I wanted to add this to the other thread but it was locked...hopefully it's okay if I post this here.
I just came back to view my previous thread and was a little surprised to see the discussion regarding my articles.
Three points I'd like to make -
#1) I'm not a radio tech - my knowledge is better than your average CB user, but much less than most Ham radio operators or radio technicians.
#2) I publish my magazine because I love CB radio and found that although there is a plethora of information available in forums and such - there is a serious lack of full articles to read about the hobby in general (either technical or entertainment wise). In addition - the information in many forums is often temporary and is deleted over time. I've often searched online on google and found what I thought was the information I needed only to be lead to a dead link. My project is to provide a history of fun and informative articles.
#3) I don't get paid - I pay money to host my website. My google ads mostly pay .01 when someone clicks on them and I put that money towards the hosting costs. I write my articles to try to provide entertainment and useful real-world information.
Summary - I appreciate that freecell made the comment that he is not attacking me personally - but believes some of my article information is incorrect. I have no problem with that comment....but - if you are going to take the time to point out that I've done something wrong, for god's sake please email me with your opinion and points and if it is made aware to me that I am giving incorrect information I would either correct or remove my article.
As I am quite aware of my knowledge and technical limitations & I AM ALWAYS OPEN TO HELPFUL SUGGESTIONS OR CORRECTIONS.
In response to my information being incorrect or misleading - sure it's possible, but most of my articles are merely opinion or simple facts....nothing too technical or dramatic. My mods listed all work, the PEP numbers I quote are always on the low side (I don't claim to be able to make a Cobra 29 do 100 watts). I'm sure my radio theory could be considered wrong here or there, but as mentioned I admit my mistakes and will correct whenever I can.
If anyone has information or wishes to help me write articles I would be overjoyed.
I've written 43 articles in the last 11 months in my spare time(which I don't have much of).
So all that being said - I have been rewarded personally by the very nice responses and help and entertainment I've been able to provide to my fellow CBer's which was always my true goal.
Best wishes to everyone
Blackwater Brew
The comments below are some of the responses I received and are the reason I keep on plugging away!
"I am looking forward to the next issue , keep ‘em coming ! Great info !"
".......Really Like your Site and would love to hear your oppinion,
Chris"
"Thanks so much for your web site, got a great deal of info from it. I am an old CBer at heart and it brought back a lot of memories of when I had my little shop in the Garage and use to repair a the CBs around where I lived for my friends"
"GOOD TOPIC: WHAT IS THE BEST SSB RADIO IN PRODUCTION AT THIS CURRENT TIME...I HAVE MY FAVORITE...2950DX......GOOD TOPIC FOR THE MAGAZINE"
"I did the frequency mod on the Cobra 200GTL DX last nite that you mentioned in your review of the Cobra 200 GTL DX…and everything you said about “tiny” was not an exaggeration ! However, the mod works great, and I didn’t have to ship it off somewhere for two weeks! Thanks guys…now I feel like I can accomplish anything! Hahah"
"hey dang it.....get busy ....lol here is a good topic: what is the best base station built right now??"
"Mission accomplished! I was able to trace the two wires from the RF Gain (stacked center knob in the 29 WX NW ST) by cutting the nylon wire ties loose and pulling slack as you suggested. I traced both a blue and a yellow wire down to the PCB where they were both marked “ rfg w 40, and rfg w39, duh….hahah..and I tied these together and used the RF gain pot successfully. My experience with the NW ST might be of value to some other modder, so I thought I would let you know FYI, Now to get out on the road and get some reports. I was only able to test the modulation using the Cobra external speaker with the talk back circuitry, it was much louder when the lower dead-key setting was at full counter clockwise as it should be I spose. Cant wait to get my KL 200P amp in line and test drive!
Thanks for all the help. I enjoy your magazine very much."
" I,m going to buy a small cb radio for occasional travel but won’t to buy a good one. Could you suggest 2 or 3 models and your ratings. Thanks
P.S. cobra 19dx 4 uniden pro520xl magnum 257 I have been looking at these."
"I thank you again for everything & I will check into that
forum also. Eventually bit by bit I'll get everything up & working.
Still a fun hobby too. When I get it all set I'll drop you a line & let you know how it all turned out."
"Dear cbradiomag,
I just visited your site and have to say that I am feeling many different feelings. All of them being good, of course. I am a cb’er going back to the early eighties at the age of 14 and I too miss the cb boom. Your article on audio monsters was fantastic. I have a Golden Eagle Mark 4a in excellent condition. And your article on the local cb shop saddens me. Before moving to Colorado from PA I lived less than a mile from a local cb shop that a guy had in the basement of his house for decades. This guy was a Browning Golden Eagle guru. As of 2001 he had a Tram D201A in beautiful condition, his own personal Mark 3 Eagle, a Mark 2 five piece set. Now that’s a collectors dream. Sadly, I called him last year, April 2006, and his health is failing. He said he can’t work on radios anymore. It’s a tragedy as finding these tube radio gurus is tough.
I still have a desire and burn for the interest in cb radio. Thank you for your web site. I will be reading all I can on it. I’m just getting started on it. I think it’s great to read about things that I understand and agree with. "
"Hello CB Radio Staff,
I will be driving cross country later this summer. I have a cell
phone and plan on getting weather updates as I go along but I am interested in a portable CB radio that I use in my car, ie cigarette adapter. I dont want an installed unit.
Do you have any recommendations for handheld portable CB radios that are good for chatting while on the long road trip, weather and for safety.
THnx"
"Hello, my name is Jesse and I'd like to tell you that I'm very impressed with the website. I do enjoy the hobby and honestly think that the website is the best out there. It really helps the newcomers when you run across informative and well put together websites. Keep up the good work and I'll be looking for the next installment!."
"Hello,
Was reading your page today. Good information, nice to see there is some CB life out there. I have a couple of questions if you don't mind."
"Thanks for all the feedback. It will sure help me narrow my search. I appreciate the time."
"Just read a post on Copper forums announcing your magazine so I decided to do a Google search and here I am. Just wanted to say nice rag. It's really nice to see some solid articles about the hobby. In your article "Could a decline in Cb'ers be a good thing" reminded me that CB is turning back into radio hobbyists, not just a fad or a way for people to do the "in" thing. Normal decent conversation is becomming the rule. It's kinda neat to see Monkey made antennas- I would've killed for one in the late 80's or a Dave Made. The tinkering to improve the hobby has come such a long way. I am now a Ham ( a class extra hammie ..lol) and spend the majority of my time there, but recently blew the dust of the old CB rig, and meet a group on 36 lsb.The hams I know aren't so prejudice and even are wowed at the 80kw mobiles that come to the line at keydowns- you have to respect a vehicle that can generate that much power if nothing else. Anyway, it's been nice reading your articles I will check back to see what's new. Keep up the good work..."
"Hello,
I had an idea for an article you could do. I was thinking that you should compare the RK56 mic and the 636L mic. Many people wounder which is better."
"I really like what you are doing with the site. The only suggestion I have is to change the blue letters for a different color. Blue lettering on a black background is hard to read."
"I read your magazine all the time and I want you to know how much I appreciate it! Please keep up the great work!"
"Great article on the 4 antennas was like I asked the question and got a great answer."
"Keep up the good work, I enjoy reading your web magazine! Lots of good stuff here. Thanks!"
"I just read your dipole article. I live in mililani Hawaii and have the same problem so this may be a good antenna.
I go by 49 on am if you are still in Hawaii.
Good website also."
I just came back to view my previous thread and was a little surprised to see the discussion regarding my articles.
Three points I'd like to make -
#1) I'm not a radio tech - my knowledge is better than your average CB user, but much less than most Ham radio operators or radio technicians.
#2) I publish my magazine because I love CB radio and found that although there is a plethora of information available in forums and such - there is a serious lack of full articles to read about the hobby in general (either technical or entertainment wise). In addition - the information in many forums is often temporary and is deleted over time. I've often searched online on google and found what I thought was the information I needed only to be lead to a dead link. My project is to provide a history of fun and informative articles.
#3) I don't get paid - I pay money to host my website. My google ads mostly pay .01 when someone clicks on them and I put that money towards the hosting costs. I write my articles to try to provide entertainment and useful real-world information.
Summary - I appreciate that freecell made the comment that he is not attacking me personally - but believes some of my article information is incorrect. I have no problem with that comment....but - if you are going to take the time to point out that I've done something wrong, for god's sake please email me with your opinion and points and if it is made aware to me that I am giving incorrect information I would either correct or remove my article.
As I am quite aware of my knowledge and technical limitations & I AM ALWAYS OPEN TO HELPFUL SUGGESTIONS OR CORRECTIONS.
In response to my information being incorrect or misleading - sure it's possible, but most of my articles are merely opinion or simple facts....nothing too technical or dramatic. My mods listed all work, the PEP numbers I quote are always on the low side (I don't claim to be able to make a Cobra 29 do 100 watts). I'm sure my radio theory could be considered wrong here or there, but as mentioned I admit my mistakes and will correct whenever I can.
If anyone has information or wishes to help me write articles I would be overjoyed.
I've written 43 articles in the last 11 months in my spare time(which I don't have much of).
So all that being said - I have been rewarded personally by the very nice responses and help and entertainment I've been able to provide to my fellow CBer's which was always my true goal.
Best wishes to everyone
Blackwater Brew
The comments below are some of the responses I received and are the reason I keep on plugging away!
"I am looking forward to the next issue , keep ‘em coming ! Great info !"
".......Really Like your Site and would love to hear your oppinion,
Chris"
"Thanks so much for your web site, got a great deal of info from it. I am an old CBer at heart and it brought back a lot of memories of when I had my little shop in the Garage and use to repair a the CBs around where I lived for my friends"
"GOOD TOPIC: WHAT IS THE BEST SSB RADIO IN PRODUCTION AT THIS CURRENT TIME...I HAVE MY FAVORITE...2950DX......GOOD TOPIC FOR THE MAGAZINE"
"I did the frequency mod on the Cobra 200GTL DX last nite that you mentioned in your review of the Cobra 200 GTL DX…and everything you said about “tiny” was not an exaggeration ! However, the mod works great, and I didn’t have to ship it off somewhere for two weeks! Thanks guys…now I feel like I can accomplish anything! Hahah"
"hey dang it.....get busy ....lol here is a good topic: what is the best base station built right now??"
"Mission accomplished! I was able to trace the two wires from the RF Gain (stacked center knob in the 29 WX NW ST) by cutting the nylon wire ties loose and pulling slack as you suggested. I traced both a blue and a yellow wire down to the PCB where they were both marked “ rfg w 40, and rfg w39, duh….hahah..and I tied these together and used the RF gain pot successfully. My experience with the NW ST might be of value to some other modder, so I thought I would let you know FYI, Now to get out on the road and get some reports. I was only able to test the modulation using the Cobra external speaker with the talk back circuitry, it was much louder when the lower dead-key setting was at full counter clockwise as it should be I spose. Cant wait to get my KL 200P amp in line and test drive!
Thanks for all the help. I enjoy your magazine very much."
" I,m going to buy a small cb radio for occasional travel but won’t to buy a good one. Could you suggest 2 or 3 models and your ratings. Thanks
P.S. cobra 19dx 4 uniden pro520xl magnum 257 I have been looking at these."
"I thank you again for everything & I will check into that
forum also. Eventually bit by bit I'll get everything up & working.
Still a fun hobby too. When I get it all set I'll drop you a line & let you know how it all turned out."
"Dear cbradiomag,
I just visited your site and have to say that I am feeling many different feelings. All of them being good, of course. I am a cb’er going back to the early eighties at the age of 14 and I too miss the cb boom. Your article on audio monsters was fantastic. I have a Golden Eagle Mark 4a in excellent condition. And your article on the local cb shop saddens me. Before moving to Colorado from PA I lived less than a mile from a local cb shop that a guy had in the basement of his house for decades. This guy was a Browning Golden Eagle guru. As of 2001 he had a Tram D201A in beautiful condition, his own personal Mark 3 Eagle, a Mark 2 five piece set. Now that’s a collectors dream. Sadly, I called him last year, April 2006, and his health is failing. He said he can’t work on radios anymore. It’s a tragedy as finding these tube radio gurus is tough.
I still have a desire and burn for the interest in cb radio. Thank you for your web site. I will be reading all I can on it. I’m just getting started on it. I think it’s great to read about things that I understand and agree with. "
"Hello CB Radio Staff,
I will be driving cross country later this summer. I have a cell
phone and plan on getting weather updates as I go along but I am interested in a portable CB radio that I use in my car, ie cigarette adapter. I dont want an installed unit.
Do you have any recommendations for handheld portable CB radios that are good for chatting while on the long road trip, weather and for safety.
THnx"
"Hello, my name is Jesse and I'd like to tell you that I'm very impressed with the website. I do enjoy the hobby and honestly think that the website is the best out there. It really helps the newcomers when you run across informative and well put together websites. Keep up the good work and I'll be looking for the next installment!."
"Hello,
Was reading your page today. Good information, nice to see there is some CB life out there. I have a couple of questions if you don't mind."
"Thanks for all the feedback. It will sure help me narrow my search. I appreciate the time."
"Just read a post on Copper forums announcing your magazine so I decided to do a Google search and here I am. Just wanted to say nice rag. It's really nice to see some solid articles about the hobby. In your article "Could a decline in Cb'ers be a good thing" reminded me that CB is turning back into radio hobbyists, not just a fad or a way for people to do the "in" thing. Normal decent conversation is becomming the rule. It's kinda neat to see Monkey made antennas- I would've killed for one in the late 80's or a Dave Made. The tinkering to improve the hobby has come such a long way. I am now a Ham ( a class extra hammie ..lol) and spend the majority of my time there, but recently blew the dust of the old CB rig, and meet a group on 36 lsb.The hams I know aren't so prejudice and even are wowed at the 80kw mobiles that come to the line at keydowns- you have to respect a vehicle that can generate that much power if nothing else. Anyway, it's been nice reading your articles I will check back to see what's new. Keep up the good work..."
"Hello,
I had an idea for an article you could do. I was thinking that you should compare the RK56 mic and the 636L mic. Many people wounder which is better."
"I really like what you are doing with the site. The only suggestion I have is to change the blue letters for a different color. Blue lettering on a black background is hard to read."
"I read your magazine all the time and I want you to know how much I appreciate it! Please keep up the great work!"
"Great article on the 4 antennas was like I asked the question and got a great answer."
"Keep up the good work, I enjoy reading your web magazine! Lots of good stuff here. Thanks!"
"I just read your dipole article. I live in mililani Hawaii and have the same problem so this may be a good antenna.
I go by 49 on am if you are still in Hawaii.
Good website also."
