ok, i hate to start a new thread
but i gots a question, i bought a Cobra 25 NW WX ST for my truck
its the one that has the weather band, and sound tracker

my question is, with my old 25 with no weather band or sound tracker, it worked great, now this new one, i have to turn the squelch way up to block out the static, the old one i didn't have it up much at all
any ideas

 

There is a noise blanker switch on there that you have to turn on in order to not have to turn the squelch way up. I have the 29stnw which is pretty much identical to your 25. It has three positions. 1. nb/anl 2. anl 3. off. Set it to anl which is automatic noise limiter. That is where mine is set.

 

the 25 actually does not have that, and i took the radio back to Farm King yesterday, i think it crapped out, as it even acted weird with the truck off, the little S-Meter, was in the red, no matter what i did, so i put the old 25 i have back in, works like a charm
i know next week when i head home for labor day, my local truck stops have cobra 29s with everything i need

 

Did you recheck your SWR's with and actual SWR meter when you put the new one in?

Not saying it would but the different radio might have been different and caused you some issues.

Just a thought

 

I had a Cobra for my truck and it was a POS. I hated that radio. My advise is to find something better. The one I had was the 29 with the water band and night watch and all that. When I asked about what CB's were good I got quite a few people saying the Cobra 29's were good so I got one.

The main problem I had with it was when people talked I couldn't really understand them. They really sounded muffled and were super hard to understand. I knew this wasn't normal as I had other friends with other CB's that weren't like this. When I asked online about this I got many responses oh they have crappy speakers you should just run a external one. I didn't and still don't want a external speaker as I think they are ugly and I didn't have a good place to mount it where it could be hidden.

The next problem I had is even though I was getting a pretty good SWR I could never seem to talk to people very far away. It's range just seemed lacking compared to friends CB's.

Overall, I just didn't see anything good about this radio. I ended up selling it online for most of what I paid for it and I was glad to see it go. I bought a Super Star 121 and it's a much and I mean much better radio imo. It's clear so I can understand people. The range seems to be a lot better. Overall, it's just a lot better radio imo. I don't think it has the weather channels but I'm not sure as I've never used them on it or tried to.

I didn't think I'd ever have another Cobra product after that crappy 29. However, a friend gave me a Cobra 38 hand held for Christmas one year. I used it quite a bit and to my surprise I loved that thing. After my experience with the 29 I wasn't expecting to like this either but it was great. For a hand held it had pretty decent range. It was crystal clear. Even clearer than the radio in the truck which was pretty clear. It of course didn't reach as far as the radio in the truck but did really good for a hand held. Overall, this thing was great and I had no complaints.

I ended up dropping it in a creek by accident and it no longer worked. They guy it came from no longer sold them and now sold a Midland so I just got that to replace it.

The Midland also works great and I can't tell you anything bad about it. However, for some reason I just prefer the Cobra.

 

Yea I have the same one installed in my truck. You just need to adjust the antenna with a SWR's switch and have it set to channel one and forty then you tighten the antenna and then you should not have a problem. I hope that this helps.
Shadow3865

 

As far as the Cobra 29's go, the older models without all the bells and whistles are the desired one to run. I have a 29, and all i did was put an Astatic power mike on it and it was peaked and tuned.(Dead keys 5 watts, swings 38 on the meter.) But any CB not matter how expensive or cheep is only good as the antenna its using. And as others have mentioned, it does have to be tuned properly. Most radio have some sort of SWR calibration on it. But much like Dodge's gauges, don't take the reading as gospel. I have and older Dosy meter that I use to tune SWR, as well as take power readings. Its the best $20 bucks I spent. Spend a few extra bucks and pick up an SWR meter. Especially you 4x4 off road guys, you would be surprised how whacking your antenna of a tree branch or something can mess up your SWR's.

 

I had the same problem with my old Cobra in my 95 Dodge. It turns out that, if you are sharing a ground with ANYTHING it can cause all the static. but like the other fella said try having your antennas adjusted with an swr meter. I suggest having a cb shop or someone with a good knowledge of radios do it for you. I now run a connex but Cobra's are still ok in my book.


Please do not run dual antennas like most other pickup drivers. Ask any Radio Tech and he will tell you NOT to. Although it does look cool. Say BYBY to your radio. A wilson magnet mount on the center of the roof is the best for your application. Hope this info helps.

 

Yup as far as antenna's I love my Wilson 1000. It's the antenna I have now and also what I had with that Cobra 29. Most of the guys I know that run CB's also run Wilson 1000's or 5000's. IMO the Wilson 1000 or 5000 is the way to go unless you want to go with a 102" whip. I personally didn't want antenna that big so went with the Wilson.