CB and GMRS Install

[India-ThreeZeroThree]

It's a great location, and out of field of vision.

That’s the worst location and antenna for off road use as they are meant to be mounted in a high spot and middle of the roof. Meant for flightl line and mining vehicles. Transmit antennas should be mounted in a clear area. Not tucked and right next to metal, or your head. Performance over appearance

If you really need that antenna out of your view contact Sri-co. They make covert antennas that replace yourFM radio antenna. Just don’t get a stubby. You can probably ask them to get a tuned stubby. If you do use a stubby no point of having a mobile radio and just use a hand held radio. I want my radio capable yo to hit a repeater 50 miles away . Or more

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[kb5zcr]

Quick update... I have been using this setup since March. Not an issue at all. I quess the only thing would be that I have to physically turn the radio off when I exit the truck. Other than that, no interference, transmit and receive (in the mountains) has been upto 16 miles. Works flawlessly.

My ham 2m/440 radio has a menu setting "APO" that stands for "Auto Power Off", it will turn off the radio after 60 min (or and other amount you set) of not touching the controls.
Ide be suprised if newer GMRS radios dont have the same. Check your menu options.

 

[Artsifrtsi]

I'm running a KT-7900D antenna, similar to below. It does clear the top of the windsheild by about 8 inches.

 

[sharpsicle]

That’s the worst location and antenna for off road use as they are meant to be mounted in a high spot and middle of the roof. Meant for flightl line and mining vehicles. Transmit antennas should be mounted in a clear area. Not tucked and right next to metal, or your head. Performance over appearance

If you really need that antenna out of your view contact Sri-co. They make covert antennas that replace yourFM radio antenna. Just don’t get a stubby. You can probably ask them to get a tuned stubby. If you do use a stubby no point of having a mobile radio and just use a hand held radio. I want my radio capable yo to hit a repeater 50 miles away . Or more

You do you. I think it's a perfectly fine location for my uses, and I have proven that it is with the many many times I've used it. It works great where it is! I'm not trying to talk to the ISS with my rig, just to my trail buddy. And I also use my FM radio, so why get rid of that antenna?

 

[Radio Guy]

You do you. I think it's a perfectly fine location for my uses, and I have proven that it is with the many many times I've used it. It works great where it is! I'm not trying to talk to the ISS with my rig, just to my trail buddy. And I also use my FM radio, so why get rid of that antenna?

I've tested nearly every type of commercial and amateur antenna made and every mounting location possible over the last 50 years. I agree your mounting location and antenna type is a serious compromise but that's ok. You can do whatever you want. But I also think its a disservice to this forum to recommend or call something great that will actually give low performance.

Another problem for those using the very short, fat "pud" antennas in a location sticking out the side of an off-road vehicle is, if something snags the antenna or mount it can break the antenna off since its not flexible like a whip. Squeeze through some heavy brush and get a thick branch between the pud antenna and body you can say good by to your comms for that trip.

 

[sharpsicle]

I've tested nearly every type of commercial and amateur antenna made and every mounting location possible over the last 50 years. I agree your mounting location and antenna type is a serious compromise but that's ok. You can do whatever you want. But I also think its a disservice to this forum to recommend or call something great that will actually give low performance.

Another problem for those using the very short, fat "pud" antennas in a location sticking out the side of an off-road vehicle is, if something snags the antenna or mount it can break the antenna off since its not flexible like a whip. Squeeze through some heavy brush and get a thick branch between the pud antenna and body you can say good by to your comms for that trip.

I'm not saying I wouldn't need to change it up if I wanted to increase performance, but let's also be realistic with what 90% of the users on this forum will be using their radios for and recognize that they can get decent performance from other locations. It's also a disservice not to admit that they can use these options and get decent results for their applications. There will always be better, but that doesn't mean sub-optimal won't work just fine for their use cases. For average trail use, this mounting location will work just fine.

 

[Artsifrtsi]

I'm not saying I wouldn't need to change it up if I wanted to increase performance, but let's also be realistic with what 90% of the users on this forum will be using their radios for and recognize that they can get decent performance from other locations. It's also a disservice not to admit that they can use these options and get decent results for their applications. There will always be better, but that doesn't mean sub-optimal won't work just fine for their use cases. For average trail use, this mounting location will work just fine.

Really, for most Jeepers a handheld Baofeng UV-5R with a long range antenna and an external mic would be adequate. I wanted more of a base station in the truck to have comms with spotter and other vehicles with me.

 

[sharpsicle]

Really, for most Jeepers a handheld Baofeng UV-5R with a long range antenna and an external mic would be adequate. I wanted more of a base station in the truck to have comms with spotter and other vehicles with me.

Funny you mention that. I have a Midland installed in the Jeep, but I also take two UV-5Rs just in case we need to share comms with someone else who has none, or for use by a spotter. They do perform quite well for little handhelds.

 

[Artsifrtsi]

Yes they do! I have a Radioddity DB-25 pro mounted in the truck, and 2 UV-5Rs for spares

 

[India-ThreeZeroThree]

You do you. I think it's a perfectly fine location for my uses, and I have proven that it is with the many many times I've used it. It works great where it is! I'm not trying to talk to the ISS with my rig, just to my trail buddy. And I also use my FM radio, so why get rid of that antenna?

Sti-co antenna doesn’t render your FM inop. FM still works.

 

[SargeDiesel]

You do you. I think it's a perfectly fine location for my uses, and I have proven that it is with the many many times I've used it. It works great where it is! I'm not trying to talk to the ISS with my rig, just to my trail buddy. And I also use my FM radio, so why get rid of that antenna?

How far can you reach with it ? I mounted on the passenger side. I have the MXTA26 mounted for everday and I keep the ghost antenna in the cab for offroad ... I haven't had a chance to test them out yet.... so I'm not sure about the reception performance. Thanks

 

[SargeDiesel]

I've tested nearly every type of commercial and amateur antenna made and every mounting location possible over the last 50 years. I agree your mounting location and antenna type is a serious compromise but that's ok. You can do whatever you want. But I also think its a disservice to this forum to recommend or call something great that will actually give low performance.

Another problem for those using the very short, fat "pud" antennas in a location sticking out the side of an off-road vehicle is, if something snags the antenna or mount it can break the antenna off since its not flexible like a whip. Squeeze through some heavy brush and get a thick branch between the pud antenna and body you can say good by to your comms for that trip.

I took it as it works "great" for him.... I didn't take it as a disservice. I guess if a branch is going to take out the antenna, its probably going after the mirror too.... From what I've seen, that placement seems to be a very popular...

In your experience, what would you think the range of these ghost "pud" antennas achieve in a moderately wooded area ? Do you think they would suffice in a trail convoy or an open road trip.

I have the MXTA26 whip, but its mounted like @sharpsicle , but on the passenger side. I do not really have a good way to test real world performance and would rather not be testing and be "in the need" at the same time. Any suggestions on testing ?

 

[sharpsicle]

How far can you reach with it ? I mounted on the passenger side. I have the MXTA26 mounted for everday and I keep the ghost antenna in the cab for offroad ... I haven't had a chance to test them out yet.... so I'm not sure about the reception performance. Thanks

I haven't done any empirical testing, but mobile-to-mobile I can confirm I've reached 3-4 miles at times when wheeling. It may go further, but as I said I haven't done any specific range testing to see how close to theoretical max I can get. These are just observations as I go. I'm confident that I could reach further if I went out with the express purpose of finding out my max range. Just haven't had a need to do that yet.

 

[SargeDiesel]

I haven't done any empirical testing, but mobile-to-mobile I can confirm I've reached 3-4 miles at times when wheeling. It may go further, but as I said I haven't done any specific range testing to see how close to theoretical max I can get. These are just observations as I go. I'm confident that I could reach further if I went out with the express purpose of finding out my max range. Just haven't had a need to do that yet.

I will most likely be using the radio in the same manner as you. I like the side cowl location. It has some disadvantages, but imo, every location has drawbacks of some type. I didn't want anything sitting on top of my hood. I initially bought the lip mount, but decided against it. It wouldn't be too bad with the ghost antenna, but if using a whip, it would drive me crazy..... same reason nearly 95% of JT owners get a shorter am/fm antenna as one of their first mods.

 

[sharpsicle]

I will most likely be using the radio in the same manner as you. I like the side cowl location. It has some disadvantages, but imo, every location has drawbacks of some type. I didn't want anything sitting on top of my hood. I initially bought the lip mount, but decided against it. It wouldn't be too bad with the ghost antenna, but if using a whip, it would drive me crazy..... same reason nearly 95% of JT owners get a shorter am/fm antenna as one of their first mods.

I will admit that the antenna type is the first thing I'd replace if I needed more range. The location isn't the biggest inhibitor to my range, it's the type of antenna I'm using. It's hard to find better spots for mounting on a Gladiator than the side or lip mounts, especially if you want to keep the roof removable or run a soft top of any kind. If you go away from these side-mount or lip-mount solutions, you start to get into the area of making concessions to the truck's versatility for the sake of antenna location. But you can get decent results with the right antenna on this mount. It's definitely a balance.

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