As a ham radio operator and someone who used to install radios for a living.... Give me a second I will be over with my drill and take care of that antenna for you. 😁
I'd see if the factory has any replacement switch panels that do have a removable panel in that blank. You could also see if they're willing to retrofit a bracket into your existing unit that would allow tilt and rotation. On a new vehicle, if you're going to drill the roof go with the blade antenna. Looks factory and won't draw attention. If you can mount the head unit above, use a blue tooth mic and hide the brick under the back seat, the radio capability may go un-noticed to someone who's not looking for it. Not sure about a blue tooth mic having the same capabilities as the HMN4079 though.
1) The NMO antenna will have better radiation performance than the shark fin antenna. Not sure how the shark fin will provide you blue tooth capability. Maybe you mean to add a router in the vehicle? 2) The location between the two glass panels while easy to access will have radiation pattern distorted by lack of ground plane to left and right. This will be worse on lower bands.
Although I don't have much advice to offer as you've already mentioned everything that I was thinking as I watched the video, I am very interested to see the evolution of this project! New installs are always exciting to me. I agree with either of the front seats, I'm planning on building a sort of rack that piggybacks off the mounting points for the seat for my mobile install. Also, I'll be using an NMO mount so I can remove the antenna for carwashes and stuff like that. About the roof switch board... that panel might not be removable but I bet a dremmel could fix that lol. Maybe some creative sheetmetal fabrication to mount the control head? I dunno but I look forward to see what you do
Look at Black Sheep for the ARB mount in the rear. I put that in and it’s fantastic. Gives you that other space and saves the place you were considering for a solar converter that fits there nice.
Its a INEOS, not Inios. And I would drill a NMO hole right into the the top. That what it wants. It tough, it can handle it. Or, have Topsy Products make you a custom fender mount antenna bracket. I can't wait for the next installment of this build.
It’s not my vehicle so I’m coming at this form a different POV but I’d go with the fancy antenna because the hole will be about the same as if you’d use an NMO. I’d also cut the little panel that says grenadier and mount the control head like you would in a Havis console. It would give it a very clean look and you could either hang a corded mic up there or use a Bluetooth mic.
I’m trying to figure out a solution for my group’s needs, but the more research I do, the more questions I have. The end goal is to have ATAK integration for real-time team awareness, so I’m assuming the APX/P25-compatible radios are the way to go, but another guy has the idea to get XTS-5000s, specifically in the VHF band. From what I hear, VHF is for flat, clear areas, and we live in Canada, so there’s lots of trees and mountains. I did find some APX 6000s for a half-decent price, but is 700/800 a factor?
Possibly a 3/8th inch NMO mount would be more palatable? It will still require a hole in the roof, but it would be smaller. Trust me, drill the hole and get it over with. You'll thank yourself in the long run. fender mounting with an L bracket is also an option, but will not perform as well.
For not making holes - maybe something like this - "DO GLASS MOUNTED ANTENNAS ACTUALLY WORK? andy kirby". Or just route coax on outside of a A pillar (under air intake tube) and thru engine firewall.
I do not have issue with drilling holes in roof, current adhesives / antenna mounts designs are capable of withstanding extreme weather np. With proper pass thru you can route not only coax but power for lights in future for example. For radio - there is plenty of room under (inside of) dashboard / centre console in most modern cars.
An O3 head would be best suited for this isntall IMO. You dont have a lot of real estate in that console up front and you could always store the head in the center console storage compartment.
@@AdventureCruiser i suggest try it out and make that commitment when you really think about it. I use V/U but not 800. You dont NEED gps since half the time you probably wont use it. its one of those things think about resell. Drill the roof, cuts the value.
For me, I would stick with a magnetic antenna. If you really want Bluetooth, you might consider drilling into it. I'm not familiar with the 8500, but I didn't know Bluetooth works through the antenna.
Through eBay mostly, but through those purchases I’ve built some friendships and contacts where we trade radio gear. I also buy from government auction sites.
If you go with a standard antenna pick up the NMO mount that has an FME fitting on the end instead of the open NMO mounts. Depending where you place the mount you will not have issues with stray RF emanating from the NMO base should there be any mismatch of the antenna. I have had the APX 5000 for 10 months and I still have not installed it. Problem is that a midsized euro car has zero spare room to mount anything. I just finished a dash mount for the control head that takes the place of the cubby shelf under the car radio. Did this in black ABS plastic and it turned out great. I used to build custom mounts for the shop I worked for and most were for European high end cars sold in the USA. Great experience but supplies we had in the USA are not really available in south Eastern Europe. Brick is ready to go into trunk since the mount is there. Still need to run the wiring harness to the trunk, it’s extra heavy since I plan on running several other high power devices. These are great radios and keep on working under rough conditions. Just curious, did you get the E package with your 8000 series radio?
200 series owner here 🙋🏼♂️ I knew I liked your style. I haven’t read much about the grenadier but excited to see your mix of vehicles and radios. Keep it coming!
