CB antenna placement

Ok, finally got myself a CB and just picked up my antenna today [8' whip]. So before I just go throwing it on and say "viola!" where is best to place the antenna? how did you attach it? and of course, pics are always a great help.
Thanks!

cykaaro said:

where is best to place the antenna?

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on top of the roof (located as central as possible)

how did you attach it?

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best way to attach it is through the roof using some sort of a bolt on mount.

cykaaro said:

Ok, finally got myself a CB and just picked up my antenna today [8' whip]. So before I just go throwing it on and say "viola!" where is best to place the antenna? how did you attach it? and of course, pics are always a great help.
Thanks!

Click to expand...

Best place is relative....

Best place for transmitting will be smack dab in the center of the roof.

Best place for not getting it taken off with trees, overpasses or parking garages is almost anywhere else.

For me talking to the far end of the line on the trail is as far as I wish to talk.

I have a 3' top loaded firestik on a spring. I had to work to get my SWR under 2. that was about the best that I could do. That is not best.

It rarely bumps the jeep. It is in line with the door handles and does not stick out any farther than the door handles.

JAS said:

I have a 3' top loaded firestik on a spring. I had to work to get my SWR under 2. that was about the best that I could do. That is not best.

It rarely bumps the jeep. It is in line with the door handles and does not stick out any farther than the door handles.

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Yikes, I know you're saying that it's in line with door handles, but door handles will give sooner then the mount and you're likely to put in a dent in the body this way.

I was thinking of doing some kinda of custom mount to incorporate into a type of cage I want to make for my tail lights. I've seen one mounted somehow through the bumper end, but I can see that being ripped of too easily aka, the bumper end, and it'll interfere with the rear hatch.
I figure either into the bumper, or the side quarter panel as best options. As for center of roof, of course but as well for me not practicle at all.

cykaaro said:

I was thinking of doing some kinda of custom mount to incorporate into a type of cage I want to make for my tail lights. I've seen one mounted somehow through the bumper end, but I can see that being ripped of too easily aka, the bumper end, and it'll interfere with the rear hatch.
I figure either into the bumper, or the side quarter panel as best options. As for center of roof, of course but as well for me not practicle at all.

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I used to have mine mounted along the tail lights on a pretty sturdy bracket. Then came a choice: go forward and loose the antenna or go back and loose a window. I chose to loose an antenna which also cost me a tail light.

Exactly what my concern is.......ripping off the tail light. That was why I was thinking about bolting a bracket to the side that sits as flush as possible on the passenger side.

Kejtar said:

Yikes, I know you're saying that it's in line with door handles, but door handles will give sooner then the mount and you're likely to put in a dent in the body this way.

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I know what you are talking about….When I dent it I get to sharpen my body skills. I know that time will come. As a matter of fact both rockers have been dented already…As well as a mirror.

I put it on the driver’s side to help me keep an eye on it. I know that it is a risk. But if I keep the door handles then I hope to keep the CB mount…. It is a risk... besides.... Chicks dig body damage…..

cykaaro said:

Exactly what my concern is.......ripping off the tail light. That was why I was thinking about bolting a bracket to the side that sits as flush as possible on the passenger side.

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My understanding, and I am no expert, but have done some investigating on this, the best place is dead center of your roof. Give a good ground plane for the antenna, and you will get the best performance. As already stated, usually there is some compromising to be done. I am in and out of the garage, as well as parking structures etc. So if it was on my roof, it would have to be rediculously short, and likely not as effective as I'd like. So I compromised performance for convenience. I've got 2 antenna's "clipped" to my rear hatch, one on each side, with a mount very similar to this one hatch mount I tried to upload a pic of my set up to my web page, but it won't let me right now. If you want my pics I can email them to you, or post a link to them at a later stage. The other antenna is my dual band Amateur Radio antenna. This location is less than optimum for performance, but is well protected, and can be moved up or down the hatch if need be.
HTH

i had one mounted inside the rear bumper. i had the "L" bracket bolted inside the rear bumper and drilled a 3/4" hole in the top of the bumper for the whip to stich thru. i used a 100" whip that i secured to the roof rack at the tip. it was only a slight bit in the way of the hatch, i just bent it to the side out of the way to open/close it. i operate in som epretty heavily wooded trails so anything on the roof or the side of the body will only be broken and likely damage the body when it does.

here it is. no close-ups of the mount inside the bumper though.

here's a great spot:



it's pretty much exactly opposite the factory antenna. mounts easily just inside the top of the fender. i got a spring-mounted unit - this thing has seen a lot of abuse. no issues at all! reception is awesome.

well... not until some asshat decided to cut it off about 3" up... Rrrrrr!!!

http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=52566&highlight=CB+mount

HTH

Dookie said:

here's a great spot:

http://onclickpix.com/23955.jpg

it's pretty much exactly opposite the factory antenna. mounts easily just inside the top of the fender.

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X2 I used a home made bracket with an NMO mount Larsen 5/8 wave antenna. Works very nicely and is garage friendly. The Larsen is a base load antenna and has a wide bandwidth. The 20something" whip is very forgiving.

8' whip? You mean a 102" whip? Take it back and get something smaller. There is no advantage to using a full length 1/4 wave antenna off-road. Some clubs actually prohibit members from using a 102" whip on their Off-Road vehicle.

If you wish for the cb itself to have a long and happy life you need to get your SWR set properly no matter where you mount it. Personally I put a cigarette lighter plug on my power wire, and a smaller magnetically mounted antenna in the center of the roof. If I need to mount it somewhere else I have a ground plane kit I stick on it. I throw it in the heep when I hit the trail. throw it in the closet when I am done.

Though the stainless whip antenna is the most durable, it may not be the most practical for someone who traverses the woods where branches, can grab it from above, and trees can take it out on the side. Remember that the sheet metal you're attaching it to with a small stud is not invincible.

mounting an 8' whip on the hood is not exactly the best Idea, even if you can get the SWR correct.

Zuki-Ron said:

Some clubs actually prohibit members from using a 102" whip on their Off-Road vehicle.

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Our club does not allow them on the trail. They can be dangerous in close quarters.

Thanks for all the ideas.

Around here, quite a few have the same style of whip. Depending on the terrain, it can be left full up. or bent over and clipped to the roof so there's no issues with branches at all. Just depends where the trail is. I plan on putting a spring on it so it's a bit more forgiving. Rear bumper I know is the safest, but at the same time just to the side makes more sense. Do need to protect it somewhat if I do it that way, not that I'm running into things all the time, but do have to expect the unexpected.

I have some stainless steel brackets I was going to use on my leaf springs but never did, so I was thinking of possibly making a custom bracket with one of those , keeping it close to the body so it doesn't stick out very much. As for SWR, I asked about that, and the guy at the CB place said it's something I really needn't be overly concerned about with my application, but said I would need a proper length of cable to connect the CB and the antenna though. If I were wanting to test the SWR though, how would I go about doing that?

From the XJ's I've seen though seems the two places they always are attached though are the passenger quarter panel, or off of the bumper.

Check out the FAQ and Tech section at www.firestik.com....... They cover all the topics, location, best size, SWR, etc. Mine is in the center of the roof. Drop the overhead console or the dome light and you have direct access to the bottom of the roof.

Got a wee bit of time before work. Will go take a read.

Check out this site www.cbradioforum.com

Ill see if I can get some pics of my 102" setup tonight.

i put mine on the front right side of my bumper and it does fine. i like it because it gives me a good idea of how close i can get that side to objects without bumpin up against them