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Using an antenna mount as shown between the hood and engine compartment is nearly 6" below hood level and will affect the antenna pattern on a UHF antenna. CB would would not be a concern due to the much lower frequency but for UHF the antenna will have a nearly 1/4 wavelength of blockage over...

In other threads it mentions the air bags squeeze between the spring coils and limit their compression, that's apparently how they're intended to function. If you go too long on the bag and really work the suspension I suspect you can squish a fully inflated bag lengthwise and possibly rupture...

What is the diameter of your VHF antenna? A Firestick is about a half inch diameter and that is about what the ID of that cap should be. I can't say I've ever seen a VHF whip that thick. If your using a simple 1/4 wave VHF whip about 16" tall or a gain type that is longer, they bend easy and...

I finally went camping with my kayaks and figured out the best way to carry them on a KB Voooo Max Modular bed rack. I have the 22" high model which is about flush with the roof and I put black painted carpeted 2X4s at the front and rear to raise the kayaks safely above the roof. I remember...

And you wondered why you've been followed by black helicopters.

Absolutely true! But when you shorten it by winding wire into a coil around a fiberglass rod the efficiency and performance goes down. Go from a 31 inch long solid 1/4 wave whip for FM broadcast to half length or about 15 1/2" you loose at least 50% of the performance or more than 3dB. Go to...

At one time I ran several mountaintop GMRS repeaters in So Cal. We had occasional freeloaders that didn't think they needed a license or my permission to use my repeaters. One guy was really special and claimed since the signals from my repeaters crossed over his property line he had full rights...

I tightened my steering box and out of all the other things I tried its the only one that made a big difference. To get by the Loctite I used a propane torch set for a tiny little flame and carefully pointed it at the top nut and set screw only, avoiding heating the housing. After the adjustment...

I'm not an expert in washing engine compartments but can recommend a few things from experience. Never wash a hot engine! I did this once to an IROC Z28 and it cracked the aluminum intake manifold. I actually heard it crack. Avoid high pressure spray where it might force water where it doesn't...

I have lots of other posts in ham radio threads here about antennas. The best performing and probably the easiest place I've found for VHF/UHF and CB antennas is an NMO trunk lip mount on the hood near the hood hinges. If you use the drivers side the cable drops down to an existing grommet that...

I have two amateur radios under the rear seats, not mounted and just sitting in there. One is a Yaesu FTM400DR and the other is an Icom 706MKIIG. The control heads are on a RAM swivel mount sticking out the front of the center console. I ran 4ga wire from the battery down into the frame then out...

I've had one of these for many years and it folds up real small to save space. I've purchased a lot of the "WAG bags" cheap surplus which makes me think some military organizations must use these. https://www.cabelas.com/shop/en/the-pett-portable-environmental-toilet

I guess its ok not to get an off road wilderness permit where required. Why do I even need a drivers license? Ok, I'm never going to pay registration on my JT ever again. Keeping this more on track, so a dozen or more offroaders are all using GMRS and they all have a valid GMRS license but you...

Most CB antennas are a little long out of the box to accommodate different installs. If you monitor ch1 and ch40 SWR while trimming off 1/2" at a time you can usually tell if its going to continue to get better and its possible it needs to be shorter. Its when ch1 dips to the lowest SWR then...

In both sets of pics it shows a better match on channel 1 than 40 which would indicate the antenna is too long. It looks like the match might be very slightly better without the long strap and if the antenna is actually too long adding the strap would make it worse. Are there any set screws...

The grounding at your current antenna mount should be sufficient in that its making contact with the sheet metal right at the mount, which is all you can hope for. If that checks ok with an ohmmeter to another known good ground point then any additional grounding at the mount should do...

If you can get to the speaker to disconnect it I would at least put a resistor across the wires so the amp has a proper load. You could use anything from a 4 to 10 ohm resistor and with a 10 ohm you could probably get by with a cheap 10w version.

Antenna grounds and DC/power grounds are two different things. The antenna needs a lot of sheet metal under it as a "ground plane" for it to tune and work properly like the center of a large flat roof. Deny the antenna a ground plane and it will complain by giving you a bad match or VSWR. I...

No matter which direction the ESS testing goes there will be an easy way to overcome a dead AUX battery. I suspect it will be what's already out there, a simple jumper across N1 and N2 in the fuse box. I might even consider a lockable high current switch like this across N1 and N2. Mount it so...

I found a 2020-2022 JT fuse box legend that says this: F42 – 10 Amp Red Power Control Relay Control Feed (Electric Stop/Start) I'll measure that fuse before and during cranking to see if its a constant voltage, meaning the fuse is before the ESS system or if its between the ESS smarts and the...