Sand Man (SA) replied:

Tony,

I believe the Uniden 510 is a 27 Mhz CB radio and can only comunicate with another 27 Mhz unit. This will restrict you as the majority of travellers use the more common UHF CB radios.

The two types are not compatible.

Derek from Affordable Batteries & Radiators replied:

Hi Tony

UHF is the way to go and you will find it very useful. Most trucks and farmers around Oz use UHF and you will normally find some one on air if needed. They are great to listen to when the traffic stops. There are also repeaters all over Oz to boost signals.

Regards Derek.

Member - Stephen L replied:

Hi Tony W
The 27mhz (cb) were very popular when they first made their scene in Australia over 30 years ago. At that time everyone used the cb radio, as well as me. With the introduction of UHF, people found the quality difference unreal, in the terms of voice quality, greater range with UHF -compared to standard cb (not to be confused with Single Side Band CB which gave you long range contact over many hundreds of kilometres, but not reliable like HF Radio).

In the old cb radios, you had to tune in the antenna, this was very important. With UHF, all you have to do is buy an antenna and no tuning required.

Yes I have used both, but for sheer quality of transmission, would never go back to CB.
To improve long distance range, the higher gain UHF antenna yet get, the longer range you will get.

eg: when we travel the Simpson Desert, I use a 2 metre UHF antenne and it is possible to hear other vehicles in the desert up to 40 kilometres away when on top of a dune. Some people will say that this is not true, but trust me that when we have left Poeppel Corner and heading west on the French Line, I was able to make contact with another group of vehicles heading east, that had just left the Knolls track turn off. As I am the lead vehicle, I alway give out calls for any other groups that me be heading my way as a safety factor. Other vehicles in my group with small UHF antennas can not hear the other groups and often wonder who I am taking to.

Also a great advantage with UHF is the fact that you can scan the 40 channels, unlike the old cb where you had to change the channels manually to check what other chanels were on the Air.

Go UHF and you will not regret your purchase.

Cheers

Stephen

Member - Matt M (ACT) replied:

Tony,

I suspect you will get the same answer from everyone, but Sandman's point is spot on. A 27MHz CB is useless unless you are talking to another one, and there are very few people using them nowadays. If you are travelling with someone else who has one then maybe (but even then the range and voice quality is still poor), but you will not be able to communicate with anyone else.

Go for the UHF.

Matt.

Mr Fawlty replied:

I have my UHF antenna mounted on the rooftop & get incredible range with it. It does depend on the country you are in though. Enough to call for assistance on the main roads, & far cheaper to call than using a cell phone to call for help...You do meet some nice people to travelling around but with all things there is a good sprinkling of idiots jamming the channels with incoherent blither...

Bonz (Vic) replied:

Bite the bullet mate

disco driver replied:

Hi Tony,
If you have been given the 27mhz CB why not install it along with a more modern UHF.

As a frequent traveller I have noted that many caravans/mobile homes and campervans have both a UHF and a CB channel marked on the back of their vans.

Disco