Location of CB antenna: roof, behind cab driver side or behind cab passenger?

i recently purchased a cb setup with a 4 foot firestik firefly antenna, and im not sure where i should put it. what do you guys think? on the roof, behind the cab on the driver side, or behind the cab on the passenger side?

 

mines behind the drivers side behind the cab..

best reception will come from the roof, but best looks come from behind cab...

i have a 2ft firestick right now and plan on getting a 7 foot to screw in when I go offroading..

 

bed bar

 

I mounted mine on the front driver side fender. Between fender and hood. I did not want to mount it behind the cab because I plan on getting a camper shell later on and didn't feel like re-locating and re-routing it again.

 

I hate to break it to you, but a 4' firestik behind the cab on ANY side will not have a standing wave ratio below 4:1.

 

I never had a problem with mine.

 

wilson 1000 roof mount, deadly combo if matched with a cobra 29.

i can hear alot farther, and talk much farther too...

 

I have a cap/shell so mine is a cheap 18" cobra antenna mag mounted on the roof. It might not reach long distances but it's perfect for trail riding which is pretty much the only time I use mine. Occasionally I'll use it on the highway on trips for traffic updates from truckers.

 

^^^ what he said.

 

Relentless Antenna Mount. Beefy, Mounts to hood mounts.

Check out RelentlessTaco Vendor page.

 

I have a mag mount on the roof of my 2000 and a 6ft Firestik on the back of the bed on my 2010. Both work fine and SWR is near 1:1 on both. Frankly, my mag mount (Wilson Little Wil) seems to get better reception (less static too).

 

I think my setup is pretty good

 

The problem with the mag mount is it can scratch the top of your roof and if you only use the cb for off roading then a behind cab mount works fine.

 

My magnet has a rubber pad on the bottom to keep it from scratching...but who cares if the roof is scratched? You can't see the roof unless you climb up there anyways.

 

ill be using this for a lot of highway driving, too. i want to get a decent swr, but it doesnt have to be perfect. ive been leaning towards behind the cab for convenience in low clearance situations (lots of parking garages out here), but am still not sure.

 

not true i have a 3' mounted to the bed rail behind the drivers side cab with a quick disconnect and a spring and a nearly perfect SWR. 1.7:1 on channels 1 and 40 and 1:1 on channel 20

 

Maybe on a NGP- 3' is barely 30% above the cab of our trucks, quick disconnector or not.

 

Pics?

You guys have any more pics of your cb mount? Thanks.

 

Firestik instructions specifically request a 12" cab clearance for best standing wave ratio performance with 60% of the antenna above the top of the cab. If you measured less than a 4:1 on a Firestik less than 4' mounted directly behind the cab, your SWR meter needs to be replaced, because it's not functioning properly. I'm just going to stop there, because I've done countless experiments with several different antennas and three different SWR meters to substantiate this.

Also, here's a pic of my setup for the OP.

 

Roof mounting is hard to beat...plus it plays a nice gong-like tune for you on the trails.

I'm with Joben...roof mount a Wilson and be happy.