CB antenna idea good or bad?

[Joliet Johnny]

I have come to the conclusion that broadcast radio is dead. I was thinking about removing my AM/FM antenna, then the fender and installing a 1/4 metal strip on the underside of the top of the fender, then installing the CB antenna. I think the 1/4 strip will keep the CB antenna from ruining my fender. What are your thoughts?

[XJ4IV]

what kind fo wheelin do you do? I think one of the best locations for a CB antenna is somewhere behind the hatchback or somehow inline with teh vehicle, when I get my windshield portion of the EXO completed mine will be mounted to the center bar that goes from the cowl bar to the roof bar this way NOTHING will knock it off or break something, I think having it out on your fender while out on the trails would be a very bad idea for your fender. I went YEARS without an antenna because my first outing broke of my factory radio antenna just three months ago I replaced my fenders and was able to get a manual antenna ...it bends MUCH more than the electric ones and remember CB antennas dont bend very easily unless you get a LONG whip. a 4 foot fire stick mounted to your front bumper is perfect for the trails, truckers antennas are long because the communicate in miles ours dont need to be NEAR that long. my 4 ft firestick has been mounted to my aftermarket roof rack and been into every tree I drive under and never once broke or come off. great investment for under 20$

[4.3LXJ]

I am no expert on CB antennas, but I think the best thing to do is to put a spring at the base so it can give if you hit something with it. Kind of like the whips have. I have seen aftermarket AM radio antennas have this option.

[Paddletrucker]

Check out the Wilson Flex antenna. It has a ton of give and I don't think would tear up your fender.

[bluedragon436]

Even with the Wilson flex, I woudl def. look into picking up the spring to put in there in case it grabs anything on the trail.. But I know there was a guy when I got to wheel last year, that had his CB ant. where the factory am/fm ant had been, and his did great.. but he had the spring installed when it hit any limbs or other obstacles..

[JG-Man]

I agree, I am on my second Firestick, they don't give, they just snap. Now I take it off completely when not on the interstate highway. For short distances (like on a trail run with a group) the reception is just fine using the CB cable that winds it's way up to the roof rack. I would like to experiment with a spring base too - anyone got any pics of a good working setup?

[Mudderoy]

I have come to the conclusion that broadcast radio is dead. I was thinking about removing my AM/FM antenna, then the fender and installing a 1/4 metal strip on the underside of the top of the fender, then installing the CB antenna. I think the 1/4 strip will keep the CB antenna from ruining my fender. What are your thoughts?

When it isn't dead, and this is especially true of AM broadcast, is during emergencies. Tornado, hurricane, ice storm, blizzard, terrorist attack. I'd keep a way to be able to receive AM broadcast since it can have a range of hundreds of miles at night. Otherwise you'll have to rely on what fellow CB'rs tell you.

[BlueXJ]

My CB antenna is on my roof on a magnetic base so if it gets knocked over I cab set it right back up. Roofs make great ground planes too, thus more distance when transmitting. Right Tony?

[Mudderoy]

My CB antenna is on my roof on a magnetic base so if it gets knocked over I cab set it right back up. Roofs make great ground planes too, thus more distance when transmitting. Right Tony?

Yeah a mag mount is great because it is unlikely that you'll break it and it's easy to remove. K40 and Wilson are good ones with some pretty heavy duty magnets.

Now if you wanna get serious...

http://www.packetradio.com/catalog/bmz_cache/8/8575ba76258b76e26dbc9b3effe5ca5d.image.144x128.gif

:link: (http://www.packetradio.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=873)

3/8 inch thread. You could put one of those 4' fiberglass whips on this.

[bluedragon436]

^^ Now that's a beast... I guess that would rectify my trying to find a spot for my 4' ant. LOL.. I need to remount mine when I get back stateside..

[Paddletrucker]

Yeah a mag mount is great because it is unlikely that you'll break it and it's easy to remove. K40 and Wilson are good ones with some pretty heavy duty magnets.

Now if you wanna get serious...

http://www.packetradio.com/catalog/bmz_cache/8/8575ba76258b76e26dbc9b3effe5ca5d.image.144x128.gif

:link: (http://www.packetradio.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=873)

3/8 inch thread. You could put one of those 4' fiberglass whips on this.

I've got one of those on my pickup for a ham antenna. It works AWESOME!!!!

[bluedragon436]

I have seen that mag mount used on a few cars around here with Ham ant. on them...

[saar]

Yeah a mag mount is great because it is unlikely that you'll break it and it's easy to remove. K40 and Wilson are good ones with some pretty heavy duty magnets.

Now if you wanna get serious...

http://www.packetradio.com/catalog/bmz_cache/8/8575ba76258b76e26dbc9b3effe5ca5d.image.144x128.gif

:link: (http://www.packetradio.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=873)

3/8 inch thread. You could put one of those 4' fiberglass whips on this.

It looks like you can pull the XJ with it :D
I'm using a regular magnetic base (Motorola's one) on the roof, never had problems with it.
Saar.

[Mudderoy]

It looks like you can pull the XJ with it :D
I'm using a regular magnetic base (Motorola's one) on the roof, never had problems with it.
Saar.

Well it really depends on the weight and wind load of the antenna. Those helically wound 4 foot whips can put quite a bit of force on the base while traveling down the road at 80 mph, or bounding around off road.

[LizardRunner]

I'm using a K-40 mag mount with a custom wound antenna (yes I have a spring between the coil and the whip), and have a 25watt linear still to install. to smack my antenna I'd have to destroy the roof rack first.

[Mudderoy]

I'm using a K-40 mag mount with a custom wound antenna (yes I have a spring between the coil and the whip), and have a 25watt linear still to install. to smack my antenna I'd have to destroy the roof rack first.

Just so everyone understands, I don't have any experience with mag mounts. It isn't a good connection either electrically or mechanically. This is especially true when you get out of the 4 watt output range.

Personally I would only use a magnetic mount as a very temporary solution.

[Joliet Johnny]

The antenna Im dealing with is a 4ft Firestick and yes fiberglass + spring is a must. When I had my Pathfinder I put it on the rear tire carrier and ran the cable into the tail light housing. I mounted it right to the roof on my Saturn. I have had bad luck with magnet mounts and Im not a fan of running wires through doors that open and close. My other thought was to mount it to my hitch (saw a newer Corvette with a setup like that), but that seems like it would cause annoyance? I have no trouble taking it off when needed. I have also thought of that setup where you mount it off your tail light but I fear cracking the light. I just want to know why I cant find an AM/FM with CB like GM did in the 80s?

[Mudderoy]

The antenna Im dealing with is a 4ft Firestick and yes fiberglass + spring is a must. When I had my Pathfinder I put it on the rear tire carrier and ran the cable into the tail light housing. I mounted it right to the roof on my Saturn. I have had bad luck with magnet mounts and Im not a fan of running wires through doors that open and close. My other thought was to mount it to my hitch (saw a newer Corvette with a setup like that), but that seems like it would cause annoyance? I have no trouble taking it off when needed. I have also thought of that setup where you mount it off your tail light but I fear cracking the light. I just want to know why I cant find an AM/FM with CB like GM did in the 80s?

Well you have to have something on the antenna that will keep the RF out of the AM/FM receiver. This usually means heating which means a loss of transmitted power. Basically those CB's sucked for transmitting and I think the generally poor design they sucked for receiving as well.

Antennas that work on multiple bands (especially when they are so far a part on the radio spectrum) are usually not much good on any of them.

Keep in mind that a ham license and a 2 meter radio means NO noise (FM), an antenna that is about 1.5 foot long and you can talk to someone 20 to 40 miles away through repeaters or on direct 5 to 10 miles. Oh and the radios come in 25/50/100 watt varieties. I'm not trying to sell you on HAM radio I'm just saying that for a multiple guess test this technology solves a lot of the problems with CB.

[Joliet Johnny]

If I wasnt in an apartment I would be into ham, and the tests are always when I work :(
There is a good podcast to get people ready for the tests, its called "Ham Radio Podclass"
One day.

[Paddletrucker]

Don't let the apartment stop you. I don't have a radio at home. I only run mobiles in my semi, pickup, and soon to be the XJ. I often say that I can't believe I didn't do it YEARS ago. I like it so much better than CB.

We have a few really good repeaters and we have close to a hundred mile range on a couple of them. It's awesome.

If I got in trouble in my Jeep and really needed assistance, I can just about guarantee I'd get help from the ham radio before the CB.

[prerunner1982]

I would still like to get a 2meter eventually. Would rather have a dual bander but think a 2m would be a good place to start on a limited budget.

[xj98]

I put my mount behind the light. worked really good.
http://i1097.photobucket.com/albums/g354/bambam0417/cbmount001.jpg

[4.3LXJ]

White antenna on a white rig, very clean.

[xj98]

White antenna on a white rig, very clean.

It was between white or black. I thought white looked better.

[XJ Rat]

Having done a lot of wheeling in the North East (trees) I had my TJ set up so nothing is above the windshield. My thought was, "if the windshield went under an obstacle, then everything else will also fit." This included my firestick antenna. Yes, the range was affected, but I never lost or broke an antenna to a trail obstacle.

Take into account where and how you wheel. If the terrain can support something like an antenna extending beyond the body, then do it. If you drive on the street remember parking garages. They hate high objects like antennas, lights... The support you plan to install and the spring mentioned above are both good ideas.

I did not know AM/FM radio is going out. Guess my age is showing.

[Joliet Johnny]

Agh the AM/FM in the Chicago area is junk on the AM dial we have WLS 890 which I can only take in small doses. On the FM side we have lots of rap, pop, and what I call top 40 classic rock and 2 country stations that aren't that good. We had 1 good station called Q101 which I have listened to since 1994(6th grade), but they took that away and replaced it with an all news format :(

And XJ Rat lol your right about the parking garages I had the same setup Im going to use on my Saturn. I used to have to take it off when I went to visit my cousin.

I mostly use the CB close to work you'd have to see how nuts it gets there to understand ;)

[TeXJ]

I had a magnet mounted CB antenna for years. Then as usual get got knocked off, it was on top of the XJ. Usually it just falls to the side of the vehicle, i get out and plop it back on. This time however, the wire broke and the guy behind me drove over the antenna base, dumb @$$!

So i've decided to do a hard mount, but I dont want in to the side of my rig as I've been in really tight spots before where if the mount was hanging out to the side of the rear taillight it would have gotten ripped off.

so...

[Mudderoy]

I had a magnet mounted CB antenna for years. Then as usual get got knocked off, it was on top of the XJ. Usually it just falls to the side of the vehicle, i get out and plop it back on. This time however, the wire broke and the guy behind me drove over the antenna base, dumb @$$!

So i've decided to do a hard mount, but I dont want in to the side of my rig as I've been in really tight spots before where if the mount was hanging out to the side of the rear taillight it would have gotten ripped off.

so...

Yeah that's the great thing about a mag mount. Also to if you roll and assuming you don't crush the antenna, you can just stick it to the top (formally known as the bottom) of the Jeep and call for help!

Actually having a mag mount CB antenna for an emergency isn't a bad idea.

[TeXJ]

Yeah that's the great thing about a mag mount. Also to if you roll and assuming you don't crush the antenna, you can just stick it to the top (formally known as the bottom) of the Jeep and call for help!

Actually having a mag mount CB antenna for an emergency isn't a bad idea.

funny thing was I had a spare cable/mount with me. I put it all up and on top of the vehicle but when i went to hook it to my CB...the connectors were different. Never thought that there would be different connectors, the new one had a BNC type connector while the older one had a screw on type.

[Mudderoy]

funny thing was I had a spare cable/mount with me. I put it all up and on top of the vehicle but when i went to hook it to my CB...the connectors were different. Never thought that there would be different connectors, the new one had a BNC type connector while the older one had a screw on type.

I wonder if it was a cell phone, business band, or HAM antenna. Cell phone would be really short though.

[TeXJ]

I wonder if it was a cell phone, business band, or HAM antenna. Cell phone would be really short though.

I think it said CB antenna :dunno: But it was about 2' long

[Mudderoy]

I think it said CB antenna :dunno: But it was about 2' long

That's interesting. I've never seen a BNC connector on a CB, but I really haven't looked at them since the early 80's.

[TeXJ]

Its a BNC type, push and twist.

[Mudderoy]

Its a BNC type, push and twist.

Bayonet!

Scanner antenna! 3 foot long with BNC connector :D

http://www.walcottcb.com/images/products/PC360MBN/PC360MBN.jpg

:link: (http://www.walcottcb.com/pc360mbn-triband-scanner-antenna-magnet-mount-kit-p-1541.html)

[TeXJ]

Bayonet!

Scanner antenna! 3 foot long with BNC connector :D

http://www.walcottcb.com/images/products/PC360MBN/PC360MBN.jpg

:link: (http://www.walcottcb.com/pc360mbn-triband-scanner-antenna-magnet-mount-kit-p-1541.html)

hahaha Thats it! so thats not a CB antenna? ... :bang:

[Mudderoy]

hahaha Thats it! so thats not a CB antenna? ... :bang:

Well I guess it could be, but I bet it's a scanner antenna. :rolleye0012: