Thanks! This was surprisingly comprehensive and exactly what I was wondering about. My car is similar to your Toyota but I thinking to put the antenna above the rear window as often as possible. I'd rather not go with an all-in-one but that may well end up being the only way. Thank you for giving me so much to chew on.
Thank you. I've watched a few of your videos and I look forward to tuning my antenna setup tomorrow. Added a temporary CB setup for a long trip from Montreal to your neck of the woods. Visiting the Tail of the Dragon 👍 Hope to hear some interesting chatter on the way.
Mention the 12 feet of RG8X coax cable you would need to install the bumper mount or the (rear) roof mount. The 108 inch whip is by far the best antenna you can buy. I put mine on the trunk lid to enable me to T-hunt jerks better. Point the car towards the jerk and zig-zag right to his door. Using 12 feet of coax gives you a more accurate SWR reading. Connect your radio straight to the battery. Do not go through the fuse box. That avoids engine noise and any voltage drop. Bumper mounts, trailer hitch mounts and trailer A frame mounts (You know, where the propane tanks sit) are all not a great idea. All of them have a lot of metal right next to the whip reflecting radio energy back into the antenna. Ruins the SWR. If you're running extra watts it can ruin your whole radio too. Best to avoid all that and get a small ball mount and drill holes up near the top of your truck's rear fender. That way nearly no metal is there to reflect energy back. Yes, you do have to drill several holes (one large, three small) up where they can be seen. The ball mount covers the holes perfectly. When you go to sell the truck leave the CB setup in it and ask for more money! Skip Shooters old secret trick: Get some thick metal braid and attach (bond) the doors, hood and trunk lid to the car's body with a short bit of that braid near the hinges. Believe it or not that makes your vehicle MUCH better as a radio transmitting system. When I tried it my friends across town all said they thought I had a new "foot warmer" when all I had was $5 worth of braid wire. Make all the connections to bare metal not painted metal. It sounds like bunk but trust me it works like a dream. There are guys on the CB that just sound like they are in another league from everyone else. Not just louder but hella louder. You hear them far away like they were sitting next to you. This is how they do it.
You'll be surprised. I was. I had thought it was just CB bologna but the first time I tried it the damn thing worked! I became a force to be reckoned with all by a hand full of wire.
i really love your videos, they are helping me so much. I've gone for a 2.75m tank whip. I'm going to try a gutter mount to start with, but am aware on a mazda bongo the total height will be over 4.5 meters high !
Nice job ! Great illustrations for the basic user, which I am too. I don't need a MEGA WATT system with 3 or 4 alternators on my daily driver! I will watch the other videos , too ! Thanks! you have some great advice!
Interesting I never knew duel whips were not good on a pickup guess I’ll be changing my setup. Thank you for info and great videos sir. Looking to get a base unit in near future also. God bless
Best all around antenna that I've found that works for me and my set up is the 4 ft firestick. Used many different antennas before I got the firestick. Now I wouldn't use anything else
yup, those Firesticks are awesome- have you ever tried a 102 inch whip ? .... just curious I've played with a bunch, including mag mounts on the roof. Found a triple mag mount and either a Firestick or 102 whip to really walk-the-dog...hahaha
I remember when CB were all the rage I owned more than a couple of these. Truck drivers usually had duel antenna not sure how hard they are to tune and work well together. Have you ever done dual antennas? That explains why I saw a lot of those long ones, you sometimes don't realize how complicated this stuff can get, some guys were good played a lot of see if you can find me. I am sure you know what I mean. I see you talked some on dual antennas on the rigs thanks for explaining a little on that. Have you seen the radio CB unit all one radio, they were in some state police cars in the old days.Great vid.
@@FarpointFarms doesn't it just piss you off when you spell your name and they still put a "C" , good video BTW, Thanks for taking your time to make these videos.
um, that's not the only installation methods or locations available. I have seen a mount made for the pickups that comes up behind the cab with a flange at cab top level. Some guys used this method, some would use a 9 ft whip, some would use an "ugly stick" wrapped fiberglass antenna about 3 to 4 feet long. I've also seen FRONT bumper mounts cophased with a rear bumper mount... I don't know all the technical details but that system seemed to work best of all, but I don't know why it would... the guy that used that one was a kind of pro, he had some setup that really made it work. They also used to make an antenna that looked for all the world like an ordinary radio antenna, and in fact doubled as the regular am/fm radio antenna.
Why on the passenger side?,I have always put mine on the drivers side of the bumper,when I mounted my 102 on the drivers side of the bumper on my 97 suburban the swr was flat and I could talk crazy distances with that and my first gen RCI-2970 amber display and I really had nothing but good reports,I have loved the 102"stainless steel whip antenna for so many years.
Ok I want to make sure I’m correct , I have a 4 door cab pick up. I was going to set the Stryker towards the back of the cab right in front of the 3 break light, I was thinking I should have it centered as close as I can on the vehicle. I was told I should center it on the cab roof not center of the entire truck , what are your thoughts?
Hi Erik, I'm not sure if you'll be able to see this comment,but I'll throw a couple of questions down anyways. Maybe someone else can help. I'm picking up a magnetic base antenna and a basic cb radio. I also will get a swr tuner for the setup. My questions: Does a magnetic base antenna require grounding, or is it already grounded by the connection to the roof of the car? How do I properly ground the radio? I plan on using a socket power supply for the cigarette lighter spot. Thanks!
I have got tje best performance with a wilson 1000 roof mount. Typically a flat match out of the box. Roof mount creates a ground plane and i get 25 mile range.
I have a 2004 Sienna mini van, I'm using a Huslter mag mount antenna on the roof and get awfulm swrs. Lowest I've been ablt to get it tuned down to is 1.5 on Ch-1 and almost 3 on ch-40.
Where would the best place be to mount the radio in a 2003 Ford Escape? Already have a magnetic mount for the roof, but where to put the CB is another matter. My nephew suggested that we mount it on top of the dash, but that might be a security concern. The radio is a Uniden Bearcat 830 or something like that.
The top center of the vehicle is my favorite for a magnet mount. But for me. The 108inch whip is the top of the line for me. Especially on my pickup. I love my 108" whip. I refuse to go back to mag mounts ever again cause they rust too easy in the magnet base.
I usually run my power wire through the firewall and connect directly to the battery but sometimes I still get some alternator "whine" static. Any suggestions for a better, less static power connect?
I am no expert, but I have ran resistances check and seems a bit to high. And the roof is a hard plastic, or you recommend something like a Stryker antenna?
I did not wont to put holes in my 28 model A,so i covered the back of the unit with velcro tape.I can put it any were then peal it off for security when deeded.
Hey Eric I hope your doing well. I wanted to ask you about a cb install on a 2003 Dodge Dakota 4 door pick up truck. I might be purchasing my grandfather's truck it only has 72K on it. It does have a CD player and a cassette player in the dash. I wanted to see if the cobra radio with the front firing speaker would be a good choice. I have a few different antennas I could use most likely will be a magnet mount antenna but I do have a fire stick I could put on it. I wanted to see what your thoughts were being your a mechanic and have installed a few radios.
Not that I have found. There were some really great old base stations made by Uniden and Cobra back in the day that had excellent quiet receivers, but after all these years they perform no better and in many time worse than a modern radio.
Eric,here is the problem I have run into,I have a 95dodge ram van that is a handicap van,what I need is a good antenna to get the most distance. I know I can't put anything on the top of course ,so where do I put it to get the best gain and what kind should I go with. Lost and confused :(
Your best, and pretty much only options are a mirror mount antenna or a hood mount antenna. Both are not Idea, but due to the fiberglass roof, they are your only two options. You can still put a 4 foot antenna on either of those two options and it should be fine for a range of 4 to 5 miles. You could also try and squeeze another mile out of that setup and go with dual antenna's mounted one on each mirror, but the cost jumps for the co-phased cable and an extra antenna.
Good video. Thanks Erik. Do you think there should any real concern about a roof mounted magnetic antenna slipping off; other than maybe being struck by an object?
Sorry for the delay in responding. Somehow this message got lost in the mix. I've been running mag mounts for over 10 years, and I've never had one even shift positions on my roof or trunk in all that time. I'd say its a safe option for any situation.
I was also wondering about range. How do those small GMRS "family channel" hand held shirt pocket radios compare with the 4 watt CB's for distance? I have a small set of the Midland rechargeables that we use around the house and they seem to do fine but sometimes pick up a lot of static for some reason. Mine says they have a 22 mile range over water but I doubt that. Any experience with these?
Erik, basic question. I’ve always been into gadgets but never did anything with CB radio growing up. I’ve decided to get into CB radio now because of “Stranger Things.” So I’m watching a lot of your videos. My equipment so far is a Realistic TRC-216 handheld. I’m wanting to get another 216, plus a compact mobile unit with monitoring. I drive a Ford Escape and plan to have a roof-mounted magnet antenna. So far, I’m just using the handheld in the car, and sometimes while parked I stick the antenna out of the moonroof. After 3 days asking for radio check on channel 19, I’ve not had any response, nor have I heard any transmission from anyone else. Is that normal, and is my problem likely technical or location? I live in southeast Michigan.
I have Honda Accord 2003 with cobra ultra 19 radio and a 64in Stryker 10,000 antenna does the wiring of the antenna have to run through special location or can it be just out where it gets moved a bit
So quick question I've been getting mixed answers on this. Does it matter the length of coax you run on a mobile set up? I've heard there is an ideal length which allows for optimum swr tuning.
Yes, and I don't fully understand how or why, but 9 feet and 18 feet are sweet spots for cable runs. Also tight loops are bad when coiling up excess wire.
Farpoint Farms yeah I knew that about the tight loops. It's just funny to me that the length of cable plays that big of a part. Hey by the way sir i'm really enjoy your videos on the CB. I've found them quite informative. Thanks for posting. I have two pick ups and both are currently in the process of gettin radios.
One more question , and I swear I will leave you alone lol. When mounting to bumper do you have the plastic washer on top . And do you need to put one on the underside as well . I mounted mine to the bumper but can’t get swr down for nothing . Coax is good I tested it with ohm meter.
I've just recently got into cb radios. I have installed a small midland in my truck. At first it was powered by a lighter plug and it kept receiving interferance from everything especially the windshield wipers. Today after work I wired it directly to the battery. The noise from the wipers still comes through but not nearly as bad. Is there anything else that can be done to get rid of the noise completely?
There is something called a "Engine Noise Filter Suppressor Isolator Kit" that can help in cases like this. Here is an example of one. www.ebay.com/itm/12v-Car-Auto-Stereo-Radio-Power-Wire-Engine-Noise-Filter-Suppressor-Isolator-Kit/122295234625?epid=931408241&hash=item1c795d3041:g:L6UAAOSwopRYai1f That would cut out the whine you hear with the wipers on.
I got a radio check this evening on the cb in my truck. They said I had a hum whenever transmitting and they had a hum when talking back also. What could that be?
I have a 93 f150 and I was thinking of mounting a 9 foot whip too the front of the box basically where a headache rack would be, I don't have on on so I was thinking of getting a bracket and mounting it too the lip, and grounding too the frame. Would that work well, because it is pretty much centre of the vehicle and the grounding point is two feet away.
ground point should be where coax connects area,not feet away,no more than a few inches away...Look into bonding and dont use awag wire with long lengths..Use short braided strapping 8" or less and ground many parts of your truck..
No, that is incorrect. The ball spring at the base is not insulated from itself. It is not "loaded" as uncoiling it would equal a much longer length than the 5 inches it is. You are thinking of windings that are insulated from themselves to act as a length of wire that is much longer than the few inches they occupy.
The Volvo wagon in the background has a roof rack, and I put a magnet mount antenna right in the middle of the roof as it didn't interfere at all. On another car I had that had a roof rack, I drilled two small holes in the rack, and mounted a screw in bumper mount to it. It worked fine too! The mount was just a simple metal l bracket that I picked up on fleabay, that had two mounting holes for the screws, and a stud to screw that antenna in on the other end. It wasn't the prettiest setup, but it was well grounded and worked as good as my magnet mount setup.
I have a Toyota FJ Cruiser and the factory aluminum roof rack. I want to still use the roof rack for hauling gear or putting a canoe on, so I guess I would go with the roof rack mounted antenna, but it might be off to one side. If the antenna is long enough it would get good range. What about the idea short antenna for hills or mountains and long antenna for flat areas? I hear some guys run two antennas front and back with a splitter, but that might be too much trouble for what it's worth.
I wouldn't mess with dual antennas on anything other than a base station setup, or a true 18 wheeler. for most other setups, they end up being less than ideal. Even with your single antenna mounted to one rear or front side of your FJ, you'll still get a pretty good signal in 3 of 4 directions. Your weakest direction will be pointed to the area where the least of your car body is. For example. If you mount it to the pass rear, your weakest area for receiving and sending signals will be the area that faces to your right rear. The strongest will be facing to the left front. For most setups that will be ok. Just make sure that your rack is well grounded, and if it isn't add a small wire from it to the body of your FJ. Other than that, you should be good to go!
i kinda wanna stick one on my crown vic, but i think the straight standing antenna on the roof would look kinda goofy. would it act funky if i placed it on my hood off to one side?
Its not Ideal, but it would still work OK. by setting if off to one side it will change the pattern that the signal gets out. instead of a round bubble it will be more egg shaped and may work better off to the side that the antenna faces. Still, I had a trunk lip mount on my 86 Buick that was offset like that and it never really mattered in the real world. Your talking may a 1/2 mile difference if that.
I have the 9ft mounted on a dodge ram directly on center of the aluminum tool box in the bed behind the back windshield. Would being mounted to aluminum matter should I ground it to the body of the truck what's your thoughts? Thanks
This is why Ham Radio is far superior to CB's. 5 to 50 watt's in power. With a HT I have talke to my fellow ham buddy on duplex at 5 watt's power to his mobile at a range of over 10 miles crystal clear communications. If CB's were so great government agencies would be using them...Try using a Hand held CB and talk that distance lol...
Let that repeater go out in a disaster and see how "far superior" you are. I'm a ham, Eric in the video is a ham. We both still use cb and understand there are alot more CB's around than hams and most hams use only 2m repeaters and rely on that for there "amazing distances" they talk "crystal clear". Ham is useful but so is CB. And the antenna system and knowing how to set it up and properly tune it will get you further on cb than using an HT on repeaters then when the shtf and there are no repeaters, or ways to easily charge your HT, it wont be usable. The CB's will still be working as they do now without repeaters.
My understanding is that the DX Local position slightly attenuates a strong local signal to prevent overloading your radio and bleeding over to adjacent channels. You have a great channel. I like pretty much everything you upload. Also, you might want to disassemble the mic with exposed wires and put shrink tubing over that section.
I did end up getting that 2003 dodge Dakota truck from my grandfather. It's now got 86K on it for miles and I have had to get all kinds of stuff replaced on it. Fairly major stuff to! But it's still rolling for now. I was think of throwing a CB in there. I did get that Cobra mini Ultra 19 V Cb radio. And I'm going to use a magnet mount antenna because it's just easier. With that antenna it's going to really look like a grandpa truck lol.
@@FarpointFarms Any ideas on mounting locations? I'm currently trying to rig up something for it. I'm always afraid I'm going to break something and I'm not handy at all so it's pretty bad lol.
Hey Eric love your videos. Just getting back into cb radios. Been since the early 70s. Had a Lafayette base station my dad had got me. But I have a Galaxy base station now it needs gone through no one in my area that repairs radios it comes on has a lot of static in the knobs and the meters are stuck. Wish you were closer to the mountains of West Virginia. I also have some old school boosters and 667 solid state tube tester and a elite I think booster it says power high low sm-am SSB and standby and I also have a coastal power deluxe base station power supply would be willing to trade or possibly sell abut the Galaxy base station I've already purchased a antron 99 antenna for it thank you again for your video sir
Interesting to see how far you have come in production quality sir. I've had good luck with Co-Phased setups in a semi and they were only about 9ft apart mounted forward about 50deg angle so wind pushed the tips to plum at highway speeds. You have to use 75ohm cable rather than 50ohm when you use cophased or it just acts weird. I have noticed that I have great coverage with my antennas mounted on the rear top of my car (14' Honda CRV) and had to get some antenna folders so I could still use parking structures. I run a Sirio 5k Turbo 10m/cb antenna with a base loaded coil and a 58" 2m/1.5m/70cm Ham radio antenna. Both of my antennas are mounted to Diamond K-9000tm Antenna folders and PL (so-239) sockets. I'm rocking a Kenwood TM-D710 radio and an Anytone AT-6666 radio now. I used to go between a Connex 4300HP and a Galaxy 99HP for my CB. I still have my Grandmother's Sears 23channel crystal radio and my dad's Cobra 19GTL and they both work flawlessly. I have not done anything to the sears radio but the cobra 19 has had some Toshiba pills dropped into it for those shtf situations when you need to get a signal out.
Thanks! This video was shot on a Digital 8mm camera from 2002. It was still working in 2017, but by that time the internet and the world had moved on to HD videos and cell phone cameras. Co-phased antenna's just don't get the respect they deserve here in the 2022! I had a set of 102 ships as my base station setup and they worked great!
@@FarpointFarms Oh I understand, I just got a Gopro Hero3 for use in my other channel. I don't need 4k 60fps quality to do and show what I intend to. Eventually I will get something nicer but a 7 generation old camera works just fine.
I'm really interested in the all in one CB radios you showed. I have searched ebay for one but all I'm finding are modern ones that are around 100$. I'd love to use one of the classic ones you showed do you know there model numbers or if they were called anything else? Love your videos
Quarter standing wave hehe. I've had a confirmed contact to the UK with an Untenna mounted on the front quarter panel of my Honda Civic barefoot. Conditions I suppose, and a very high gain receive with that fellow. I think I oriented my car in a direction to take advantage of this antenna position. Get it? How you going with those fiat engines? The 1300 had great increase with torque, like I said, mine had the Rallye head and ignition module. But some say the Regatta engine, what was it 1500? It had the best head. I personally restored a Lancia with a 1608 engine. But I lost it in a fire. Hey I haven't heard from you for a while.
Hi ya Eric I’ve enjoyed your videos. My problem is I have a small car and not many options for mounting a small radios the car is a Fiesta. Any ideas please. Thanks.
Hi ya thanks for the help but it’s not available in the uk. Not many people use AM most use FM or have euros multi norms. I’ve now had a president bill and find it a good radio for my car.