I'm thinking of getting a motorola 2-way radio vs. a CB What do you guys think?? pros/cons

anyone have the 2-way?? I know a bunch of you have CB's

What kind of 2-way? One of the Family Radio Service (FRS) ones? They work well, but the range won't be as good as a CB with a good external antenna.

CBs seem to be the most popular with the wheelin' crowd, so I'd still keep a CB handy.

If you want a REAL radio, get a 2 meter :D License is easy to get and only costs $7.

Ask the people you're going to go wheeling with what they've got, they're the ones you'll be trying to communicate with. Assimilation to your peers is always acceptable.

i'd like to have the 2 way radios but then again i'd like to have cb's. they seem to both have there good points. i think i'll just get both!:flipoff2:

When I go out with my brother we bring along some of the family band radios. I have a CB in both my vehicles because that's what most of the people I go out with have.

I would say go with a CB first and then have a family band for when you're out with someone who doesn't have a CB. Remember that if you are out with friends and only have family band radios and there is a problem, you won't be able to reach anyone else out there who might be able to help. The likelyhood of finding someone else on the trail with a CB is much better.

I think I might go with both.

The reason is that with the motorola 2-way you can communicate with someone (IE: spotter) without any other interference form other wanna-be spotters (should there be any).

But I defintely agree that a CB is better if you need emergency assistance from someone outside my wheelin' group.

I was origionally gonna get a pair of those sweet Cherokee AH-27F (http://www.bills2way.com/equip/ah27f.html) handheld CB's, but they look kinda bulky compared to the 2-way's.

So I think i'll get the two-ways and a under-dash-mounted CB.

Anyone have experience with those 2-way's on the trail?? I'll mostly be wheeling in the rockies.

I think the CB is definitely the first one to get for the trails. Most people out there have one and you're much more likely to get help if you need it with a CB. I have a couple of the FRS radios and they're great when you're with a small group that wants a private, secondary conversation or with people that don't have CBs. The FRS radios definitely don't have the range of a CB however. They're useful for their own purposes, but for most wheelers, a CB is a much better investment.

-J

I have some two ways I bring with me wheelin just for the hell of it. The only thing that sucks is they use alot of battery's If you can get some that have charger cradles or something that would be cool otherwise you better stock up AA's

Originally posted by Rockbuggy
I have some two ways I bring with me wheelin just for the hell of it. The only thing that sucks is they use alot of battery's If you can get some that have charger cradles or something that would be cool otherwise you better stock up AA's

The ones I'm thinking of are quoted as having 35hrs of batt. life with a 5% talk and receive time. is that a realistic estimate of the amount of time on them when used for chatting or spotting (which would be my primary use)??

I have both also.

And like others have said - both have strengths and weaknesses, makes it really hard to say which is better.

CB - more others are likely to have - in my case, just to talk to within the group - not for emergencies as there's never anyone else within even CB range.

FRS are GREAT for clearer comms at short range, and are ideal for spotter / driver comms. They can be difficult to hear at hwy speeds with a soft top and Swampers howling.

And they do eat the AAs. 5% is a VERY low duty cycle - that means out of every hour and a half, you get less than 5 minutes of talking and listening.

We went out on a trip, after an hour drive to the trail chatting along the way, by the time we got to the trail, they were dead.

The strange thing is, it's hard to find DC adapters for them I can only guess because they are usually made by companies that also make CB's and they don't want to canabalize their own market, since the FRS are really made for famillies at the mall or disneyland (for which they are AWESOME), plus kids love to play "secret agent" with them - much better than the old "walkie talkies" we had years ago.

Summary - get both. You can't replace the CB, but these have great strengths and are super useful to have.

Interestingly, Radio Shack have just come out with an FRS designed for in-car - with a little external mag mount antennae (works well as it doesn't require the ground plane of a CB ant - so it doesn't suck like mag CB ant.) and a cig lighter plug in. The whole radio is in the CB sized mic - there is nothing else. Cool

But don't most hand held CB's use AA'a also.

Maybe I should just stick with an in/under dash CB huh?? I really don't like changing batteries all the time especially since all I want to do wheel at the time ya know....

the good handheld Cbs, use 10 AA or have an adapter to a Cig lighter plug.

they use 10 AA vs 8 so that you can use rechargeable batteries and stil get decent useage.

you can rig almost any handheld CB to work with a cig plug if you can solder and have some wire.

buy a cheap one, look for a uniden Karate radio, I bought one on ebay for $9, 3 more for shipping, and its a great portable radio that come swiht power plug ( cig lighter) and Mag mount antenna)

all cables are included, a very simple, reliable littel unit, thats works well.

the GMRS radios have better range than the frs, and its $35 for 5 years licsence fee.

but I say go CB

Originally posted by Cliffhanger


The ones I'm thinking of are quoted as having 35hrs of batt. life with a 5% talk and receive time. is that a realistic estimate of the amount of time on them when used for chatting or spotting (which would be my primary use)??

nope! :D the ones I have say they'll last like 15 hours but usually end up going through a couple sets of battery's a day. Just depends on how much you talk on them. The Standby time lasts pretty good..