CB Antenna questions and pics.

[LesStallings]

I pull a 30 foot 5th wheel trailer, would I need to go with duals?



Also, I don't have a truck box. Where is the easiest place with the least drilling to mount the antenna?



I park the truck in a garage, and would have to probably take the antenna off evertime I put it in the garage? Sounds like a pain... .

Dave, look over the information on the Firestik website on dual antennas:



http://www.firestik.com/Tech_Docs/SNGL-or-Dual.htm



It is just one of the articles in their tech section. Very good information.



I have the same problem as you do, since I pull a 34 foot gooseneck, one that is 8 feet high, effectively blocking signals from the rear. After reading all the tech info, I placed an order for a pair of 4 foot Firestik Lite adjustable antennas, their dual coax harness (different ohm than single applications), and two stainless steel pickup stake mounts.



Duals must be mounted at least 5 feet apart and ideally 9 feet. Using the stake mounts, the antennas will be about 5½ feet apart and obviously in clear view of each other (another requirement). This configuration causes the signal to be biased to the front and to the rear of the vehicle. That is why so many big trucks use duals and have them on their mirrors.



Using 4 foot top loaded antennas puts the top of the antenna about 8 feet above the ground. If you have a standard 7 foot garage door, you will have problems. I'm lucky to have a 10 foot door. There are swivel mounts,spring mounts or you could even use the 3 foot antenna and might clear your door.



Regardless of the brand of antenna you prefer, look carefully at matching all the components and always measure SWR and tune the antennas for optimum performance. A high SWR will perform poorly at the best and will fry your CB electronics at the worst. Radio Shack will sell you a SWR meter for $40 (you will also need a short piece of coax as a jumper) and they are simple to use.

 

[radar doctor]

thanks gang. . where is the best place to mount a CB in the Cab Of a 03 truck???Is there a mount available for our trucks????

 

[MABurns]

Depends on the size of your CB. I had a good old "classic" but I bought a smaller one so I could mount it in the cubby.



Pictures in my readers rigs.



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[K5IP]

The antenna does require a good ground plane but and effective ground plane for RF (radio frequiency) does not have to be a DC (direct current) ground.

In other words the ground plane signal, half of your radiated signal, is referenced to the ground plane through the capacitive coupling between your magnetic mount and the body of the truck.

In short, this works almost as well as a solid wired ground.

Rog

 

[Spooled-up]

Coax routing to inside of cab???

Thanks for the explanation K5IP.



Dave at 12 volt told me to route the coax through the bottom of the cab brake light. It doesn't look like there is much of a gap at the bottom of the lens for coax to go through.

2 questions:



Can anyone tell me where they routed their cable from the magnetic mount on the roof of their truck?



How did you attach the cable to the roof or is it just free to move around up there and scratch the paint?

I have to go about a foot or so forward of the rear edge of the roof because I have a sirius antenna I have to stay clear of if I want to keep the antena laterally in the center of the roof.

 

[bmoeller]

I had a mag. mount antenna for a while. Since I rarely have a passenger with me, I ran the wire in between the door and B pillar. The wire went alongside of the door seal (will leak if the door closes with it between the door and seal), to the bottom of the door and into the cab, on the floor. No leaks this way.



If you use a mag mount, make sure to put a piece of plastic (like a sandwich baggie) between the mount and the roof. No worries about scratches this way. Mag still holds strong.



The the antenna in the middle (side-to-side) of the cab, and in line of the back of the doors.

 

[Flat_Lick_Dodge]

You were talking about not having clearance for your garage, there are a couple of mfgs that make a piece that goes between your antenna and the actual mount. You can find them at truckstops usually. When you want to put it in the garage you just pull straight up on the antenna and lay it down. Check these out http://www.aesham.com/pdf/p130-139.pdf and check out the mfj lip mount and http://www.aesham.com/pdf/p113-121.pdf, comet and diamond are both quality mfgs. I have used both and have had good luck with them. You should be able to get some ideas from these pages. There is a type of mount that i looked for and couldnt find. It mounts permanently to the side of the fender and the hood closes on the mount some are made to fold down under the hood when you shut the hood it hides them. Might not work on the dodge though. Well by no means do I want come across as a know it all, Just know where you are coming from trying to decide. I am sure there are many members on here more versed than me, but you might get and idea or two from the websites. Hope this helps.

 

[Flat_Lick_Dodge]

One more thing, Uniden makes a very very good small cb Its a uniden 510 XL. They use them in all of the mining applications where i am from because they are very shock durable and have good electronics. The 510XL should fit in the hole under your hvac controls unless you ahve all the bells and whistles.

 

[Spooled-up]

The Wilson mag mount antenna unlocks from the magnetic base and comes off so you can get in your garage. There is a rain cap that goes on also if you go through a car wash or something.

 

[LesStallings]

I've got the Uniden PC68LX and it is smallish, but not one of the very small units. I have it "wedged" between the driver's seat and the center consol. It actually fits nicely (although tight) and is easy to see and reach the controls. I'm 170# and might not take up as much space as a more wide-body driver.



With this setup I do have to have a remote speaker, but a remote speaker is nice regardless of where the unit is mounted.

 

[Spooled-up]

I finally got my setup completed. Here's the thread with all the pics.



http://www.tdr1.com/forums/showthread.php?t=137932

 

[BIG BOB]

thanks gang. . where is the best place to mount a CB in the Cab Of a 03 truck???Is there a mount available for our trucks????

I have this mount available.



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[LesStallings]

Stake Mounts for CB Antenna

Got the antennas installed and tuned. I used the Firestik stake mounts, 4' Lite (Firefly) antennas, and their dual harness (different coax size than used for a single mount). I was surprised at how sensitive the SWR tuning was. These antennas have the adjusters on the ends and the difference in length between a poor (>3) SWR and the good 1. 3 SWR I was able to tune in was only ¼". Final adjustments were only tiny fractions but made all the difference. There are plastic caps that slide over the adjusters and the instructons off the website said to make measurements with the caps in place. Just for grins, I tried to see if it made any real difference and YES the difference is huge.

 

[ECappleman]

Les,

Where are you exiting the bed with the cables? I don't see them going over the lip.

Did you go down the frame and through the firewall?



Also, I'm debating on the Firefly (lite) antenna or the standard. Do these seem pretty strong and how flexible?

Wonder how much bigger the standard is?



Thanks

 

[LesStallings]

Les,

Where are you exiting the bed with the cables? I don't see them going over the lip.

Did you go down the frame and through the firewall?



Also, I'm debating on the Firefly (lite) antenna or the standard. Do these seem pretty strong and how flexible?

Wonder how much bigger the standard is?



Thanks

I ran the cables out the bottom of the stake channels to the frame, using a BUNCH of cable ties. The coax never enters the bed. I drilled a 3/4" hole at the back of the cab where the vertical portion begins to curve to the floorboard (big grommet and silicon sealed everything). This puts the hole out of sight underneath the black plastic "tray" (standard cab). Since it is important to maintain the 9' lengths of coax, I looped the excess in the recommended figure eight behind the tray.



I think this is a very clean and professional look. No visible cables and everything is very protected from the elements. I wanted a nice look but looks don't mean much if the antenna is blocked by the big gooseneck trailer that follows me around at close distance! I'll know in a couple of weeks how the setup performs on the road. I've got another cross-country towing trip coming up.



I looked at the standard Firestiks and they are definitely much bigger in diameter. I believe the biggest advantage of the full sized ones is their ability to handle very high wattage. I don't run an amp so the 200 watt capacity of the Lites is still an overkill for 4 watts Also, the stake mounts are rated for 3 foot Firestiks or 4 foot Firestik Lights (Firefly). The added height doesn't mean much for an 18 wheeler with mirror mounts, but for my truck and especially my 8 foot tall gooseneck trailer, height matters.



Neither antenna is very flexible, as they are very heavy and well made. Imagine a 3/8" or ½" stainless spring steel rod, coated in plastic, and top loaded with a brass adjusting screw/jam nut. Yes, these are well made. You won't find them at Walmart!!

 

[PGiannetto]

this has been a very good thread. i have learned alot. thanks.

 

[DDevine]

thanks gang. . where is the best place to mount a CB in the Cab Of a 03 truck???Is there a mount available for our trucks????

I'm using one of Big Bob's CB mounts in my truck, and it's a perfect fit! Money very well spent! Thanks Big Bob

 

[rjones]

Yes, a single antenna will out perfrom dual antenna's in ALL directions...

IF: single and dual antenna's are the same style/length

IF: single antenna is mounted somewhere in the middle of the vehicle

IF: good rf ground-strapping has been installed



For CB, I run a 102 SS whip 20-inches behind the tailgate on the hitch of my Ram 4x4 and have installed 1-inch wide flexible grounding straps between the frame and bed, the bed and cab, the cab and hood. . which will makes a great groundplane and lower noise (interference) level. I have double the strength in the front versus the sides. Because of the large reflection of the tailgate, I get very good signal reception to the rear. My whip is screwed into a Hustler quick disconnect and a Outbacker heavy duty SS spring. My tailgate will drop just missing my antenna, or I can grasp the quick disconnect, push down and twisting 1/2 turn and the antenna comes off.



I have been into mobile CBing 29-years and do not recommend dual antenna setups for 2 main reasons. . The proper spacing for dual antenna's is 1/2 wavelength or 18-feet and most people don't use proper rf grounding at the antenna base. . so both make an ineffecient antenna setup.



Good luck, Brett

Agreed with Go car go Ive doen alot of research on this subject with other cb and amp maker forums and they say the exact same thing... .....

 

[Task125]

Just installed my cb last night,started up truck turned on cb went to key mike and truck stalled out. restarted truck keyed mike truck stalled again disconnected ant wire and keyed mike and truck was fine. any ideas

 

[Spooled-up]

How do you have the antenna mounted to the truck?