Fitted an Albrecht AE 6490 CB rig into Fiery

[sae70]

Got myself onto the Communication Eleven 4x4CB web site & using the clubs discount code ordered myself the following items

Intek M-760 CB (decided upon this rig as I wanted something that I could din mount with a forward facing speaker & scan facility).

DIN mounting kit.

3' Thunderpole Orbitor twig - a Springer by another name (no matter how I looked @ all the different twigs I just kept coming back to this one).

Stick on Mic holder, two male coax connectors & one double female coax joiner/coupler.

I didn't order any coax a SWR meter or a twig mount as I had enough bits & bobs knocking around from previous CB ownership to cover this

The very next day I got a phone call from Jim @ Communication Eleven 4x4CB to say that he had sold the last M-760 rig that he had in stock just before my order was made & would not be getting any more in this side of Christmas We had a quick chat about why I wanted this rig & he then offered up the Albrecht AE 6490 as an alternative It's not yet listed on his site & is £20 dearer than the Intek M-760 that I had originally ordered but is a better spec rig that comes with its own DIN mounting kit so that made it only £5 dearer than the Intek option for me as I could loose the TTi DIN mount that I had also ordered @ £15. Jim then went on to say that he would swallow the extra fiver himself if I decided to go for the Albrecht rig in exchange for sending him some photos of it once I'd fitted it So after he emailed me some photos of it I agreed to change the rig from the Intek to the Albrecht (apparently made in the same factory as they make the Midland sets)

I must just say @ this point that Jim came across as a very honest & helpful chap - Thank you Jim

Here's a couple of the photos of the Albrecht AE 6490 that Jim emailed to me

Everything that I ordered came in the post the very next day So I got on with fitting it all

All went well I've fed the rig from off of the ciggie lighter power supply & I found that I didn't require the DIN fitting kit to mount the rig in Fiery I did however need to re-drill the standard fit double DIN Toyota mounting plates so I could pick up the two standard M6 holes either side of the rig. In place of the thumb screw fixings that came with the rig I used a couple of socket dome heads I had knocking around The only other thing I had to do was remove a bit of rubber trim from around the outside edge of the rig in order to get it to fit nicely (this will easily go back on should I decide to remove the rig for resale) I don't no if the same is true for other rigs but I didn't have any use for the DIN fitting kit that came with the Albrecht as the rig is the same width as a standard radio/CD player I'm not sure if this would have been the same for the Intek but if so then the DIN fitting kit that I originally ordered would have been of no use, so worth checking before buying

All fitted

What do we all think then


I do have some concerns with regards to the SWRing

I drove out into the middle of nowhere to set up the SWR away from trees, buildings & overhead power lines

Right here in fact

Set the rig to CH20 keyed the Mic to set the SWR but even with the CAL knob wound fully clockwise I couldn't get the needle right over onto the set position so the rig with no aerial adjustment shows a SWR of less than 1 Have I missed something surely without getting the needle to sit on the set position my true reading for SWR must be higher Some advice on this matter would be appreciated

 

[Jon Wildsmith]

Does the CB have variable output power? They sometimes have a local and a DX setting. I would wonder if you're only transmitting low power and that's why you can't get enough deflection. Another possibility is you're using AM instead of FM?

 

[sae70]

Does the CB have variable output power? They sometimes have a local and a DX setting. I would wonder if you're only transmitting low power and that's why you can't get enough deflection. Another possibility is you're using AM instead of FM?

It does seem to have an awfull lot of settings & options I'll check out what you've suggested & get back to you

 

[sae70]

OK Had another look @ the instructions

I had the rig set on 'EU' country setting but 'AM' as you suggested Jon

But now I've had a better look @ the instructions there is also a setting fo 'UK' Should I be using this setting instead of the 'EU' country setting on 'FM'

Here's all of my options

Mmmmm............ many more options compared with my old plug & play Harrier CB-X

 

[Jon Wildsmith]

You want the UK setting when you're in the UK That's 40 FM channels of UK allocation and 40 FM channels of CEPT allocation. As you see from the instructions some countries also allow AM on the CEPT channels but not the UK. On FM you should be able to get full deflection of the meter on FWD?

 

[sae70]

Cheers Jon I'll give that a go tomorrow & let you know how it goes

Now I've spent a little time reading the instructions I'm loving the idea of the 'ASQ' function

 

[Paul_Humphreys]

You also need to change the "springer" as they are utter crap.

Paul

 

[sae70]

You also need to change the "springer" as they are utter crap

But I've only just bought it And it's not a 'Springer' it's a 'Thunderpole Orbitor'

 

[Jon Wildsmith]

otherwise known as a wire wound air resistor you will be able to talk to the truck in front and behind you ok

 

[Bat21]

otherwise known as a wire wound air resistor you will be able to talk to the truck in front and behind you ok

Aha..... so that's what was wrong with my coms in Morocco.

If the other guy with us was any more than 50 yards away he couldn't hear us... but I could hear him fine

So what should I/we be changing it for.... is one of these any good

 

[Chas]

otherwise known as a wire wound air resistor you will be able to talk to the truck in front and behind you ok

So what should I/we be changing it for.... is one of these any good

One of the best

 

[Jon Wildsmith]

I get good results from those.

 

[Paul_Humphreys]

otherwise known as a wire wound air resistor you will be able to talk to the truck in front and behind you ok

Aha..... so that's what was wrong with my coms in Morocco.

If the other guy with us was any more than 50 yards away he couldn't hear us... but I could hear him fine

So what should I/we be changing it for.... is one of these any good

Yes Paul very good. I have been running an older one for a few years. I have spoken to Spain with big boots on

Paul

 

[Bat21]

Thanks chaps, another job added to the list

 

[sae70]

I have very much been around the houses with regards to twigs

The Sirio Hi POWER is a mighty fine one & Jon did offer to carry out the modification of its weak point for me But I just didn't like the mounting of it as you can't mount it on anything but a flat horizontal surface So with its well recognised weakness & the limited mounting options I soon discounted it as an option for me

Looking @ other options offered by Sirio I found that they make a very similar specified twig to the Hi POWER called the PERFORMER but with an adjustable mount. Again a mighty fine twig but soon I discounted this one as well as should I have trouble with or break it I'm limited to only being able to replace it with exactly the same twig due to its bespoke mounting

This then led me onto the Sirio MYTHOS 9000

This twig with its versatile mount (basically a standard dome mount with a banjo attachment) would enable me to swap between my Springer style twig that I can use for more enclosed terrain with overhead hazards & the better performing MYTHOS for tarmac & more open terrain Giving me hopefully better versatility

To be fair talking to the truck 45.72 meters in front & behind me while I have my Thunderpole Orbitor fitted is all I’ll ever want to do 98% of the time I’m using a rig But come on really if the Springer style twigs were that bad no one would buy them & no one would sell them Would they

Sirio Hi POWER

Sirio PERFORMER

Sirio MYTHOS 9000 (on the right)

My lovely Thunderpole mini Orbitor

I do secretly still hold a desire for the Sirio PERFORMER & it will fit directly in place of my current set up BUT......


You see this is the type of terrain that 70% of my local lanes look like

In this photo here you can see my m8 (the only one I have) The chap that I would be wanting to do most of my chatting with & he's far less than 50yards (sorry 45.72meters) in front of me So my Thunderpole Orbitor should be perfect for the job then Shouldn't it

 

[Jon Wildsmith]

So long as your mate doesn't get too far ahead he'll be able to hear you but he could probably hear you if you just shouted instead Now you have it you might as well see how you get on and if it does what you need then you're sorted. It's not a very favourable mounting position though so that combination is unlikely to perform very well.

Those lanes are fluffy and not going to hurt a Sirio

 

[Chas]

Jon did offer to carry out the modification of its weak point for me

What is it's weak point and does the mod necessitate re-tuning

 

[Jon Wildsmith]

Jon did offer to carry out the modification of its weak point for me

What is it's weak point and does the mod necessitate re-tuning

The casting that comes out the top of the coil, been discussed a few times

 

[Bat21]

The casting that comes out the top of the coil, been discussed a few times

... the casting can snap at the base of the whip if caught low enough on a branch but the casting is threaded and screws into the base and could be replaced with a steel version if you have access to a lathe. That's what I've done on the 4000 that goes on my front bumper as it's more exposed. The 3000 on the rear wheel carrier has the original casting still.

Which bit snaps Jon, is it the bit that looks like the end of a kids crayon or the round bit below it?

 

[Paul_Humphreys]

It is the Sirio MYTHOS 9000 I have.