Be Careful About Using That CB In Some Places

I think Erroll is our man - he is accustomed to explaining things on a seventh grade level to people, and that is exactly what it's going to take!

Are you talking about in the forum or in his previous profession?

C'mon, Daniel, both!

I'm thinking the heated wiper idea is a good one. Shouldn't be very hard to invent something that works hmmmmm Some kind of a diode, to reduce voltage so as not to fry the wiring from overheating/shorts....They have the hose/squirters on wipers, why not some small sized heating element....

I'm thinking the heated wiper idea is a good one. Shouldn't be very hard to invent something that works hmmmmm Some kind of a diode, to reduce voltage so as not to fry the wiring from overheating/shorts....They have the hose/squirters on wipers, why not some small sized heating element....

They already exist. I've seen them at the Iowa 80

The HUD is an interesting idea, They've been doing them in passenger cars since the early 90's. It does require a specific treatment to the windshield though.

Everblades Heated Windshield Wipers

Yup heated wiper blades are a thing (GM actually uses heated wipers on some of their cars). Gm is a big one to utilize the HUD in their cars (corvette, grand Prix, Cadillacs) to name a few. The issue there is the truck manufacturers haven't decided to incorporate it. I believe it was Cadillac that actually had a night vision setup where when looking through the windshield it acted kind of like night vision goggles. Things are definitely improving in the trucks such as the radar system which is similar to the adaptive cruise control in cars. They should incorporate blind spot monitoring into the cabs similar to cars. As far as Arizona I read that one county actually passed a law making it illegal to even use a Bluetooth headset to talk on the phone.

As far as Arizona I read that one county actually passed a law making it illegal to even use a Bluetooth headset to talk on the phone.

I think you're thinking of the ban on using cb radio while driving. bluetooth is a handsfree way of communicating and currently from a google search I could not find anything about a ban on bluetooth calling.

Yup heated wiper blades are a thing....The issue there is the truck manufacturers haven't decided to incorporate it.

No, the manufacturers are more than capable of installing anything you'd like installed. They can put HUD's or heated wiper blades in the trucks if they want to. The companies simply aren't asking for them.

And look at the prices! It's like $150 for the entire heated windshield wiper kit, wiring and all and they're paying $90,000+ for tractors. How many times a day during the winter does a driver have to reach out the window and pluck the ice off the wipers so he can see? Back in '93 I was screaming, "Why don't they put heated wipers on these things???" Here we are 22 years later and that $150 safety device allowing you to actually see out the windshield isn't deemed important by the people who equip these trucks.

Brilliant.

So they're worried about people looking down at their cell phones but they won't install HUD devices to prevent the driver from looking down at gauges, GPS units, or Qualcomm devices. And they're not worried about whether or not you can actually see out the windshield. They feel it isn't worth $150 just so the driver doesn't have to roll down his window, stand up in his seat, reach out the window to grab a moving wiper, and pluck the ice off it 100 times every winter.

And yet those $6,000+ useless beeping "collision avoidance systems" have been in every truck I've driven for a major company since '93 and never one time ever did it alert me to any sort of problem. It just sat there beeping at things you don't care about every two minutes for ten hours a day.

Brilliant.

Frozen blades are annoying, and ultimately I end up running my defroster on "dragon's breath" all day with my windows halfway down to make them somewhat useful as they collect more snow that I need to shake off every other mile. I have all kinds of beeping crap that read the wrong crap on the road, thinking I've left my lane. Luckily I don't have that dumb Bendix collision avoidance thingy that locks the breaks up when debris, or nothing at all, is detected too close to the sensor. Best of all, and I thoroughly love this in my life, is that the DEF tank is on the passenger side of my truck.... Yes. Read that last sentence again if needed. The DEF tank, only fillable from the driver's side, is located on the OTHER side of the truck. Only a few ways to fill it. A.) Pull though the pumps the wrong direction and **** off everyone. B.) After fueling, go over to the next island and **** off everyone over there as you go through the entire process to get that pump started and drag it all the way over to your side C.) My favorite bad idea; carry a fuel jug in your sidebox and collect DEF in it, and then pour it into your DEF tank as the guy behind you fantasizes about your fiery demise. Why would the DEF tank be on the wrong side? Apparently, some manufactures decided as an afterthought to put it there when it wasn't part of a PowerPoint slideshow, and now companies have to SPECIFICALLY REQUEST that the DEF tank be on the driver side where it can be refilled when the truck is ordered up from the factory. Mine apparently was a test model given to the company for one of two reasons: to see if a shift-assisted Eaton gets better mileage, or to see how long it takes for a driver to be beaten to death by hammers at a fuel island. I'm suspecting the latter.

Having worked in government earlier in life, I can assuredly tell you all that anything that is decided in government is directly influenced by how well it is presented in PowerPoint. Extra important for color schemes, fonts, font sizes, important-looking lines drawn between important-looking shapes and words. Transition effects used for emphasis with correct timing gets extra funding when combined with ominous phrases and buzzwords. Some knowledge of color psychology goes a long way. In the world of feelings and parsing words, be sure to bring politically correct organic free trade....stuff....and fluffy puppies. You know, 'cause it matters now.

They way things usually work here in Arizona, is that there is something that happens to cause the law. My guess is that there was an incident or multiple incidents where a trucker caused a crash or more likely fatalities, and he was distracted by the CB. I agree that using the CB is a distraction, its exactly like using a phone sans dialing. Many states have hands-free cell phone laws. Modern cars have it built into the stereo. I feel where safety is concerned its always best to err on the side of caution. Many studies have shown that any conversation while driving is distracting. Anything that is taking part of your attention off the road is a distraction, CB is no different.

A county government does not have jurisdiction over the use of FCC licensed radio equipment. While they may restrict texting or cell phone use they cannot prohibit use of ham radio or cb. As someone noted, it's most likely some hotshot county commissioner trying to look like a star. CB/ham can save lives by alerting other drivers to a hazardous situation ahead. More moronic rules to deal with.

I couldn't believe this when I spotted this poster in the Phoenix, AZ Knight Terminal. Apparently in Coconino county in Arizona they have come up with an ordinance that considers the use of a CB radio as a violation of the hand held communication device rules that drivers have to observe with their cell phones.