Clean VHF/CB radio installs

Your SWR meter is screaming for help.

 

Where should the strap be?

I removed it and retested. The SWR meter is acting less dump but the SWR readong is maxed out. There is no ground at all without the strap.

 

Is the mount grounded? Only way to know for sure is to check for continuity with a meter. A quick and dirty way to check is to disconnect your ground from the radio, but not the positive lead. If the radio still comes on, you have ground at the mount. You can add that strap if you want, but it might be easier to just try to get metal to metal contact at the mount itself (ie, remove paint, etc.).

I've never used a "fire ring" antenna coax, but it looks like it's not grounded at the mount.

 

The mount is not grounded. I was trying to prevent rust by using the strap instead of grinding off power coating on the mount.

 

I see. Yeah, you can do that. I think you have the right idea. You just had the strap connected directly to the antenna.

 

I checked out the "fire ring" mount. Looks like you need to clear away a little paint from the bottom of the mount between it and the fire ring. Looks like that's how the coax braid grounds.

 

I tried this shortly ago (was trying not to do this), and removed the ground strap after you told me I was shorting it. Also went ahead and stripped some paint from the the mount meets the truck on both sides. I still don't think I am getting a ground. I am out of time for this right this moment, and I will have to come back to it. Appreciate your help, thank you.

 

I think one of the issues is that the "fire-ring" is really made for an un-painted mount. If you look at the top of the fire ring (the side with the raised, white plastic centering section) there is an exposed steel circular ring. That ring, I assume, is connected to the coax braid. You need that ring to make metal to metal contact with the bottom of the bracket. That should solve the grounding problem. It may or may not lower your SWR.

 

I wanted a no-drill solution for mounting antennas on the roof. I bought a couple of NMO mounts from Breedlove (who are just fantastic) and got a 73 thou sheet of aluminum plate from a metal shop. Two 3/4" holes later, et voila.

I ordered some studs that fit into the slots on the Prinsu crossbars, I hope they show up soon. I will mount the plate on the underside of the crossbars. I will be able to just unscrew the antennas and put caps on the NMOs, then I will have unrestricted use of the roof rack because the mounts will not project above the crossbars.

If there is any interest, I'm happy to make a dimensional drawing and post it.

I was initially going to mount my little tarheel ii screwdriver antenna up there but whereas I would be okay if the two whips shown got mangled, I would cry if I sheared off the very expensive tarheel in some parking garage, so I think I'll compromise on ground plane and just mount that one using a bed corner mount.

 

That ground wire is shorting your antenna directly to ground. That's why your SWR meter is pegging the needle. Keep doing that and you'll smoke the the RF out put transistor.

This diagram at the Firestick website shows the different type of stud mounts. The fire ring doesn't need a separate ground, but you will need to make sure that there is bare metal for it the ground ring to make contact with.

These instructions show how to install the fire ring mount. There is no ground wire installed.

 

Would the strap work if on the other side of the fire ring instead? On the raised shoulder side. Then it could act as the bare metal to metal connection needed.

Coupler
Lock washer
Washer
Plastic washer
Mount
Ground strap with hole enlarged to encompass raised plastic insulator and touch metal shoulder
Fire ring, plastic sticking up
Bolt

 

You are making the grounding strap a part of the antenna. You will need to tune the antenna to account for the longer ground element. It might work and it might not. Good luck.

 

Yes it would. That's a good idea.

 

Is that why they suggest using a coax ground for the mount?

 

I don't know the answer to that.

I would try using the fire ring as intended. Unless of course you want to play around with it. I can certainly understand where you are coming from if that's the case.

 

The antenna is designed not to need a ground strap. As foy1der says it might change the SWR of the antenna.

Do what you think best, but Firestick designed the antenna that way for a reason.

 

"Tune for maximum smoke." as a friend of mine who is a retired electronic engineer likes to say.

 

a lot of different units everyone's using. i've got an aftermarket stereo, which opens up a dash slot for something. been thinking about a uniden bearcat 980.

$146 Uniden BEARCAT 880 CB Radio with 40 Channels and Large Easy-to-Read 7-Color LCD Display with Backlighting, Backlit Control Knobs/Buttons, NOAA Weather Alert, PA/CB Switch, and Wireless Mic Compatible

https://smile.amazon.com/Uniden-Cha...keywords=uniden+bearcat&qid=1624231584&sr=8-4

is there something about those units that no one likes them? just curious before spending the money on something that doesn't work so great.

 

On a 3rd gen? Seriously - I looked to see if I could downgrade to a single din and get a radio in there, were you able to do that!? I'd love to! I'm about to buy one of these:

$119 President Electronics BILL CB Radio, 40 Channels AM, 12 Volts, USB 5V/2.1A, Up/Down Channel Selector, Volume Adjustment and ON/OFF, Manual Squelch and ASC, Multi-functions LCD Display, S-meter

https://smile.amazon.com/President-...keywords=small+CB+radio&qid=1624302798&sr=8-4

In the customer images there's actually one in the phone cubby of the tacoma. I don't use that for phones or really anything, so might as well put a radio there but, if you can get it in the dash with a single din that would be bitchin'. Then I can do a CB and GMRS

 

yeah, i've already got my pioneer head unit installed(my first rule of vehicle purchases is that i can install my own radio, wouldn't have a 3rd gen if i couldn't), and the sony above it is a placeholder for better things!

scosche makes a glossy kit(like installing a mirror in the dash, bleh), metra's kit was on indefinite backorder for 1-2 months, and this random Amazon kit matches the oem finish best

$29 Ai TOYK9714 2016 Toyota Tacoma Dash Mounting Kit

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B01M7UE2BQ?ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details



the main thing is that i wanted to make sure was that there wasn't some serious problem with those bearcats that all the experts knew about but weren't saying!