CB Radio & CB Antenna installation in my Jeep Gladiator

[WhatExit?]

I'll be in Death Valley shortly for a 3 day off roading and camping trip (what is now called "overlanding" ) with a great group of people who happen to still use CB radios to communicate. It works for communicating with all the Jeeps in the group so it's what I installed first.

To start with here's a list of items I used:

CB - Cobra 75 WX ST - had one before and it works well and thanks to its design the unit is very small so it's easy to hide and install...
https://www.northridge4x4.com/part/...distributing-cobra-75-wx-st-40-channel-remote

Firestik 4ft Firestik II FS Series Tunable Tip CB Antenna 900 Watts Red - Firestik FS-4RD
Available in different colors - I went with red - $22.99
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000SB6SDE/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Firestik SS-3H Heavy Duty Stainless Steel Antenna Spring
I've used this on my JKU Jeep and it works real well as a rigid antenna mount could help the antenna break when it hits a tree branch, etc.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00042LC9M/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

FireStik Antenna Company K8R9 9ft. W/pl259 & Firering Conn
I wanted to keep with the Firestik products and the 9' long cable was perfect for my installation as I'd rather not have 18' of cable which was the most common option. The cable terminations are attached and not small so it meant I'd either need to find a way to get the large CB end of the cable through the firewall or I'd need to cut and re-join the end to the cable. (I found an easy way through the firewall).
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000X39TFG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Firestik K4R HEAVY-DUTY STUD MOUNT with 1.25 in. BOLT
Keeping with the Firestik products, i went with their Stud Mount Bolt - it works with the CB antenna cable, the bracket and the Firestik spring
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00P9JEUFI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Topsy Products - JL Fender Mount CB Antenna Bracket
I found a great CB antenna bracket - really well made and it's Stainless Steel (I painted it anyway) and it's $19.99
https://topsyproducts.com/products/fender-mount-antenna-bracket

There are other options including this one but you can probably see why I like Topsy's best.

RoadPro RPSP-15 Universal CB Extension Speaker with Swivel Bracket, 2-3/4 x 4-1/2"
If there's any weakness with the Cobra CB it's the speaker that's in the handset/mic as it can be challenging to hear especially in a Jeep. So I chose this highly rated, small, external speaker. I haven't yet hooked it up so I can't comment on its quality but the reviews are good and the price is right I'll find a temporary place to put it as this isn't something I'll want in the Jeep full-time.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000ZIC18Q/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

So, that's the hardware now on to the installation...

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[WhatExit?]

Installation - Part 1

Where to put the base unit ("the little black (ok, silver) box")? Behind the glovebox is best as the cable for the mic connection can hang down just below the glovebox when the CB radio is needed - when it's not the mic cable connection can be tucked up out of the way.

So, step 1 is removing the glove box...
Open the glove box and look on the left hand side for the "arm" - lift up and then out on it and it will pop off. Take a look at the arm (flashlight will likely help a lot here and for sure the rest of the install) and you'll see the slot the glovebox tab is in so you can see how to lift up on the arm and pop it off the tab. You'll also need to depress the large plastic tab inside the glovebox at the top so the glovebox can fold all the way down. Once you've done that you can simply lift the glovebox out and set it aside.

Here's a screen capture from the video below showing the arm and the guy's finger on the glovebox tab.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/glove-box-removal.17549/

Now you can find a good spot to put the Cobra CB radio control box - I put it on the far left inside the glovebox opening.

 

[WhatExit?]

Step 2 - Power and Ground for the CB unit

Easy peasy - just used the auxiliary wire that's under the glovebox. I used the wire that is switched (on with the ignition). It wasn't entirely clear where the wire is as it's dark, a little tough to get in there and FCA uses a lot of this sticky black fabric tape/tube for bundling wires. I went online and found some Jeep owners (lot more info on this kind of stuff in the JL forums but not all of it is the same as most posts are for 2018 JLs, etc.) saying the wires are over to the right by the passenger kick panel. They're not.

The wires are underneath the glovebox near the footwell light. Look for a "loop" of bundle of fabric-covered wires - the wire bundle is looped back to itself. In this pic you can see the loop and the footwell light...

You can remove the tape by hand but it's not easy to unwrap it so you could carefully snip the tape using scissors or wire dykes.

In this pic you can clearly see the loop and the footwell light...

Loop pulled away...

Once you've unwrapped the end of the wire bundle wrap you'll see the ends of the wires themselves. You can strip away the black wire ends rather than snip them off completely (which some have done).

Here's what the manual provides...

And this is the Wire Color Chart from the Owners Manual with circuit number, fuse/amps, wire color and locations (under dash and under hood)...

For power I used the last item in the above list: Ignition so the CB radio's power is switched - on and off with the ignition.

I mentioned ground - some have gone to the passenger kick panel / side wall and grounded there. It's a good location but I used an easier one - with the glovebox removed you'll see some screws attached to a metal frame member. I loosened one of the screws and grounded the CB unit there. I'll try to take a pic today before I put the glovebox back in.

 

[WhatExit?]

Step 3 (doesn't need to be in this order)...

Getting through the firewall - how I ran the CB antenna cable through the firewall with the large cable end connector.

Since I'm installing the antenna on the driver's side, I wanted to run the cable through the firewall on that side of the Gladiator. Here's a view under the hood of the firewall to the right of the brake system...

In this similar pic to the above one, you can see the silver foil tape - the edge of it is reflecting light. Just below that is a large plastic, black, flat plug with two tabs on it - the tabs are at 3:00 and 9:00 as installed in the firewall...

Using pliers, I grabbed one of the tabs and pulled it and it popped right out - voilà! Plug out and it reveals a very nice, large hole through the firewall! Here's the plug...

I used a white coat hanger wire and pushed it into the hole...

I went around to the driver's side footwell and there it was - and look at the light shining through the firewall hole - this is perfect! The hole is large enough for the CB antenna cable end and anything else you might need to run through there...

Since I didn't want to (didn't need to) drill a large hole through the plug, I used wire dykes to snip a 'V' shaped slot in the plastic plug. It was perfect for the CB antenna cable and I snapped the plug back into place...

Running a CB antenna cable or any other wires through the Jeep Gladiator's firewall is pretty easy using this plug. Note that my Gladiator has an automatic transmission. This plug may be used on Gladiator's with manual transmission or it could be used for some other purpose on other Jeeps (YMMV).

View attachment 60146

Here's the Topsy bracket after I painted and added a piece of black rubber (with adhesive on it) between the bracket and the Jeep, and installed it on the driver's side...

 

[WhatExit?]

OK, some additional details and pics to wrap this CB radio and antenna installation up...

Once I had the CB antenna cable through the firewall I routed it above the pedals behind the dash. I tried fishing it behind the center radio/HVAC stack - I got a coathanger wire through there but couldn't get the CB radio connector through - it was just too large and I couldn't see back there to fish it through. Then it dawned on me that I could go around so i routed it around the base of the center stack tucking it behind the plastic panels - easy peasy and that was done - routed the cable to the glovebox area.

You can see where I routed the cable as the yellow arrows highlight the place where I tucked the cable..

Then all that was left was to put the CB radio control unit back behind the glovebox and zip tie it in place. You can see that in this pic and you can also see the screw I used to ground the CB radio. Couldn't have been any easier to do that. The red wire is the hot wire for the CB radio and it's tied to the Ignition wire part of the group of wires that Jeep provided with the Auxiliary switch package. The silver connector screws to the CB radio mic cable. When I'm not using the CB I can tuck that connector up behind the glovebox so it's a stealth install...

 

[WhatExit?]

I found a place for the external remote CB speaker. It fits great right in the recess in the top of the dash. I used 3M Command strips - they are white color, hook & loop stuff products for hanging pictures on the wall. I attached one to the back of the speaker and one to the back wall of the recess and viola! The speaker stays in place and it's easily removed after my off roading trips. I ran the wire along the base of the windshield and I popped the passenger side speaker cover up and ran the wire in/along there and then down along the door jamb. The wire is almost entirely hidden for a clean install that will take a couple minutes to remove until next trip...

 

[Archie Bunker]

I found a place for the external remote CB speaker. It fits great right in the recess in the top of the dash. I used 3M Command strips - their white color hook & loop stuff made for hanging pictures on the wall. I attached one to the back of the speaker and one to the back wall of the recess and viola! The speaker stays in place and it's easily removed after my off roading trips. I ran the wire along the base of the windshield and I popped the passenger side speaker cover up and ran the wire in/along there and then down along the door jamb. The wire is almost entirely hidden for a clean install that will take a couple minutes to remove until next trip...

How long od antennae wire did you use? any looping?

 

[WhatExit?]

How long od antennae wire did you use? any looping?

It's a 9' long antenna cable and it's just long enough to run it the way I did. There's a little extra at each end but no looping...

From the list above:
FireStik Antenna Company K8R9 9ft. W/pl259 & Firering Connector
I wanted to keep with the Firestik products and the 9' long cable was perfect for my installation as I'd rather not have 18' of cable which was the most common option. The cable terminations are attached and not small so it meant I'd either need to find a way to get the large CB end of the cable through the firewall or I'd need to cut and re-join the end to the cable. (I found an easy way through the firewall).
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000X39TFG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Jeepers!]

Great writeup, thanks!

 

[KennyKustom]

Did you test your SWR ? How is the ground, after painting the antenna mount?

 

[WhatExit?]

Did you test your SWR ? How is the ground, after painting the antenna mount?

I had it tuned. "Funny" thing - I didn't have the cap on the Firestik antenna and that turned out to be a problem as the Firestik is unique - it must have the cap on it. Once my CB pro realized that was the issue the SWR tested about 1.4.

I had asked him before I painted it and he said paint is OK but powder coat is not - if powder coated that would have to be scraped off in the area around the stud. But my rattle can spray was not an issue at all - completely sprayed/covered.

The Gladiator doesn't have a lot of steel on it. Between the roof and doors and hood there's not much else left to be steel but there is some - the bed sides and lower area up to about ½-way of the front doors are steel. More steel especially on the roof is better for CB radio performance/direction.

 

[sass JT]

The Gladiator doesn't have a lot of steel on it. Between the roof and doors and hood there's not much else left to be steel but there is some - the bed sides and lower area up to about ½-way of the front doors are steel. More steel especially on the roof is better for CB radio performance/direction.

Truth, that’s why I use a NGP antenna system... sure I get less range in theory but my signal is clean, clear and don’t have to worry about how much “metal plane” is on the vehicle.

 

[spazzyfry123]

I had it tuned. "Funny" thing - I didn't have the cap on the Firestik antenna and that turned out to be a problem as the Firestik is unique - it must have the cap on it. Once my CB pro realized that was the issue the SWR tested about 1.4.

I had asked him before I painted it and he said paint is OK but powder coat is not - if powder coated that would have to be scraped off in the area around the stud. But my rattle can spray was not an issue at all - completely sprayed/covered.

The Gladiator doesn't have a lot of steel on it. Between the roof and doors and hood there's not much else left to be steel but there is some - the bed sides and lower area up to about ½-way of the front doors are steel. More steel especially on the roof is better for CB radio performance/direction.

I just got back from trying to tune mine and got it to about 2.4 for both channel 1 and 40. I’m going to chase a new ground and may give yours a shot. I’m currently using one of the studs in the passenger kick panel, but I’m sharing it with the Rugged Ridge multiplexor (combines FM and CB to use one antenna - basically a splitter), so I think that may be part of my issue.

Must be missing it. Where are you mounting your mic?

 

[WhatExit?]

I just got back from trying to tune mine and got it to about 2.4 for both channel 1 and 40. I’m going to chase a new ground and may give yours a shot. I’m currently using one of the studs in the passenger kick panel, but I’m sharing it with the Rugged Ridge multiplexor (combines FM and CB to use one antenna - basically a splitter), so I think that may be part of my issue.

Must be missing it. Where are you mounting your mic?

Hi Tyler, I'm guessing your ground is OK as the radio is working. I'm no comms expert but I'll guess it's something else like your combined antenna solution. I'll guess that if you go with a separate antenna on a good bracket you won't have this issue.

As for mic mounting, my response probably won't be what you're looking for. I'm keeping my mic on my Ebrake handle (on top of a microfiber cloth) as I only have the CB handset connected and in the Jeep when I'm on a trip. I don't want the CB in the Jeep other times as I try to avoid clutter and the "cockpit" look

 

[spazzyfry123]

Hi Tyler, I'm guessing your ground is OK as the radio is working. I'm no comms expert but I'll guess it's something else like your combined antenna solution. I'll guess that if you go with a separate antenna on a good bracket you won't have this issue.

As for mic mounting, I my response won't be what you're looking for. I'm keeping my mic on my Ebrake handle (on top of a microfiber cloth) as I only have the CB handset connected and in the Jeep when I'm on a trip. I don't want the CB in the Jeep other times as I try to avoid clutter and the "cockpit" look

I am FAR from a comms expert and even further from an enthusiast. My focus was a hidden setup and I wanted a single antenna to keep it that much more minimal. I’ve seen many people use it without issue, but I also only have a 2’ FireStik and am concerned I should have gone for a 3’. Back to the drawing board! I’ve been referencing these guys for knowledge.

https://www.rightchannelradios.com/blogs/installation-guides/18330687-cb-antenna-tuning-instructions

Also, a pretty trick mount that looks clean is the CoolTechLLC if you change your mind. It’s what I put on mine and I routed the cabling by the dash/center console/ carpet area - similar to where you had your arrows. I’ll have to snap a pic at some point.

https://www.cooltechllc.com/2018-jeep-wrangler-jl/104-jl-mic-mount.html

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