CB radio confusion, and antenna help?
 

I would like to get a cb radio. I don't like to spend a lot of money on stuff like this. I found a Cobra 19 at wal-mart for 35$. I am probaly going to purchase this radio. I am having problems with the antenna's, mounting them, and these coax cable things?

I found this sweet mount.
http://www.premiere-electronics.net/...nnamounts.html

Maybe this antenna?
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...entPage=search

And some cable?
http://www.premiere-electronics.net/...coaxcable.html

There site says for best reception use 18ft cable!! Thats incredibly long. Where would I put all of that?

I just need guided in the correct direction. please

For coax you want to do it in 3 ft. sections and yes 18 ft is best for all around input and output. If you go with 18 ft.(good idea) take the excess and twist it into a figure 8 and zip tie it then just stuff it out of site.

For an antenna go with a Wilson or Firestick but make sure you get a adjustable tip 3-5ft should be plenty. Try to stay to the middle of the vehicle for a good ground plain and it also helps keep from it hitting overhead obstacles.

As for mounting is this going on a truck or 4runner??? if its going on a truck where the bed meets the cab drill a hole to mount it in the lip of the bed and mount it there bring the coax from the cab along the frame and back up to the mount on the bed. If its a 4runner what i did was on my tire rack I placed a mount in the middle of it on the top bar and ran the coax from the cab to along the frame and back up to the right taillight and across the bottom bar of the rack to the middle bar and to the antenna. Also old truck driver trick is to put a small hole in a tennis ball and run it down to the point most likely to hit anything and it will take the blunt of the hit and not do damage to paint or in my case crack the rear window.

I agree 100% with olharley =)

18ft is right,, just figure 8 it somehwere. I used 18ft under my rig and figure 8'd it under there... i have a 3ft firestik and a Cobra nitewatch CB.

I also purched a sWR meter to tune it all in( you NEEd a SWR meter to properly adjust ANY antenna).

make sure you ground the CB and the antenna well.


goodluck :)

So you run the 18ft of wire outside the vehicle? I wanted to put it under my carpet? I that antenna very flexable? I need to be able to hold it down when I pull into the garage. (not every night, just when it gets worked on)

the little cobra 19 is a ok radio im more into the big stuff .....lol
$35 bucks is a far deal for it you know i would run a lil wil antenna from wilson
its a mag mount and work really well and run around $25-30

you dont to have to run 18' it dose go in 3' so 3 ,6 ,9, 12,15,18

i have tons or rg-8x and mini 8 i can cut in 3 ,6 ,9, 12,15,18 foot

careful
 

you need to be careful where u put that ntenna, i had mine on the back bumber, a 4 foot firestik, its sure looks sweet, but an older buddy of mine who has been in cb for over 25 years told me the back of the car acts like a reflector and will cause feedback that is unhearable but will very well damage the radio, i then purchased a wilson 1000, nother better than it, but i still use the firestik sometimes.

where do u want to mount the antenna ?

No you only run as much as you need to the outside you can coil your excess under the carpet no problem or side to side under the dash if you want.

i used this cable to my 4ft fire stick works great
http://www.wearecb.com/store/firesti...ing-p-262.html

Hey harleyman,

Is there any problems running 21 feet of coax then?

ideally as high as possible (=roof)

Well it may make getting the SWR to 1 to 1 a bit harder but as long as you can stay under 1 to 5 you will be good. The lower you can get your SWR the better the whole system will work both input and output wise. 1 to 1 is perfect 1 to 5 is max you want for your set up so you don't have issue's or blow up radio's.

my set up is just right at 1 to 1

Sounds good, I've got good SWR numbers I just wanted to make sure I don't have too much cable ran. I might even eventually put my anteena on my front bumper.

cool - "poof the roof" method of mounting!

if you're going to run a big ant. or fighting sticks, make sure you reinforce the roof with some sheet metal and use a good mount with lots of sealant so it doesn't leak or rust.

oh, and if you use a 102" whip, you're gonna hit pretty much everything - but you will have a good ground plane and excellent tx/rx.

I agree with the 102 and to avoid it hitting things you can devise a system to tie it down when not in use like the Military do and then out in the open on trails release it and get great rx/tx

Just a thought not a sermon

ayup.

i use fishing line tied to my 102" whip and the outside rear view mirror, and a fishing clip.

when the time comes to drop the antenna, i just pull on the line until it reaches the clip on the mirror, secure it, and good to go.

just gotta be very careful when entering/exiting the vehicle, since the fishing line can be hard to see - don't clothesline yourself.

i also use a quick-disconnect with the 102" whip and on all my ants, so they can be completely removed with a simple twist and stashed in the cargo area.

another method i've used on my wife's T4R is a swivel mount. she uses a 7' skipshooter, which while flexible, doesn't take kindly to being bent over almost parallel with the ground. this way, when she needs to enter a parking garage, all she has to do is run out, swivel the ant down until the tip is level with the top of her car, and enter.

of course, it'll block the driver's side rear door, but we hardly have passengers, so no worries there.