September 10, 2017.
When I got the ham radio, my hope was that I'd just skip the whole CB thing. I mean, when you've got the real thing… 🙂
But, as it turns out (and let's be honest, I knew this when I installed the ham radio), a lot of folks don't have a HAM license, so CB's are the common denominator on trips. About to set-off on a 14-day De-Tour of Montana and Wyoming, it was time to get the CB installed.
For First Gen Tacoma's, there's really only one option for a CB radio IMO - the Uniden PRO520XL 40-Channel CB Radio. It fits perfectly in the ashtray location, and gets really high marks for usability and clarity - so of course, that's the way I decided to go. I'd need a few other things as well:
- Firestik FireFly 3' tunable antenna with tunable tip (FL3-B)
- Firestik MK274R Adjustable Sainless Steel Hood Mount
- DHT Electronics RF coaxial coax adapter UHF male PL259 to female so239 right angle
- 12ga Red and Black wire (really 14 awg; gotta love false advertising)
- Some braided sleeve to protect wiring
It all arrived over the course of several days - some of it "twice" - since the first CB radio amazon sent was the wrong one. So fun getting packages in the mail!
Ready to go, I knew that the install would be straight forward, but time consuming to make "clean." I started with the mount, which I placed on the drivers side. I was able to utilize a factory bolt (nice!) and drilled a single hole into the hood channel. I also had to bend the mount slightly to get it to fit in the channel, and I utilized a bit of electrical tape to help (hopefully) with any rubbing if (when) there are vibrations.
Then, it was time to install the coax that runs from the mount to the CB radio in the cab. First, I covered the exposed portion of the coax with some braided sleeve, and then I pushed it through the firewall near the clutch pedal and attached it to the stud on the mount.
Easy peasy.
Then, it was time to get started on the interior. The first step of course was to remove the center console. I've done this so many times now that I can do it in my sleep. And, I've learned that there's no reason; I repeat: no reason at all; to ever attach the climate control face panel completely - just let the knobs hold it on - because it's a pain to pry it out (and it cost $30 to replace it - ask me how I know!)
Center console out, the first thing to do was to remove the metal slide for the ash tray and cut out the plastic at the back of the tray opening. This is something best done by pushing the radio into the opening and just looking at what needs to be cut out, and is only necessary if you want to push it in the additional 1.5" or so that this will allow.
Then, I took the time to route the coax from the firewall by the clutch pedal over to the console area, burying the extra (appropriately "wrapped," but not in a circle) behind the passenger airbag with the end coming out just under the stereo head unit.
And then it was time for power. This is where the Bussman relay/fuse box I installed earlier this year really shines - I ran a couple more wires to it, plugged them in, and I was good to go. So much easier than trying to finagle everything directly off of the battery. Oh, and I was able to get rid of the inline 2A fuse on the CB radio that would have been buried behind the dash - another plus!
Power got routed through the firewall on the passenger side, and over to the center console, where it was a simple matter of plugging things together and then buttoning everything back up!
Buttoning back up is relatively straight forward. The only caveat is that the AC housing is just a bit too close to the back of the ashtray, and so a heat gun can be used to soften the plastic and deform it about 1" back - so the radio can slide in just a bit further (cosmetic only).
And now - I'm ready with the comms; however they come!
Nice! I have the same CB and after a few ears it died for no apparent reason.
I was told to skip the CB radio and get a Wouxun KG-1000G GMRS radio.
The right decision when it comes to communications, is to get whatever the folks you're out on the trail with, use. That might be Ham, might be CB, and might be GMRS or even FRS. I think more and more GMRS is replacing CB in off-roading circles, but going strait to GMRS if everyone you travel with (like me) uses CB, won't do you any good.
I actually have a GMRS that I won in a contest, sitting in a box behind me right now. Will get around to installing it someday, I hope.
I agree. The guys (Jeepers) that live in my area use GMRS. Hey, get cracking and install that free GMRS you won in your Taco. LOL!
Is the Uniden PRO520XL still the goto choice for gen 1's.
Has Uniden/another manufacturer released a same (or same enough) dimensional, better and/or newer version by now?
For 1st gens, the PRO520XL is still the go-to CB radio. That said, fewer and fewer people are using CB radios these days, and even the group of old timers that I roll around with has transitioned over to GMRS. The reception/distance/support with GMRS is just a lot better, and the antenna situation is a lot nicer as well.
If you're curious, here's my GMRS installation, and the Midland is a great radio; I highly recommend it.
Thanks for the crazy fast reply and info.
further question tho:
I already have a GMRS handheld unit (for camping and hiking), and I was originally thinking about getting a GMRS setup for my taco for monitoring road conditions, traffic, etc but everywhere I've been looking says GMRS doesn't do that nearly as well as CB. I also couldn't figure out if there was like a Channel 19 equivalent for road travel for GMRS.
Well, I wouldn't say that CB do those things that well anymore, either. In fact, in all the time I've had both (and they are on), I've not heard much meaningful chatter at all on CB. I think a lot of the long-haul guys have moved to GMRS (20 is the road channel there) or even GMRS with private codes (there are 38 CTCSS / 104 DCS tones for privacy)... because I don't hear them GMRS, either. I think a lot of that is due to the fact that drivers have a lot less experience/community now than they used to, and so all the amazon guys (etc) are just watching TikTok now while they drive.
The nice thing about GMRS (which you may already know from your HT) is that you can also monitor weather stations, scan channels, etc. That means having a dedicated channel like 19 is less important b/c you can always be scanning everything. Some CBs might do that, but the Uniden does not.
Also, if you already have a GMRS HT, I'd say that's a great reason to get a GMRS mobile in the truck. That allows you to leave someone in the truck, and give them the ability to communicate with you when you're out on a hike (or whatever), assuming you are within range. @mrs.turbodb and I do that all the time, and she appreciates it that I can "call home" with updates.
Hey, what did you end up doing with the right angle piece? I bought it and followed instructions but maybe missed that part.
Hey Eddie - Sorry for the slow response, I've been out exploring Death Valley for the last week. I plugged That right angle adapter into the back of the CB radio, and then into the line from the antenna. Without it, I couldn't get the antenna line to fit back into my center dash area. I suppose that YMMV on that, so if you got it to work without that right angle, you're probably good to go!
Thanks brother! Appreciate it and be safe out there
Nice install! Me? I'm more of a cheap, quick & dirty kind of guy.
On my 2002 Tacoma TRD extended cab, 5-speed, also w/sunroof like yours, I quickly realized that getting inside the dash wasn't within my skill nor tool set. So, what I did was use "industrial strength" Velcro to mount the bracket upside down atop the center of the dash, cutting a corresponding rectangle in the Dashmat. I mounted the inexpensive Uniden radio, running the power wire down the face of the center of the dash, held by a couple of clips. I cannibalized the 12V plug from some non-functional doo-dad that I happened to have around, splicing that to the radio's power wire, plugging it in one of the two power receptacles at the bottom of the dash. Then I found that I had a problem, with the microphone screwed in, the whole affair was nose heavy and kept dipping forward despite my most strenuous tightening of the knobs. I remedied this by putting two rubber door stops under the unit. I used a simple magnetic roof antenna, running the wire through the driver side flip out back cab window. Believe it or not, it worked well for years off roading and terrible washboard roads in the Eastern Sierra Nevada, Death Valley and Nevada. The photo shows my unit in place next to my cheap, quick & dirty video camera mount.
Wanting something else to listen to while off roading, I was given a 100-channel programmable scanner. That I mounted to the passenger side of the center console. However, the unit failed after about a year. I just happened to have an old, 200-channel Realistic desktop programmable scanner that I used in the house. It happened to be capable of running on house current or 12V, and had jacks for external speaker and remote antenna. It was far too large to mount anywhere but under the passenger seat. It's rubber feet kept it from sliding around and with it facing rearward I could control the volume and squelch by hand even while driving. I installed a Realistic glass mounted antenna to the passenger side flip out window. Since it was under the seat and volume was compromised, I mounted a Realistic non-amplified speaker on the passenger side console (I also had installed a remote 12V outlet w/3-plugs). I had the most law enforcement agencies programmed in, as well as highway departments for Inyo, Mono, San Bernardino, Nye, Esmeralda, Mineral counties, as well as Death Valley National Park; all programmed in "banks." When I was working in Trona and living in Big Pine - always commuting via Panamint Valley - it provided lots of entertainment and enlightenment (weather, road issues, etc). Even in Trona I could pick up Bishop police radio traffic clearly. And when I would go on trail rides with other historians and authors who used HAM radios, I could hear them via the scanner by picking up their HAM frequencies; useful when I'd be out of CB range.
Nice, lol!
I'd love to be able to listen in these days on law enforcement comms, but I think they've all gone to encrypted frequencies. Well, that, and I've never really done any research to see if I could configure the various radios to scan for them; I know general ham scan doesn't pick them up.
Another photo of my CB install.
I think this is still a pretty typical install on a 1st gen!
My scanner set up. A Realistic programmable 200-channel unit that I bought around 1988 when living in Trona. It worked well in the Tacoma.
The most memorable transmissions I recall while commuting was one evening a naked woman with known mental illness and clutching a teddy bear was running around west Bishop during a snow storm. She was running in and out of the reservation so that law enforcement agencies were changing between Inyo County and Federal law enforcement when she was on reservation land. It was raining when I left Trona to return home for my days off, snowing in Bishop. The chase was in progress when I started up the Tacoma for the trip home and lasted about 45 minutes until she was caught.
Glass mount antenna for the scanner. Photo taken at my home in Big Pine.
And to put it all together, my 2002 Tacoma TRD 4WD purchased new at Perry Motors in Bishop, CA. This photo taken east of the semi-ghost town of Midas, NV, about two miles west of Willow Creek Reservoir.
Looks great. I'm still of the (biased, obviously) mind that this was the best-looking generation of Tacoma. And surely the best size.
I agree. I think Toyota has lost its way with the new gen Tacoma and 4Runner.