85gijunk4x4

im looking to mount dual whips on the bed of my 88. my problem is that on my 85 i have to take off the antennas everytime i pull into the garage, then when i put them on i have to go through the trouble of re-tuning them etc.

so i was thinkin, ive never tried one of those ball mounts before, and i am under the impression that you can mount the mount anywhere, and be able to point the antenna in any direction.

my idea would be to have the antenna stick straight up like this "|" then when i pull into the garage, i can get out, loosen a setscrew and slant the antenna back like this "\" so i can clear it enough to fit in.

if thats not the case i was also looking at "antenna quick disconnects" but im not sure i trust them.

xxxtreme22r

use springs and/or wilson flex antennas.

85gijunk4x4

true, true, good call xxxtreme. i guess i could just get some rope and tie them down to my bed when i go in the garage like this



if i let it sit overnight with the antennas tied like that will the antenna eventually get a permanent curve?

xxxtreme22r

IIRC there are springs on those antennas as well., but the wilson flex like I have should pop right back.

swampfox

If you are talking about using 8 ft whip antennas there probably would not enough gain for the aggravation. The antennas would be to close together to help performance on a small truck. Best place is in the center of the truck or on the driver side that way it won't be hitting every tree limb you pass.

xxxtreme22r

I think he's going with a set up like I have on mine with 4ft antennas. SInce I am using the wilson flex antennas, I am not running a spring. I have smashed these antennas on a bunch of stuff and they keep asking for more, however I do have to periodically check the tightness of the mounts as Last time at RC I "lost" one, found it on the trail a little after it came off though.

85gijunk4x4

swampfox, i'm probably going to run dual 3ft steel whips, but i will only have one hooked up to the cb, and the other i want to hok up to the stereo.

xxxtreme, so your saying your wilson flex's are durable, and have lasted you awhile? hows your swr? and how do you have yours mounted to the bed? Thankss

xxxtreme22r

SWR is good less then 1.5 on 19 while putting 40w though it. Almost 0 when putting 1W through it and .5 with 4w. I am only using one as a cb antenna though. The other is for my stereo. I'll see if I can't get a video of this antenna in action.

Stand by for video.

85gijunk4x4

thats not too bad, i may or may not be interested in those, i'll do some reasarch now.

i have the firestiks on my 85 and they're really not up to the trail abuse, so i was thinking steel whips for this one. but if you say you run a wilson flex without a spring, that must be one hell of an antenna

xxxtreme22r

it does slightly move my mount around a little but that's only when I do what I do in the video that is currently uploading now standby. BTW, I think I got to tighten my mount as you can see it move in the video. lol. I just made the video now, just for you. Very little wind noise on the highway, but that's to be expected even with your best antennas that are mounted on a spring.

xxxtreme22r

here ya go, the best I could do by myself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VF6as2CkCls

85gijunk4x4

holy crap! those things are amazing, thanks for the vid xxxtreme.

so i was gonna get on here and let you know i did research last night, and like the reviews of the wilson flex, plus after i get a whip AND springs, its about the same price of just a wilson flex.

so anyway, i think i've made my desicion. thanks for pointing me in the direction of those wilsons, ive never seen antennas like that before!!

xxxtreme22r

yeah and like I said mine has taken a beating. Ian (irabb88) watched me do that in person and he was pretty amazed.

85gijunk4x4

glad to hear first hand yours has held up so far

ive lost so many cb antennas on the trails before. and even just driving and clipping an over head branch. hope these hold up good!

85gijunk4x4

speakin of irab, is that his truck parked next to you in the first picture?

xxxtreme22r

Just keep an eye on the mount, I had lost the mount my last time out because I failed to tighten it with a wrench.

xxxtreme22r

no that's Jerry's, 92 Toy.

85gijunk4x4

sure will, and i knew i've seen that truck on yotatech here somewhere, just couldnt put a finger on it

irab88

iTrader: (4)

i'm probably going to hood-mount some of those.

and don't forget teh pics!

85gijunk4x4

so i'll update you guys, i ordered 2 brackets, coax cable, and 2 "flex's".

usually i like the long dual fiberglass antenna look, but for my 88 i figured i'd change it up a bit and go with some short whips. i ordered the 3 footers, i had various length antenna's layin around and determined 3-1/4 was the best looking so i just rounded it to 3ft.

i made my decision based on online reviews, xxxtreme22r and PRICE, so much cheaper then fiberglass. i've heard all good things so hopefully they'll work as good as they say