LyleJunior
Seaside, Oregon
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Joined: 07/11/2005
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I just put a 102" stainless whip with a heavy duty ball mount on the top (farthest foward) part of the right front fender. My swr runs 1.2 to 1.3. It is just under maximum legal height for the state of Oregon DMV regs. It gets out great and it doesn't matter if I have the TC, Canopy, or nothing at all on the Truck. I do scrape alot of trees though.
1993 Dodge W150, 1983 Grandby Four Wheel Camper
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BradW
Flat Rock, Alabama
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Joined: 10/29/2001
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Antenna location with no camper.
* This post was
edited 07/10/07 06:30am by BradW *
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Spott
SE Michigan
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Joined: 12/03/2003
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Brad, the two antennas on the camper are they "No ground plane" antennas or standard?
Me - Kim - Spot
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BradW
Flat Rock, Alabama
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spott wrote:Brad, the two antennas on the camper are they "No ground plane" antennas or standard?
Read the 2nd paragraph
Yes, they are standard antennas.
Brad
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Chief801
N.W. Washington
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Joined: 08/31/2002
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I would suggest permanently mounting a base fed antenna to the lip of the front fender. A good Wilson brand or one like it will do. You can buy a "L" bracket which will fit between the hood and fender to mount the antenna to. Adjust to the lowest SWR if you have the proper signal bridge equipment available. If not, try taking it to a two-way radio shop to have them do the adjustment. If you have a licensed ham radio operator friend or neighbor most of those guys have the equipment required. This set up will give you the signal that you need from your 5 wattt radio. If the antenna is mounted on the drivers side of the truck than you best transmitting signal will be from the right rear of the truck and camper. If on the passenger side then the signal would be reversed. A one to three or, a one to four SWR is NOT very good. The SWR (Standing Wave Ratio) should be no higher than a one to one or a one to a one point 5. CB radio signals are in the 27mhz range is very finicky about the SWR. You can have the best CB radio in the world, but without the antenna working properly you have junk for a signal. As far as using two antenna's? They need to be phased at least nine feet apart to work with any efficiently. Kind of hard to do with a pickup truck. Hope this helps.
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infamousterry2
Gulfport,MS
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Joined: 12/24/2004
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Hi Chief
Thanks for your input, about the dual ant., as I remember it , those dual ant. had to be 9' apart also to work best, thats the way you see them on the big rigs.
The link that Brad gave me also confirms that the best operating situation is a good ant. set up properly, more so than an expense radio.
1995 Ford 2wd PSD & 2004 Lance 915
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BradW
Flat Rock, Alabama
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Chief801 wrote: The SWR (Standing Wave Ratio) should be no higher than a one to one or a one to a one point 5. As far as using two antenna's? They need to be phased at least nine feet apart to work with any efficiently.
I don't agree with either of these statements.
Brad
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BradW
Flat Rock, Alabama
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infamousterry2 wrote: as I remember it , those dual ant. had to be 9' apart also to work best, thats the way you see them on the big rigs.
My understanding is the 108" of seperation is for the best directional properties. Basically, that directs more of the radiated signal out the front and back of your vehicle; which is good if you are driving on straight roads.
I don't have 2 antennas to be directional and at 2' appart, I doubt that they are very directional. I have 2 antennas because the aluminum skin of a TC makes for a very poor ground plane. With 2 antennas, they basically act as each others ground plane.
Brad
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JoeChiOhki
Sauvie Island, OR
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I have mine about a 1 1/2 away from the end of the hood near the bumper on the front, has a bracket that fastens to the body and fits between the hood and the fender. I was told that you should a minimum of 18' of cord with your antenna for proper SWR tuning, I get around 1.0 to 1.2 on my meter.
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Fish 'n ' Grits
Hollywood, SC , USA
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Joined: 01/22/2005
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Brad- Did you try your setup with one antenna before you went to the two?
Billy
Billy & Dale
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