Ah, my pet subject, CB's.. LOL.
Without going to a 'big radio', my fav's are the Cobra 25 or 29 Nightwatch, or the Uniden 78 series. I'm a Sidebander, so if there was room, I'd run a Uniden Grant or Cobra 148.
Hook one of these to a good antenna with quality coax, and you'll have a good setup...