Special Edition Gold Cobra 29 LTD with original Cobra 4 pin Microphone The most popular mobile radio by far is the Cobra 29 LTD. Originally manufactured in Hong Kong as the Cobra GTL in 1977 it has undergone a number of changes over the years. Once a solid radio with a lot of metal, it has become cheapened, to keep up with the growing number of newer radios and at a cheaper price today than when it was introduced. The first generation of Cobras had its model number changed from the Cobra GTL to the Cobra LTD, to reflect the new features. An instant channel 9 switch was added, the red LED display was changed to green and the dimmer control was removed. After a short production run the radio was manufactured in Taiwan were it remained unchanged for years. At the same time Uniden manufactured the exact same radio under the Uniden 76. At the time Uniden and Cobra were the same manufactures. After a production run in Taiwan the radio was the made in the Philippines. This was probably the best Cobra 29 LTDs made. It was consistent and peaked out easily; during this time Cobra and Uniden parted ways. Uniden changed its model number from the 76 to the model 78 even though the radios were and still are almost identical. Cosmetically the radios are very similar with the same features. The radios peaked out to about 30 watts and dead keyed 6 to 8 watts, with very little modification and were a work horse. The radios were then made in China where they first were manufactured with no changes to the radio internally or externally. The radio then went through a series of changes. The side mounted Microphone Jack was moved to the front. This made it easier for truckers to mount the radio inside a cubby hole, without having to deal with the mic coming out of the side. The metal plate that was covered with the plastic face plate was removed. The controls were then mounted directly to the plastic face plate. The cover as well as the metal in general was made thinner. Internally the components were downsized where possible. Although the radio is designed more cheaply, the offset is a much less expensive radio. I recommend this AM radio. The new ones may not peak out as easily but if you like to keep your radio as factory new this radio has all the features and the talk power you need. The most important feature is the SWR meter. You may have the best radio in the world, but with a bad antenna system you may as well not have a radio at all. I have a Wilson 1000 trunk lip mount antenna. My SWR is 1.1 to 1, this means all my power is going out the steel whip with less than a 1% loss. As the SWR nears 1.5 to 1 the loss is 4%. At an 11% loss you have an SWR of 2 to 1.Which is the industry standard for the maximum allowable reflection. A 3 to 1 SWR is the point at which the radio may be damaged as well as giving you a 25% loss. That is a big loss when you take into account that AM radio is only 25% efficient. When you purchase an antenna regardless of the make or type, make sure you can get your SWR that is as close to 1 to 1 as possible. I like the Wilson Steel whip as well as Francis antennas. Always use 18 ft of coaxial. You can never go wrong with that length. Return to Photo Return to Radio list | 
