[Niteninja01]

Sorry for all the questions.

I just installed my cb, and I get nothing from it. Meaning I have nothing but static. Should I have run the power and ground right to the battery? I just bought a add-a-fuse and grounded it to the inside where all the fuses are. It's a cobra but I can't remember what brand, and I have a k40 wip.

Now I do have a amp and subs in my truck could it be from that? I don't have the power wires near each other if that makes a difference. I just don't get it. I had this same setup in my focus and it worked (only when the car was off don't know why) but it did work. I tried to turn the truck off to see if I could hear anyone talking and nothing. I turned my radio off also just to make sure. I tried everything and still nothing. Any help would be great.

 

[Perdue]

If the radio didn't work in your other vehicle either, it's probably the radio. It's hard to tell what's actually wrong with it though.

 

[deanler]

I have the one in my winter beater just plugged into a cigarette lighter, it doesn't need to go to the battery. Mines a cobra ltd29. You probably just have some siwtches in the wrong spots and need to dial that biatch in, take a picture of the faceplate and I might be able to help

 

[Duranged408]

Was it tuned with a swr?

 

[Niteninja01]

Was it tuned with a swr?

no it wasn't. I can't find any cb shop around my area to help me with this thing.

This is a pic of it deanler

 

[Venumb]

no it wasn't. I can't find any cb shop around my area to help me with this thing.

This is a pic of it deanler

Should work fine running it off the fuse box. Did you check the CB's inline fuse?

I see you listen to beats and breaks (808 cd)?

 

[jmaack727]

You shouldng need to tune SWRs with it so you can hear something that is only for transmitting iirc. I had that radio a long time ago and it isnt that great. I would bet its the radio. (edit It CAN affect reception I would get it tuned)

If you want a new on galaxy and connex radios are nice. I had a galaxy 33 peaked and tuned with more echo added to it feeding a 225 watt kicker amp and a wilson 2000 trucker antenna on my truck. That thing would walk.

 

[Niteninja01]

Should work fine running it off the fuse box. Did you check the CB's inline fuse?

I see you listen to beats and breaks (808 cd)?

Yea I just checked it. Maybe the wire is not big enough? I just pulled a fuse and stuck the wire under the fuse and put it back in.

And yes that is the 808 cd lol

 

[jixer]

Tuning is a good idea. Where is the anntena mounted? You should be able to turn it to ch 19 with the squelch down all the way and hear something, even with a low end radio. Mine is just ran to the power outlet in my console. Do you have alot of extra antenna wire? They need to be short as possible, and not rolled up tightly. Just some ideas :huh: I dont usually hear much (its a cheap setup mostly just off road use so 5 miles is good) until i get around the interstate.

 

[jmaack727]

Go to radioshack and buy a swr powermeter / tuner for like 20$. Its a good investment i left mine inline all the time. Then you can tune it yourself.

 

[ColoDak]

just to let you know, most of those all digital CB's, regardless of who made them (cobra, Uniden, Midland) are super cheap and don't work worth a damn. They're internals are very susceptible to the slightest imperfection in your setup: poor swr, poor grounds (power or antenna mount) voltage spikes, even hard jostling in transit.

When I put a Uniden in my semi, unbeknown to me there was a ground issue at the antenna mounts, after keying the mike maybe a dozen times +/- it fried the internals and all would get was static unless the truck was off and the person I was talking to was within 100 yd of me, and even then, typically they could not hear me but I could hear them. Sent the radio back to Uniden for repair, they gave me the option of money back or a new radio. I took the money back and went with a Cobra 29LTD Classic, that was promptly stolen 3 months later when the semi was broken into.

 

[deanler]

oh its one of those...... hahaha you need to get yourself one of these guysss

 

[Niteninja01]

Tuning is a good idea. Where is the anntena mounted? You should be able to turn it to ch 19 with the squelch down all the way and hear something, even with a low end radio. Mine is just ran to the power outlet in my console. Do you have alot of extra antenna wire? They need to be short as possible, and not rolled up tightly. Just some ideas :huh: I dont usually hear much (its a cheap setup mostly just off road use so 5 miles is good) until i get around the interstate.

I got it mounted on the hood. It's a k40, it's about 5 feet tall. And there is alot of extra cord I kinda looped it around itself and stuck it under the carpet.

Yea, it's a cheapo. I only paid $25 for it and the whip. The whip alone is worth around $70 I can recall. I'm saving for a better one.

How do I tune the thing when I buy the tunner?

 

[Niteninja01]

What do you guys think about this cb? http://milwaukee.craigslist.org/pts/1565633320.html

 

[scdakota]

i run a 25 ltd in mine with a fiberglass whip on the bed and get out great last i checked it was close to about 10 miles the only trouble i had at first was making sure i had a good ground at the antenna end so might want to check that and you don't want coil up the extra coax cable you would want to run it around the cab under the carpet or something like thator replace it with shorter cable i run no longer then 12 or 10 ft cable

 

[Niteninja01]

Can I buy just the cable? It's a magnet mount. Wouldn't I have to buy another base with a shorter cable?

 

[scdakota]

ok so you got the magnet mount then no you can't replace the cable you could make it shorter but i wouldn't suggest that it is set for that length of cable it would be best to just snake it under the carpet around the cab of the truck cause that one comes with a 18 ft attached cable that is soddered to the base of the mount above the magnet i always buy the whip antennas that you have to mount the the truck itself so i have full control over the length of the coax

 

[Niteninja01]

Ok, I'll try to run it around the truck. Or would it be better just to buy a different whip? Like a fiberglass one that mountsto the fender to get a better ground, or do they both basicly ground out the same? I've heard that with the fiberglass whip that I would have to put more ground straps onto my truck.

 

[fox racer]

put it on the roof since its magnet mount. i had the wilson "lil wil" and a cobra 29wx nw st in my truck.. i took it out since i got tired of hearing drivers argue over the air and not give you any helpful info on traffic or where the bears were hiding. got tired of replacing mics anyway. wires would always break and short out at the plug for me.

 

[Jimmy Dodge]

if you have a quality antenna like a K40 or a Lil Wil (Willson) magnetic base antenna, don't mess with the length of the coax cable. These things come factory matched and don't require any tuning.
Focus youtr attention on a new radio. I had a Cobra 19DX when I first started driving truck and it was a piece of $hit. You almost need to be touching the person your trying to talk to. 1/4 mile getting sketchy to talk to anyone, lol.

I now have a General Lee with lots of updates. If you key the mike and don't say anything (dead key) it will hit just hit over 50 watts, start talking (swing power) and it will nearly double.

nothing wrong with your setup, just buy a new radio