Installing CB in a 1999 Ford Ranger?
Ok, so I've been wanting a CB for a long time now and finally bought
one - a Uniden PC78 Elite Bearcat, 40 channels & all the goodies you
could ever want.
I've got a 1999 poor man's Ford Ranger (branded as a Mazda B-2500).
Here's my trouble:
1. Electrical connection is supposed to be made to the ignition
accessory connection. Don't know where that is.
2. Can't figure out the best place to mount the thing. Anybody who's
been in a Ford Ranger knows they're rather cozy. Mine has a 5-speed
manual, which eats up all the space over the hump up against the dash.
Anybody want to help out?
more tidbits about mounting up a CB
Quote:
Originally Posted by RoadTripper301
You probably have two wires comming out from your CB (red +) (black -),Red being power and Black the ground. The easiest way could be to take a ride to radio shack and getting a fused cig. lighter adapter.
Your CB may have a inline fuse already in the (red +) wire, cut the fuse out crimp the wires and use the fuse in the tip of your pre-wired fused cig. lighter adapter. This is a real easy way to get your CB powered and can be very easily removed possibly to use it another car if you wanted.
Some additional info and alternative opinions from a nearly lifelong radio guy-
(the moderator invited me)
1) Radio Shack sells a cigarette lighter plug that has spring-loaded connections. Press the + button on it and stuff the red wire into the hole.
Press the - button and install the black wire. Now you have connection.
Simple and effective. Not permanent nor pretty though.
I suggest that you do NOT cut out the inline fuse from the radio's original wires. A second fuse in the line does no harm at all. The sole issue might be that there is more wire length than you really need that needs to be neatly tie-wrapped out of the way. These spring connectors are how I power my (removable) CB and several police scanners in my vehicles.
2) There is a different approach to taking power from "the ignition." In the autparts store in the fuses & accessories section there is a Buss Fuses (brand name) product HHA Accessory called Add-A-Line. This is kind of a piggyback fuse block that plugs into a normal fuse socket just like a fuse but it also brings out a hot wire that can be used to connect power to an accessory (like a CB). This creates a clever and tidy solution to finding power. Some thinking and testing will be required of you though. I suggest that you solder the wire connection and use heat-shrink tubing to insulate it. Small diameter crimped connections seem to slip too easily for my taste.
3) I jam the CB and/or the scanner between the passenger seat cushion and the center console. I use a magnetic antenna. I hang an external speaker from the passenger's headrest on a nylon webbings strap so it's up and in the clear for good audio. When I want the radio out of the car it comes out in about 30 seconds. And I can hide the magnetic antenna easily so it's not obvious in a parking lot.
4) In the couple of months since I appeared on this board with my screen name I have yet to hear anything civilized on CB Channel 9. Channel 19 is still mostly pottymouths. I get better road info from the police scanner.
I drive at least 10 hrs/wk commuting 100 mi/day so I have lots of listening time. (Still running the experiment.) If you expect CB to provide help and support I assert that it's not very useful. If you have friends to talk to - have at it. Please don't be a pottymouth. I already know ALL those words and some you might not know yet. (Navy trained)
noFanofCB
You have never heard me....
Quote:
Originally Posted by noFanofCB
I already know ALL those words and some you might not know yet. (Navy trained)
Yeah, but you haven't heard my verbage inventory when I have been inconvenienced by someone who considers their multiple-choice lane choices to be more important than the safe flow of traffic around them...
Fuses and wires and "funny circuits"
Quote:
Originally Posted by RoadTripper301
Not cutting out the inline fuse and keeping two fuses in the same circut for me would not be in your best interest.
Electrical circuts can be very funny, for whatever reason your circut would trip, having two fuses could lead to only one of them blowing. I won't say it is likely to happen but but I can say it could be very poss. Why take the risk in damaging your radio, a quick snip it's gone a, a quick crimp you can put one right back.
I kept the inline fuse and remebered how flimsy the casing for the fuse was, and how easy it was to alway pop it open. Just keep in mind that flimsy holder being wedged somewhere and how easy it could be popped open, hehe. Bring Marshmellows.
steve
Sounds like you hit a bad fuseholder design somewhere in the past. I haven't seen anything like that in better than 35 years of dinking with radios. But I don't doubt that it could have happened. A fuseholder is a connector and connectors are THE most evil electronic component in common use.
Having 2 fuses in series might be conFUSEing (pun intentional) if one blows but there is NO risk of radio damage from their presence. Think of it as belt plus suspenders - a fuse is, after all, a safety device. The other thing to think about is that the manufacturer of the CB put in the right sized fuse. The manufacturer of the cig lighter adapter probably didn't since they don't know what you are powering.
I'll be driving home tonight with 2 scanners running, both of which have TWO fuses inline just like they always have. No worries.
noFanofCB
Never leave home without it
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lunja
While we're here, I'd like to ask a couple of questions about CB's. Me, my girlfriend, and two friends are going to do a trip down from Vancouver, into Utah, through AZ, into CA and along the West Coast highway back into Canada, in early September. We will be working in Canada for 2+ months and will buy a cell phone for emergencies, but we understand that there will be large parts of the trip (especially through UT, AZ and NV) that will have little or no cell reception, so we were thinking of getting a CB.
Welcome to the Forum! This is considerably less true than it used to. With rare exceptions, just about all major roads in the west have some degree of cell coverage these days. While it true that you can find huge chunks of territory without much reception I am continously amazed where I do find coverage. Yesterday I was about 60 miles from any paved highway in southern Nevada and I had perfect cell coverage. CB radios can play a vital role in emergency communications and I recommend them -- in fact I rarely go anywhere without one on-board. Here is an overview to CB radios I wrote a few months ago --
Quote:
Now, we've seen Midland handheld models for around $60(US) on Amazon.com, so do you thin this will suit us? Also, are there any channels which are used for specific purposes? I've heard that channel 9 is used for emergencies, but is this correct?
Personally I am not fond of the smaller units, but many posters on this board like to use them. Most drivers monitor Channel 19 for highway use and Channel 9 is the official emergency channel.
Mark
