Adding better antenna to CB?

EDIT: Fixed link to proper CB
I am installing a CB here soon thinking it'll be this one

$44 Uniden PRO505XL 40-Channel CB Radio. Pro-Series, Compact Design. Public Address (PA) Function. Instant Emergency Channel 9, External Speaker Jack, Large Easy to Read Display. - Black

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005ZLB0E4/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&th=1

Question,
Is it worth it to add a better antenna then it comes stock with for better range/better reception? (I know the proper antenna can make a difference with HAM) Is CB just limited by the watts? If a better antenna will make a difference, what one would you recommend for the above CB?

Thanks!

 

The radio you have linked to is not a CB, it is a GMRS radio.
I don't know a whole lot about GMRS radios, but I wouldn't run a CB antenna with it. I'd be getting a GMRS specific antenna, if it needs one.

Edit: this is the CB I run. It is also a Midland, and has NOAA & PA functions.

Midland® 1001LWX - 40 Channel CB Radio Long Range 4-Watt Output Power for Truckers Overlanding RZR and Side by Side - NOAA Weather Radio Scan Alert - Digital Tuning and LCD Display

https://www.amazon.com/Midland-1001...adio&qid=1585679035&sprefix=midland+cb&sr=8-8

 

OP: be aware depending on what you run there maybe FCC licenses involved.

 

Crap, I linked the wrong one.

$44 Uniden PRO505XL 40-Channel CB Radio. Pro-Series, Compact Design. Public Address (PA) Function. Instant Emergency Channel 9, External Speaker Jack, Large Easy to Read Display. - Black

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005ZLB0E4/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&th=1

 

I run a 3' firestick. The bigger, the better. I'd run a 102" whip if it wasn't so impractical.

 

@WileECoyote

 

Really, I clearly need guidance on a good mounted CB too...

 

That is incorrect, GMRS does require a license. Costs $70 and is good for 10 years. FRS does not need a license. Those are walkie talkies that can be picked up at Walmart.

 

Thank you for correcting me. I get gmrs/frs radios mixed up.

 

Only reason I remember is because I know FRS stands for family radio services, and the "family" is what helps me remember.

 

Technically you get a license when you purchase/own a CB. The FCC does not abdicate its regulation powers.

 

The whole HAM license issue is a hotly debated topic. LOL

 

I run a 6' firestik. Bigger is always better as cb is limited almost exclusively to LOS. I get about 10-12 miles in open areas, it drops down to 2-5 in the city and is dependent on interferences like RF and structures or even vegetation.

 

I'll open the can of worms...
What's a "great" CB?

 

None, they're pretty mediocre. I have a strong dislike for them. Had multiple CBs, multiple antennas, tuned properly, different antenna locations, etc. All were mediocre at best, hard to understand my friends. We went to little $30 ham handhelds and the difference is night and day. The license isn't hard or expensive either.

 

I was just looking for coms on the trail, not much more. Most of the guys I run with have handheld "walkie talkies"
I'd prefer to have HAM and CB in the rig at some point as they have different uses IMHO (CB can't talk to HAM)
In a perfect world, the CB would have mic controls so I can mount the box under the seat and out of the way.

 

That's all I use mine for is trail comms. If most of the guys you run with use walkie talkies, why not just get that? Or get a GMRS set up. That license doesn't require a test, and those can talk to FRS radios (walkie talkies), and be either vehicle-mounted or handheld units.

 

So

$165 Midland – MXT275 MicroMobile® GMRS Radio – 15 watts Two-Way Radio with Integrated Control Microphone – Overland Caravanning Tractors – Detachable External Magnetic Mount Antenna - 8 Repeater Channels

https://www.amazon.com/Midland-Micr...+15W+GMRS&qid=1585682111&s=electronics&sr=1-3 might be a good choice?

 

Technically if you can if you are on the right 11 meter frequency and modify the crap out of your cb. Now if you want to communicate to cb with ham, you have to ensure that you can somehow keep it at or under 4 watts to not break any federal regulations. Now you run into the problem of sourcing or creating the correct antenna..

Just something I researched as I was interested in doing something like that. It's more trouble than it's worth, which is why it hasn't been done before and both are kept as seperate systems.

 

Midland makes some nice radios if that's the route you want to go. You'll get much better range and clarity out of it vs a CB, plus the antennas are much smaller and less obtrusive. Then just slowly convince others to get them as well so you can all benefit from the increased range. For reference, the FRS radios operate at 1/2 watt. That one you have linked is 15 watts.