Good firewall pass-through, but only if...

[Crunch]

... you have an automatic. If you have an automatic transmission you can drill through the center of the cover for the clutch linkage. I've been searching the archives for tips on how and where to mount a CB and antenna and like the idea of the floor/console mount that was discussed, but it was for the 2001 and I have a 2003 and am not sure it will still fit.



If you are standing in front of the truck with the hood up look to the right of the master cylinder/brake assembly and above the speedometer cable. You should see a plate with 2 bolts at roughly a 30* angle. That is the pass-through for the clutch linkage. If you have an automatic you can have your way with it as you'll never need it.



If you crawl up under the dash you can see the two bolts and a nice round disk in the middle that is a good guide for drilling your holes. You can drill one hole in the middle, or drill several smaller holes around the perimeter for several wires. Plenty of space under the dash to route the cables and wires, too.



I am also looking for rubber boots I can use to provide some stiffness and protection to the cable on both sides of the firewall and will also use some silicon to seal it.



Now on to the tough part: Figuring out where to mount the antenna (would rather not drill any holes) and CB unit (Cobra 148NW). For the CB I will probably fabricate a console out of oak that fits between the fold-out cupholder and the center seat, and build cupholders into the oak console. The antenna is a different story. I don't want to mount it up front under the hood and don't want to drill holes in the bed, so I'm looking at getting a bar of aluminum that will fit the post holes on the bed walls and fasten it with a bolt through the side hole and mounting the antenna there. If removing and reinstalling it doesn't screw up my SWR that's the route I'm taking.

 

[crebelein]

look at the firestik stake pocket mounts. i think that is what you are looking for... .

 

[y-knot]

There is plenty of room to pass wires, boostline, egt wires, ect. in the stock wiring harness gromlets. I just use a stiff wire, lubbed up with silicon, and pass it thru. If you are adding accessories to a new truck, always pull thru some spares, that way when you add more toys (and you know you will), they will be there for you. Oo.

 

[Crunch]

Originally posted by y-knot

There is plenty of room to pass wires, boostline, egt wires, ect. in the stock wiring harness gromlets. I just use a stiff wire, lubbed up with silicon, and pass it thru. If you are adding accessories to a new truck, always pull thru some spares, that way when you add more toys (and you know you will), they will be there for you. Oo.

I talked to a Dodge service tech and he told me that those work, but you are more likely to have an air leak/cab whistle when you squeeze wires through like that. He added that whichever way I push them through to make sure they are sealed. In my case I am looking to run a length of coaxial antenna cable through, and that cable is just over 1/4" in diameter and very flexible. I'm not sure I could push it past existing wiring.

 

[Crunch]

Originally posted by crebelein

look at the firestik stake pocket mounts. i think that is what you are looking for... .

Thanks for the info. This weekend I got the stake hole mount and had my antenna installed and SWR calibrated. Works great, but I wish Firestik made a leveling wedge so the antenna is vertical. I also drilled out the disk where the clutch linkage goes and when the 18' of coax was run I was left with enough to mount the CB in front of the console as show with the Brolin bracket. But since their bracket doesn't fit the 03 models I'll have to do some fabrication.