Re: Those so-called "10 Meter" radios

Jerry wrote:
"richard" <don@xxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:eeag170tbt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Jerry" <joxendi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:uY2Og.20683$Ca4.7784@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
As a licensed Amateur, I often listen to and use the 10 meter band. I also hear truck drivers who have bought illegal "10 meter" radios and are transmitting up there without license.
Well dude, just to make you feel a lot better, I was one who actually did something about the problem.
With truckstops selling the radios like candy, I wrote the FCC director about the problem and made known that these truckstops were doing so. Charges were filed against the Pilot truckstops once it was determined many of them were doing so. They lost the battle and are no longer selling the radios. Other truckstops removed the radios as well. IOW, it's damn difficult for truckers to find them unless they know some rogue cb shop that still sells them.

If a trucker still has one, get his truck number, company name and turn his ass in.

You aren't the only one that raised cain! A BUNCH of hams were screaming for FCC to DO something and they DID. There are now a LOT of shops, not just truck stops, being cited and FINED for selling the crap radios.
Loves, TA, and even Flying J got in trouble. A few more $90,000 settlements to FCC will go a long way; that's GOT to hurt!! Now with action being considered against individual drivers with fines (a few $7500 to $10,000 per instance), it ought to do the trick! Flying J is fixing to get it again with the Cobra's export' series; just give it time! They'll get nailed again.

So how can you tell that the radio you are using as a "CB" is illegal? If it has several "bands" of channels, operates with more than 4 watts of power (12 SSB), it will appear on a list of radios specifically verboten by FCC's technical standards lab. CB-radios-have-40-specific-pre-selected-channels........period! No "10 Meter" frequencies in a readout (28 MHZ), no "bands" of channels. REAL "ham' radios HAVE no "channels" and "channels" are a sure indication of a CONSUMER product targeted to a non-technical public. CB radios' frequencies are pre-selected and designated as a "channel" (like 19).

So why were you finding them in truck stops? Simple.
$$$$$$$$$$! The dealers don't CARE about the certification of radios. They know that if they make a radio that has chrome, lots of knobs, looks like a CB, people with BUY it. And if it says "Amateur Radio", WOW! The markup is HUGE. Same way with the tremendous sized coil antennas with 1, 2, even 3 coils. It sells antennas to people that are impressed, and want to impress other drivers with their "bigness"!

Finally, such IS against the LAW (the radios, that is). Think of this: Would you put a police radio in your truck and start jabbering over the cops? ;) How long do you think THAT would go on? Well, the law is the same for the cops, the rescue squad, AND the hams. You cannot be talking outside the CB band without the proper license. I can even show you where people are now getting nailed for "freebanding"! It isn't as "safe" as it used to be before 9/11; more people are paying attention these days. Don't think, "Well, I'm mobile and *I* can't be found". Oh no! If you have ever seen a modern FCC field vehicle, it-will-absolutely-blow-you-away!!! :) The Chevy Tahoe idly passing you in the left lane with a "soccer mom" *may* be an FCC agent listening to you. NO visible antennas, NO indication that you are about to be nailed! No "white vans" with bunches of antennas! Their equipment-----think of OnStar multiplied by a factor of 10! If they want to pick you out, they can measure your signal strength from their location, display YOUR location on the screen, tell you exactly what road you are on and the NAMES of the intersecting roads! No Kidding!!!!!! And it is all built right into their dash complete with spectrum analyzer, signal quality, frequency of operation, and strength!!! I SAW this with my own eyes. And then there are those pesky hams out there riding along RECORDING your 10 meter conversations and turning them in to the Feds! ;)

So please DON'T be transmitting on the ham bands unless you have the proper license. OTH, the license IS pretty easy to get and will provide you FAR more company on the lonely road than a CB will. If you want distance? Even 2 Meter FM will have you talking as much as a hundred+ miles with a little 2 watt handi-talkie!!! EchoLink, a computer protocol, can allow you to talk with your radio thru a node to other stations thousands of miles away. High frequency, of which 27 MHZ is a part, is full of DX that CBers never hear about, to countries CBers never talk to. When CB is "dead", hams just move down a band or two and keep talking.

I urge to you consider the legal route and not continue filching on 10 Meters. REALLY! These days, you CAN get caught!!!!!!!


J




Hey, doofus, keep the *** off the CB channels if you want us to stay off yours. Seriously, why have you gotten your bowels into such an uproar??? What's the problem? I very seldom here any traffic on the 10-meter bands; they're quiet as death. You hear one occasionally talking to his NY home from Virginia? If he's annoying your elitist ass, crank up the juice and drown him out. Be aware, though, before acting like a cop: many truckers do in fact have a HAM license; as you remarked, they are easy to get.

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