[Ian_Wallace]

Okay guys, just another thing that I need for my truck...what's your opinion on the most durable (off road shock) as well as the easiest to use? which brand would you choose? I need some options but I don't want to put a cheap piece of junk that doesn't work the way it should into my truck. Any help appreciated. -Ian

 

[79W-150]

I've got a K-40 rig with dual K-40 whips and have NO complaints at all. I've had it in my Z-28's, and now in my truck. Its small but not tiny and very durable.

-Chris

 

[Bill_L]

What units are the people on this site running? Which should I get? I am not real worried about price I just want to make sure that I get something good that will be able to talk to others while on a run.

I am looking for specific brands and modles. If you have mounting info for an 01 that is even better.

Bill

 

[JasonB]

I like my Cobra 75. It is the all-in-one radio with the controls in the mic itself. It is not super powreful, but it does work really well on the trail. Does okay on the highway also. It is not easily "tweaked" but is nice and compact. The hand unit plugs into a small 1"x1"x4" box that gets the power and attennea cables. I mounted the box under my center console and I can unscrew the mic and take it inside.

40 channel with 10 weather stations, automatic ch.9, scan, dual ch. watch, "sound tracker" noise reduction, etc.

 

[jprtroy]

What I use in my open top rok ready CJ-5 is a puney $39.95 P.O.S. Radio Shack TRC-45 (something like that) It's survived many rain storms, dust, mud, beer! Only complaint I have about the radio is the dispaly. It cant be seen easily with direct sun light on it.
It's small, compact, 40 ch, measely 4 watts out, does just fine for trail use. Not to concerned about hwy use, wouldnt be able to hear itover the road noise!. No bells & whistles on it, less to mess with! I didn't want to put an expensive radio in my Jeep for the express reason, I figured what ever radio I mounted wouldnt last long and at $39.95, it's pretty much a throw-a-way radio if it did get mucked up. I do have a HAM radio installed also, it's Mil. Spec rated, so I'm not worried about it and the elements.

Later....
Troy

 

[KS2A]

you might also consider a good handheld unit. cobra makes at least one that is still full power (4 watts). sometimes better than a mounted unit when you need to be out of the truck to help spot, or if you run quads, etc.
i run a uniden grant lt in my big truck at work. had a p&t done when i got it. swings 7 and up on the test box. cobra units are easy to p&t as well, and can generally swing higher than unidens. i used a cobra 29 when i first went on the road. great sounding radio. the major gripe i have about the lt is that the display is lit poorly. can easliy see the location of the knobs and dials, but the function labels aren't backlit like on the newer cobras. as far as the bells and whistles... unless you plan to be getting stuck like 5 miles from the middle of freaking nowhere by yourself, don't bother with side bands. the usb and lsb let your radio blast legally but you have to get good with the clarifer, and the person you are talking to needs to be just as good. also, the usb and lsb bleed over very bad on to the standard freqs, so you piss of the people talking on adjacent channels. not beneficial in a ohv park. things like auto squelch and noise limiters won't be worth much for about another 9 or 10 years. the 27 meg freqs that cbs use are in an 11 year cycle that gets affected by something that i don't fully understand, but the tech that bumped my radio does, and said that there is so much noise right now that a good radio has to be buttoned up (squelched tight) to avoid all the crap. ham guys can tell you more about this than i can. the best advice that i can give is be just as concerned about your lines and antennae as you are about your radio. its just as much a package as anything else us mudders get into. i like the k40 stubs, but they kept getting stolen off my semi, so i switched to a more cost effective firestick. good luck.

 

[rampage]

I was not happy with mounting ideas in my cab so I went with a Midland hand held unit. Everything is compact on the mic itself and in a pinch I uncradle it, slap the battry pack and attana in it and now I have a walk around radio. I stor it in the center comsole so its not seen. For an antenna (sp?) I bought a thru-glass modle that sticks to the rear glass behind the passanger side, and the external part sticks opposite. From the outside of the truck you would think it was a cellular antanna if you noticed it at all. No complaints and to be honest, I doubt I would give it up for a larger more powerful unit anyway. I bought two just because I like them so much. When I go wheeling with friends that don't have a radio I just hand them my spare. Real handy little buggers! $110 at Fry's. 4 watts, 10 weatherband, auto scan, ear/mic ports (love that feature for long trips. Bought a VOR headset for it.) I have got out maybe 5 miles I am guessing on I-5. Not too bad on reach, but could do better with some firesticks. Just don't like to advertise what I have in the truck......Been broke into before.

 

[TUNIS]

Ive got a cheap RS unit like Troy's. I talked to a guy who is into CB's and he recommended the Unidens! I was looking into the Cobra's until he said they were built poorly. Im looking at getting one of the following PRO Uniden units that he recommended:
PC-68LTW (w/ weather)
PC-68XL
PC-78LTW (w/ weather)
PC-78XL

 

[woody]

This discussion about Cobras, Radio Shacks, and Unidens and build quality is kinda amusing.

Uniden owns Cobra, and some radios are shared between the two lines, just labeled differently.

And from looking at the floor models of some of the Radio Shack "Classic" style CBs, Uniden is their supplier.

 

[TUNIS]

That's true, the two lines of CB's (Cobra & Uniden) look very identical, just the face plate it a bit different! I know nothing about Citizen Band Radios??? Just basically word of mouth...Im sure they are all good radios. As for my POS RS unit, the company who manufactured it is Tandy...for the price, its a pretty decent radio...by adding a SWR meter and tunable 4' Firestik antenna, I can tweak it a bit. Its pushing 4 watts right now (max allowed)! Its not too bad for a POS CB! :bigthumb:

 

[RedneckUF]

I would highly recommend a Superstar 121. I have two, one in my dodge and in my yota and i know a couple of people that run them. They have a lot of options, internal SWR meters, PA, roger beep, hi-mid-low frequencies, AM/FM frequencies and a few more i forgot about. I have never had any problems with mine, however they are a bit pricey.

Trip

 

[Camo]

I also recommend " The Deer Slayer " . This is what I've been using for only 2 years, but my grandpa has had his for about 5. I got mine through our hunting club. We use them because they have high and low channels. It gives you more privacy. There really durable and also have controls on the mic. If you are interested I can ask my grandpa where they got them. :bigthumb: