what you are getting is called skip. it is when the radio waves bounce off the ionasphere. it is like pool, you bounce the ball (radio waves) off the walls (atmosphere). most of the time you can here them but can t talk back. it just has to do with the weather. cloudy, and rainy days are usually the best beacause there is more to bounce off of. i get into that in this past summer was the best in quite a few years! i was talking to people in tenessee, kentucky, all around that area everyday. sometimes you could pick up the midwest. but your setup has to be at peak performance. ground, ground, ground! that is the best thing you can do. the guy that does my cb work (major stuff) has a bronco II and he has ground straps to all the doors, hatch, and hood. and then a modified 102" whip (has a big coil in the middle). he runs a connex 3300hp that makes 80 watts, and then runs a fatboy 1000 linear amplifier. he can be heard all over the country and his handle is "2 watt willy" like i said in the post above, your WHOLE car is the antenna!

 

You say that a guy was running a connex 3300hp that makes 80 watts?! Was this a citizens band radio? If it was I thought the max they could have was 4 watts. Is there anyway you can take them to a cb shop to get them tuned to peak at more power? Do you know any tricks you can do besides grounding them better? I haven't even hooked it up to my Jeep yet, I just have the antennae lying vertical beside the house, and as a matter of fact it was rainy and cloudy today; i'm going to do a search on some stuff you mentioned...Thanks, Bubba

 

Wow that's an expensive radio! I bet that 10 meter is worth it though.

 

yeah bubba, ten meter defiantly worth it. my galaxy 95t2 dead keys at 70 and max is 230 watts. my connex 4300 hp dead keys at 35 and max at 120 watts. so if i need to be heard i just turn the power up. and we all know more power is good. problem with the big radio is even hooked up to battery the week alternator wont keep up to charge the battery.

 

yeah, i know some stuff to do to the cobra 29. but my connexs i take to the cb guy. yes the fcc regulates the power output to 5 watts, most radios come through with 4. it all depends on how you test the output, most antennas are 50 ohms, you can either put more or less ohms (can t remember which) and make it look like it is actually making way more power. cobras, unidens, and some galaxys are a transistor powered. the connexs, rangers, bigger galaxies, magnums, strykers, and other 10 meters have what are called pills, which is what is used in a linear amplifier. the bigger radios also have a power gain and you can adjust the peak power it makes, and also another adjustment to set the key. swing is modulation, and modulation is power. you want a key up power of about 5 to 50 watts. then when you talk your voice changes to modulation which makes the meter move to your peak power. if you have a meter, key the mike and see where it is, then say "hhhhheeeelllllloooooo" you can watch the meter really move. to run a linear you must run a "dead key" of 2 to 3 watts. you can t have much key up power cause it will burn your linear up, but that is other equipment which takes a good radio, and setup to have.

 

also yes you are SUPPOST to have a ameuter licence to have a 10 meter radio. only use the cb frequenices if you do not. the fcc is listening and you can be traced and fined big dollars. i go through and listen every once in awhile. some frequencies you can hear morse code, others is just beeping, and even people from other parts of the world.

if you want to spend the money i suggest a connex 3300hp. they run about $200. a 4300 is about $350, and the 4600 turbo is about $500. but that one is a 2 pill and makes 300 plus watts.

other wise just get a cobra 29, have it peaked and tuned. should make a good 15 to 20 watts. then get a good noise cancelling mike. this will be a good setup!

the ametuer radios do take power! and they do get very hot! my connex 4300 made almost a 100 watts, and i could not talk on it more than one minute. i am trying to figure out how to put a small computer fan on it so it kicks on when i key the mike.

the 10 meter radio is used in on the ocean, and in avaition. so once again i highly reccomend not talking on the other channels.

 

hey greasemonkey, my 4300 i never turn my "rf power" knob up. unless i have to. always at lowest setting and stays pretty cool and can talk for long time. the computer fans with the gaurd on top ive seen done and are very low power consumptions. my 95t2 has a buiilt in fan and depends on power level and internal temp before the fan comes on. but leave it off and in the sun and it still comes on. i think the connex is a better built radio because of the adjustable echo. the big galaxy's have internal echo boards and not externally adjustable. turn your power down and see if runs cooler. maybe. let me know.

 

i keep it about half. i am talking about when i have it full power, when i talk skip. never know you might hear me, i go by tireguy, central pa.

 

my power is set at lowest setting but mic gain at highest as well as rf gain at high. im sure you have a good noise canceling mike so you should talk for hours of course the more power you put in those toshiba transistors the hotter the board gets. keep power no more than 1/4 and the echo no more than 1/4 and you should get seven to ten mile with a good antenna. i love the 4300 and wouldnt trade it for anyhing. but it sure is fun to tun the power all the way and make the little cb's on the trail melt.

 

yeah i like my 4300 too. i run the rk 56 noise cancel mike, the best in my opinion. i don t like the echo, i just tap it a little so i can get a little more modulation (what echo is made for!) the rf gain is not power or anything, it is a more fine tune for the scwelch. i have my mic gain half, power half most of the time. you only get 10 miles? i talk to a buddy everyday after work, and he works a good 20 miles from me (pretty flat terrain though). try turning your mic gain back and turn the power up a little more. it is up to you but i like a good strong signal, i can t stand some of these truckers who have the echo turned up too much and don t know how to keep the damn thing tuned. oh well.