Cell phones don't have CB transmission...

You need to do a little research on that before you state it as one of those TomoHawk 'facts'.

I havn't had a cb for about 15 years. When my friend and I drove to Ohio to pick up his Z, I brought a set of FRS radios so we could chat without incurring cell phone fees. I got them for my kids for camping and we were able to be a few miles apart and still talk.

The CB radio that hung under the dash of my Z in the mid '70s has been resting peacefully on a shelf in the garage since, well, the late '70s. I no longer get my ears on, Good Buddy. )

I started using a CB in '75 and started with a small Cobra in the Z. I have had one every since in my pickups. It has saved me many times from getting caught in a mess of traffic due to accidents, getting stuck on a mountain pass because it was closed temporarily, etc. I used to travel back and forth from Sisters to Portland and in the winter it helped a lot over Santiam Pass or Mt Hood. No cell phone coverage in many areas. The truckers are still willing to share information related to highway and traffic conditions - which is pretty current compared to what you can get by dialing the 3 digit number for a states line for conditions. With the advancement in FRS radios (range), I'll use that when travelling in the Z. So, in my opinion, it does not matter how many travelers use them (truckers, RVers, and regular folks), they are useful. Each individual can use what fits their needs the best (cell phone, CB, FRS, smoke signals, hand signals, etc)

Everybody in my club hanged over to CB radios about a year ago because the FRS radios just didn't work in the cars, especially in the hill country, which is just about anywhere south of Cleveland, and it gets hilly-er as you go further south. We still use the FRS radios for car shows.

thxZ

Aparently, you've forgotten about "Push to talk cell phones like Nextel and Sprint use. Those along with a newer GPS with weather and road conditions should work for ya. And on the plus side, you can also make calls, get directions, check conditons of roads and weather, etc, etc.

With a short burst antenna (window mount, you can get some decent coverage area and not have a bulky fender or bumper mount antenna.

M2CW

Dave

The cell phone walkie talkie thing only works with other phones of the same type on the same network. IMO that's a very expensive way to communicate compared to two-way radios. CB radios don't require a phone contract or such and can communicate with any other CB radio, plus 40 channels for some privacy, and the fancier ones have the weather channels available, though the latter is not a requirement. They don't have the GPS stuff, but a GPS isn't a two-way radio either. I have the GPS on my pocket computer- no single-use equipment in my arsenal of gadgets.

thxZ

IMO that's a very expensive way to communicate compared to two-way radios. CB radios don't require a phone contract or such and can communicate with any other CB radio, plus 40 channels for some privacy, and the fancier ones have the weather channels available, though the latter is not a requirement. They don't have the GPS stuff, but a GPS isn't a two-way radio either. I have the GPS on my pocket computer- no single-use equipment in my arsenal of gadgets.

thxZ

Since you're driving 1978 technology, you may as well be communicating with it also. However, if you tell us that while you're doing this you're planning to wear a polyester leisure suit and only listen to the BeeGees on the cassette player, be prepared to get some mental health referrals from the group.

You mean BeeGees on an 8-track tape player. A polyester leisure suit would be hotter than heck.

Would it be OK to pick up a unaway bride on my way to the beer depot?

It it illegal to use a cell phone while driving in your part of the world? It is down here. You might end up parking you car in a lake, like the guy in the other thread.

It is, but it depends on local laws. Each city can decide for themselves, but I think it ought to be a national law, like the smoking ban.

Apparently, only the law-abiding people refrain from using the cell phones while driving; the other 95% of drivers think they are good enough drivers to do both. You see such drivers in the evening TV new almost every day now.

To use one without a hands free device is illegal in California. I'm sure each state has it's own laws. I have a bluetooth/GPS enabled audio system in my daily driver that I can talk on hands free with the mere press of a button that receives and trasmits though the stereo's speakers.