Old man stuck in "old-school"

[Quiksilver]

Hey group, I'mmm Back! I joined this forum back in 2006 which had a different form back then. All good times & folks. Anyway, I'm back in the "CB" game again after a 10+ year CB hiatus. I was/am still a pretty active Ham but somehow got the CB bug again. I've been purchasing some really nice "old-school" equipment from folks here and QRZ. I went with equipment I knew. With that said, what are todays go-to rigs like the HR2510's, 148GTL's, RCI2970's, Texas Star's, Dave Made's, etc.? It's like learning all over again...
Thanks for keeping this forum alive!

pic of the shack (no CB equipment yet) Antenna is a Zero-Five 10-40 GP up about 35ft.

 

[9C1Driver]

A lot has happened. The quality of RCI products have tanked. Toshiba no longer makes their 2290 and 2879 finals. TexasStar went under and stopped making amps. Someone else is trying to bring them back but only the 350 and 500 remain. (All have HG finals) popular radios now are made by Anytone, President, and Stryker.

 

[BC Coyote]

Anytone is really the only game in town worth considering when it comes to radios. They are also sold as Radioddity, and the newest Stryker radios are also Anytone on the inside. I'm a huge fan of the Anytone 5555N2, which has largely replaced my Cobra 148GTL as my go-to radio. Outstanding receive, noise reduction and an NB that works really really well, 60 watts out of the box, no need to peak and tweak anything (there's nothing to adjust in these modern radios as they are all SDR based), and all the frequencies you could ever ask for. Mine does 11 meters, CB, 10 & 12 meter ham and everything in between.

As 9C1 mentions in the post above mine, the Ranger/RCI/Galaxy line of radios have gone to the dogs. Zero innovation & non existant quality control. President is hot on their heals.....they've come out with some good radio lately including the newest Washington version, but they've also released some real stinkers including the latest Lincoln 2+ which has a couple of well documented issues.

Parts for older radios are getting VERY hard to find and VERY expensive. Many parts have become unobtanium. The market is flooded with cheap Chinese parts which often don't work.
Nearly all the good techs have retired and passed on and the few still working won't be for much longer, so more than ever it really helps if you can work on your own equipment!

 

[Shadetree Mechanic]

Welcome back! The Anytone 6666 Pro is packed with features and I believe is the smallest radio with SSB. The Stryker 955 is also made by Anytone (Quixang) and probably has the biggest audio on AM, FM, and SSB, and also does 100 watts out of the box.

Quality Anytone - AnyTone AT-6666PRO 10METER Radio 80W SSB radio Manufacturer | Anytone

Anytone Quality Anytone - AnyTone AT-6666PRO 10METER Radio 80W SSB radio Manufacturer | Anytone

www.anytone.net

Stryker SR-955HPC 10 Meter Radio with Amazing Clear Audio

The Stryker SR-955HPC 10-meter radio features amazing audio clarity, enhanced durability, and new features that make it the best in its class

strykerradios.com

 

[2RT307]

Welcome back, Quicksilver!

73,
Brett

 

[Eldorado828]

I agree with all above posts. It's quite a different game from 2006 as far as the heavy hitter radios go but the people..... We're all still here doing the same thing only with different gear.
I didn't know you from here, I'm a cb tricks forum migrant after the cb tricks crash but I've been in the cb game for some decades.

Here's some places to look at so you can familiarize yourself with the current gear.

Trucks cb sales
Radioddity site
Anderson radio supply
Superior cb
U-tube anytone, Stryker, Radioddity
Just a few so you can see what's out there

Welcome back!

 

[Dr. Frankenstein]

I'm also a ham, and from what I see in your pictures of your (very nice) setup ..... you don't need all that old CB stuff that probably needs to be recapped and calibrated before being put in to use.

Unless you are able to work on your own stuff (like most of us here), good techs now a days are far an few between. The ones you do find would rather sell you a new radio that would pay for your cost of repairs of an old one, let's not even talk shipping cost.

There are many people running ham gear on 11 meters, and you'd probably sound a whole lot better (than on the old stuff) and no one would even realize.

Keep us informed of when you'll be on the air, as "unit_399" does, so that we can listen for you and try to get back to you.

73

 

[FlyBoy50]

And watch you don't get caught up in the ( Every Thing I Have Is The Best ) frame of mind. Some of the new stuff has problems also. It's not a perfect world !

 

[Smokinone]

I personally like the old school radios myself.
They're like comfort food.

 

[Quiksilver]

Thank you all for the welcome and recommendations!

"There are many people running ham gear on 11 meters, and you'd probably sound a whole lot better (than on the old stuff) and no one would even realize."

Yeah, I could just mod my FTDX101MP and called it good.

 

[TM86]

I personally like the old school radios myself.
They're like comfort food.

That's it! It's my old radios that are making me fat.

 

[AK #5]

I have some one owner old school radios I need to sell off, so check out my gallery, and hit me up if you see something you want.

 

[Woody-202]

A lot has happened. The quality of RCI products have tanked. Toshiba no longer makes their 2290 and 2879 finals. TexasStar went under and stopped making amps. Someone else is trying to bring them back but only the 350 and 500 remain. (All have HG finals) popular radios now are made by Anytone, President, and Stryker.

and Astatic hand mics have terrible PTT switches

 

[Recon]

I have some one owner old school radios I need to sell off, so check out my gallery, and hit me up if you see something you want.

Where is the gallery?

 

[Blackcat630]

and Astatic hand mics have terrible PTT switches

Unfortunately they do now. Back in the Pre-Barjan buy out days they were US made. I had a 636 back in the 90s that was nearly indestructible. I picked up a "red devil" a year ago and wow what a difference. It might look the same but the quality just isn't there anymore... it's a shame..