CB, SWR giving me fits

[Deezul1]

I have just installed the Firestick Dodge fender bolt mount with the supplied cable and connectors. I first tried a 24" Firestick II and the swr was 7. 0-8. 0 from ch1 thru 40. Bought a brand new Firestik 36" that didnt have the tunable bolt in the end only tunable by slitting the outside housing and moving coils up and down, really wasnt much differencs from the other antenna. Then used an old red fiberglass ant that has to 25 years old and the swr was 2. 0. Checked with meter and no continuity to ground and all connections read out correctly for continuity or lack of. Same with the antennas. the excess cable is wrapped in about 18" coil and there is no difference even when stretched out with no coiling. What next? I called Firestick and they wernt much help other than suggesting what I have already tried.

TIA

John

 

[Lurch]

I have a 3' Wilson, similar design. Had quite a bit of trouble tuning it. You really need a longer antenna and definitely need the tunable tip. A 4' firestick is an easy setup for me but I keep breaking the 4' off. Another benefit of the Wilson is it has an additional ground lead that allowed me to get my SWR to a reasonable limit with the 3'. Don't coil the coax, make a figure 8 with it and secure in the center, coiling will effect performance.



Just my $. 02

Lurch

 

[jandtjil]

electrical tape???

When tuning my 3ft K-40 top loaded whip(also fender mounted), tuning stopped at about 5 as the tuning section was a bit loose at that point. So I grabbed some elec tape and made a few passes (real tight) to keep the section where I wanted it. Low and behold the SWR dropped. I checked the connections (tight), then grabbed the tape again and proceeded to adjust my SWR with tape.

Weird but it worked for me!



JJ

 

[swamp rat]

On non-tunable antennae, the best and nearly only way to match the SWR's is to lengthen or shorten the coax. You could get an antenna matcher but you'd still be better off swapping coax. I didn't notice what length you are using now, but I'd move up 3' or down 3' at a time till you get the best numbers. Also the type coax you ar using could make a difference. Regardless of what the mfr. says about RG-8X aka Mini-8 coax, I highly recommend it over the small single center conductor type. More shielding, more insultaion from cuts and abrasions, and a lot more copper down the center.

 

[HDH]

Right on the Money Swamprat

Originally posted by swamp rat

On non-tunable antennae, the best and nearly only way to match the SWR's is to lengthen or shorten the coax. You could get an antenna matcher but you'd still be better off swapping coax. I didn't notice what length you are using now, but I'd move up 3' or down 3' at a time till you get the best numbers. Also the type coax you ar using could make a difference. Regardless of what the mfr. says about RG-8X aka Mini-8 coax, I highly recommend it over the small single center conductor type. More shielding, more insultaion from cuts and abrasions, and a lot more copper down the center.

I agree. with the above statment.

Doug.

 

[Forrest]

If it's actually mounted to the front or rear fender, there is too much metal next to the antenna. Take the same antenna & put it higher where no metal is adjacent & walla, no more SWR. If it's adjacent metal, then the SWR is caused by reflections off the metal.

 

[Ragin Ram]

My K-40 is mounted on the passenger side behind the rear window. With the tip extended, SWR is 1. 5. If you have a serrated lock washer on the mount, try it without it. It worked on mine.



Todd.

 

[BK]

Originally posted by Deezul 1





clip.....



Checked with meter and no continuity to ground and all connections read out correctly for continuity or lack of. tried.

No continuity to ground???

At all??



If you measure from the rig end of the coax, with the antenna mounted and such, you must have very low resistance to ground when measuring from the outer metal of the pl259.



Bob

 

[Deezul1]

No continuity to ground from center conductor. Outside of connector did have continuity to ground which I believe is correct.

 

[BK]

yes it is, just making sure since I really didnt get that from your original post...



Just checking. .

 

[RCrawford]

I have a 5' Firestik, 5/8 diameter, mounted to the front, center, edge of my toolbox, with a ground wire going from the mounting bracket to the bed. I too had a problem with SWR. I got it down to 2 on the meter and left it. But it seams I can't get out to the rear of me, most of the time. To the front, sometimes, I can get about 13 miles of range, if the weather is right, but to the rear I only get a couple of miles. I'm running a Cobra 29 LTD Classic that's been peaked and tuned. If I go with anything shorter on the antenna i can't get out but maybe 2 miles in front and 200 yards to the rear. I have a 16' coax that isn't coiled. anybody got any ideas on this one? Oh ya, I don't have a spring under my antenna either. I thought the problem might be the antenna was leaning too much while the truck was moving. Thanks for any input on this one, RC.

 

[OILBRNR]

Anything less than a 4' stick on the fender mount is going to give you an SWR above 1. 5. Been there, done that over the last couple of months!



RCrawford, your way to close to the rear window, which from what I've read will cause problems, even though you've got the majority of the antenna above the roof. If you have double checked your ground, and still can't get that SWR down, your going to have to move it away from the cab.



I've got the Firestik fender mount, their Firering coax and quick disconnect, a spring and then a Wilson 5000 Trucker. While this is a center load unit, my SWR is 1. 2 and seems to really get out there. It is a tough antenna, and doesn't seem to have as much wind drag as the 5' Firestik did.



Whenever I get home, or to work, and need to park in the garage, I just open my door and stand on the nerf, laying the Wilson gently on the cowl.



Just like anything else, you get what you pay for, and a decent antenna is no exception. A short one will only work on the roof. Prices for CB stuff is so cheap these days, there is no reason not to spend the extra 40-50 bucks for a Wilson 1-2000 or 5000. The antenna (and its' placement) is the most crucial component in a radio system.



Oh, and get an amp while your at it!

 

[RCrawford]

Thanks for the input OILBRNR, if I get a chance this weekend, I'll try moving the antenna to the rear of the toolbox to see how it does. Might also try a heaver coax. RC.

 

[RCrawford]

All most forgot, is a new 200 watt Texas Star liener (spelling?)worth $100? RC.

 

[OILBRNR]

RC, I'd try and get it for $75. A new 250 goes for $149 at www.exportradios.com Make sure that it works b4 you buy!



Check with www.firestik.com for lots of good antenna info and recommendations on coax.

 

[Alan Reagan]

RCrawford, My Firestick 5' is mounted on my aluminum tool box lid rail and I had exactly the same problem as you. Plus I had a lot of noise. This past weekend, I ran a ground wire from my antenna mount to the frame and that seemed to really help the noise situation and reception from the rear. On the rail I'm outside the cab and about two feet from the rear of the cab. I don't think I was getting a good ground through the tool box and bed. I also have the Cobra 29 Classic so we have similar setups.

 

[RON'S RAM]

John,

Quite a few years ago, I used to install lots of Firestick antenna's. My father had a C. B. shop. I've never installed one on our trucks, but here's what I've found. We never had very good luck with mounting antenna's along side the cab. Usually when we couldn't get a good match, we ran a seperate ground wire(14ga. minimum) to a good ground. We normally used a coax length of 13 to 15 ft. If your swr reading is higher on ch. 40 than on ch. 1, you need to shorten the coax or lower the adjustment on the antenna. On non adjustable firestick's with readings higher on ch. 40 than ch. 1, we would cut the coils. Don't cut much at a time, and put the cover back on before testing again. At the time, Firesticks and K-40 antenna's were the best performers for us. We have had a few Firestick antenna's that we couldn't match. We replaced them with another new one, and had no problem. Firestick was very good about warranties.

Hope this helps.

Ron

 

[Great White]

I had good luck with the 3' increments on rg-58(the big stuff) cable years ago. Next to our shop in Bend Oregon was a truckers radio shop. He "alined" and added a amp. WOW! What a difference. The antenna was a 4' Firestick. I seem to recall the match was 1 : 1. 3 . The antenna was mounted on the rollover bar behind the cab with the base at the same elevation as the roof.

Good luck,Rich

 

[rcolety]

Currently going through antenna hell-



Any antenna mounted on the front hood using ram bracket ( http://www.alfenterprises.com/dodge_ram_hood_mount.htm )

wouldn't tune properly and generated a whistle on the highway.



Firestick mounted on the bed door (using adjustable hatchback bracket) would tune but generated lots of noise and low output. Changed to heavy cable with same results.



Removed Firestick and put on K40. Problems gone. Seems the K40 is the best bet. Now trying to find the best bracket to use that would let me mount closer to the cab without drilling. I will be trying ( http://www.alfenterprises.com/firestik_ss-194.htm ) this bracket Saturday.

 

[QRTRHRS]

My SWR is high with a K40 mounted on my 3pt mirror with an added ground wire just in case. I have an old base loaded A&S that I need to try when I get a chance. I had that mounted along side of the hood on a Ford van and had a super low SWR. My flatbed has a "headache rack" that I am going to mount it on.