I have one of these swr meters that I used about 20 years ago for CB 26 Mhz, very good. Now I have taken up Ham, my question is, Will this swr meter work on the ham HF bands ? ie 3 to 30 Mhz There are no use on V/UHF from experence ! Geoff. ZL4GH ( New Zealand )

best way is to leave the radio in piece and obtain a linear amplifier to do the job a 10 meter ham radio amplifier will do nicely but you must re-tune it for the 27 mhz band 10 meter band is 28 mhz.
RF amps work best using side-band mode.

The problem is you need to tune the antenna.



It is important to tune your CB radio antenna to the proper length. The length must exactly match the wavelength of the frequency you transmit on. Or be really really close.

All Cb antenna's have a way to adjust the length of the antenna. If it's a mag mount, the metal whip can be slid in and out of a metal collar. Usually a set screw. If its a fiberglass whip, the way to tune it is on top. It either has a small metal rod with a set screw to adjust the length, or it threads in and out to adjust length.

Either type you have it will need to be adjusted for proper length. Here is how to tune the antenna to lowest SWR.

Some radios have a built in SWR meter. Some do not. If yours doesn't have an SWR meter, then you have to use an external SWR meter. Radio shack carries one, and you can find them cheap on ebay.

If you have a built in SWR meter or external, the procedure is the same:

1. Turn the radio to CH 20.(This is the center of the band.)
2. Switch the meter switch to CAL. (CAL stand for calibrate.
3. Key the radio. (Important. Do not talk while keying the radio.)
4. turn the CAL knob up until the meter hits the CAL mark.
5. Now while still keying the radio flip the meter switch to SWR.

Where the meter falls after that point is you SWR reading. If its above 3, that is real bad. 2 is not gonna kill your radio but its not the greatest. 1.5 and under is a good place to be, but the lower the better.

If your SWR is high, Here is how to find out if your antenna is too long or too short.

1. Turn to CH 1
2. Repeat SWR procedure. You must calibrate every time you do it.
3. Remember the SWR reading.
4. Turn to CH 40.
5. Again repeat SWR procedure.
6. Compare the reading between CH 1 and CH 40.

Now if the SWR is higher on channel 1 then channel 40 your antenna is too short. You must make it longer.

If the SWR is longer on channel 40 then on channel 1, then the antenna is too long, you need to make it shorter.

Make height adjustments about an eight inch at a time, and take reading each time.

once the SWR is significantly lower and the reading on channel 1 and 40 are about the same, you a about matched. At this point turn the radio to the center of the band, channel 20 and take an SWR reading.

You should now have a low SWR reading, 1.5 or under. If you are 1.5 or under, you are good to go.

If you cannot get the SWR to an appropriate level, there may be an antenna problem.

Standing wave ratio is standing wave ratio. This meter is not reading based on frequency. It is reading based on the measurement of electrical energy. I see no reason why it wouldn't work.

The best way is with an antenna analyzer but that is too expensive unless you do SWRs for a living. The meter on the radio should suffice for your needs.
Adjust the screw on the antenna until it is about 1/2 inch out.
Place the srf/swr switch to swr.
Go to channel 1 and note the SWR reading on the meter.
Go to channel 40 and do the same.
If channel 1 SWR is higher than channel 40, then screw the tuning screw out a turn or 2.
If channel 40 SWR is higher than channel 1, then screw the tuning screw in a turn or 2.
Repeat until the SWR on channel 1 is the same as 40. Channel 19 will be the lowest.

If you are not comfortable using the built in SWR meter, you will have to invest around $20 for a small SWR meter.

,,,,Don at NTCB, Inc.

The manual isn't online to my knowledge however I did find a guide on how to program it.
"Turn it on. Push the "MANUAL" button to stop it from scanning.

Push number 1, then push "MANUAL" again. This should leave you on
channel one.

Using the keypad enter the frequency you want to monitor, then push
"E." Press "REVIEW" at anytime to see what frequency is programmed
there. If the review button flashes 000.0000 on the LED readout
display, you might be entering an invalid frequency. Refer to the list
of acceptable frequencies in the Frequency Range Bands below.

Push "MANUAL" to step to channel number two. Enter the frequency. Push
"E." Push "MANUAL" to step to channel three. Repeat this process until
all the (10) channels are full, or you've run out of frequencies to
enter.

Push "SCAN" to start automatically scanning the frequencies. The
radio will stop when it hears someone talking, and resume scanning two
seconds after the conversation has stopped.

Frequency Range Bands:

20 to 29.7 MHz (10 Meter "Ham" Band)
29.7 to 50 MHz (VHF Low Band)
50 to 54 MHz (6 Meter Amateur Band)
136 to 144 MHz (Military Land Mobile)
144 to 148 MHz (2 Meter "Ham" Band)
406 to 420 MHz (Federal Government Land Mobile)
420 to 450 MHz (70cm "Ham" Band)
450 to 470 MHz (UHF Standard Band)
470 to 512 MHz (UHF "T" Band)"

http://newsgroups.derkeiler.com/Archive/Rec/rec.radio.scanner/2006-01/msg00174.html
Hope this helps.

swr meter operation as follows go to channel 1 flip the switch on the swr to cal key the mic adjust the needle on the swr meter to the dash mark at the far right of the meter use the dial on the meter to adjust then unkey your mic and flip your switch to swr re key the mic you should not be higher than 1.5 on any channel repeat the proccess on 20 and chan 40 if the swr is higher on 40 than 1 lower the antenna or trim it but only 1/4 inch at a time.

Normally the swr should be set on the centre channel so if you have 40 channels you should set it on channel 20. This is because as you move away from channel 20 the swr rises slightly more for each channel away from the 20. If you set it on channel 40 you'll have twice as much swr on channel 1 more than if you set it on channel 20. If the swr metre shows 1:1 (i.e. doesn't move up at all) on channel 20 the rest should be ok since the antenna was designed for CB. You should however check that the needle showing reflected power doesn't go above 2.5

what type of aerial are you using? is the aerial near any metalwork ie fencing/metal sheeting etc if so move it away as you could be getting reflected power back into the aerial causing high swr, also 2.0 swr isnt too bad could be better but the swr meters built into cbs are not that acurate, I would use a dedicated in line swr meter (even a loan of one) and compare the readings, I take it all your electrical conections to the aerial are good? let me know and i will try and help, Thanks.

weather can effect your meter .Those meters are not very accurate just a base line get a good swr meter and then check it.If your getting good radio checks it could be the potentoimeter is dirty . Radio shack sells contact cleaner and lube try cleaning it . That might help