We've all said it. In fact we say it a lot on our road trips. "Come back with that!" or "Say, what?" Let's don't forget the beloved squelch/squawk of someone's radio with a battery that has been coaxed back to life for the umpteenth time and is now driving everyone in the pod nuts as this radio is pulsing (gasping) at two second interval...for hours.

Our club has a communication meltdown. Our radios are old, tired, and gasping for breath. We need to do something, so I took it on as a project to see what can be done, to see what other clubs are using and to find out what works and what does not.

We all know how well our radio network is working. Our radios were primarily designed for close range broadcast. They are great for standing environments such as motels, hospitals, and rental yards. When the club originally got into our radios, they were indeed the best thing going at the time. They still are rather good for how we use them as long as the battery is up to snuff, the transceiver is dialed in, and there is a good line of sight between transmitter and receiver. But the problem is that many (read that as most) of the transceivers being used in our club have been poorly maintained and have cooked batteries. The older the radio is the more likely the working frequency has been affected. A cooked battery is one that has sat in a charger until the battery has become warm to the touch. This severally reduces charge life and output wattage. A battery uses chemical reaction to generate electricity. Prolonged heated chemicals in the battery reduces the chemical's ability create electricity. It's like overcooking bread. After short use the battery loses power and is no longer useful. In real terms: by Pitt School road you're out of the loop.

Many car clubs have adopted CB radios. Generally, the lead car and the donkey have hardwired radios in the car. The cars between the lead and the donkey use either a hardwired setup or a small handheld radio. Hardwired means the radio is hooked into the cars electrical system and the antenna is mounted externally on the car using a magnet or in Corvettes mounted extremely discretely on the license plate bracket. The antennaÕs length range from four inches to over five feet. The Corvetters prefer 18"-24".

CB radios are popular because they are reliable, have 40 channels to work in, can be easily set up to scan the other pods. The radios are cheaper to purchase, the batteries are cheaper to replace and quicker to recharge. With the antennas I've described earlier, the CB will greatly out perform our existing radios even though both systems are broadcasting out a total of 4 watts. It's the antenna that's the key here folks! Another advantage is that the cars using the small handheld radios can send and receive messages that will be picked up by the guys with the antennas-and conversely. That's a huge factor when the pod is strung out in traffic. That's why truckers are using CBs. Also, the small handheld makes it practical for multiple hot rod owners.

Marine and Ham radio would be the next level of communication but it is expensive and requires a rather sophisticated antenna system. A license is involved also.

Options:
• We can gather up all of our radios, take them into Banner Communications and get them all dialed in. Banner will charge $80/hr and it should take just a few hours to do 25-40 radios. EVERYONE get new batteries and we'll all be happy until we get to listen to the gasping radios of the people who didn't get their radio tuned up. New batteries can be obtained online at BatteryDepot.com ($25.95) or Batteries.com ($24.64).

• Invest in a new CB system. The most popular is the Cobra 75WX hardwire unit. All of the controls are in the hand unit with a 4"X6"X1" box hidden under the seat, dash or placed in the trunk. They start at about the $75 range on eBay. The handhelds are available at Wal-Mart $39-$79 or a Cobra handheld for $79 at Costco. The handhelds are sold usually in packages of two which is handy when you're on the roof in the crawl space.

What to do with my radio?! First, keep it. Use it for our car show. Or sell it on eBay-there are a lot of motel housekeepers who would like to have their own radio.

In conclusion: If it sounds like I have a preference or an agenda, I do. I have a club radio. It is dialed in and I have my batteries charged and stored in the fridge. It works very well. Unfortunately no one can understand me when I use it. I tend to our five club radios. Two have bad batteries, two transmit and can't receive, and one works intermittently. I can see no realistic remedy to our current communication fiasco. I have used and have seen what other clubs are using. The CB radio is their choice because IT DOES THE JOB. I plan to have this club vote on which radio type to use in the future. The vote will be part of the annual membership survey. If you have a question, give me a call.

Dave G. 432-0396

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