CB radio

[cKarlGo]

Do people still use them? My new Itasca has the wiring in place to install one, but I'm not sure it's worth the expense to purchase and install.

Thoughts?

[bluwtr49]

Ronnie1538 wrote:
when you are sitting in the traffic, and you are wondering what's going on up ahead, if you had a radio, you wouldn't have to wonder, you would know. Worth their weight in gold.

I have found that the GPS does a great job on informing me where a traffic problem is was well as the expected delay. I may not know exactly what the problem is but I know where and than I can hit the detour button and let the GPS do it's GPS thing.

On the other hand, this thing is called a motor home for a reason so even setting in a parking lot waiting for traffic to clear is simple.

[wny_pat1]

sch911 wrote:

hmknightnc wrote:

robsouth wrote:
A cell phone is not going to tell you about that accident 3 miles ahead on the interstate and alert you to take an alternative route or sit in traffic for a couple of hours. I find the CB still very useful. Maybe that is because I actually use it and not just leave it turned off. Trucker jargon is not nearly as bad as it once was and usually just conversation with the occasional "bad mouth" that most of the other truckers seem to ignore as well nowadays.

X2

Yes a cell smartphone absolutely will! Google maps handles those tasks very nicely. The data stream that Google maps generates includes real time traffic, telling you exactly where the backup starts and ends, and what the incident is. Don't forget, every car on that road with an android phone or iPhone running Google maps is a real time data point and you don't even have to get cussed at by a trucker to use it. Many people don't realize they have such a powerful traffic tracking tool right in their pocket.

My experience this last over 4000 mile long trip - No warning on my real time traffic service on my GPS, waited almost a hour at various accident backups, and after we started flowing again, the "real time traffic" sounded the alert after the fact. A couple of other times it did help me avoid backups.

CB was very quiet, but got a couple answers when I shouted out for some info. I was running a CB in tractor trailer way back in early 1970s, and know the benefit of having one. To many loud mouths have ruined a good thing, and that is a shame.

[Pogoil]

I Use it all the time, it is free and informs me when stuck in traffic.

A smart phone cost $50 a month. Do not have one.

Pogoil.

[pa_traveler]

Put it this way ,your stuck in a traffic backup for hours,instead of that many times with a CB you can avoid the mess,or get off before it and eat lunch take a nap ect.Also mine is a cobra has weather alert,nice to be warned of bad weather. In the three years we have had it,we knew what was up ,car fire ,accident ect ,were able to avoid long traffic jams that weren't moving. How can that not be helpful?

[J-Rooster]

I'm a retired truck driver and after using a CB Radio for 44-1/4 years, I never want to listen to another one! I have no desire to have one in my coach. My coach came with a CB antenna and the wiring harness when it was new, but I didn't want to hook one up in my coach.

[Ronnie1538]

when you are sitting in the traffic, and you are wondering what's going on up ahead, if you had a radio, you wouldn't have to wonder, you would know. Worth their weight in gold.

[mike-uswest]

In a lot of areas that I go hunting and camping, you will find that these fancy smart phones are not so smart, and the CB works well to keep track of others in your party.

Mike

[TARDIS_TIME_TRA]

We have a CB in the TARDIS. My wife can't stand it(trucker jargon etc.). We do find the weather channel to be useful while traveling and she likes that feature. Its also nice to be able to stay in contact with the other folks you are traveling with...

[sch911]

hmknightnc wrote:

robsouth wrote:
A cell phone is not going to tell you about that accident 3 miles ahead on the interstate and alert you to take an alternative route or sit in traffic for a couple of hours. I find the CB still very useful. Maybe that is because I actually use it and not just leave it turned off. Trucker jargon is not nearly as bad as it once was and usually just conversation with the occasional "bad mouth" that most of the other truckers seem to ignore as well nowadays.

X2

Yes a cell smartphone absolutely will! Google maps handles those tasks very nicely. The data stream that Google maps generates includes real time traffic, telling you exactly where the backup starts and ends, and what the incident is. Don't forget, every car on that road with an android phone or iPhone running Google maps is a real time data point and you don't even have to get cussed at by a trucker to use it. Many people don't realize they have such a powerful traffic tracking tool right in their pocket.

[hmknightnc]

robsouth wrote:
A cell phone is not going to tell you about that accident 3 miles ahead on the interstate and alert you to take an alternative route or sit in traffic for a couple of hours. I find the CB still very useful. Maybe that is because I actually use it and not just leave it turned off. Trucker jargon is not nearly as bad as it once was and usually just conversation with the occasional "bad mouth" that most of the other truckers seem to ignore as well nowadays.

X2

[robsouth]

A cell phone is not going to tell you about that accident 3 miles ahead on the interstate and alert you to take an alternative route or sit in traffic for a couple of hours. I find the CB still very useful. Maybe that is because I actually use it and not just leave it turned off. Trucker jargon is not nearly as bad as it once was and usually just conversation with the occasional "bad mouth" that most of the other truckers seem to ignore as well nowadays.

[Oldme]

I installed on several months ago.
The wife asked why?

Lots of areas we have been in have NO cell coverage.

Last month we spent 3 weeks traveling out of state.
When we were 35 miles north of Montgomery Al on I85 all traffic stopped.
The interstate was closed for more than 48 hours due to a semi that
crashed and burned.

Thanks to the CB we were kept informed and after a 3+ hour detour on
back country roads everyone was rolling again.

The CB also was used to inform everyone of a road hazard on the detour.

If you do not like the chatter, you have a squelch and most likely RF gain you can cut out distant transmissions.

[sch911]

Any smart phone can handle the weather alerts and notifications. CB's are really a thing of the past nowadays....

[DandSW]

When I got my current motorhome it came with CB wiring in place. Since I had a radio from a previous installation, I wired it in. Use it about 5% of the time in our travels and then only for entertainment, listening to "good old boy" trucker chatter. If I had to buy a radio, don't think I'd have one.