Author Topic: Where's a good place to mount cb radio other than cutting out radio bezel?  (Read 24179 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

BigMike

  • Administrator
  • Offline Gold Turtle Award
  • *
  • Turtle Points: 2124
  • Male Posts: 18,289
  • Member since Apr '02
  • 511:1 Club
    • View Profile
    • Bone-Stock Plane-Jane 1981 Shortbed Pickup
If you don't smoke, how about in place of your ash tray?

Check out our new Rock Crawling Videos!
2016 56-speed 580:1 Tacoma Rock Crawler   
1981 36-speed 511:1 3RZ-FE Rock Crawler
1987 6-speed Supercharged 4A-GZE MR2
Instagram: @SlowestTacoma
Things are only impossible until they are not.
"The worst of both worlds, the best of neither." -abnormaltoy
"An informed question. But difficult to answer. I am what you see." -Nanaki

cen-cal crawler

  • Offline Crawler Guru
  • ****
  • Turtle Points: 10
  • Male Posts: 690
  • Member since Mar '09
    • View Profile
Where am I gonna put all those spare pennies? Lmao

Sent from my GT-P5113 using Tapatalk 2

_________________________________
||_________||_________||__TOYOTA_||
||_________||_________||__________|

OOPS

  • Online The 2.5K Group
  • ****
  • Turtle Points: 1233
  • Male Posts: 2,561
  • Member since May '02
    • View Profile
the shorter the coax the better..
Not according to the experts at the CB shop I deal with, the COAX should be 15' long. That being said I mounted my antenna in the middle of my roof and the CB is mounted on the x-bars of my cage.
David & Theresa Fritzsche, 1990 Ex-Cab with a few mods!!!!!!!!! Roseville, CA Sobriety =Serenity

SloCrawler

  • Offline The 1K Club
  • *
  • Turtle Points: -116
  • Male Posts: 1,333
  • Member since Mar '08
    • View Profile
    • http://board.marlincrawler.com/index.php?topic=60800.msg856812#msg856812
Not according to the experts at the CB shop I deal with, the COAX should be 15' long. That being said I mounted my antenna in the middle of my roof and the CB is mounted on the x-bars of my cage.
Where you hear that im curious? Im about to order dual antenna cables, but if long is good then its cheaper to buy the all in one kit, but their long 15'. Heres a link a found saying better is shorter    http://www.stu-offroad.com/misc/myth-1.htm

« Last Edit: Apr 03, 2013, 06:08:31 AM by SloCrawler »

BigMike

  • Administrator
  • Offline Gold Turtle Award
  • *
  • Turtle Points: 2124
  • Male Posts: 18,289
  • Member since Apr '02
  • 511:1 Club
    • View Profile
    • Bone-Stock Plane-Jane 1981 Shortbed Pickup
I am no expert on the subject, and there is certainly a great deal of science here, but I believe antennas are tuned to a specific cable length. Check the package for a recommended cable length. The small adjustment at the end of the cable is only for variances in how/where the antenna is mounted AFAIK. It isn't intended to account for large differences in cable length.

I remember my 4' antenna called for a 15' cable but the store I was at only had a 12' cable and as a result my SWRs are higher than I'd like. I've been needing to purchase a longer/proper 15' cable but its such a low priority on my TO-DO list.

SloCrawler, I haven't read that link yet but I'm willing to bet its discussing 1/2 the distance of our radio's wavelength. I think a shorter cable is ideal, but the long lengths of our antennas (usually five+ feet) requires a longer cable?

At the very least, if you use a long cable and have left over cable length, be sure to roll up the extra length in as large of an area as possible to prevent induction (if you wrap a wire up into a coil, it will generate a small magnetic field that will affect the voltage passing through the coil). My radio is mounted only a few feet from my antenna, so what I did was I ran the extra 8~10-feet of unused cable length back-and-forth at the back of my cab under my carpet from the drivers-side-to-the-passengers-side a few times with as much straight-lenght-sections as possible to minimize any opportunities for a magnetic field to generate.

BigMike
« Last Edit: Apr 03, 2013, 08:22:50 AM by BigMike »
Check out our new Rock Crawling Videos!
2016 56-speed 580:1 Tacoma Rock Crawler   
1981 36-speed 511:1 3RZ-FE Rock Crawler
1987 6-speed Supercharged 4A-GZE MR2
Instagram: @SlowestTacoma
Things are only impossible until they are not.
"The worst of both worlds, the best of neither." -abnormaltoy
"An informed question. But difficult to answer. I am what you see." -Nanaki

cen-cal crawler

  • Offline Crawler Guru
  • ****
  • Turtle Points: 10
  • Male Posts: 690
  • Member since Mar '09
    • View Profile
I am no expert on the subject, and there is certainly a great deal of science here, but I believe antennas are tuned to a specific cable length. Check the package for a recommended cable length. The small adjustment at the end of the cable is only for variances in how/where the antenna is mounted AFAIK. It isn't intended to account for large differences in cable length.

I remember my 4' antenna called for a 15' cable but the store I was at only had a 12' cable and as a result my SWRs are higher than I'd like. I've been needing to purchase a longer/proper 15' cable but its such a low priority on my TO-DO list.

SloCrawler, I haven't read that link yet but I'm willing to bet its discussing 1/2 the distance of our radio's wavelength. I think a shorter cable is ideal, but the long lengths of our antennas (usually five+ feet) requires a longer cable?

At the very least, if you use a long cable and have left over cable length, be sure to roll up the extra length in as large of an area as possible to prevent induction (if you wrap a wire up into a coil, it will generate a small magnetic field that will affect the voltage passing through the coil). My radio is mounted only a few feet from my antenna, so what I did was I ran the extra 8~10-feet of unused cable length back-and-forth at the back of my cab under my carpet from the drivers-side-to-the-passengers-side a few times with as much straight-lenght-sections as possible to minimize any opportunities for a magnetic field to generate.

BigMike
  ok now in english!

Sent from my GT-P5113 using Tapatalk 2

_________________________________
||_________||_________||__TOYOTA_||
||_________||_________||__________|

Prismo

  • Offline The 1K Club
  • *
  • Turtle Points: 8319
  • Posts: 1,275
  • Member since Oct '03
  • Living in the green house
    • View Profile
Mounted mine to the tranny tunnel with a cb mount on the 90.

Retired Great White Turtle Hunter
Originally posted by fortysixandtwo – sheesh, you should see the transvestites i sell ammo to sometimes

SloCrawler

  • Offline The 1K Club
  • *
  • Turtle Points: -116
  • Male Posts: 1,333
  • Member since Mar '08
    • View Profile
    • http://board.marlincrawler.com/index.php?topic=60800.msg856812#msg856812
Just some tech I got from a local expert, he said dual antennas are only benificial if mounted minimal of 9' apart. He also told me long coax cables are generally for big rigs with a trailor. Its not better to have long cables but much easier to tune. With this info he also told me a 8' cables should work best for my setup with only one firestike.

BigMike

  • Administrator
  • Offline Gold Turtle Award
  • *
  • Turtle Points: 2124
  • Male Posts: 18,289
  • Member since Apr '02
  • 511:1 Club
    • View Profile
    • Bone-Stock Plane-Jane 1981 Shortbed Pickup
Just some tech I got from a local expert, he said dual antennas are only benificial if mounted minimal of 9' apart. He also told me long coax cables are generally for big rigs with a trailor. Its not better to have long cables but much easier to tune. With this info he also told me a 8' cables should work best for my setup with only one firestike.

We should do a simple test. It only take a min to swap out a cable. Have a buddy 1 mile away with a power meter and see which setup gets out better :idea:
Check out our new Rock Crawling Videos!
2016 56-speed 580:1 Tacoma Rock Crawler   
1981 36-speed 511:1 3RZ-FE Rock Crawler
1987 6-speed Supercharged 4A-GZE MR2
Instagram: @SlowestTacoma
Things are only impossible until they are not.
"The worst of both worlds, the best of neither." -abnormaltoy
"An informed question. But difficult to answer. I am what you see." -Nanaki

Jr0mer0

  • Offline Rock Crawl'n
  • **
  • Turtle Points: 0
  • Male Posts: 39
  • Member since Feb '13
  • Crawling with Marlin
    • View Profile
    • Buy me a beer
Ya I heard the same some where, longer coax is better cuz it also acts as a conductor so u get better range and single whips are better than dual unless spaced farther than 6' apart an that u shouldn't coil up the excess cable be ause the current would cause a magnetic field that would mess up your signal.

Cheesemaker

  • Offline Gold Turtle Award
  • *
  • Turtle Points: 1363
  • Male Posts: 4,525
  • Member since Sep '04
  • Dean Tyler, you were an inspiration to all!!
    • View Profile
Awe the debate on CB antennae and coax.  There is alot of info in the CB posts.  http://board.marlincrawler.com/index.php?board=33.0
I've read that duals are worthless unless your truckers and using a radio that is followed up with a amp (which is illegal).  Why?  A single antenna is designed for 360* signal.  Duals are designed to reach out up or down the road in the direction your traveling.  Which is why truckers use them, and they have to be at minimum of 6' apart, or it won't work.  And most rigs aren't 6' wide, which is why truckers mount them on the farthest points apart.  ie mirrors.

Cable length, and antenna all have to be a certain length.  And antenna's need to be mounted in a open, unobstructed area.  ie roof.  But that isn't possible most of the time.  There is a whole science and debate on this subject.  But I got to go to work.  :wave:
Miss ya Dean (4THEWKN) & Kyle (KYOTA)!!

4THEWKN~9/17/2006  If it wasn't for you, I'd be driving something other than a Toyota!

My build up ~ project Kilchis! http://board.marlincrawler.com/index.php?topic=32961.0
Zak's truck build ~ http://board.marlincrawler.com/index.php?topic=64319.0;topicseen

BigMike

  • Administrator
  • Offline Gold Turtle Award
  • *
  • Turtle Points: 2124
  • Male Posts: 18,289
  • Member since Apr '02
  • 511:1 Club
    • View Profile
    • Bone-Stock Plane-Jane 1981 Shortbed Pickup
I run quad antennas myself.
Check out our new Rock Crawling Videos!
2016 56-speed 580:1 Tacoma Rock Crawler   
1981 36-speed 511:1 3RZ-FE Rock Crawler
1987 6-speed Supercharged 4A-GZE MR2
Instagram: @SlowestTacoma
Things are only impossible until they are not.
"The worst of both worlds, the best of neither." -abnormaltoy
"An informed question. But difficult to answer. I am what you see." -Nanaki

 
 
 
 
 

Related Topics

1 Replies
1375 Views
Last post Feb 20, 2006, 09:52:22 PM
by Wheelinwoodman
4 Replies
2643 Views
Last post Mar 02, 2011, 09:16:38 PM
by kneedownnate
3 Replies
1720 Views
Last post Apr 09, 2010, 07:16:56 AM
by geneb1919
5 Replies
1809 Views
Last post Apr 01, 2010, 02:59:11 PM
by trekkerpaul
0 Replies
953 Views
Last post Apr 02, 2013, 02:29:02 PM
by BigMike