cb questions
 

so ive been researching lately about the best way to install a cb/antenna into a first gen 4runner. i know that dead center of the roof is supposed to be the best spot but i want mine in the back. this causes a problem (supposedly?) as the top is fiberglass and doesnt reflect the signal well (at least from what ive been reading). im thinking of running my coax down the drivers side body and out through the taillight and then mounting the antenna right above the taillight. with a 102in whip antenna (and a 6in spring) will that be a good place to mount? it will stick up way above the cab when in use so im assuming that is a fine mount for it (according to abe- "if you can see it you can talk to it"... or something like that) but will the fiberglass top be an issue? as far as grounding my antenna, do i need to run a wire from the antenna to a bare spot of metal somewhere like a typical ground or is this ground different? i currently have my cb power and ground run straight to the corresponding battery terminals with 18g wire, any problems with that? i read that running to the cig lighter or a fuse isnt as good for performance.

basically im kinda frustrated because every single thread and web page that i look up has a different answer and brings up new questions. if you dont mind helping out a noob, id greatly appreciate it. we need some kind of definitive thread for cb and antenna install.

/ready for flaming (oh wait this is yotatech, not pirate) :D

yeah sounds like that would be a good spot to put it on

First off I,m a CB geek from way back!!!! Your best bet for performance is a Wilson 1000 mag mount smack in the center of your cab where its metal, you'll get some decent reflect off the metal of the vehicle. My personal opinion is the 102 inch whip looks cool and all but mounted at the rear won't give you the preformance that you can get with the Wilson. I guess it depends on what you want to do with your CB??? If it's short distance yaking ok , but if you want to "Get Out" you got to go for what works the best. Any CB radio is only as good as it's antenna, that is the heart and soul of the radio, also upon installation you have to adjust that baby with an SWR meter. The wilson mag mount will not blow off and tree branchs don,t bother mine. It's a strong magnet, unlike the cheapys you can buy at auto parts stores. It costs around 70 bucks but well worth it. Good luck!! Love CB radio,s!
Pigman

102" whip? Are you nuts?

Everyone needs an 8.5-foot whip flopping around on top! :D

The Wilson 1000 is 63 inchs high, not like a 102 inch whip up on top, sorry I forgot to mention it's height. But I know guys that run those 102 inchers right up on top, not exactly what I would want. Drop by cbradiotalk.com lots of good info and such. Will definitley get you up to speed on newer CB radio techniques.
Pigman

That's what's on my 1st gen. Although it's on the bed on the driver's side. But the meter liked it and on the roof was not an option for me.

you'd probably want a pretty sturdy mount if you're going to use a 102" whip and spring combo, esp. if you're going to put it over the taillight area. if you're just going to drill into the metal (not mount it in the gap for the hatch) i'd probably reinforce it with something behind the sheetmetal as well.

and yeah, you *could* "poof the roof", but that's kind of overkill, IMHO. we do that for keydown vehicles that mount fighting sticks, but we also add extra sheetmetal under the roof skin for reinforcement. probably not something you want to do for a DD.

i usually just bumper mount my 102" whips to either the bumper (drill that puppy) or to a mount that either bolts to the bumper or frame (or both). i can still get pretty flat SWRs and good tx/rx. a hustler quick-disconnect makes getting into and out or parking garage a two-second matter.

any particular reason you are set on the 102" whip? the wilson 1000 suggested is also a very good choice, can handle way more power than your stock electrical system can provide it, and can be easily removed for parking garages, etc...

and if you REALLY intend to get crazy with the power (note - anything over the FCC limit is technically illegal) then the wilson 5000 roof mount or mag mount can handle crazy, stupid amounts of power... way more than a stock electrical system can support. guys that run these often run multiple alts, a rack of batteries, and/or a maul.

thanks guys. i have a pretty sturdy mount and it is reinforced with a plate behind the sheet metal. what about grounding the antenna? the is some kind of grommet between the antenna and mount, doesnt that prevent a ground?

currently i just have a cheap radioshack 4ft fiberglass antenna and was planning to upgrade to the 102 which would be secured when not in constant use. the antenna is a cost issue as im a fairly broke college kid. i might even just keep the fb antenna but i feel like its gonna break even with the spring on it.

I've used a bumper mounted 102" whip on my old truck. The mount was bolted to the bumper. I used fishing line to hold it forward when traveling(kind of a pain). But the 102 whip is so flexible that I didn't even need a spring to bend it forward. It looked cool, but I had much better luck with a roof mounted K40 whip. The Wilson whip is also nice, but I chose the K40 because it's easily removable when you need to enter a garage or something. A few other tips: watch your cable routing, use good quality coax, and invest in an SWR meter.

do NOT remove that little nylon washer insulator thing.

you'd be surprised how far a fiberglass ant. will bend (think shakespeare ugly stik fishing poles). i accidentally shut the garage door on my skipshooter - it bent pretty much in half, and just about touched the tip to the floor.

i thought it was going to break and throw fiberglass shrapnel all over the garage (i was ducking for cover) but it just kept bending. raised the door up, ant. popped up, checked swr, etc... and all was fine.

finally got everything installed, pics later. i stuck with the 4ft fiberglass, who really needs a 102 whip? checked it with an swr meter and got about 1.7 without any adjustment. im happy. thanks for the input!

Predator 10k beats any antenna Ive used including the 108" whip.
However its a trick to make it tree friendly.
I mounted mine on a spring and its tuned flat both on 40 and 1.

Steve at Sonoran Steel made me a custom bed mount

if you are in the mood, you may want to fiddle with the tunable tip a bit to see if you can get the swr down just a bit more. every little bit helps.

and yeah, they are loads easier to tune than a 102" whip.

nice antennas. haven't tried one myself, but i've tried monkey made ants and they've worked pretty good, too.

haven't tree tested them yet since they're kinda pricy to go tree trimming, though.

Actually, you can't ever get less than 1.0 (that is a perfect reading - basically 100% efficient energy transfer from the radio to the antenna) and typically no less than about 1.2:
- http://www.firestik.com/Tech_Docs/swr-intro.htm

I have used 102 whips they are great. the firesticks with the tunable end with the red tip they work as long as you dont run power the red tip blows up like a balloon and then melt. I know you got it done good job I am just trying to give you some more info for next time. The reason people mount in the center of the rig is because you get a even ground plane you shoot in all directions. if you mount on the back passenger side your strongest signal will go drivers side front. With that think about you have a firestick just sticking over the top a few inches the rest of the firestick is not being used because it is reflected from the back of the rig and will die off raising you swr from reflection going back into the firestick you want to try to get the ant as high over the rig as you can. Hope this helps. And the best antenna is a crank up tower mounted in the bed of a old toyota pickup on a mountain...

One thing to consider with the 102" whips is that off road, they can flop around a lot (if not tied down) and that might be a hazard to people beside the trail. In can the CA4WDC organized runs usually impose a limit of 52" on CB antenna lengths because of this.

I'm running a 102" whip on my truck mounted right behind the drivers side on my bed rail, works great and my SWR meter reads a perfect 1.0. besides I love the look :)

where do you get SWR meters at? i havea 4' fiberglass antenna mounted in the pass side bed rail and i dont ever get a signal. does the antenna itself need to be grounded or not? and i ran the hot wire of the cb to the hotwire that is under the dash when the key is on. is this ok?