Point of fact is I'm getting LESS performance from my CB than when using my handheld. Its almost a sore point for me - how to get that extra 100 ft by working on the antenna versus dropping it into a lake and using a bull horn.

I would say the the ONLY advantage of CB over ham is that most Jeepers have it. Me, I'm sold on ham now.

Ham radio is great stuff. But, roughly how far are you getting with that CB? What was the terrain? Were your trail buddies also having similar difficulty with range? Something sounds amiss when you're talking a hundred feet of improvement. :thinking:

Im just saying i had it tuned...wether or not it helped.......who knows ......but it makes me feel better to think it did:thumbsup:

I think I can send about a mile, but it has to be damn good conditions. Othertimes I get out of the Jeep, walk the 30 ft to my buddy, then slap them in the back of the head for not answering me. I don't understand why nobody wants to go with me twice.:thinking: Damn POS radio.

Well...I'd have to see that for myself. Meaning I would have to be the one holding the field strength meter and seeing the results with my own eyes. Because unless they've found a way to change the laws of physics.......ah...er RF I mean,....lol then I'd have to call BS to that. The only other thing that I can think of is that because of these small antennas, then the optimal distance between them, and still have them both resonate properly, may also grow closer.....that "may" be the case. But if so, I'd really have to see just HOW MUCH "increased gain" they are getting at 4' to be able to justify buying another whole antenna/coax setup. It may be gain that only the most precision instruments may be able to pick up and not a cheap CB. I agree there are variables, and that's one thing that can make dealing with RF such a pain. But from 9' down to 4.....well that's a pretty big leap.

You know for yourself that there are reasons yagi antenna elements, the driven, directors and reflectors, are spaced as they are. There are formulas that dictate this. This is no different.

But I must say that there is one thing where most HAMs do agree, is that it all looks good on paper, but until you put it up and try it you'll never know.

Wow I just learned more about radios in 3 minutes reading this thread than i did in my entire Ham Technician review class. lol, just kidding.

I have a uniden 520xl pro and a the Ultramount bracket connecting inside my license plate bracket. The only problem i ever run into is that people can usually hear me but I can't hear them (mostly if they are in the front or rear of the pack). This usually only happens when i run my 3ft firestik versus the 4ft Firefly which actually reaches above the hardtop. I bought these at the actual firestik shop in Phoenix and they said the 4ft one is better because it's coiled more towards the top of the antenna which will get the signal out above the jeep versus the 3ft firestik. I use the 3ft one in town so that i can pull into the garage without banging anything. Problem is I usually forget to swap it out with the 4ft one when hitting the trails.

For most intents and purposes on the trail though, the cb setup i have works fine. It's not "tweaked" but I'm able to hear just about everyone and they can hear me. For talking the long distances I have the Ham radio but most jeepers here in Vegas don't have one. The group I used to run with in Phoenix almost all had Ham radios. It was awesome! We'd talk on Simplex after splitting up after a trail run and we'd just keep on talking for miles and miles almost until we were at home. Even on the trail in rough terrain these ham radios have incredible ranges versus the CB.

Glad I didn't throw away my hooker amp

I picked up a cheap Uniden 520XL and a 3' Firestik II, with good line of sight I transmit and receive people 15-20 miles away clearly.
That's a little more than 2.5 miles??

I've been running peaked radios for years and I also run amps that will push 1500 watts ! But the first thing that needs to be altered is your charging system to run these amps! From voltage regulators and high output alternators to 2 or more high output batteries just to maintain peak power! It's a very complex thing to do! And can really mess with your electronics in a jeep! I would leave that to the suburbans and big rigs on the road! Lol
In my jeep I run a power adjusted cobra 29 that dead keys at 2 watts and swings to 28 watts perfect for talking up to 5+miles NO PROBLEM with no amp and a Wilson tunable fire stick whip! And I live in the northeast where buildings and trees and roads and all kinds of communication sources block signals! So out in the open my radio will talk for miles

Gmrs
 

GMRS radios work fairly good too and solve the license issue of the Ham (as you license the radio essentially). Even a cheap camping store pair of these handhelds work great on the trail. Much better than some of the better CB setups I have had in fact. Plus for the cost, you can have 7 or 10 of them laying around and just pass them out to the other members on the trail ride with a fresh set of batteries. Also, you can invest in a surplus VHF mobile radio and have it programmed to LEGALLY use on GMRS and Ham frequencies. This is a great solution if you are so inclinded. The GMRS handheld idea works great too because if for some reason somebody has to get out of the rig and walk, you simply take the radio with you...also prevents theft and vandilism...