, which prevents you from hearing as well as it should. And the biggest problem on CB is it's AM which means it's susceptible to all of the noise generating crap we have these days.

How much you want to spend is up to you. I recommend for a starter radio, a Cobra 25 or a Uniden 68. Either have all you'll ever need for a starter and they hear and talk well. There might even be still a rebate on the Cobra or the Uniden....if there's not wait til about the end of the year. I've seen as much as a $20 rebate on them plus an additional $20 off when you use your Pilot points.

Of course you can also scout around at garage sales, sometimes you'll get one for $10 that works perfect. Occasionally some trucker will offer his up at the truck stop for cheap but be advised you never know if he took the golden screwdriver to it and buggered it up and is looking to unload it on some unsuspecting sucker. Craigslist and eBay are other places. The Cobras tend to bring more but the Unidens are better IMO, unless you get an older Cobra from Taiwan or Philly as they have Uniden boards in them. Be advised eBay is where they bring top dollar. CL is cheaper.

HTH

 

I just picked up a cobra nightwatch 29ltd classic off craigslist out here in cali for 40.00 it was only a year old like the boys said keep an eye on craigslist

 

You need to talk to other drivers that have that same make, model and year of truck. Some of the newer trucks have a strange wiring system with multiple junction points. This technique is definitely not CB radio friendly. Easiest solution is to run one antenna and run 58 ohm coax [RG 8 or RG 58] directly from the one antenna to the radio.

 

I had one of those little cobra radios for years and it was ok but it just.stopped working one day. I now have a cobra 29 thamt is about 16 years old with the side. Mic. Its a great radio.

 

I agree with the previous comments. Craigslist tho, is a big gamble. Good to see Chris83 lucked out, tho.
A $40 new radio will just buy you $40 of noisy and limited range aggravation.
A step up to a radio with better noise filtering and increased range is well worth it, and can be had for $70 on up.

 

The original poster should be able to get more than 2 miles of range with a budget radio if he pays attention to the components that matter most.
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.ANTENNA -- The single most important component to a budget [non amplified] cb radio setup is the antenna. Nothing else even comes close. My first choice is any antenna that has a loading coil. Second choice an antenna longer than 4 feet. ie Any 5 foot long antenna or either a Francis CB 26 (5.5 foot) or CB 25 (4.5 foot) antenna.
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.COAX -- If you get a SWR reading that is below 2.0 and you can tune the antenna for a lower SWR reading, I would use the coax that is installed in the truck. Otherwise I would run my own coax from one antenna directly to the radio. RG58 coax is acceptable. RG 8 is slightly better. You could run the coax from the antenna, through the window that is cracked open [just do not close the window completely and crush the coax] and up to the radio. If you have to choose between spending more on coax or the antenna, your best move is to upgrade your antenna. An antenna upgrade will give better performance for the money than upgrading your coax which provides a minimal improvement in performance if it is even noticeable.