Ask questions, think it through, and avoid the regret, and wasted money of getting the wrong equipment for what you really want to do. The advertisements do not tell you what the radio doesn't have.
Announce what you are trying to do on this forum. The folks on the forum will help you to steer clear of the tons of false information.
List the equipment you have already, and what you have tried before. It's helpful to us to know what your equipment background is.
Mention the vehicle you will be putting it on, and ask for help and comments. Equipment limitations vary from one vehicle to another, It's helpful to us to know whether you're driving a Kenworth or a Yugo....
The wiring and equipment advice is free on the CBRadioTalk forum, and there are no restocking fees for changed minds!
The comments and opinions that you receive on the CBRT forum can be scrutinized by hundreds of people, aka, other forum members. If you ask for advice from the guy behind the counter of most CB shops, you will simply be directed to what he has available in his inventory. Regardless of whether it' really good...Like a used car lot.
Any CB will transmit and receive "straight out of the box",
but,
all “out of the box radios” can be significantly improved by a good technician. THE TECHNICIAN THAT SETS UP YOUR RADIO WILL DIRECTLY AFFECT ITS PERFORMANCE ON TRANSMIT, RECEIVE, AND EVEN SOUND QUALITY!
Don’t buy a Yugo, with plans of going to the races, choose your radio chassis wisely. Weigh your options by looking at the most full-featured radios as a guide, to make sure you get all the options that are important to you, and learn what all the options do.
Beware: radio advertisements tell you what features are included, you have to pay close attention to notice what that radio does not have.
Just a few of the full featured radios to compare against, are the General Lee / General Washington, Connex 4600 Turbo, Galaxy 99V, Galaxy 45MP, Magnum S9, Superstar SS-158EDX, Stryker SR-440, and RCI 2950 DX, and each one of these has a different sound, and set of features.
Saying, “I don’t want, or need that feature” will trim dollars off the cost of the radio now, but wishing later, that you had gotten a feature can be very expensive in the form of "radio regret", and very heavy depreciation in used radio resale.
Many "high power setups" use a radio as a driver and a separate amplifier. Radios and amplifiers must be matched properly for the best performance. Ask before you buy.
A 5-watt "out of the box" radio can reach out for 5 miles or more on a clear day, and if the radio traffic is light.
But if that 5-watt radio tries to talk on channel 19 when it's busy, it may not get out more than a few feet. Most of the big sounding radios are doing 30 watts or more. Many are doing more than 200 watts.
A radio can sound big, because of a good mic and echo, and have low power, and only get out 5-10 miles,
and, a radio can sound plain & clear, and get out 15+ miles because of high power and no echo.
Caution: getting into higher power levels (more than 30 watts) requires special care and attention to “doing it right”, with power wiring and proper antenna installation for your vehicle.
Trying to go above 300 watts can bring more trouble than many people are willing to deal with, but if you enjoy shooting ducks with a 50-caliber machine gun
, 400 watts and up can be very fun 
.The radio, microphone, amplifier, antenna, and "how the antenna is mounted to which vehicle", all work s together as a system. Give careful thought to each, and how they all work together.
Post your questions under the correct CBRT headings, and experience the FREE
, friendly, and sometimes comical help, of the CBRadioTalk Forum.PS, don't be offensive. The moderators take their job seriously, and they will zap your post, and possibly your existence on the forum if you cause trouble.
Keep it clean, and enjoy!
OKIE DOKIE... Here goes my own views on the big radios... thus far with my limited equipment and money. I will give ya the dirt on three I have personally tested on my own watt meters (all on the same meter so take it as you see it) 
