Hello, I have a question. First off, does anyone go to West Chicago Illinois to see the trains on the EJ&E and Union Pacific go by the historic junction? And if you do and bring a CB Unit (radio) along, what are the frequinces for the Union Pacific and the EJ&E…please.[8D][;)]
I’m fairly certain you’ll need a scanner, not a CB radio to listen to the trains.
CB radios are the kind of radios that truckers use, anyone can talk on them and purchase them, I believe there are 40 frequencies dedicated to CB.
RRs use different kinds of radios that operate on different frequencies, and thus you need a scanner to access them.
–With a scanner you can only listen, not chat back.
Scanner it is. CBs are in a totally different frequency band. And while it’s possible to buy a radio that transmits on the RR freqs, doing so will get you in a mountain of trouble with the feds.
Get a decent pocket scanner and find out what the freqs are for the railroad you want to fan. There are plenty of websites that can tell you what you need to know. Check out the “did you get a scanner for Christmas” thread, too.
As others have mentioned you want a scanner. Scanners are sold by Radio Shack and Uniden sells them directly on its web site, www.uniden.com. Railroads use the 160.200 - 161.565 MHz frequency range, or the VHF High band.
If you buy a scanner with a programmable search feature you can set the search limits between 160 - 200 and 161.565 and observe at what frequencies the search pauses when there are transmissions. Another source of information about the local railroad frequencies is the Compendium of American Railroad Radio Frequencies.
You can still buy a tranceiver, and only listen to it, however, to transmit, you have to have a ham amateur radio operator’s license. Nevertheless you can still get in big trouble if you make an unauthorized transmission on a railroad’s frequency
Thank you all very much for your help. Now question 2, who goes to West Chicago Illinois to watch the trains go by.
Like said before about needing a scanner for train listening.
CB is “Citizens Band” for use by anyone for personal use. Got one for the diesel, and if you ever in central pa you can hear me with “Breaker breaker 2 - 8 this is adrianspeeder callin out with a redneck radio check, comeon back”
There are many more than 40 channels and you can play some intresting games with them. Also hear some REALLY strange stuff, but can be a lifesaver. Im never on the road without it.
Adrianspeeder