Go get a SWR ( standing wave ratio ) meter and check the plane.. ideally you wanna see the standing ratio at one or below when keyed. You also if the tool is available get ahold of a antenna analyzer and check reflect and plane dispersion on the vechicle..
Ok i kid, just check the SWR"S and call it good.. Im running around 300 watts so its kinda necessary to do all that.
An SWR of <1:1 isn't possible... either theoretically or in the real world
An SWR is a relative index of impedience mismatch and 1:1 is "perfect"
and in CB terms will only be achieved in 7-10 channels
I have a $350 piece of equipment that measures feedpoint impediance
to within two decimal places, and an FCC licence that says I know
what I'm talking about.
Next WHY are you runing 300Watts?
In radio terms you are an "alligator", great big mouth but no ears
You can talk to people who can't talk back to you.
In essence you are only making it very difficult for everyone else
to hear by increasing the noise floor on the band.
Are you REALLY running 300Watts? how big are the wires
feeding your amp? a REAL 300watt amplifier (I have one
for the 2meter amateur band) requires 60Amps and cables
with the copper conductor about as fat as a pencil(6ga wire)
also a 300watt AM amplifier is about the size of TWO School textbooks
and by weight is mostly heatsink. think "big" audio amplifier
like one of the 900w Sony Xplod amplifiers
It's not like an audio amplifier where the amp has to put
out 300watts on peaks, an AM CB amplifier "wastes" most of
it's power generating a carrier wave and essentially must
produce that output continuously for the entire time you
hold down the Mic button.
an SSB amp would be considerably smaller, lighter and less
power hungry, so would only draw about 40amps peak.
Even if you really have 300watts and a good antenna system to use it
and are running Single Side Band it won't necissarily help.
I operate on the 10meter Amateur band (28-30MHz, where CB is 26-27MHz)mostly in the N/T section of the band where there is a restriction to 200watts... and even with a communications grade transceiver that cost more than EVERY CB owned by a TRS member put together is the "band" (atmospheric propagation) doesn't want to cooperate you can't talk to anyone further than 25-50 miles and the 50 miles is sometimes "iffy".
When the band DOES want to cooperate I've talked to people in Japan, Tunisia, South Africa, New Zealand and Russia all on the same day!
Increasing from the 5watts to 50watts only increases the range of average communications on CB from it's normal 5-12 miles to about 18miles miles
Yeah you've talked to people further away on occasion...
I've managed to talk to people ~200miles away with only 5watts
On 145MHz... we were both on mountaintops with good (directional)
antennae, on an "average day" 45-50 miles is possible with 5watts (FM)
on 146Mhz.
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