CB specifics

wish i had know about this before the 3rd gen Tacoma left my shop! @TorconTRD

 

Me too! The elusive 3rd gen. CB antenna mount

 

On my second gen, I tucked it under the cap and ran it back. They can probably do something similar on a 3rd gen.

 

Ah now i see it hiding in there!

 

Probably would've helped to circle it I've also read of members notching the top of the tail light and running it through there, if that makes sense.

 

I am very interested in the cb mount that you have in the cup holders. Can you provide more information and or pictures of this. Is this a no drill installation? Very impressive!! Thank you!!

 

Not mine, but judging by the looks of it, he just took two metal bars, bent them, mount them to the CB, and it just hangs in the cup holder.

 

I thought the same, but had to ask. Wonder how secure and stable it is attached like this. Especially off road.

 

I bet if you paired that with some Velcro on the back itd be plenty stable!

 

I'm interested for a 3rd gen bracket. group buy?

 

Put it on the hood, thats how u get good SWR.

 

Unfortunately i do not have a 3rd gen in the shop right now to design a bracket on. I do know of a local guy that would let me use his truck. Its just a matter of scheduling though. Or i sometimes work with the local toyota dealer to fit parts also. I will keep this thread updated.

My first rendition of the 2nd gen bracket i made laslt night didnt work out like i wanted it to. I will have to bring the truck in again to try a different method.

 

So I checked my SWR today. On channel 1 I can get it down to 1.3 but at the same length my channel 40 would only go down to about 2.8. I tried a few different lengths and then stopped there. Is that ok? is it more important that they be low or that they be close to each other?

 

You want your SWR to be lower than 2 for safe operation. I'm sure WileEcoyote will chime in, but I think if your SWR is that much higher on channel 40, it means your antenna is too long. Also for tuning, you want to be out in the middle of no where with no buildings or anything near you if possible, and have all windows up, doors closed, etc for optimal tuning.

 

Also, make sure you grind off the powder coat around where the bolts go in, and also inside where the stud for the antenna goes. That made a huge difference in mine.

 

Just as long as your SWR is below a "3" then you are "ooooookay" sorta, meaning that it is getting pretty high up there and your radio/antenna efficiency is not doing as good as it should be. Above a 3 and I would NOT recommend TX'ing for very long, IF at all. A rule of thumb that, as far as I know, everyone follows. So, 2.8 is not bad, but also, not where you would really want it to be.
You want, as much as possible, your SWR readings to be "close" across ALL channels. Hence, taking readings from CH1 and CH40 and adjusting accordingly. The video that I posted is a VERY GOOD video!!! The posted video is on page 9 post #180 of this thread just in case you need/missed it and/or use it for reference!

Yes, that is correct about the length. I don't live near the "sticks" so I had to use a shopping mall parking lot near an area that I know does NOT get all that much used as far as people parking there, so I had a fairly wide open area as much as I was able to achieve for my antenna tuning. Plus, there were hardly any overhead power lines to really speak of, so, I liked that as well. My goal, trying to get away, as much as possible, out of ANY obstructions and/or possible interferences when tuning.
Also, yes, it's a PITA, but you want to be inside your vehicle with windows up, doors closed, nobody standing nearby, etc etc etc when tuning.
Finally, regarding the weather cap on the tip of the antenna, I never tried it yet, but lightly coating the inside of the rubber cap with dielectric grease might help when removing/installing the rubber cap as it can be a MAJOR PITA to remove later on. To the point of where I had to rip apart the rubber cap on one of my older antenna(s) that I still use and have. Anyways, I HIGHLY doubt that the dielectric grease will interfere, if at all, your SWR readings? If it does, most likely very little to be of any concern when tuning/setting your antenna.

Mine never had any powder coating? Ever?! I will keep this in mind just in case I ever come up against something to what you experienced???!!! That is interesting? Thanks for the tip/hint!!!

btw, I'm glad I can be of assistance to alot of you guys/gals out there. I'm happy that I'm able to help as much as possible!!!

Happy Wheel'n people

 

Knew you'd chime in! Thanks for all the help in this thread. On some of the mounts that these fabrication companies create, they ship them out powdercoated instead of bare steel so you don't have to paint them or anything. Judging by what I could see of OPs mount, it looked like it fit the bill. If not, I guess I'm just helping future readers of the thread!

 

LOL!!!

Yeah, powder coating doesn't help with the ground plane very much!!! That is something that needs to be kept in mind as well. I used stranded wire for my grounding wire, but have YET to have any issues. My typical SWR readings (i.e. with my 4ft Francis) hover right around 1.5-1.7 so I am pretty content with that. It COULD be better, but NOT BAD either. Currently, I'm running a 2ft whip because of the damn car port and I was getting very irritated having to remove my 4ft Francis. I admit, I don't have quick disconnect, but the point being is just even removing the damn thing was the whole point. I would sometimes ALLLLLLLMOST forget that the antenna is there and "check ceiling height", LOL!!! So, I just bought, installed, and tuned (as much as possible) a 2ft Firestik. My SWR on that, on just about ALL channels, is right around 2.8!!! NOT very good, but I expected it because MOST of the antenna is "below" cab height so the SWR is only going to get sooooo good due to "structure" interference. You can see it in the pic.



So @johntoyota make sure to connect a ground plane strap and/or even stranded wire (worked just fine for me... about 14awg is what I believe I used) to your antenna mount. Use a star washer so that you get REALLY nice contact as well. I would use a star washer on BOTH sides of the grounding bolt!!! You can clearly see it in the pic with the blue crimp connector next to the antenna lug/bolt assembly. It routes down and to the trucks chassis. I hear that you want to keep it as short as possible, but again, I'm getting pretty good results so I just kept it that way!!! I also used a nylock nut so that to insure that the grounding bolt doesn't possibly jar loose?! I don't know, just my 2cents on how I did my setup.



btw, I don't THINK I stated it, but I was able to clearly communicate with a friend of mine and we estimated that we were about approx 6mi driving AWAY from one another before finally losing contact with each other. It was, most definitely, non-line-of-sight and on the freeway. That was with my, at the time, 4ft Firestik on my truck and he had a 3ft magmount on his car. So, NOT too bad. If he had a 4ft, possibly a bit better range? All I know is what we were able to observer/accomplish. Also, about 3wks ago, I was driving on the freeway listening to CH19 (i.e. truckers channel) and a trucker was wanting a radio check because there was NO radio traffic for the longest time, LOL!!! By asking for his location relative to mine, we were approx 2-3mi apart from one another and that was TX/RX'ing with my current 2ft Firestik that you see in the picture!!! Anyways, I gave him his radio check, we chatted for a bit and had a little bit of a laugh, and then went our separate ways!

 

Mine was powder coated and I did grinding off where it needs the hood bracket but only as well as I could with a file. Remember I had to leave my garage at home when I moved..... I have not checked the continuity between the antenna and bracket yet. I just got anxious.
Also,I was in a Target parking lot when I did it. Not the best spot but I'll try it again when I get out further later on. I just couldn't wait anymore and drove over there to try it.

 

TRUST, LOL, I know the feeling of "anxious", ROFL!!! I'm right there with ya!!! Regarding the parking lot, as much as possible, try to park in a location that is fairly empty... I believe you want to be at least 30ft from "structures" (i.e. structures meaning just about anything that would be near the antenna). You'll get there eventually. It sounds as if it is going in the right direction and that is ALREADY a SUPER PLUS as I'm pretty sure, most people would agree!!! Very glad for you to be able to accomplish what you have been wanting to do.

Happy Wheel'n to you