Old CB Radio Restored

[gerowen]

I'm a CB radio user/enthusiast, and in a recent trade I managed to get a hold of this old thing. It makes my Cobra 148 GTL look like a piece of space age high technology, but I got it working. Plan on using it for testing mics and stuff so I don't have to put my big radio in the line of fire if there's a short or something.


http://youtu.be/OLgFFqlm10w

[estamets]

This is like technology porn for me. I'm very interested in CB radio and watch youtube vids all the time about the subject.

[stalkingwolf]

i havent seen one of those in years. My first was a johnson messenger 3 . 3 channels that could be changed by changing the chips.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

I have one of these on my shelf and I works. Hy-Gain I.

250943

[gerowen]

I have one of these on my shelf and I works.

250941

Is that one of those old 23 channel radios? Crazy how long technology can last if it is properly taken care of. My main radio that I actually talk on is a Cobra 148 GTL with an 18 foot Antron antenna stuck up outside. It's just a stock radio with the exception of a blue LED in the meter, but I can talk for miles and miles with it.

Always fun during the daytime though to flip through the channels and listen to skip. There are some guys out there pushing insane (read that illegal) amounts of power on the 11 meter band.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

Is that one of those old 23 channel radios? Crazy how long technology can last if it is properly taken care of. My main radio that I actually talk on is a Cobra 148 GTL with an 18 foot Antron antenna stuck up outside. It's just a stock radio with the exception of a blue LED in the meter, but I can talk for miles and miles with it.

Always fun during the daytime though to flip through the channels and listen to skip. There are some guys out there pushing insane (read that illegal) amounts of power on the 11 meter band.

It is 40 channel (I uploaded a better pic). I had an 18 foot antenna at one time; however, I don't use the CB any more. I also have a Hurricane Linear Amplifier somewhere in the junk pile. It think it is 150W when on single side band. I never used it of course with the CB ;)

Edit: I found it. It is the Hurricane 350. Yeah 350 Watts. It is for 10 meter band of course.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

A bit of trivia. The "Hy-Gain I" had a manual with a form to apply for a CB license. In the early 1980's, the FCC stopped requiring licenses for CB radio use. That means the CB is about 30 years old or more.

[Iowan]

I had a CB license - still remember the callsign...
I think it cost me $4.00

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

I had a CB license - still remember the callsign...
I think it cost me $4.00

That doesn't sound like very much money today; however, minimum wage was less than $2.00/hr back then. :)

[gerowen]

It is 40 channel (I uploaded a better pic). I had an 18 foot antenna at one time; however, I don't use the CB any more. I also have a Hurricane Linear Amplifier somewhere in the junk pile. It think it is 150W when on single side band. I never used it of course with the CB ;)

Edit: I found it. It is the Hurricane 350. Yeah 350 Watts. It is for 10 meter band of course.

Of course it was only on the 10 meter band, :P

Just about everybody does "something" to their radios. A lot of guys around here may not run linears, but they'll put a bigger barrel fuse in the power cord and crank up the AM power pot inside their radio to get 30 watts or so. I've known a few guys to get all their stuff confiscated though for being stupid about it and running HUGE linear amplifiers. One of them started overpowering the local radio station. Another one overpowered the intercom system at the local grade school. I don't run any amps or anything myself, but I'm not going to talk down to people who do, as long as they're not stupid about it, :P

This guy here, he's gotta be running some serious power to be able to overpower the locals like he did from 2000+ miles away. I recorded this a couple weeks ago. I hear him all the time on various channels, usually 26 or 28.


http://youtu.be/FzaUNrX7e0s

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

@gerowen,

We need to be careful where this discussion is going. This discussion is getting close to violating the forum's Code-of-Conduct. You may want to read it. From the Code-of-Conduct (http://ubuntuforums.org/misc.php?do=showrules):


Material that suggests illegal activity or contains illegal content is also forbidden.

So far, we have not violated the Code-of-Conduct.

[gerowen]

@gerowen,

We need to be careful where this discussion is going. This discussion is getting close to violating the forum's Code-of-Conduct. You may want to read it. From the Code-of-Conduct (http://ubuntuforums.org/misc.php?do=showrules):


Material that suggests illegal activity or contains illegal content is also forbidden.

So far, we have not violated the Code-of-Conduct.

Roger that. Will try to avoid the shady stuff.

[robin7]

The original "chat room," I suppose, unless you count Amateur radio which I think is older than CB. And it's still basically a "chat room" today, free of ads and viruses. Rarely useful for highway information anymore, mine was turned off in the truck until and unless there was some traffic mess or bad weather. I'd turn it on channel 19 and just listen. Even then it would typically take 20 minutes or more to get a picture of what was ahead.

I actually talked on my CB only once, trying to get information about a destination and no one answered. Too busy chatting. But I know how to get a trucker's attention when I need to. So I waited a few minutes, then put on my best Pebbles Flintstone voice disguise and asked the question again, this time dripping with syrupy, artificial sweetness. Almost instantly a competition began for my attention, and one driver even offered to provide an escort all the way to the destination.

[Old_Grey_Wolf]

The original "chat room," I suppose, unless you count Amateur radio which I think is older than CB.

Amateur radio or HAM radio is about 35 years older than CB.

[gerowen]

Amateur radio or HAM radio is about 35 years older than CB.

Yeah. I read that when CB first came out you had to have a license for it as well, but then they opened it up, expanded the channel range, and left the licensing restriction to HAM/Amateur. As advanced as some of our computer technology is, these old things still amaze me, not sure why. I love getting handed an old radio from back in the day and tearing into it and fixing it and getting it up and going again. It's like reviving a piece of history to continue fulfilling its purpose. Who knows how many people have talked on some of these radios. People that are long dead have made friends, and maybe even met lovers, because of these old radios, and they're still kickin'.

[Repro77]

Wow, that brings back some memories!

Serious power indeed. Some guys ran close to 1k on beam's down south back in the day, so I'm told..

Still have my rigs, although haven't used them in years...realistic TRC something, President Jackson, Cobra....still have them, as well as "other" equipment as well ;)

Yep, I had an FCC license as well, just for giggles. I think it was $8.00 when I got one.

Fun times, back then....some people took it sooo serious! hehe.....good times, good memories.

3's and 8's!

[SurfaceUnits]

People that are long dead have made friends, and maybe even met loversAt the truck stop no doubt

[Yozuru]

That is so cool! Its like a glimpse into the paste. Good quality hardware!