Do you have a CB radio in your bus?

[Rayzer69]

I used to drive OTR, had a CB and it was pretty much useless back then, just a bunch of yayhoos bullshitting and causing hate and discontent. That was back in '98. Took a long trip back in 2012, thought a CB might be useful but found out that it is as obsolete as an 8-Track tape player now.

[HolyBus]

I guess I can ditch my 8 track then. Plenty of restored 70s cars here with them.

[EastCoastCB]

My 71 LTD had an original 8 track player. I'd definitely rather listen to CB banter.

[nat_ster]

There is one in my Chevy truck. It was there when I got it from the guy in his 70's.

I have never turned it on. Likely never will.

I like the way the black wheels, big antenna's, and white truck trips the young a$sholes out when they are ripping up the road.

Sometimes I park in the ditch to take a call, or have lunch. People all slow down when passing me thinking I'm a police truck. lol

Nat

[REDD]

Kept my 40 channel Cobra [from almost 20 years ago] thought I'd throw it the bus for shitz and giggles.....ain't going to cost anything.

Don't have an 8 TRACK player any more, but I have a case of 8 TRACK tapes on a shelf in the basement....thinks there's around 34 tapes in it. Aerosmith, Dylan, Pink Floyd, Stones, Zappa, Zon etc.

[jazty]

I considered a CB (actually have one in the shed), but I'm not sure I'll go ahead with the installation. I don't think I'd actually get much real use out of it. It's important to know the other primary means of communicating with the big guys on the road, though: lights.

Instead of describing it myself, I'll let this wee article do the job: Understanding Trucker Signals | Broken Secrets

[c_hasbeen]

I had a nice little cb radio in my jeep I just sold to get $pendage to buy a bus, the thing I liked about it was it also had the weather radio built in and I could turn to that and get the latest weather.
Also had a good time visiting with people from where ever passing through on the big road.

[EastCoastCB]

Originally Posted by REDD

Kept my 40 channel Cobra [from almost 20 years ago] thought I'd throw it the bus for shitz and giggles.....ain't going to cost anything.

Don't have an 8 TRACK player any more, but I have a case of 8 TRACK tapes on a shelf in the basement....thinks there's around 34 tapes in it. Aerosmith, Dylan, Pink Floyd, Stones, Zappa, Zon etc.

Every time I find 8 tracks for sale somewhere, there's always a copy of a Molly Hatchet album.

[crazycal]

Let's hope this won't be the theme of my life.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGefwaELWY4

[REDD]

Originally Posted by jazty

I considered a CB (actually have one in the shed), but I'm not sure I'll go ahead with the installation. I don't think I'd actually get much real use out of it. It's important to know the other primary means of communicating with the big guys on the road, though: lights.

Instead of describing it myself, I'll let this wee article do the job: Understanding Trucker Signals | Broken Secrets

Drove big rig from '83 to 2000, used the CB for traffic in Toronto, which Hwy's to stay off of.....legal. Talkin' on cell phone, illegal and sometimes no signal. A lot of drivers will help if they're in within an ear shot away. And yes there's a clown or two on the air. I'll only use it to head north of the city, best route, get off the highway before it's to late.

[REDD]

Originally Posted by EastCoastCB

Every time I find 8 tracks for sale somewhere, there's always a copy of a Molly Hatchet album.

No Molly on 8 TRACK or album[closest I've got is Skynyrd], but I do have it on cassette an CD, lol.

[Algoma Boondockers]

I have planned to install one in ours. I have beautiful retro Cobra CB going in. Great back up communication.

[Tango]

I'm not a big fan of all the "good buddy" chatter but do plan on having a CB on board. Just for traffic and emergencies. As noted earlier, cell phones are usually pulling zero bars just when you need them most...stuck out in the boonies. With a CB at least you have a chance of getting a message relayed to whatever help you might need. A shortwave set could do the same but is more costly and complex.

[Skunky Bus]

Originally Posted by Tango

I'm not a big fan of all the "good buddy" chatter but do plan on having a CB on board. Just for traffic and emergencies. As noted earlier, cell phones are usually pulling zero bars just when you need them most...stuck out in the boonies. With a CB at least you have a chance of getting a message relayed to whatever help you might need. A shortwave set could do the same but is more costly and complex.

I've got one in the Winnebago that Dad put there back in '76. Haven't tested it in a long time but if it still works OK I'll transfer it to my bus. (It's fitting that both Winnie and Wayne are same model year.)

A couple years ago - the most recent time I visited a truck-stop store - they still stocked new CBs: probably because of the problems related to cell phones. My employer (Student Transp. of America) uses 'em for communicating on board the buses. EZer to use than cell phones especially while in motion.

[Scooternj]

Originally Posted by Skunky Bus

My employer (Student Transp. of America) uses 'em for communicating on board the buses. EZer to use than cell phones especially while in motion.

And more legal than using cellphones too.

I'll probably be adding one to Captain Obvious at some point, while adding an antenna mount and wiring while the front cap is open.

[Rayzer69]

Out in the "boonies" where there is no cell reception, one would be more likely to get help by doing smoke signals than getting someone on a cb.

The imagined security by having an obsolete device in a vehical is the same level of security a child recieves from their wooby. Lol

It would be a more wise endeavor to avoid being stuck out in the boonies by either not going out in the boonies or making sure that you are actually prepared to deal with and survive being stuck out in the boonies, i.e. making sure your vehical is in good working order. Having the proper, non obsolete gear to sustain yourself in the event that something goes wrong.

As far as their usefulness for traffic? A c.b. is much less useful than your eyes and experience. Often, the information you get from some chucklehead on the radio is completely wrong and can make a bad situation where there was none to begin with.

The last several years that I drove otr, I only turned my radio on at the shipper or reciever for them to let me know when and what dock to back into. That is because I figured out long ago that it was useless for any other purpose. The only drivers that had their radios on going down the road, had them on because they thought it would help them with traffic, because they had very little experience and did not know how to use their eyes. So, it would be absurd to rely on people with little experience and an inabilty to use their eyes, to help with traffic.

Stone in the stream. Once you understand that concept, there is no traffic that you can't deal with.

There is one other type that keeps their radios on while driving and those are "chicken truckers". They are the ones who are always speeding or running hot on their logs or both and are constantly trying to get "smokey reports" They are also useless and dangerous.

[dond]

So Rayzer, is that a NO?

[EastCoastCB]

I have a really nice Realistic emergency cb that takes up a lot less space than a dash mounted radio. Takes a minute to deploy and tucks away almost anywhere.
I used to live near a thrift store and this was found outside in the dumpster new in box about a decade ago.

[wrenchtech]

I used to use a CB radio all the time when I was it driving big trucks across country. That was back in the mid to late 90s or early 2000’s. Back then I would not have been without one. I found them useful and entertaining. The drama of the trucking world and the truckstops was better to me than listening to an AM FM radio or Music CDs. Although I did enjoy books on tape. Now I think I would be leaning towards satellite radio and podcasts streamed off the Internet. On a recent trip from Colorado to Wisconsin I had a CB with me and I was glad I did. I would even consider investing in a top-quality rig with a very good set of antennas, and maybe some signal boosting enhancements. I noticed they’re still selling the gear in truckstops so folks must be using them. One reason why there is probably less need for CB radios is that the current speed limits are so high but there’s really not much need to speed if you’re driving a big truck or a bus, and therefore no reason to be seeking out information about the location of smoky bear and the county Mountie.

[Johnny5]

A lot of interesting thoughts on this thread! Last time I had my hands on a CB, it was a factory option in my Chrysler Cordoba. I'm sure they've come a long way since then.