8 replies to this topic

[Gingerjoe]

woooo! my mrs bough me a cb radio for my car! :] well chuffed! its the head unit its self, no aerial - mount or cable. its a INTEK m-110 PLUS. Im on 4x4cbradio website & trying to get hold of a back window mount & an metre long aerial. but the site is so hard to navigate, & I dont want to buy the wrong thing. also wanted help in the fitting ect, where to wire it up too. how to tune in. the full wack! would appreciate the help! tar :]

[mayedd]

woooo! my mrs bough me a cb radio for my car! :] well chuffed! its the head unit its self, no aerial - mount or cable. its a INTEK m-110 PLUS. Im on 4x4cbradio website & trying to get hold of a back window mount & an metre long aerial. but the site is so hard to navigate, & I dont want to buy the wrong thing. also wanted help in the fitting ect, where to wire it up too. how to tune in. the full wack! would appreciate the help! tar :]

Hi,
welcome to the world of CB! You have got yourself a good simple CB radio there which is capable of transmitting on many european and UK frequencies (handy if you want to go abroad). In order to hear and speak to people in the UK you need to ensure that the radio is on the UK frequencies which on your radio is setting 07. This gives you the choice of 2 banks of 40 channels. It is only worth using the UK 40 as there are not many people on the other 40 channels.
Your post seems to suggest that you are after a window (glass) mount. If this is the case my advice is please STOP. These are a total waste of time as the range that you will get could almost be measured in yards!!! Your best bet is a good mag mount for the centre of your roof (yes you can put a bit of cloth under it to stop scratches). In the case of antennas, bigger really is better! I use a SIRIO HI-POWER 4000 which is a beat at something like 5ft high!! However, something shorter like an orbitter will work fine. Once you have got your antenna you really need to VSWR (Voltage Standing Wave Ratio) your antenna. This basically means you need to "tune" the antenna by adjusting its length (usually there is a small grub screw at the bottom of the antenna for this). In order to compete this task you need a VSWR (often called either a SWR or SWAR meter). These are not usually expensive. I won't go into details on how to use one (its not hard) but if you want help email me [email protected] (remove the obvious).
All that said, you most likely can get away with not SWR'ing your antenna as they are quite well tuned from new plus you are not running high power!!
TIPS:
Try and run a separate power supply if possible. Your Intek would need no more that 3-4 AMPS.
Invest in an external speaker, the built in one will be good but will face the floor!!
Run the antenna cable as far from power cables as possible.
Try not to kink the antenna cable to much if possible especially not 90 degree corners

Most of the UK uses channel 19 (27.78125 for the nerds out there) as the calling/mobile channel
If there is going to be a convoy of you then it is best to pick another channel rather than anoy the locals or constantly being interupted by other users.
You can increase your transmission range by using a linear amplifier (often called boots, burners etc). These are legal to buy and own but NOT LEGAL to use. Of course I would not advocate the use of them but if your sensible then you won't get caught. However, bear in mind that more power/range you transmit, the more power the other person needs for you to recieve them!
Don't bother wasting your money on pre-amps. These are supposed to boost your incoming signals but they don't!!

Not sure if everyone knows but you NO LONGER need a license to use a CB radio!!
TIP
Don't buy any CB marked up 934/81. These CB's work on a totally different frequency, are no longer legal and are VERY BAD at working mobile.
Anyway, hope that helped )
10-10 till we do it again breaker. 73's to you and yours.

[Gingerjoe]

your an absolute diamond mate! I'll notepad that! :] will help alot, gonna order my aerial & that now! thanks again!

[Gingerjoe]

Magmount(link)

I found this mag mount, cheapest there, Just looking for an aerial

[Gingerjoe]

This aerial(link)

& this aerial.. Just wanted to get your opinion? they o.k?

[Gingerjoe]

are they o.kkk?! I dont want to order them & there crapp

[tomsbluemini]

I've never got on with mag mounts...

were you at the bluewater run where I hit a tee with it and it just fell off joe???

the same happened on the motorway on the way to l2b last year...

both me and Rosie have got gutter mount ones... works best with the ft aeriel... roughly the same price as the magmounts, and a hell of a lot better...

If you need a hand fitting them, give me a shout and i'll come over and do it with you one day mate... you're hardly far from me

Cheers

Tom

[mayedd]

are they o.kkk?! I dont want to order them & there crapp

Sorry for the delay (forum problems).
Yep, that antenna is fine, in fact a rather good one.
If your going on the L2B I'll catch you on channels 19/33, handle "peanut"

[mayedd]

I've never got on with mag mounts...

were you at the bluewater run where I hit a tee with it and it just fell off joe???

the same happened on the motorway on the way to l2b last year...

both me and Rosie have got gutter mount ones... works best with the ft aeriel... roughly the same price as the magmounts, and a hell of a lot better...

If you need a hand fitting them, give me a shout and i'll come over and do it with you one day mate... you're hardly far from me

Cheers

Tom

Gutter mounts do have the advantage of being more secure but make the antenna directional which is not to bad for local use (car to car) but for DX'ing (long distance) can be an issue.