Have you heard the FCC rules changes on CB radio skip bans?

According to an article on the ARRL website, DXing will be opened up on Children's Band:

ARRL article on R&O said:
DXing on Citizens Band will become legal too. Once the new rules are effective, CBers will be allowed to contact stations outside of the FCC-imposed — but widely disregarded — 155.3-mile distance limit.

I wrongly assumed that the thread title meant a clamping down on DXing and the OP didn't dissuade me from that assumption
 
The referenced document in the ARRL article refers to a docket of intent dated 2010.
https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-10-106A1.pdf

But here is the FCC docket published last week. An interesting read, and this is the final ruleset in a month.
https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-344617A1.pdf

As for the CB DXing issue, it really is kind of Moot for a few years. We are entering the minimum period for the 11 year sunspot cycle, so it is going to be several years before solar activity increases to the point where 11 meters opens up.
 
The referenced document in the ARRL article refers to a docket of intent dated 2010.
The first link in the ARRL web page points to the recent R&O (your second link).

Your second link is a draft Report and Order (as opposed to a Docket) that resulted from the aforementioned Docket.
 
As far back as the 1970s when I first got into CB, everyone was completely disregarding the regulations of any kind.

I can't help but wonder, why bother now? I doubt they ever go after these guys running modified or export radios and higher power unless they interfere with some public safety frequency or such.

As solar cycle 24 declines further, there will be less and less propagation anyway.
 
As far back as the 1970s when I first got into CB, everyone was completely disregarding the regulations of any kind.

I can't help but wonder, why bother now? I doubt they ever go after these guys running modified or export radios and higher power unless they interfere with some public safety frequency or such.

As solar cycle 24 declines further, there will be less and less propagation anyway.

I's always been that way, it seems. I got my ham ticket in 1962, and used to hang out at the Amateur Electronics Supply store in Milwaukee. The SSB movement had just taken hold, and the older Johnson transmitters were worth next to nothing. BUt they transmitted on the old 11M ham band, which was now the CB band. The CB crowd would come in and snap these things up. Johnson Vikings (200W), 500s, and kilowatt consoles. The would sit on channel 19 and blast away all night. It was so bad that the FCC monitoring station on the south edge of Chicago picked these guys up on ground wave propagation and eventually sent up a truck. Had no real effect.

Several companies at the time were selling 250W broadband amplifiers that worked on 20M-6M. These amplifiers generally had a disclaimer that read:

It is illegal to use this amplifier on the 27-28 MHz Citizens band. We have installed a filter in this unit to prevent use of the unit in the Citizen's band. Under no circumstances should one place a jumper cable between TP1 (see picture) and TP2 as this would disable the filter.

I don't recall a single unit being sold to a ham.
 
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If you go on Ebay you'll see new CB radios that have been modified for high power. Also some ops use sliders or modify the clarifier to adjust the transmit frequency in between the 10 KHz channel spacing.

Does anyone remember years back when the FCC banned linears from covering 10M? Is this still in effect?
 
Since becoming a ham radio operator, I've noticed something else related to this. I live on the opposite shore of the Hudson River in New York only several miles from I-87. I occasionally hear clearly unlicensed operators using amateur bands, mainly 2M.
 
Since becoming a ham radio operator, I've noticed something else related to this. I live on the opposite shore of the Hudson River in New York only several miles from I-87. I occasionally hear clearly unlicensed operators using amateur bands, mainly 2M.
This is a real threat, because as it becomes common, the FCC may open the band to unlicensed operators. There used to be volunteer spectrum monitors set up by the ARRL and a reporting mechanism to identify and get pirates off the ham bands. I can't seem to find any recent reference though, so I think it would need to be a citizen complaint to the local police or FCC. It seems to take some serious infraction to get action these days.
 
Lots of truckers running modified ham gear these days. They often get checked at the border crossing nearby and if the driver does not have the appropriate license, the gear gets confiscated. Customs agents (on both Cdn and US sides) are trained to look for that stuff. The rigs are usually set up on a commercial frequency (channel) that they are not licensed for, especially out-of-country frequencies that might be used for fire, first responders, etc, across the border. Some local radio shops have been caught and charged for selling and modifying gear for this illegal market, but there is always a source somewhere else...
 
Good to know Cham, that there is at least some enforcement. I occasionally hear CBer's on the cw portion of the 10 meter band.

My first tech job was working at a shop, that among other things, repaired CB radios. Whenever a radio came in that was modified for out of band operation, we'd just tell the customer sorry, if they wanted it fixed, we would remove all mods. I wasn't willing to jeopardize my 1st class radiotelephone license fixing illegal radios. That was 40 years ago.

KM5SW

Hey, 6 meters is pretty hot again today!
 

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