Posted-By: auto-faq 2.4ăArchive-name: radio/cb-faq/part2ăăRec.radio.cb Frequently Asked Questions (Part 2: Getting Started)ă-----------------------------------------------------------------ă[Last modified 2/9/93]ăăQuestions discussed in Part 2: (dates indicate last modification)ă* What is CB? (6/92)ă* Do I need a license to operate a CB radio? (1/93)ă - in the USA (6/92)ă - in Canada (2/93)ă - in the UK (6/92)ă - in Japan (6/92)ă - in Australia (1/93)ă - in France (6/92)ă - in Germany (6/92)ă - notes for all countries (6/92)ă* What are the CB Frequencies? (11/92)ă - in the USA (6/92)ă - in Canada (6/92)ă - in the UK (6/92)ă - in Australia (2/93)ă - in Japan (6/92)ă - in France (11/92)ă - in Germany (11/92)ă - in countries subscribing to the European CEPT conference (11/92)ă - in other countries (1/93)ă* What are the common brands of CB radios? (6/92)ă* What should I consider when choosing a location for my antenna? (7/92)ă* Once I hook up my CB and antenna, is the radio ready to use? (2/92)ă* What are good antenna characteristics and what are some good antennas? (6/92)ăă--Rec.radio.cb Frequently-asked Questions-----------------------------Part 2--ăă* What is CB?ă-------------ăăCB stands for "Citizen's Band" radio. It got that name because its main ideaăis to be a kind of radio anyone can use. Depending on the country you liveăin, it is either a minimally-regulated or an unregulated set of radio channelsăused for short-range (local) communications. Many people use CB radios inătheir vehicles, homes or both.ăăThis UseNet newsgroup "rec.radio.cb" is all about CB radio. The FAQ alsoăcovers non-licensed or minimally-regulated radio bands internationally.ăReaders can expect to find discussions, questions, and answers about legalăuses of CB and related bands here. There are also other newsgroups for otherăradio applications, such as rec.radio.shortwave, rec.radio.broadcasting, andăseveral subgroups of rec.radio.amateur, for amateur or "ham" radio. Radiosăeither wanted or for sale are the subject of rec.radio.swap. (Though, anăarticle about a CB radio for sale should be cross-posted to rec.radio.cb andărec.radio.swap with a distribution limited to your city, state or region.)ăăWe have to bring up one point because it has been a problem before: anyăencouragement of illegal activity is inappropriate because it is outside theăchartered scope of this newsgroup. Such illegal activity includes the use ofăillegal equipment or improper operating procedures. (An ongoing effort hasăbeen made to define what is legal in various countries. That depends on readerăinput.) However, acceptable (possibly borderline) topics include issues aboutălegality, how to deal with unruly CB users, and others.ăăă* Do I need a license to operate a CB radio?ă--------------------------------------------ăăThe answer to this question depends on the country you reside in. We currentlyăhave information on the USA, Australia, the UK, Japan, France, and Germany.ăNote that all of these are from e-mail reports contributed by readers. Asăregulations change, we can only keep up when people notify us. Please checkăyour local regulations since you are responsible to know and obey them.ăă--- in the USAăYou are no longer required to have a license to operate a CB radio in theăUnited States. The FCC (Federal Communications Commission) did at one timeărequire a Class "D" license for for Citizen's Band which required nothing moreăthan filling out a form and sending it in to the FCC with the license fee. TheăFCC then sent you a call sign which might look like "KPS 2720" or somethingăsimilar. During the CB craze in the mid-70's, the FCC decided that the paper-ăwork burden outweighed the benefits and put CB under blanket authorization.ăăThe FCC permits the use of the following to identify yourself:ă1. Your old Class D callsign, if you have one.ă2. K, your first and last initials, and your zip code (i.e. KPS 68123)ă3. your name (i.e. "Paul")ă4. some unique nickname or Handle (i.e. "Cobra", "Rubber Duck", etc.)ăăA rule change in May 1992 now allows one-way transmissions about highwayăconditions on CB. This was intended to allow local authorities to useăunattended audio warnings about road construction or other hazards.ăăIn the USA, there are two additional radio bands besides CB which are intendedăfor use with minimal regulation by individuals.ă1. GMRS, the General Mobile Radio Service, is located in the 460-470 MHză band. A license is required. More information is included in Part 4.ă2. The FCC has recently opened up the 31.0-31.3 GHz microwave band toă licensed users of several fixed and mobile radio services including GMRS.ăă--- in CanadaăNo license is required. You may identify yourself by your name or a handleăof your choice.ăă--- in the UKăA license is required in the UK. For licensing information and/or a set ofă"CB information sheets" you may contact the DTI (Department of Trade andăIndustry) at the following address: CB Licensing Section, RadiocommunicationsăAgency, Room 613, Waterloo Bridge House, Waterloo Road, London SE1 8UA, UK.ăThe telephone number is (+44) 71 215 2171.ăăThe UK will honor licenses from other countries using CEPT-approved radios.ă(See the CB Frequencies section below on CEPT for more information.) Yourălicense may be used under the terms from the country which issued it.ăă--- in JapanăNo license is required. You may identify yourself by your name or a handleăof your choice.ăă--- in AustraliaăAustralia's CB regulations are similar to what the USA had before it deregu-ălated CB. A license is required but there is no examination. At lastăreport, the annual fee was A$18. The government will issue a callsignăsuch as "VHSA 999" which includes the Australian prefix "VH", a code for theăstate (South Australia in this example) and a 3- or 4-numeral suffix.ăă--- in FranceăYou are required to obtain a license but there is no examination. At the timeăof this writing, the license costs 190FF every 5 years. You have to sendăFrance Telecom the "agreement number" from your radio. Once on the air, youămay identify yourself by your name or a handle of your choice.ăăFrance will honor licenses from other countries using CEPT-approved radios.ăYour license may be used under the terms from the country which issued it.ăă--- in GermanyăA license is required whether you plan to use FM or both AM and FM. Theă"agreement card" costs more if your radio also has AM. You may identifyăyourself by your name or a handle of your choice.ăăGermany will honor licenses from other countries using CEPT-approved radios.ăYour license may be used under the terms from the country which issued it.ăă--- notes for all countriesăThere are rules and regulations that must be complied with while using CB, noămatter which country you live in. If you don't have a list of those rulesă(which most likely were included with your CB), you will probably find them atăany store that sells CB radios.ăăă* What are the CB Frequencies?ă------------------------------ăăThe answer to this question depends on the country you reside in. We currentlyăhave information on Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark,ăFinland, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Japan, the Netherlands, Portugal,ăNorway, Sweden, the UK, the USA, and Vatican City.ăă--- in the USAăLegal CB transmitters use the operator's choice of AM (amplitude modulation)ă(with 4 watts maximum power) or single sideband (with 12 watts maximum power)ăon the following frequencies.ăă frequencies (MHz) modulation descriptionă 26.965 - 27.405 AM/SSB Citizen's Band (CB)ă 40 channels, max power 4W AM, 12W SSBă 1=26.965 11=27.085 21=27.215 31=27.315ă 2=26.975 12=27.105 22=27.225 32=27.325ă 3=26.985 13=27.115 23=27.255* 33=27.335ă 4=27.005 14=27.125 24=27.235* 34=27.345ă 5=27.015 15=27.135 25=27.245* 35=27.355ă 6=27.025 16=27.155 26=27.265 36=27.365ă 7=27.035 17=27.165 27=27.275 37=27.375ă 8=27.055 18=27.175 28=27.285 38=27.385ă 9=27.065 19=27.185 29=27.295 39=27.395ă 10=27.075 20=27.205 30=27.305 40=27.405ă 460 - 470 FM General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS)ă license required, see Part 4ă 31.0-31.3 GHz any mode microwave band now open for individualsă to use, requires GMRS license, see Part 4ăă * Channels 23-25 are not in ascending order due to historical reasons. CBă started with only 23 channels. Later, 24 and 25 filled a gap between 22ă and 23 and 26-40 were added in ascending order.ăăSpecial-use channels:ă 9 - emergency, monitored in some areas by "REACT", a volunteer groupă coordinated by the local Sheriff's office (not in all areas)ă 17 - unofficial "trucker's" channel (California & western states.)ă 19 - official "trucker's" channel for traffic and speed trap advisoriesă30-40 - Often are used for single sideband (SSB) activityăăNote that US regulations disallow "DX" long-distance communications (over 150ămiles in this case) with CB. However, directional antennas may be used toăenhance communications within the legal range.ăă--- in CanadaăThe CB frequencies, modulation, and power limits are the same as the 26-27 MHzăCB band in the USA.ăă--- in the UKăThe UK has 3 bands for CB as follows:ă frequencies (MHz) modulation descriptionă 26.965 - 27.405 FM 40 channels, same frequencies as USAă 4W max poweră radios using this band are marked "PR 27 GB"ă or "CEPT PR 27 GB" and are CEPT-approvedă 27.6 - 27.99 FM 40 channels, 0.01 MHz (10 kHz) spacingă 4W max poweră radios using this band are marked "27/81-UK"ă and are only legal in the UKă 934.0125-934.9625 FM 20 channels, 0.05 MHz (50 kHz) spacingă 4W max poweră radios using this band are markedă "CB 934/81" and are only legal in the UK,ă no new radios of this type are being madeă but existing equipment may continue to beă used legallyăăAntennas must be omnidirectional - beams and yagis are prohibited. Antennasămust stand vertically, no higher than 1.65m (not including ground plane.)ăăAM and FM are not compatible so a US-legal CB cannot communicate with anyăUK-legal CB even though they may use the same frequencies. And each is illegalăon the others' soil so this only prevents use of atmospheric skip between them.ăă--- in AustraliaăAustralia has 2 bands for CB. The use of AM or FM depends on the band.ă frequencies (MHz) modulation descriptionă 26.965 - 27.405 AM/SSB 40 channels, same frequencies as USAă max power: 4W AM, 12W SSB (same as USA)ă 476.500 - 477.475 FM 40 channels, .025 MHz (25 kHz) spacingăăAs the first of the two bands above shows, made-for-the-USA CB radios are legalăin Australia.ăăThe following AM/SSB band frequencies have special uses either by regulationăor by common usage:ăChannel 8 Road channel (truckers)ăChannel 9 Emergency (same as USA)ăChannel 11 AM callingăChannel 16/LSB SSB calling, also used for DX (distance)ăChannel 35/LSB unofficial additional SSB calling, also for DXăăA unique feature of Australia's 476-477 MHz band is that repeaters are allowed.ăInputs are on Channels 31-38 and outputs are on Channels 1-8. A repeater mustăuse the proper channel pair, i.e. 1/31 to 8/38. The maximum power output forăa repeater is 21W input. Note: as with repeaters on other bands, do not beginăto operate one without obtaining and fully understanding the applicableăregulations. Additional information about the technical aspects repeaterăoperation is available from amateur (Ham) radio sources such as the ARRLăHandbook.ăă--- in JapanăJapan has 3 radio bands that do not require licenses. Two of them are limitedăto extremely short-range use because of low power limits. The other, withămaximum power output of 5 watts, is more like CB as it is known in NorthăAmerica, Europe and Australia.ăă frequencies (MHz) modulation descriptionă 26.968 - 27.144 AM (no SSB) "Citizen's Radio" maximum power 0.5Wă channels 1-8 on 26.968, 26.967, 27.040,ă 27.080, 27.088, 27.112, 27.120, and 27.144.ă Other channels in between these are assignedă to fishing vessels (with 1W max power).ă 422.200 - 422.300 FM "Specific Low Power Radio", also known asă "UHF CB" maximum power 0.01W (10mW)ă 9 channels with 12.5 kHz spacing.ă newly-authorized in 1989, mostly used foră handy-talkies and ski patrolsă 903.0125-904.9875 FM "Personal Radio" maximum power 5Wă 158 channels with 12.5 kHz spacingă External antennas are permitted.ă Radios must be equipped with a control ROMă for automatic ID.ăăAs in Europe, made-for-the-USA CB radios are illegal in Japan. There haveăbeen cases where such radios have caused interference with maritime emergencyătraffic.ăă--- in FranceăFrance uses the same frequencies (in 40 channels) as the USA but also allowsăFM in the same band. The only legal CB radios in France are those which areăapproved by France Telecom.ăă frequencies (MHz) modulation descriptionă 26.965 - 27.405 AM/SSB/FM 40 channels, same frequencies as USAă max power: 1W AM, 4W SSB, 4W FMăăChannel 9 AM used to be for emergencies but was deregulated because no oneămonitored it for that purpose. Channel 19 AM is the calling channel (used toăestablish contact then move to another channel.) Channel 11 FM is used forăDX/skip long-distance contacts. Channel 27 AM is sometimes used as a callingăchannel for base stations (at home.) AM is the most commonly-used modulationămethod in France.ăăWhen traveling outside France, remember that most countries in the CEPTăconference do not permit the use of AM or SSB. France has adopted the CEPTărules for CB in Europe - see below for more information.ăă--- in GermanyăGermany also uses the same frequencies as the USA. AM and FM are the onlyălegal modes of modulation. (SSB is not allowed.) AM is only allowed on someăchannels.ăă frequencies (MHz) modulation descriptionă 26.965 - 27.405 AM/FM 40 channels, same frequencies as USAă max power: 1W AM and 4W FMă AM is allowed on Channels 4-15ă FM is allowed on all 40 channelsă SSB is not permittedă All signals must have vertical polarity.ăăChannel 4 FM is the calling channel. FM is the more commonly-used modulationămethod in Germany.ăăNotes: to meet the vertical polarity requirement, antennas must stand vert-ăically. Also, tone-call transceivers are allowed so you can use touch tonesăto call someone if they are within receiving range and have a radio that willărecognize the tones.ăăWhen traveling outside Germany, remember that most countries in the CEPTăconference do not permit the use of AM. Germany has adopted the CEPT rulesăfor CB in Europe - see below for more information.ăă--- in countries subscribing to the European CEPT conferenceăThe following countries have implemented the CEPT (Conference of EuropeanăPostal and Telecommunications administrations) recommendations T/R 20-02 andăT/R 20-07 for CB radios:ă Austria, Belgium, Cyprus (see Note 1), Denmark (see Note 2), Finland,ă France, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal (see Note 2), Norwayă (see Note 2), Sweden, United Kingdom, and Vatican City.ăăNotes:ă 1) as of last report, confirmation was pending in Cyprusă 2) special markings are required on the radios so, for example, UK radiosă marked "CEPT PR 27 GB" are legal but ones marked "PR 27 GB" are not.ă Radios from other countries may also be similarly affected.ăăCEPT approval is significant because, with the exceptions listed above, CEPT-ăapproved CBs from any one of the countries listed above can be used in anyăother on the list.ăă frequencies (MHz) modulation descriptionă 26.965 - 27.405 FM 40 channels, same frequencies as USAă 4W max powerăăIf you travel to another CEPT-conforming country, you may use your CB underăthe terms of your license from your own country. Be aware that only FM isăCEPT-approved so AM and SSB may not be legal to use once you cross the border.ă ăImportant note: CEPT-approved CB radios are not legal in the USA and made-for-ăthe-USA CB radios are not legal anywhere in Europe. The difference is becauseăCEPT radios use FM and American radios use AM or SSB. There are no agreementsăallowing a radio which is type-accepted in North America to be used in Europeăor vice versa.ăăChannel 19 appears to be the calling channel in most CEPT-conforming countries.ăWhen exceptions are known, they are listed specifically for the country.ăă--- in other countriesăThis is the "grab bag" section. We have incomplete information on theseăcountries but we'll tell you what we've heard. We'll add more information asăpeople send it to us. (If you know more, please tell us!)ăă* Italy uses AM and FM like France and Germany. Channel 5 AM is the callingă channel. Channel 9 has no special designation (i.e. it is not an emergencyă channel.) Italy also has some other non-licensed frequencies but we don'tă have any more information.ă* They transmit with a lot of power in Italy (21W is common for AM/FM/SSB) bută we don't yet know how much is legal.ă* Switzerland uses FM on the same frequencies as CEPT but CBs do not appear toă be very common there.ă* Channel 19 is the calling channel in Poland. Some probably-outdated infoă said that this was also the case in Czechoslovakia but that may notă necessarily be true under the new governments of the Czech Republic andă Slovakia.ă* The calling channels in Austria are 4 AM and 9 AM.ă* From California, we can hear a lot of CB activity in Mexico via skip but noă one has provided us with any details yet. However, we know that they useă AM on the same frequencies as the USA's 27 Mhz CB band.ăăIn every country we know of where CB is legal, radios must be type-accepted,ămeaning they must have been manufactured specifically for use with one or moreăcountry's regulations. They must be unmodified and properly marked for use inăthat country. The exception is CEPT-approved radios, which may be used in anyăcountry which has implemented the conference's recommendations.ăăă* What are the common brands of CB radios?ă------------------------------------------ăăSome of the more common brands that you will find out in the USA market are asăfollows: Uniden, Cobra, Midland, Realistic (Radio Shack), Archer (Radio Shack)ăand others. Made-for-the-USA CB radios are also legal in Canada and Australiaăthough they must be properly labeled for sale and use in those countries.ăăIn France some common brands of radios are President and Midland. These areăsomewhat similar to Germany but the President brand is known as "Stabo" there.ăăWe currently don't have any corresponding information for Japan or the restăof Europe. Note that radios must be marked properly for sale in your country,ăeven in countries using American or CEPT (European) radios.ăăă* What should I consider when choosing a location for my antenna?ă-----------------------------------------------------------------ăăThe answer to this question differs greatly between base and mobile installa-ătions. Each will be answered separately.ăăIn mobile installations, things to consider are whether you're willing toădrill holes or use a magnet mount, gutter mount, trunk mount, or a bumperămount. If you say "no" to all of those (which would probably mean you have aăvery nice car) your list of options is pretty short - use a handheld with aărubber duck antenna.ăăOtherwise, you can start making choices with the following things in mind:ă1) the closer your antenna is to the top & center of the vehicle, the better.ăSo the roof is better than the rain gutter or trunk and all of those are farăbetter than the bumper. But they'll all work.ă2) a drilled/permanent mount is better than a magnet mount in the same loca-ătion. (This is so that the antenna gets a better "ground plane".) If you useăa magnet mount, run your coax feed line through the door or hatch that getsăthe least use and then leave it alone. Don't use any path where the coaxăwould get pinched.ăăFor base installations (i.e. at home) the best places are "as high as you can"ăwithin legal limits. The roof is normally fine. If you're in an apartmentăcomplex, you may be limited to a balcony but ask the manager - they may justăwant you to keep it "invisible." (Check your national and local regulations.ăIn the USA, the FCC regulations limit CB antennas to 60 feet above groundălevel or maybe shorter if you live close to an airport - one foot high forăevery hundred feet from the nearest runway.)ăăBase station antennas should have a good ground in case of lightning. (In theărare event of a lightning strike, this can mean the difference between burningădown the building or just the radio.) Most cold water pipes that go into theăground will work. But the best choice for a ground would be an 8-foot (2.4m)ăcopper rod stuck in the ground near the antenna. (If you want to use anythingăother than the rod for a ground, contact someone knowledgeable about housingăconstruction and safety - you don't want to accidentally use a hot water orăgas pipe. You also need to know your local building codes.)ăăă* Once I hook up my CB and antenna, is the radio ready to use?ă--------------------------------------------------------------ăăNo. When you get a new CB and/or new antenna, the CB and the antenna must beătuned or "matched." To do this, you need an SWR meter which is a device thatămeasures the impedance between the radio and the antenna. SWR stands foră"Standing Wave Ratio." The lower your SWR, the better your match. Firstătimers are recommended to get help from a knowledgeable person but some notesăabout the process are included here.ăăYou do NOT want your SWR reading to be over 3:1 ratio on any channel. It canădamage your radio. A "perfect" match is 1.0:1 which gives you the bestăefficiency for your radio's output. However, "perfect" isn't possible so 1.1:1ăis the best you can hope for. Even 1.5:1 is acceptable, but it isn't as good.ăăYou will only be able to achieve your best match on one or a small group ofăchannels. The SWR will increase on each channel as you get further from thatăpoint. So 2:1 may even be unavoidable on the extremes, like Channels 1 and/oră40. If you know you're going to use one channel most of the time, try toăput your best match there. Otherwise, just center it at Channel 20 so youăcan use all 40 channels optimally.ăăYou may find SWR meters at places like Radio Shack or amateur radio dealers.ăFurther information about Standing Wave Ratio can be obtained from the ARRLăHandbook. (ARRL is the American Radio Relay League. Their annual handbookăis full of information on many different aspects of amateur radio but theăbasic concepts apply in all radio bands.)ăăMost stores that sell CB radios will have an SWR meter and someone who knowsăhow to use it. But they will charge for their services.ăăă* What are good antenna characteristics and what are some good antennas?ă------------------------------------------------------------------------ăăAntennas have to be designed to transmit and receive on the band that youăare using. CB is located in the 11-meter band. (They call it that becauseăthe wavelength is about 11 meters.) CB antennas range in height from a littleăunder 2 feet (24 inches) up to 108 inches.ăăThe 1/4 wave whip (108") will offer better reception and transmissionăcapability over a shorter, coiled or "loaded" antenna.ăăVERY short antennas, or multiple antennas that aren't "phased" properlyăwill result in a very poor signal. Remember, for cophasing antennas,ăthey must be 1/4 wavelength apart which, for the 11 meter band, is aroundă9 feet. Most cars aren't wide enough to allow antennas to be placed 9 feetăapart. The other characteristic of cophasing is that it is much more direc-ătional than a single antenna. It will transmit and receive MUCH better alongăthe axis of the car than sideways off the car so if you want a omnidirectionalăantenna, you don't want cophasing (so you only want one antenna.)ăăAnother subject of common questions is about antennas which receive AM/FMăbroadcast stations and act as a CB transceiver antenna. User experiencesăon this newsgroup vary widely with each brand. (The motorized ones seem toăhave the least favor among the postings we've seen.) In general, theseăantennas work but are not nearly as good as a dedicated CB antenna. You haveăto weigh the advantages and disadvantages for your circumstances.ăăGood brands of dedicated CB antennas in the USA include (but are notănecessarily limited to) Hustler, Wilson, FireStick and K-40. In France, someăcommon brands are President and Magnum.ă