CB radio and antenna mount Q's

[Wayne M.]

I visited a neato radio shop today (bought a bearcat 246 scanner as a gift) and I started looking at CB's since I've been thinking about installing one.



I was considering the Cobra "all in the mic" model and was impressed with how small the whole package is. I am looking for other members who have it, and what they think of it. I am not looking for a pro unit, and really like the stealth factor.



I was thinking about a thru window antenna at the rear glass, but the guru there shot that down real quick, citing the loss through the glass and the mast not being long enough to be efficent. He said that the Ram has a lot of mount possibilites and showed me a real cool offset tab that hangs the antenna off a fender bolt, basically a tab that comes out between the fender and hood. I am also thinking about a mount through the cap on the side.



I would appreciate advice, ideas, and pictures. I didn't see too much on a search.



Thanks, and Happy Holidays!

 

[Pawpaw]

He showed you something like this? http://www.firestik.com/Catalog/ss-184.htm



It seems to be pretty popular and easy to set up.



My truck has a cap on it, so I used two of these to mount my cophased antennas: http://www.firestik.com/Catalog/ss-194.htm



The antennas look like this (the 4-footers): http://www.firestik.com/Catalog/FS-USA.htm



For coax, I used this: http://www.firestik.com/Catalog/MU-9R18.htm



Of all the parts of a good CB installation, the antenna system is most important. Buy a good antenna, a good mount, and good coax. Install it all correctly and make sure your grounds are good.



The best CB radio in the world won't work worth a darn with a crappy antenna, coax, and installation.



There's lots of good info here: http://www.firestik.com/Tech_Docs.htm



No I don't work for Firestik, but I do think they have some good products.



Bob

 

[oneshotkyle]

gobs of good info on: http://www.firestik.com/Tech_Docs.htm

thanks pawpaw this should help out all of us.

 

[JVolpe]

I know that the window mounts are no way as efficient as a good mounted and tuned antenna. But I have had one on my last two trucks. Current one has been on for two years now. For my needs its works ok. I am always able to communicate with the truckers as far away as I need to.



Mine is a center load Midland window mount. $19. 95 from Fry's. Easy simple install.

 

[Buffalo]

I had a fiberglass, mirror mount, antenna with a Cobra 25 LTD radio, mounted on my Landcruiser. When I bought my 91. 5 W-250, I switched to a Wilson 1000, roof mounted antenna. Using the same 25 LTD, the difference was quite noticable. The local CB shops all seem to like the Wilson products, for performance.



When I bought my '03, 3500, I had another Wilson 1000 installed on the roof with another Cobra 25 LTD & have been happy with its performance, also.



Joe F. (Buffalo)

 

[donnier]

When I got my 05, I put a thru the window antenna on it but wasnt happy with the reception at all.

I recently got a Wilson Mag Mount and it works great.

I did leave the window mount on as a back up.

Removed the antenna part so there wasnt any prob with the Wilson.

Im thinking about getting a Wilson roof mount installed.

 

[llotton]

CB Radio and antenna

I have the exact setup you are talkiing about and like it fine. I mounted the radio on an aluminum mount I made to fit under the seat anchord to a seat bolt. All the wires are under the mat and out of sight. I also bought an external speaker and mounted it behind the seat on the pass side (standard cab). I had a throuth the glass antenna and it didn't work well at all. By the way I moved to southern Oregon from Ventura.

 

[donnier]

Where bouts in Ventura?

My folks are off Court and Appian Way?

 

[Wayne M.]

pawpaw, those were the exact mounts he showed me. He said the stake hole mount wouldn't work with a cap due to the screw heads. Did you shim up the cap or anything? Thanks for the info. Are there any concerns about doing a side mount thru a fiberglass cap?

 

[donnier]

I would think that a side mount thru fiberglass would have to have some kind of backing for stress factor of the antenna hitting low branchs and such.

Also getting a good ground would be a concern also.

Unless you used a no ground type antenna.

 

[MFalkinham]

An alternative to the Cobra is the Radio Shack "One Hander" models made in Japan. These are no longer in production, but you can still find them on eBay occasionally. I have the TRC-462 mounted under the driver's seat with the cord & mic running up to the dash. I have a remote speaker mounted near the headliner.

For the antenna, I wanted one short enough so I could drive into my garage without it hitting the header. I went with a 9" rubber duck magnetic antenna on the cab roof with the wiring running through the cab brake light hole. Works fine for my occasional use on the interstates.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Rubber-Duck-CB-RADIO-ANTENNA-w-MAGNET-ONLY-9-TALL_W0QQitemZ110068687399QQihZ001QQcategoryZ48692QQcmdZViewItem

 

[Pawpaw]

pawpaw, those were the exact mounts he showed me. He said the stake hole mount wouldn't work with a cap due to the screw heads. Did you shim up the cap or anything? Thanks for the info. Are there any concerns about doing a side mount thru a fiberglass cap?

Read the text in the link: http://www.firestik.com/Catalog/ss-194.htm



"The flat upper bracket is 6" (152mm) long and extends out over the bed rail so you may mount your antenna without losing the ability to mount a camper shell . "



I've had no problem whatsoever with the cap sealing over the screw heads.



My antennas don't go through the fiberglass. The mounts stick out the side of the bedrails at the front stake holes so the antennas are completely exposed.



My coax leaves the bottom of the mount horizontally, using fire-ring coax (see first post). I just tucked it under the edge of the cap, to the front of the bed. From there, it goes down between the cab & bed. Not much shows.



Bob

 

[skipro3]

I use the Cobra all-in-the-mike unit with a thru-the-glass antenna. Works fine to talk while caravaning or to truckers within a mile or less. Consider your needs. It's very stealth and I mostly listen to truckers. I can hear those guys many miles away even if they can only hear me a mile away.

 

[JDerrick]

If you decide to go with a side mount on a fiberglass cap be sure that the antenna you purchase is designed for little or no GROUND PLANE. as for through the glass mounts, if you don't wish to put any addition holes in your truck this would be the way to go however the the reception will suffer compared to an NMO mount on the roof. 27 MGHZ, 11 meter or any radio for that matter is nothing without being coupled to a good solid antenna system. I have used equipment from Fire stick and from Wilson, when I used to run a cb in my vehicles, both are great antenna systems. Magnetic mounts are nice if you don't wish to have a huge metal rod permanently attached to your vehicle as you can remove it when it is not being used, or even to make your truck a little easier to fit in parking garages etc. After keeping a roof over my head working in the radio business I have personal preference to NMO mounted antennas they just seem to do the job better. the trunk or stud, or flat thingy that bolts to a fender bolt have more of a tendency to corrode from road grime, rain, snow, salt from icy roads etc. Another option for you is to look at Sti-co antennas they manufacture replacement antennas for the AM-FM on. your fender. they might have something in the 27 meg frequency range, however they are fairly expensive as they are designed to hold up the the rigors of law enforcement and fire-ems vehicle operations environments. Good luck with your installation. and happy CBing

 

[wcjp]

Here's my Cobra 29 in my 06' SLT.





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[Wayne M.]

Here's my Cobra 29 in my 06' SLT.





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That's a great radio, but that console situation is what I want to avoid. I think I'm going to lean towards a thru the cap mount with reinforcement. I can't afford too much more height since I park in a 7'~" garage in the city.



I really appreciate all the advice.