CB in it's simplest form is a magmount on the roof, and power from your cigarette lighter - a two minute job.
To install properly isn't that much more difficult - new sets come with a bracket for the radio, run a lead from the battery to the CB for power, and decide how you want the aerial...
Often, magmounts are a good solution, as can be removed if needed, although it's important to get the right aerial - the basic "centre loaded" magnetic aerial kits available for about £10-£12 are well known for their poor performance, so best to avoid these.
Guttermounts are a more permanent solution - the aerial can still be unscrewed for security etc but the gutter mounting stays on the car. These need to have a bit of paint scraped away so that the 2 allen-keyed pins that tighten down into the trough of the gutter can make a shiny, metal-to-metal earth connection.
There are mounts available that can go on your bootlip, and (if brave) mounts available to go straight through a hole in a body panel.
There are boxes available (£8) that allow you to use a CB aerial to receive broadcast FM (radio 1 etc) so that you can replace an FM aerial with a CB one, still have radio yet have only one aerial on the car.
At cbradio4minis.co.uk we have complete packages starting at £72, although we are waiting for more stock from the factory of the very cheapest set at the time of writing. The quality (and therefore life expectancy) of the slightly more expensive units is much better than the Team unit.
Below is a link to the CB radio packages available at cbradio4minis.co.uk - you can choose any of the different mounting options, and between a large or small "springer" aerial, although alternatives to this aerial are also available.
Click on a items' name in the list to go to a page with photos and more info about that product.
In terms of warrantee, all new CB's have a years guarantee although this does not cover the output transistor which is what can be damaged if you have a high SWR. This is because an aerial needs to be mounted correctly, earthed if necessary (magmounts dont need a conventional earth - just plonk it on the roof and away you go) and tuned on the vehicle, so it's the customers responsibility to check the SWR (with an SWR meter - £8.50 plus free connecting lead if bought with a package).
In terms of the "best set" it depends on what you want to spend - if we look at sub-£100 units, the Midland 78 Plus Multi is the most popular set, being small, well built, having a good mix of useful facilities, has a "chunky", and is one of Midlands' new "Multi" sets where you can gain access to other european countries frequency allocations. What this means is that IF you are prepared to operate outside the cb radio law, a bunch of friends travelling together can tuck themselves away on an AM channel and get increased range from the lack of background interference, and from the fact that AM (which is illegal to use in this country) gives more distance anyway.
Having said this - most of the UK legal channels are pretty quiet so you will still have no problem finding a quiet channel with a standard set!
Over £100, Midland win again in my opinion - with the Midland 48 Excel Multi (£115) being the best set, with lots of good facilities including PA (public address) where you can fit a small waterproof horn speaker someone under your bonnet... switch the set over to PA and your voice comes out at over 100db, great fun!
We can do the 48 Excel multi in our packages - the aerial and mount works out at £20, so a complete package like the Midland 78 Multi package but with the 48 rig instead of the 78 would be £135. If you are looking for the BEST you could change the aerial to a Sirio Mythos 9000 (for another £8) - still under £150 for an excellent system.
For a cheaper option, you can't go far wrong with the Midland 38 or Danita 3000 (both great budget sets) in package 4, again offered with the same aerial and mount choices.
Hope this answers most questions, anyone got any further questions, post them - i'll do my best to answer them.
Regards
Jim
Proprietor
Communication Eleven - cbradio4minis.co.uk - 4x4cb.com
