if you can hear people talking your earth and ground is good, you may alter your aerial height by the small grub screw on base see if swr moves. if there is movement carry on lifting ,just bear in mind that most cb sets work at 4 watts and you may be hearing home base sets running kwts best bet is to find another friend with a set and drive away from them untill you loose contact, any where from 5 miles upwards is good for a standard set, you need loads of patience ,but its worth it.:thumb2