Merlin

for ease of removal, you can use a quick-disconnect. you can remove an antenna in seconds with a quick-disconnect for going into parking garages, etc...

the downside is that if you can remove it in seconds, so can a thief.

if you don't mind drilling a hole in your roof (and reinforcing and sealing it) then the center of the roof is good. if you're going to run a coil antenna, a 102" whip or fighting stick, though, you probably don't want to do that to your DD because you pretty much can expect to hit everything.

sounds like a mag mount might be the ticket for you - flexy whip stinger (can hit things like trees, etc... and just bend/bounce back), strong magnet base, no drilling, and super easy to remove.

Merlin

you could spend the big $$$ for a name brand meter, but my rat shack el-cheapo swr/power meter has always worked for me.

duck tape

wilson little wil

xxxtreme22r

mag mounts are not the best thing when it comes to SWR and the overall health of your radio.

2DoorRunner

I have a 4' Firestik I will trade someone for a 102" steel whip. I pay shipping. To many trees in washington, i have broken the mount twice now. Looking for a steel whip to mount on my rear bumper.

And my 4' firestik works WAY better than my 102" fiberglass whip did, given that one was old as dirt, but i still thought it would be much better than it was.

xxxtreme22r

On regular AM bands yes, but not on USB/LSB. And if you can get a stock non-modified non-lineared radio to skip they cannot do anything to you even if you are on an AM band.

5vzT100

I run a 102 whip on my DD and it works great. Grated i do hit everything that is under 14' but i wouldnt trade it for anything. I pick up skip on channel 12 from puerto rico almost daily and i made contact to tennessee multiple times. All this was done with only the stock 4 watts

Mudd Duck 1

Fire sticks are definitely not gods gift to cb-ers though I did have one on my truck and got out suprisingly well. I was running a Wilson 1000 with a mag mount and it was amazing but like xxxtreme22r said, nothin' beats the good ol' 102 inch whip like I'm runnin' now best SWR's I've had and I can talk a good 40 miles easy (farthest I've had the chance to talk so far, outside of skip. And with the terrain around here that's saying somethin') if I need to go into a parking structure or shop etc. I just pull it back and clip it in the bed. Also with my Wilson it was made so you could unscrew the antenna at the base leaving just the mag mount and the coax on the vehicle, I'd just put the mast in my tool box. One last thing the FCC really doesn't monitor cb too much these days unless your really interfering with something. When conditions are right ALL the channels fill up with skip and I honestly don't think anyone cares too much

xxxtreme22r

right, it usually takes a nosy neighbor complaining that their tv or something is acting weird for the FCC to get involved. Or maybe a power tripping cop that notices you are running a linear in your truck or might recognize an export radio that your running in your truck.

5vzT100

has anyone ever heard of someone getting busted for running amps with their cb's. if so what usually happens. Im considering dusting off my dad's old 600 watt booster go get out better when talking skip

Mudd Duck 1

The last thing I heard of was a company near here gettin shut down for selling linears as "cb amps" technically they're only for HAM they got a hefty fine and I believe they went outta business but as far as individuals getting busted I haven't heard of it lately. If your gunna run one you need to make sure your dead key is low enough (I believe 3 watts) so you don't overdrive and burn up the amp. I'm not sure what your running for a radio either but that would be a factor as to wether or not you can do it.

blake.nemitz

its simple trim your antenna to lenghth to match radios swr, or get a cobra radio with adjustable swr to match whatever antenna you buy

xxxtreme22r

Make sure your 102" will handle the 600W for one. I have seen 102" with 100W, 300W and 500W ratings, but nothing higher than that.

Also Like was previously mentioned unless your amp is a high drive, you have to make sure your dead key is low enough not to burn your amp up.

This does not mean lowering your MIC gain or if your unit has one power output gain either.

Mudd Duck 1

I've seen close to 1000 watts put through a 102 inch whip and it works great not sure the rating of the antenna it's an old one that's been stashed for years.

5vzT100

im running an old uniden PC 122xl. Im not sure what the rating of the whip is but it isnt bent or anything. People locally have thought that i was running power because ive talked all over a lot of newer radios. It doesnt have a mic gain. How do you adjust the power output gain? Is this the rf gain?

5vzT100

I was also considering buying the new cobra 29 lx le with the rfx 75 mod. People claim it swings to well over 100 watts. Has anyone had any experience with this new radio?

xxxtreme22r

if you want to run that amp your old 122xl is probably the best way to go. Those old Uniden PC radios are some of the best talking radios out there. It's not so much the power of the radio that is walking over people it's the fact that the audio on those radios are amazing. Very few new radios come close to the audio on those.

If you want to lower the dead key on that, your best bet is to just take it to a shop and have done. But keep in mind once you do it, and you don't want to run the amp any longer your range is gonna suffer.

Mudd Duck 1

Not sure where your at but around here no one knows squat about radios as far as working on 'em I send all mine out to a fella in Illinois called sparky here's his website http://sparkyscbshack.com/ hes a good guy to deal with IMO. Also I'm running an older Uniden too a PC66 great lil radio I talk all over with it the older radios that were made in the Philippines are the ones to have.

5vzT100

Im from central maine...not too many people are into radios in my area. Im still in high school so $ is a little tight but i make it by with what i have. The older equipment seems the way to go. I got my radio and whip free and it works great

xxxtreme22r

I just tossed out a PC-244 because it had a TX issue. Kinda regretting it now as it was my first radio and it was also my fathers before that.

Probably woulda got a few bucks for it in that condition as well.