CBs in Jeeps

Wheeling. It's a lot easier to tell if the trail in front of you is clear for you to come up/go down/whatever if you have a CB, rather than getting out and hollering. A lot of places that are good for wheeling are bad for cell phone reception, plus if you have a group of more than two, a CB is more efficient in communicating "We're turning left at this fork" or "What trail do y'all want to do now?" or "Bathroom break" than a cell phone.

Besides, the chatter on the CB during a wheeling trip is sometimes half the fun. =)

Tirya

-- TDC Inca Jeeper A dirty Jeep is a happy Jeep.

Secondly,..if

No flame here... it's a reasonable question.

A CB is more dependable than a cell phone in the boonies, works better over longer distances than FRS and doesn't require a license like GMRS. CB also has the benefit of being capable of being installed in the Jeep rather than relying on batteries and remembering to bring the durn thing. As for the noise issue, if you buy a decent one with a front-firing speaker or add a remote speaker, you'll be able to hear the thing. A cell phone is good for emergencies on the road, but if you're travelling in a group, you'll want to be able to communicate with everyone at the same time.

Of course, if you don't travel or wheel in a group, you probably don't need one.

--------------------------------------------- Mike Polo remove noharvest. to reply

The word bipartisan usually means some larger-than-usual deception is being carried out.

Secondly,..if

A decision to drive within the confines of road law could have saved you the $$$ of the CB, RG58 cable, PL259, and antenna.. offroaders use them to warn each other of upcoming obstacles and for general chatter.. now, it seems to me that CB has always been used in that way.. of course, not all obstacles are 'bears in the air'..

-- History is only the past if we choose to do nothing about it..

Secondly,..if

AH! That makes perfect sense. I guess I never really thought about it that way. Allen

Secondly,..if

On or about Sat, 22 Nov 2003, snipped-for-privacy@columbus.rr.com of snipped-for-privacy@columbus.r...:

Cellular coverage isn't universal in all parts of the country. If your phone can't find a tower, it can't connect you to anyone.

Consider a half-dozen Jeeps strung out over a quarter mile of trail. You're the last guy in the line and you find the only rock in the swamp. You're high-centered in mud, and 20' further from the nearest tree than your winch line will reach. How do you call your buddies for help?

...to communicate on the trail.

CB = Good communication on large group / club rides, and possible able to help in an emergency. Anyone can use one openly ( both a good and bad thing )

CELL PHONE = Good an ordering pizza as long as you are not in the boonies. Most places in Utah I wheel have very limited coverage, and the cell phone is useless. It is too easy to get out of range to be used as a back country emergency device

FRS = (Family Radio Service, like those Motorola hand held radios) We use this often for family communication. Easy to just loan to someone in the other jeep, or take with you on a hike. Ok for lightweight communication, ~2 mile range on open land, but drop into a slick rock hole and them may not work 100 yards.

HAM RADIO = What I trust in my own jeep for emergency communication. Requires a FCC license. I can easily have a crisp conversation over 100 miles away, and often talk 200 miles on a simply 2 meter radio. Repeaters are common all over the country, and those will send your signal much father and are common frequencies where other users and trained emergency personnel can listen. Excellent for emergency communication, and communication with other hams. Also non-licensed people can use the radio under supervision of a licensed ham. Also important to know that in case of true emergency anyone can use a ham radio to get assistance.

Secondly,..if

a licensed ham.

Not exactly. A non-licensed third party is permitted to participate in a transmission made for that third party if under the immediate supervision and control of the Control Operator for that station, not just any licensed ham. [FCC rule 97.115]

Also important to know that in case of true emergency

Also, not exactly. The rules permit a non-licensed person to transmit on a ham station in an emergency situation invilving the immediate safety of human life and protection of property, but only if normal communications systems are not available (i.e., phone, cell phone, CB, etc.). [FCC Rules 97.401-407.]

Moral: Get a Ham license. Its not that hard, and a Ham radio is far more effective for obtaining emergency assistance in remote areas than either a CB or a cell phone. Personally, I have all three in my jeep.

Robert Bills KG6LMV Orange County CA

I wheel with a bunch of folks from this newsgroup and we are all getting to know each other. A CB allows chatter and saves a lot of time standing at the top or bottom of a climb, side of a bog, etc., shooting the s*it.

Same for upcoming things, If I have issues going through something with my 33's, then I can warn the stock vehicles behind me to take the bypass.

The CB is also good running in a convoy to the trail head. If someone wants to pass from the rear we all have notice of him coming and if it is safe we can ride the shoulder to give him room.

It also can help in a bad situation.

We did a week long summer run with a bunch from here and one came in later in the week to join us. He got on the wrong trail and had his axle shift back so his driveshaft fell on the ground. He's lost, springs are hanging all over the place with a snapped center pin, setting up to try and do something about it and he heard one of us on the CB. He tagged her, she has a wicked powered unit and she sat on a hill while we all fanned out trying to get a signal. One gent did, so we all went that way. Took less than a half hour to pin him down with signal strength. We made short work of getting him back running. 6 or

Search and rescue will also listen in on CB if they know the missing party has one. Channel 9 is still the unofficial emergency channel.

Cell phones are useless up here in Canada. Once you are 20 miles off a main highway, no coverage. You also can't talk to everyone at once like on a CB.

Mike

snipped-for-privacy@columbus.rr.com wrote:

Hey, that looks like a callsign from one of those ancient CB licenses.

(Had one in the 60's, but can't remember what it was.)

Robert Bills KG6LMV Orange County CA

I second the corrections that Robert made on my original post. I was getting tired of posting but wanted to add to the group and not being specific enough. He is 100% correct. My point is that CB's have their place, but an amateur radio is a more reliable and more powerful source of radio communication. Find a local ham club and find out what it takes to get licensed, it is not that difficult and the ham hobby fits in well with the jeep hobby. The FCC test is not difficult and is well worth having.

supervision of

Have you ever tried to talk to your friend when he is over 100 yards away? That's why we have CBs. It isn't for the highway, it's for the trail. A cellphone won't work in many places where we go wheeling, and the CB is free to use, unlike the phone minutes. And, with the phone, you have to constantly dial the damn thing, and you can only talk at one person at a time, but with a CB, there is no dialing and everybody on the channel hears you.

Stop bucking the system, for Christ's sake and get yourself a damn radio! Sheesh.

Secondly,..if

On Sat, 22 Nov 2003 19:20:17 -0500 in rec.autos.makers.jeep+willys, Mike Romain was alleged to have written:

Down here in the USA, use of ch. 9 for emergency communications or traveler assistance only is fully official. 47 CFR 95.407.b

They don't routinely monitor it now up here in Canada I was told a few years back.

Mike

David Harm>