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not sure were to post plz help

What would be a good watt meter to have for in the vehicle? Or at home to use that is good straight out of the box.
 
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eagleeyes said:
Been looking around and reading. Been thinking about the galaxy 959. How good of a radio is it?
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It's a pretty good radio for am. It likes to drift on frequency when using it on ssb but when used in a base station setup where the ambient air temperature is fairly constant it doesn't drift as much. I had DTB Radio tune and align mine. If you buy one new,it's modulation and power levels are set very low but a good radio shop can tune it. Also my 959 dosen't need a power mic but I have one with echo.
 
There are many radio's that will be stronger performers on AM, the choice is really up to you. A done up Cobra 25/29, General Lee, Galaxy 33, Connex 3300HP, Magnum S3/S6, and probably several I left out.
 
Older side mic Cobras that were made in the Philippines and Taiwan were good, As well as the older Uniden radios. But as they are getting older, many have to have the caps replaced and some solder joints may need resoldering. Aside from that many of the older rigs are much more stabile on frequency than the newer, and just built better. The Galaxy 959 is still a nice radio too. I have a few Galaxy radios and I like them very much. I just like my old school radios better.

If chewing it up with the truckers is what you are interested in, then getting your HAM ticket probably isn't what you are after. Many truckers don't even have CBs anymore, let alone HAM radios. Some do though.

I still stick to my original statement, I'd concentrate on getting your antenna system as good as you can, buy some ground straps and RF bond your car/truck. If you are dead set on an amp, then start small. An older Palomar Elite 250 or 300, a Texas Star DX 250 or 350, or an RM Italy KL203 or KL503. With an amplifier, the first 100W is the biggest difference you will see in performance. To gain 1 S-unit on the receiving radio's meter you need a 6 db gain in power output. Doubling your output gives you 3 db gain. So for 1 S-unit you need four times the power. There is no magic formula for distance either. The old myth about figuring 1 mile per watt is a total fabrication. The difference in distance you see won't be nearly as impressive as you are expecting.
 
eagleeyes said:
How would I even start learning for a ham liscence? What all does it take? Why get a ham liscence? What can I do using a ham liscence?
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Getting your licence is easy enough with a bit of studying. The Tech class test is very basic electronics and more rules and regs. A simple Google search will find all the info needed. What a ham ticket will give you is world wide communications and much more frequency space to play on. For example I was talking to IK2WZM on my way home last night, if you look up his call you will see he is in Milan Italy. This was using about 75 watts from the car.

Back to the original issues, as has been said here, work on the antenna first. The antenna is by far the most important part of any radio system. The Wilson 1000 is a good antenna but if it's mag mounted then the mount is hurting its performance. Mag mounts are temp at best. Time to get the drill out and start making holes. For the best overall performance mount the antenna in the center of the roof. This gives it the most metal under it hence giving it the best ground plane to work off. Don't pinch the cable anywhere and keep the cable run as short as possible.

As was said about the amp, hold off on getting one but if you do as was said get a small one, something in the 100-150 watt range. Unless your goal is to key over people and be "Channel Master" an amp is not needed on normal 11 work. If you looking to talk long range, give up on AM and look into getting an SSB radio. SSB (Single Side Band) is a different mode that will provide less noise and much longer range. Most of the really good skip on 11 meters is running ssb.

Have fun with it and if you decide to pursue your ham ticket feel free to ask question on here, there are a lot of hams here to help, we all started out somewhere.

73's

Chris
W9CLL
 
If you are mainly talking local and have some people causing interference, just try reducing the RF gain. With RF gain wide open, you are going to here everything that is out there.
 
Lil'Yeshua said:
It's a pretty good radio for am. It likes to drift on frequency when using it on ssb but when used in a base station setup where the ambient air temperature is fairly constant it doesn't drift as much. I had DTB Radio tune and align mine. If you buy one new,it's modulation and power levels are set very low but a good radio shop can tune it. Also my 959 dosen't need a power mic but I have one with echo.
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I got the dx949 on ebay from guy who has refurbs and peaks and aligns them before shipping. Mine sounds great, gets good reports. Galaxy DX 949 40 CH Am SSB CB Radio Early Dual MOSFETS 656955109499 | eBay

Im sure some would be skeptical of buying on ebay, but this guy had good feedback and worked out ok for me. Its the same as the 959 but does jot have the freq readout
 
I like the magnum s9 or s3. I dont own one. But are they illegal to own without a ham liscence? Or would it be ok to buy one so long as I dont go on fm?
 
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eagleeyes said:
I like the magnum s9 or s3. I dont own one. But are they illegal to own without a ham liscence? Or would it be ok to buy one so long as I dont go on fm?
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They are known as Exports. They are classified as 10 meter radios, but they are made to be converted to operate on 11 meter (aka CB). Once converted, they are illegal. But if you have a peak and tune to a standard CB, your FCC certified radio is no longer legal either.

Also, there is no law against owning, purchasing, or possessing a HAM radio without a license. It is illegal to transmit without a license.
 
The S series were discontinued.
http://www.mauldroppers.com/showthread.php?16472-No-more-Magnum-quot-S-quot-series-radios
http://www.walcottcb.com/magnum-s9-10-meter-radio-single-side-band-p-2504.html
http://www.worldwidedx.com/general-ham-radio-discussion/157339-new-ham-lots-questions.html
GI JOE'S CB RADIOS: MAGNUM RADIO - MAGNUM RADIOS LOWEST PRICES
Several radio shops have the S series on their line up but sometimes you have to click on the more info button or buy to see is it's presently offered.
{Cry_river}


Have you looked at the Stryker 955?
 
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I have not looked at the stryker 955. What about it? How good of a radio is it? Hows the quality of the radio and durability?
 
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