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Thread: SWR question on a bearcat 880

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    SWR question on a bearcat 880

    Hey folks I've been looking all over for info on my issue. So I thought I would post it here and see if anyone has experience with these CB's and what you think.
    I have a bearcat 880, pair with a fire stickII 4ft on the back of my 2014 Dodge ram. I have snaked the cable through the back of the truck all the way along the drivers side door and into the center console. The power is directly hooked up to the battery. Now the issue comes in the form of calibration, IF I have the graph on the line in the calibration mode my SWR is stupid high, 5-6. Now if I back the calibration off to half way to the bar I get SWR of 1.5-2. Is there anything wrong with this setup? I have the antenna screwed in as far as it will go to lower the SWR. Could I need to ground the antenna at the back? I read that might help... I'm new and have looked online for days with only finding youtube videos that don't really help much.

    Thanks in advance for any help

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    Yes the antenna is a POS and uses the coax as part of the antenna. At 4ft. It isn't much of an antenna on 27mhz. Comparing it to other antennas which are closer to 108" or 9ft. With that said, Yes if you cut the calibration back 1/2 it's going to show 1/2 of what it should. You have grounding issues, a bad mount ground and a mediocre antenna at best. Check all grounds at where it's mounted. Make sure that the area where the mount is has all the paint removed and use some no-ox if possible on all terminations. Check coax for a short. Unplug it from both the antenna mount and the radio and use an ohm meter. Between the center pin and outer jacket there should be no conductivity. Check that there is also good continuity from center pin to center pin and outer shell to shell as well. A good sirio performer 5000 mag mount on the roof would probably be a better choice. The magnets have a nice rubber boot as to not scratch paint. That or drill a hole in the roof and buy a Breedlove mount and a good tall antenna. Anything over 6ft is going to work way better than what you have now. The antenna you current have on there like I said is a mediocre one at best and will not have good rx and tx due to its length. But like I said, first check all connections and the mount itself. Good luck and hope you get it resolved.

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    Is there a tuning tip at the top of that antenna under a plastic or rubber cap?

    Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G925A using Tapatalk

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    The reason you are seeing half the swr reading at half calibration is just that you are setting the calibration to half way so thus the readings being 1/2 of the full calibration of the meter. Can you post a pic or 2 of your antenna and how it's setup. Also you might have a short in your coax. Unplug coax at both radio and mount and check for continuity between center pin and outer shield by using a volt meter set to ohms. If there is you have a bad spot somewhere in your coax. If the coax tests good, then move to mount and check for good ground at the mount as well and for any pinching or cuts on coax. Good luck and hope you get it resolved. And you're tuning might require removing the plastic cap and cutting the small wire that is wound around antenna at the tip. Cut 1/8-1/4" at a time of you're going to do this, but check the other things out first before cutting antenna tip as it may not be antenna that is the issue. With vswr that high there is a major issue and I wouldn't key up your radio for long either with the vswr that bad. Also an external swr/watt meter and a short coax jumper would be a good investment. You might find one on eBay used for cheap. New they were $40 at radio shack if you have one near you still might be worth checking out. Or get a decent swr/watt meter or some other brand and use a cheap radio as well. Buy a 10 dollar radio if you can. CL locally can be a good place to find one as well as thrift shops and garage sales. This way you don't blow up your good radio trying to trouble shoot your vswr (SWR) issue. JMHO. Again hope you get it resolved.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Novix View Post
    Hey folks I've been looking all over for info on my issue. So I thought I would post it here and see if anyone has experience with these CB's and what you think.
    I have a bearcat 880, pair with a fire stickII 4ft on the back of my 2014 Dodge ram. I have snaked the cable through the back of the truck all the way along the drivers side door and into the center console. The power is directly hooked up to the battery. Now the issue comes in the form of calibration, IF I have the graph on the line in the calibration mode my SWR is stupid high, 5-6. Now if I back the calibration off to half way to the bar I get SWR of 1.5-2. Is there anything wrong with this setup? I have the antenna screwed in as far as it will go to lower the SWR. Could I need to ground the antenna at the back? I read that might help... I'm new and have looked online for days with only finding youtube videos that don't really help much.

    Thanks in advance for any help
    I'm having the same problem with my 980ssb what did you find?

    Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

  7. #6
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    Not sure what he found? This is member 222DBFL, I had to change my username due to some email account issues.
    At any rate, can you post up some info your setup. Antenna, mount, coax, power, and any other info that might be of use. The more we know, the better we can help. And as I said in the previous posts as my old member name, get an external meter.
    And here are some other tips as well that might cure your issue. Have you lowered the dead key below 2 watts? Are you turning your mic gain all the way down when you check the VSWR. (SWR).
    When you are checking your VSWR, are you in a clear area free of any obstructions for at least 50-100ft in all directions. Are all the doors closed, windows up, and no one else standing around the vehicle when you take your measurements? And have you checked your coax and mount and such as posted above? Before we can help you, we need as much info as possible. Also get an external swr/watt meter. It's worth it as the cost of having the radio repaired is going to be as much as the cost of a meter. The workman HP201S or the 202s would work fine for what you need and can be found for about $30 or so. Get a short 3ft coax jumper made of rg8x and that has good shielding and connectors and leave the meter in line. Even a smaller meter can be used and left in line. Won't hurt anything and will let you know if anything is wrong with the radio or antenna. Again, JMHO, but worth the investment if you blow the radio and have to buy a new one, or get yours fixed. Both will cost more than the meter and coax jumper! Just saying. At any rate, check all of the above before you blow your radio. And try not to keep the mic keyed too long as you will blow the radio if your VSWR is truly this bad! Hope you get it resolved and let us know what you find or found. Good luck.

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    I am having the opposite thing happen. I installed a Bearcat980 and with the builtin SWR I am getting a perfect 1.0 reading and I know that is impossible plus my son cannot hear me a mile away. RG8X 18'.

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    Use an external swr/watt meter. Don't trust the internal one! JMHO.

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  12. #9
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    Lostpinky, My 980 shows differences in VSWR. That aside. Best to check with an external swr/ watt meter or best yet, tune antenna at the feedpoint with an antenna analyzer. At any rate.
    Is your radio stock? Have you turned down the DK by chance?
    If the (DK) Dead Key, or AM carrier is turned down near or below 2-3 watts the internal meter/s start acting real funny.
    If your radio is stock, how many watts is the dead key showing?
    At any rate, like I said time and time before, use an external swr/watt meter. Do not trust the internal one until you have verified your VSWR with at least an external swr/power meter. JMHO about that.
    And also I think some need to read through the manual a bit and make sure that the procedure for checking VSWR is done correctly.
    Hope this helps and get yourself an external meter. For what you will have to pay for all the hassle if you by chance blow the radio because of bad VSWR, the hassle will cost more than what it would to just get an external meter. JMHO. Sorry not trying to be harsh, just that trusting the internal meter on this radio isn't too settling to say the least. The one I own shows correctly, but I still don't trust it as the calibrating meter is not accurate enough IMO. You should be able to move the selector knob smoothly and not in set increments is what I am saying. Like a normal swr meter.
    But bottom line is use an external one before you trust the internal ones readings. And as far as only getting out a mile, what antenna setup are you using and also what is the setup in your sons vehicle? Any obstructions between you and him? Where are you taking your readings at? In the driveway around a bunch of stuff. If so, go back a few posts and re read what was posted as to how to properly check your VSWR.
    I get your meter says 1.0 across the board and its most likely the radio that is the issue. And a simple external swr meter will let you know if this is the case. And also the meter can be left in line with the radio and not bother a thing as long as it's rated for the power output of the radio. Which most are. The workman 202s or 203s are decent little meters as are the old radio shack meters of you can find one. I suggest getting one and a good 3ft coax jumper as well. Hope all this helps. Good luck.

  13. #10
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    Just a point to make here. I have a 980SSB and the SWR meter on it has never been right. I check with an external meter and all is good but the built in meter reads off the chart.

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