HAM / GMRS Radio and antenna setup of a 22' JT

[MiamiTJ]

I spent a lot of time looking through this forum and others for how to best set up my Mobile station on the Gladiator and figured I would make a post with my setup as I haven't seen anything similar elsewhere. One of my biggest issues is that I wanted a nice long good antenna that extended above my cab quite a bit, but yet my Jeep doesn't fit in most parking lots as it is, so I really wanted something that would fold down.

What was bought:

First up was the antenna mount. I bought the "ANTENNA / LIGHT MOUNT JT" from [Banned Site]. It uses existing holes, is stainless steel, and is rock solid. I wish there was a way to stabilize it a little more but it's not bad at all. $63 shipped.

Second is the antenna fold down. I got the "Stainless Steel Folding Antenna Mount Bracket LED Fog Light Mount" from Amazon. $94 shipped

Third I bought a "Comet CA-2X4SRNMO" antenna from Amazon. SMR will be updated tomorrow when the adapter comes in to test. $90 shipped

The cables were the "Anina 3/4 Inch Hole Mount NMO L Bracket, 16ft RG58 Pure Copper NMO to PL259 Coax Cable" from Amazon. $29 shipped

Last was the radio. It is a Radioddity db50. I also bought the DB50K Front Panel Mounting Kit. $260 shipped.

The install:

The antenna and mounting brackets was easy. All the needed hardware was included with the mount. I ran the cable through the vent in the back of the cab. Pulling the panel off was not hard with the proper tool to remove it without breaking the clips. All you need is a clip pry bar. The whole thing took me maybe 15 minutes.

I mounted the radio under the passenger seat, ran the antenna cable and power there. I ran the remote cable up to my dash and use the mount mentioned above. I did 3D print (PRUSAMENT PC BLEND) a block so that the mount would fit into the space on the top dash. I used velcro so I can put it in place but easily remove if needed.

The only thing I don't like about the install is that the speaker is under the passenger seat as it's part of the main radio body. I'm looking for a small speaker that I can put somewhere else and resolve that issue.

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[Bandit’s Lair]

That’s a pretty cool mount! Haven’t seen that one before. The small Midland speaker is pretty reliable. I don’t really see the need for the big cool powered one that’s about 3x the price but it’s there if you need the volume. I like my speaker right over my left shoulder pointed at windshield in the center of the drivers visor. Sound bounces off the glass well and it doesn’t mix in with the radio tunes if I decide to have them on while on trail.

 

[k4yq-FL]

Nice setup! That looks clean and well thought out.



With the antenna location you’re using, you might consider running a half-wave or no-ground-plane style antenna. They tend to perform more consistently in that type of mounting position and usually give you a more predictable SWR without needing a lot of adjustment.



Overall though, solid install — always good to see another JT set up for trail comms

 

[Radio Guy]

You'll probably find the VSWR is high because the base of the antenna needs to be sitting on an adequate amount of ground plane to both give a low VSWR and also radiate and perform. Raising the antenna above a ground plane more than a fraction of an inch will cause all sorts of problems and this is why you will not see any raised mounts made by any major antenna mfr because they don't want any problems or returns. The companies who make the high mounts have no clue how antennas work and they just sell hardware. There are some specific antennas made for no ground plane use that can work on that mount but a Comet 2X4SR is not one of them.

I have four antenna mounts on my Gladiator, two on the hood hear each hinge, one on the top bed rail behind the rear window and another for CB/HF on the inside bed wall just behind the driver rear wheel. My hood mounts work perfect with anything like CB, 2m/440 amateur, GMRS, etc, as the entire hood is the ground plane. The roughly 2in X 6ft top rail behind the rear window works ok for UHF/GMRS but VHF antennas have a higher VSWR (including my Comet 2X4SR) and CB will not match up at all. And that's with the NMO mount right at the top bed rail. Raise the antenna above that and it just doesn't tune up.

 

[MiamiTJ]

You'll probably find the VSWR is high because the base of the antenna needs to be sitting on an adequate amount of ground plane to both give a low VSWR and also radiate and perform. Raising the antenna above a ground plane more than a fraction of an inch will cause all sorts of problems and this is why you will not see any raised mounts made by any major antenna mfr because they don't want any problems or returns. The companies who make the high mounts have no clue how antennas work and they just sell hardware. There are some specific antennas made for no ground plane use that can work on that mount but a Comet 2X4SR is not one of them.

I have four antenna mounts on my Gladiator, two on the hood hear each hinge, one on the top bed rail behind the rear window and another for CB/HF on the inside bed wall just behind the driver rear wheel. My hood mounts work perfect with anything like CB, 2m/440 amateur, GMRS, etc, as the entire hood is the ground plane. The roughly 2in X 6ft top rail behind the rear window works ok for UHF/GMRS but VHF antennas have a higher VSWR (including my Comet 2X4SR) and CB will not match up at all. And that's with the NMO mount right at the top bed rail. Raise the antenna above that and it just doesn't tune up.

My SWR is 1.07 for GMRS and 1.2 for 70. Didn't check 2m as I don't use it

 

[Radio Guy]

My SWR is 1.07 for GMRS and 1.2 for 70. Didn't check 2m as I don't use it

But you didn't compare the difference in signal quality mounted on a ground plane vs high above it. You will notice that.

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