29-04-2015, 07:53 PM
International Frequencies and Channels
The "European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrators", abbreviated CEPT, initially set the standard of frequencies for use on Citizen Band and which has been widely adopted by most countries - I refer to these as “Internationally Recognised” frequencies.
Many countries impose restrictions on the number of these frequencies/channels that operators can legally broadcast on.
CB is also allocated to certain “Internationally Recognised” VHF frequencies – which, for the sake of this forum, we are not interested in as there is no “skill” or “challenge” involved with these higher frequencies. Both VHF and UHF are severely restricted in distance communication without the aid and assistance of “repeaters” which you sometimes have to pay for – so why bother?
The [typical] full spectrum of channels for CB totals 40-channels.
The “Internationally Recognised” frequencies of these channels are from 26.965MHz through to 27.405MHz.
It is commonly found that, out of the 40-channels, some countries only allow the legal use of 9 of these channels and is typically from Channel 19 (27.185MHz) to Channel 27 (27.275MHz).
South Africa is an example of this draconian adopted policy.
In some odd and obscure cases, some countries allocate entirely different frequencies to the 40-channels. A typical example of this is New Zealand where channels were initially introduced to operate between 26.330MHz and to 26.770MHz (but have since adopted and added the “Internationally Recognised” frequencies for legal use making it one of the rare countries to have 80-channels cover both the 26MHz and 27MHz frequencies).
The New Zealand Frequencies are listed here in the Government Gazette 2011: https://gazette.govt.nz/notice/id/2011-go3629?year=2011¬iceNumber=3629
International Calling (over-the-border communications)
Most countries do not permit CB radio communication with other parties beyond their borders.
A typical example of this is South Africa. So, don’t be offended if that funny-accent booms through and spikes your RF meter and they don’t respond to your DX (also, most can’t speak English).
For those lucky countries that have modern and relaxed laws over international communication, you are probably asking yourself “What are the calling-frequencies/channels that these countries use?”
A “general rule of thumb” here is that Channel 19 is the AM calling frequency (this excludes America as it is known as the “Truckers Channel”).
Channel 38 is the calling frequency on Lower Sidebands (LSB). This is where most enthusiasts spend their time busy DXing over the globe – as a serious CB operator, this is your goal.
For specific counties like South Africa, you will need to use Channel 27 Upper Sidebands (USB) for calling (Channel 19 is for calling on AM - but who the heck uses AM or even FM these days).
The "European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrators", abbreviated CEPT, initially set the standard of frequencies for use on Citizen Band and which has been widely adopted by most countries - I refer to these as “Internationally Recognised” frequencies.
Many countries impose restrictions on the number of these frequencies/channels that operators can legally broadcast on.
CB is also allocated to certain “Internationally Recognised” VHF frequencies – which, for the sake of this forum, we are not interested in as there is no “skill” or “challenge” involved with these higher frequencies. Both VHF and UHF are severely restricted in distance communication without the aid and assistance of “repeaters” which you sometimes have to pay for – so why bother?
The [typical] full spectrum of channels for CB totals 40-channels.
The “Internationally Recognised” frequencies of these channels are from 26.965MHz through to 27.405MHz.
It is commonly found that, out of the 40-channels, some countries only allow the legal use of 9 of these channels and is typically from Channel 19 (27.185MHz) to Channel 27 (27.275MHz).
South Africa is an example of this draconian adopted policy.
In some odd and obscure cases, some countries allocate entirely different frequencies to the 40-channels. A typical example of this is New Zealand where channels were initially introduced to operate between 26.330MHz and to 26.770MHz (but have since adopted and added the “Internationally Recognised” frequencies for legal use making it one of the rare countries to have 80-channels cover both the 26MHz and 27MHz frequencies).
The New Zealand Frequencies are listed here in the Government Gazette 2011: https://gazette.govt.nz/notice/id/2011-go3629?year=2011¬iceNumber=3629
International Calling (over-the-border communications)
Most countries do not permit CB radio communication with other parties beyond their borders.
A typical example of this is South Africa. So, don’t be offended if that funny-accent booms through and spikes your RF meter and they don’t respond to your DX (also, most can’t speak English).
For those lucky countries that have modern and relaxed laws over international communication, you are probably asking yourself “What are the calling-frequencies/channels that these countries use?”
A “general rule of thumb” here is that Channel 19 is the AM calling frequency (this excludes America as it is known as the “Truckers Channel”).
Channel 38 is the calling frequency on Lower Sidebands (LSB). This is where most enthusiasts spend their time busy DXing over the globe – as a serious CB operator, this is your goal.
For specific counties like South Africa, you will need to use Channel 27 Upper Sidebands (USB) for calling (Channel 19 is for calling on AM - but who the heck uses AM or even FM these days).
