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Where to get a powercord for an old CB radio(putting one in my car)
Some of my friends and I are putting cb's in our cars and trucks. I have an old Midland from our 81 van, but I dont have a powercord. Can you still buy them? where?
Midland probably doesnt carry them. Usually stop stocking/making parts after it becomes 10 years old. I would say ebay possibly. Maybe time for a new CD
yeah Id say go with a new one you can get them anywhere from truckstops to walmart. your better off getting a good one and getting it tuned by someone that knows cbs good. also if you havent figured out an antenna yet you can get a splicer and splice into your radio antenna. but if you get a good one and a good tune you should reach 5-6 miles east enough. Where are you mounting it ? and yeah a good electronics store should carry things like" for the old one " that maybe even radio shack
I was thinking the same thing. Somebody has been watching to much TV late at night. LOL.
I'll check with a friend of mine he may have one laying around somewhere. I'll PM you if he does.
yeah Id say go with a new one you can get them anywhere from truckstops to walmart. your better off getting a good one and getting it tuned by someone that knows cbs good. also if you havent figured out an antenna yet you can get a splicer and splice into your radio antenna. but if you get a good one and a good tune you should reach 5-6 miles east enough. Where are you mounting it ? and yeah a good electronics store should carry things like" for the old one " that maybe even radio shack
No, don't ever connect a CB radio to a standard AM/FM antenna (even through a splitter) unless you only want to listen. AM/FM antennas are passive devices designed only for reception not for transmitting. You will never get a good match at any reasonable power level (the splitter box has an SWR matching screw but it greatly reduces output). I've known people who have tried this setup and been lucky to get a couple of hundred yards transmission distance.
You can use a single antenna but you need to buy a good CB antenna and then put the proper splitter on the RG58 or RG59 coax cable for AM/FM takeoff. You also need to get a "no ground plane" (NGP) antenna since our cars have almost no metal in the body.
Firestik makes a 5/8 wave, base-loaded NGP antenna that can be mounted in place of the factory AM/FM antenna on the right quarter panel. It's called the Venice and it looks almost like factory equipment when installed properly. Here's what it looks like on my T/A:
BTW, the only way a standard CB (without an illegal linear amp) will transmit five miles is in perfect weather conditions from the top of a hill. Expect two to three miles to be the normal range.
Last edited by WhiteBird00; 10-12-2020 at 09:18 AM.
Reason: Replace missing photo
i always thought it would be interesting to have a CB in my car. between SATB and DOH, it always looked cool. where do yall have the CB mounted? something cheaper and more practical might be the new 2 way radios with the 5 mile range(with proper liscensing).
I have one of those all-in-the-handset CB radios from Cobra because I couldn't find a good place to mount a regular CB radio. The biggest disadvantage was the tiny speaker in the handset made it impossible to hear much of the time. So I got one of those external amplified speakers designed for radar detectors, took it apart, and mounted it next to the TCS switch.
Cobra CB
CB speaker
Those FRS/GMRS radios will give you better range (as you said - with the proper $75 GMRS license) but they might not be pratical unless you have someone you want to talk to that also has one. CB may not have the range but it sure is nice to be able to find out about traffic, etc. from truckers. Oh, and beware of the so-called privacy channels - they don't really provide privacy, they're nothing more than a selective squelch control.
Last edited by WhiteBird00; 10-12-2020 at 09:21 AM.
Reason: Replace missing photos
Listen to Whitebird00. He is dead on! When I was a truck driver I had an 800 watt kicker (amp) and could barely reach 5 miles at times but I drowned out every one local though. Just hit any truck stop. If you are really gonna get into this. Invest in a quality noise canceling mic. The best on out there is a Telex Road-King 56 http://bobscb.com/microphones/turner/rk56b.htm
Never get a power mic.
have fun!
09-01-2005, 07:22 PM
Where to get a powercord for an old CB radio(putting one in my car) 
