J & M cb radio question

[boss hoss bill]

I bought a used J and M cb that came off a Valkyrie.

I had a buddy with his Wing see if he could read me OK, which he did and I heard him as well, we were about 50 feet apart.

I've been told I need to get the antenna calibrated using a SWR meter. Supposedly not doing this can damage your unit. 

Is this truly necessary? One shop in my area (Fla Treasure Coast), lost their meter and couldn't say when they're getting a new one
Radio Shack doesn't do it either.

I hate to buy a meter for a one time shot.
Any suggestions?

Thanks
Bill

[PhredValk]

It can do damage to your transmitter, but if it's not too far off meter and you don't use it for long messages, my GWRRA group tell me it shouldn't hurt it badly for a while (I had one on my GL1100). You should get it metered, but you should be OK until the shop gets a new unit.
If you are using the original coax and antenna (if you bought the whole setup) it is probably very close to right on.
I'm no expert, just someone that had the same radio on another bike.
Fred.

[rodeo1]

i'd call john down in arizona at j&m and ask him.

[Joe Hummer]

If...and this is a big if...the unit was tested on the other bike and you are using all of the original components, you will be fine.  If you changed your antenna, you will want to test your CB to make sure it is within the specifications or it could damage your radio (attenuation and/or feedback...I think).  

I picked my SWR meter up online pretty cheap.  You can also check truck stops in your area.  A lot of times if they don't have the meter for sale, they may have one you can borrow.  CB rapair shops will also have a SWR Meter.  (It sounds like the shop near you isn't a quality shop and I wouldn't trust anything they tested.)  You will want to make sure you have the ridght connectors.  The meter requires the screw-on RG-58 connectors.  The antenna leads are banana jacks like what is used on car radios.  (I think I took a cable with the banana connectors, cut it in half and soldered on the RG-58 connectors I needed for the SWR meter.)  

If you can wait a week or two, I could package mine up and send it to you so you can test your radio setup (I need to use it somewhere in that timeframe to test another radio).  Let me know.

Good luck.  

Joe

[valkyriemc]

RG-58 refers to the co-axial cable and stands for Radio Guide-an old term, its slightly less than 1/4 " in diameter (.2)  The connectors used are typically PL-259's aka UHF connectors. The PL's have an adapter that fits in the center, and matches the dia of the cable. Anyway, the SWR meter is the most accurate way of matching the transceiver's output to the antenna. By adjusting the whip lenght the match can come close to 1:1   Or said another way 5 watts forward and zero reflected on your watt meter. But like Phredvalk said you may be good to go as it is. G/L

[boss hoss bill]

JoeValkIS

Thanks for the offer ref the SWR meter.
A local radio shack manager is coming back in town and will hopefully be willing to calibrate me with his meter.
If it doesn't work out, I'll let you know.

Appreciate every ones input!

Bill