uniden pro 538w

[hillbillyjake]

does any body have any thoughts on this radio? was looking to replace my cobra 75 in my 08 tacoma. i have a 4' fire stick mouinted on the fender well on the driver side and friestick coax. was thinking of mounting it in the cubby under the stereo. what do you think.

thanks
jake

 

[gary in ohio]

Not sure its going to give you anything different than what you have, assuming the cobra is in working condition. the uniden pro 538w is discontinued from uniden but still available through radio shack and other retailers. Its your basic sub $100 40 channel CB. Pretty much your average CB.

 

[hillbillyjake]

i bought the cobra 75 used and i am pretty sure the rest of the system is in good working order if you get my drift.

i like the ability of being able to fit the 75 where ever but i dont like the way the mike feels in my hand. it just feels balky and the buttons seem hard to find. so i think im going to try some thing else and the uniden. any othe r suggestions on a compact cb would beb greatly appriciated.

thanks
jake

 

[cadrummo]

538 didn't fit in 3rd gen

I tried installing the 538 last week in my 3rd gen, 01. That was a no go. The 538 is bigger than the Cobra 18wxs and doesn't sit flush in the second din under the stereo. I am looking for a "stock" look and had to opt for the Uniden 520 and mounting it in my ashtray.

 

[soonenough]

i like the ability of being able to fit the 75 where ever but i dont like the way the mike feels in my hand. it just feels balky and the buttons seem hard to find. so i think im going to try some thing else and the uniden. any othe r suggestions on a compact cb would beb greatly appriciated.

Ever considered the Midland 75-822? I've had one in my truck for about 3 months and I've been happy with it so far. It's along the same lines as the Cobra 75 (i.e. all-in-one handheld), but I don't find it hard to hold or operate. I got it specifically because I didn't want to have to find a place to mount a bulky radio.

 

[Luke]

FWIW I have a Uniden installed in my truck and pretty much never use it. Unless you have a specific use for it or all your trail buddies use CB, I wouldn't even spend the money on one. I recently bought a Yaesu 7800 dual band radio and am completely sold on it. My CB radio pretty much never gets turned on anymore. With the CB I can get relatively clear contacts at 0-10 miles on flat ground, now with the Yaesu 7800 I can get crystal clear contacts at 30-50 miles and that range is extended even further (100-300 miles) with the use of repeaters, and if they are Echolink capable I can contact almost any other state, or country. Not to mention I can moniter all the local police/fire/aviation/ambulance/and even the International Space Station (ISS) frequencies. With the money I spent on the CB/antenna/mount etc. (~$125) I would have been much better off saving another $125 and buying the Yaesu 7800 for $250 straight out of the gate. Sure you have to take a test but that is pretty much a non issue. You can study for a couple of hours (if even that much), pay $14 and have your call sign within a day or two. Just getting around and driving to the place is harder than the actual test is. Thats my $0.02 anyway :safari-rig:

 

[hillbillyjake]

ended up going ith the uniden. most of the other people i know have cb's and i do monitor it quite a bit on the interstate. but, i am int he market for a yaesu 7800 one of these days for the ultimate in coms.


thanks
jake