The T&D Gaffer aka Editor wants to know what the craic is with CB usage these days, and he’s given me a whole 5 days to find out!
I was a bit intermittent about having one in myself - it was handy for finding out what was going on at the front of whatever stationary queue I was sat in, or to warn colleagues they were about to hit the back of a 2 mile tailback and were, frankly, doomed, but that was about it unless you consider listening to grown men cry like babies over shift change on the docks anything other than mildly amusing. Whether I got 'round to having it fitted in any given wagon was entirely a matter of whether I happened to wind up having a break at the Golden Fleece at Carlisle when the bloke who did the deed had his little shack open in the corner of the lorry park, and I very rarely missed the thing when it was living in a locker awaiting said opportunity.
I know there are people, however, who wouldn’t be without their CB, some of whom must surely be on here, right? So…CBs…Who still uses them? Why? Who used to use them but doesn’t now? Why not? Does any of this even make sense…?
All replies gratefully received whether posted sober or drunk…In fact, the drunk ones may well be the best, so have a few on me before hitting reply!
Needless to say I’ll be shamelessly robbing your thoughts for publication, but fear not, none of you will get accused of being that [zb] arse from Birmingham who played music on 19 all sodding day (and night…), or the wierd Russian taxi woman…Is she still about btw?
Ps. As the woman largely responsible for setting up the auto-censor on this board when she was running it 10 years ago, I’d like to apologise…Who knew that one day I’d have to invent new swearwords to get around my own handiwork■■?
Used them many years ago when loads of trucks had them. As said handy for traffic reports, they were also handy for directions and sometimes you could have a decent chat or catch up with the local gossip if you saw one of the companies other drivers heading the other direction.
Last time I used a CB was a couple of years ago, 2 of us would run together, sometimes the other driver was new to running round Europe, so it was useful for keeping in touch with them and giving them a bit of warning if we were about to take an exit off the motorways, especially if we’d got a few vehicle between us. Even if you were running with an experienced driver you could discuss when to stop for a coffee or where to park for the night.
Still put one into every truck I get, we do a lot of ab loads all over the country and they are handy for speaking to the ■■■■■■ drivers, also when a few of us run together we get to take the ■■■■ outa each other.
One of my friends also has an alternative persona on the cb and is bloody hilarious winding other drivers up as Vincent The Vaseline Queen
I’ve always had them in the tippers I’ve driven, up until recently when the twig broke and I decided not to replace it as neither of our other trucks have one. We only do our own work so I don’t need to be in contact with other drivers.
All the tipper firms around Oxfordshire have their “own” channels and it’s almost an unwritten rule that their drivers don’t talk to each other. When I went from one firm to another, to switch channels and talk to my old workmates was almost frowned upon (this lot were Wiltshire carrot crunchers anyway ).
I had an AM cb for years and could talk to home bases 20 miles or more away…
then our illustrious government said we had to use FM…
so we got all the muppets playing music…
tried it for a few months then ditched it…
FM is useless…
I got my first one at the age of 15 in 1979 before it was legalised, but these days I am a full licence holder on the amateur bands, which means I don’t have to listen to people with a mental age of 2 anymore. That said, it was a good training ground for my eventual goal, and it is far more civilised with strict rules that have to be adhered to by Ofcom.
Nearly all truckers who reg run the A75/A77 will have a CB fitted.
Mostly to warn of the camera “activity” on the road.
Also if Toddhill or Glenluce are open for tea n biccies!!![emoji6]
Nearly all 8wheeler quarry tippers in NI have them fitted also.
got me wondering about them so went to Ebay,looks like they are still very popular and most are not cheap either,range from around £60 upwards into around £200 to £300,i thought they died out years ago
truckman020:
got me wondering about them so went to Ebay,looks like they are still very popular and most are not cheap either,range from around £60 upwards into around £200 to £300,i thought they died out years ago
There are full starter packes inc half decent set/aerial etc available@ CB Shack Lymm Truckstop for £60/80.
CB use has changed over the years. When I worked for Swifts in Northampton every lorry had them by the mid 80’s, in fact Swifts had them installed in every new lorry and they had 6 extra channels in each one for Swift to talk to Swift without interference from others, not that we used them. We used CB’s for fun and chatted with other night trunk drivers from other companies, I made lots of friends that way. When I moved here my first real trucking company had CB’s in every truck and when I ran with others I found them good to use, now I just have mine on with the squelch turned full on so I don’t have to listen to a complete bunch of tossers who don’t even use names but ridiculous numbers and just full of BS. I have to have the thing on because most companies contact drivers using them.
Not a lot of use to you as I’m on the other side of the pond, but as CB started here, I guess it’s relevant. The airways are like the Internet, full of arguments.
If you drive past a truck stop in say Chicago and ask a stupid question, two or three days later when you drive past again they will still be arguing about it!
Last one i had was in my F16 around 1996, it was mostly cr@p on there i found, drivers just talking ball ■■■■■, ok for a laugh not much else but good to find an address if needed. All a bit embarrassling Smokey and the Bandit i found which had a big chequed loggers shirt and rigger boot wearing driver following using the equally embarassing ‘CB lingo’…im pretty sure i threw mine out in the end…
AndrewG:
Last one i had was in my F16 around 1996, it was mostly cr@p on there i found, drivers just talking ball ■■■■■, ok for a laugh not much else but good to find an address if needed. All a bit embarrassling Smokey and the Bandit i found which had a big chequed loggers shirt and rigger boot wearing driver following using the equally embarassing ‘CB lingo’…im pretty sure i threw mine out in the end…
not used one since 1994 for the same reasons above! used my mates V8 R620 the other night with a cb fitted, ( my V8 R730 was getting serviced ) and I turned it off after two mins. mobiles weren’t the cause, it was Reagan and thatcher bringing the Berlin Wall down in 1989.
Must be 30 years since I used CB’s. All the rage back then and great for getting local info for directions, traffic, somewhere to eat etc. and if you were night trunking, going past most towns or cities you would inevitably stumble on some lonely old lassy on the airwaves sat in her house who just wanted to talk.
I remember the local boy racer lads having them in their cars when I was a teenager in the early 90s and them giving directions to trucks. I also remember them once remembering too late they’d sent some poor sod via a low bridge, the result being I never dared ask which way to go when I later had one in a wagon myself…
).
mobiles weren’t the cause, it was Reagan and thatcher bringing the Berlin Wall down in 1989. 
