Author Topic: "CB installed" a novel by FiENDy (Read 4123 times)

FiEND · « **on:** April 06, 2006, 06:47:24 PM »

2 weeks after i ordered it, guy emails me that he forgot he sold it and relisted it, but remembered and sent it out that day. a week later i got it finally. nice and tiny and seems to work well.

so borrowed a SWR meter from neighbor and everything is great. 1.3 at ch1, 1.2 or less from 20 - 40.

see my dad was a bigtime cb'er and growing up i talked skip all the time, talked to Alaska, Australia once etc.

so im out driving last night, i have some noise issues to track down but i wanted to see how my reception was.

low and behold KD Lang truckin mama comes on swearing up a storm, she made my nards curdle. then guys telling her to stfu and go back to the kitchen and other guys defending her saying crap like they are jealous cause she drives better than them...

kinda put a tear in my eye, remembering the days sitting with my long dead pappy while he shot skip and blowing smoke rings at his face till he got PO'd.

FiENDy QRT and QSX.

Robb · « **Reply #1 on:** April 06, 2006, 09:22:49 PM »

CQ, CQ, CQDX.

That's a big Roger-4 to the good ol' days.

Sounds like your dad ran one heck of a boot.

This one here, the 1-8-0, we're 8 & 10. catch you on the flip-flop.

m0th · « **Reply #2 on:** April 06, 2006, 10:49:37 PM »

I tried your idea FiEND. But my fabbing skillz suck, so it ended up looking like a bent joist hanger that cost $3.50 from Home Depot. :lol:

So I've scrapped that idea and I've ordered a few bits like a fold-over bracket, spring, etc and a short flexi antenna. The idea is to mount it on the roof rack, ground it inside the side rail and run the cable down the weather-stripping into the driver's side. I'll be able to fold it down flat into the rack when not in use to let me fit into the garage.

FiEND · « **Reply #3 on:** April 07, 2006, 02:25:18 AM »

yea my dad was big into the radio, back in the days when people sent out post cards he had shoe boxes full. he was and electronics genuis - people used to send him their CB's from all over north america for some fine tuning etc.

@ m0th

hrm that sucks, but i like the fold-over rack mount as well, just read the pin and antenna can fall out but im sure you read that too.

i'm getting some good range so far with mine, and i triple checked, i have the 3 foot wilson not the 4 foot. this is good cause it's "only" a foot too tall for my garage door but since it bends nicely no problem, just a lot of noise and banging.

my neighbour has a 7 foot i'll prob get off him for other purposes since its tied to one of his trees (dunno why heh). think he uses it to scare away pesty birds.

i am gonna take pictures of the final install soon, just finished it tonight. mount is standing up to the garage door punishment so happy there.

i'm getting hella noise though from the antenna when the jeep is running. not running its better than i expected. tried connecting the wilson ground wire and that helped a bit but put my SWR up to 3 on all channels so i snipped that wire off, back down to 1.3 #1 -> 1.1 #40

im gonna do more tests tomorrow with grounding the antenna mount and see if thats what i will need.

also i have read and heard that items like quick disconnects and fold-overs will loosen over time with repeated use so the connection wont be as good. i will check my SWR every few months and you might want to as well

m0th · « **Reply #4 on:** April 10, 2006, 07:37:18 PM »

Quote from: "FiEND"

just read the pin and antenna can fall out but im sure you read that too.

Looks like they changed the design as there's no way that pin is coming out but the problem is the new design won't work with my plans. Basically I wanted to put the fold-over on the mount, and then the spring and antenna on that. Unfortunately, with the spring on you can't pull the fold-over up to release it as the spring blocks the sliding part. I guess I could put the spring under the fold, but it'd stick up too high. I'll probably just attach and remove the whole thing as I need it.

TJ54 · « **Reply #5 on:** April 10, 2006, 08:24:35 PM »

m0th, I am not sure what kind of antenna you have, but could you just get a L-Bracket and mount on the front fender ?

I work out in foothills industrial, and live in Cochrane if you are any where near those places give me a shout and I can help you sort it out. Or you could go see Dean at the road king truck stop, he can help you out as well. Mention the jeep club and he will give you a small discount.

If it comes to the worst, I have a magnetic CB antenna you could borrow for the upcoming run.

Ian

m0th · « **Reply #6 on:** April 10, 2006, 10:21:43 PM »

Thanks Ian,

I'm all set for the run - worst case I could probably use the old set up I have (which I got from Dean). I used to have a 4' Firestik between the spare and the tailgate, but with the bigger spare the antenna is pushed up against it and it's a PITA to get in and out on the quick release. I'm just looking for a real clean install without drilling anywhere it shows. I thought about the fender/hood option but I like to be able to disconnect the antenna and have no one even think there's a CB inside to grab. Paranoid maybe, but I guess that's what growing up in London does to you.

I'm going to give it a go with the stuff I got for the rack (2' Wilson) minus the folding bracket for now. If I find I'm using it more often, I'll revisit it.

FiEND · « **Reply #7 on:** April 11, 2006, 12:19:39 AM »

hrm yer wilson isnt a flex? if yer running it on top, don't know why you would need a spring hehe unless you plan on rolling down a hill.

you coming to the CJA meeting on the 15th? if so i'll see ya there and i can see what yer machine is all about and antenna and stuffs.

m0th · « **Reply #8 on:** April 11, 2006, 12:32:07 AM »

Nope. I thought it was, turned out it's not flexi at all. Just as well I had ordered the spring.

Can't make the 15th. I want to get to one of the meetings soon though.

01sahara · « **Reply #9 on:** April 11, 2006, 06:51:57 AM »

Quote from: "m0th"

Can't make the 15th. I want to get to one of the meetings soon though.

The April CJA meting is on Wednesday the 19th. Sorry to interrupt the thread.

FiEND · « **Reply #10 on:** April 11, 2006, 08:23:25 AM »

my bad, 19th it is. good thing someone pays attention, woulda been kinda lonely waiting in the parking lot.

m0th · « **Reply #11 on:** April 15, 2006, 06:34:36 PM »

OK, I took the Dremel to the fold-over and removed the top half of the sliding portion. Now it works. :twisted: Dunno how it'll stand up to highway speeds like that, but it'll work for next weekend.

All installed, a quick SWR check in the garage shows it looks OK. I'll take it out tomorrow to do a proper tuning. All I need to do now is fab up some kind of retaining clip or strap to hold the antenna in the flat position against the rack rail. I'll probably pick up some industrial velcro for that.

And I can make the meeting if it's Wednesday. See you there, be a good chance to test this setup.