Growing up, my father always had a CB in his vehicles. 4x4s had units on the dash like he was the Snowman, and smaller cars had Radio Shack and Uniden handhelds. The other day, I was caught in an accident on the highway. The advisory website, which I bookmark on my phone, never updated the cause or estimated time to clear. It took two hours. But I realized that I needed a CB, for situations like that.
I now have an F-150, which presents the problem of aluminum surfaces all around. So, to mount a 2 or 4 foot antenna, I need to get a little more creative. I picked up a Firestik MK-294R bed stake mount, which I should be able to install under my Bedlocker rails. I will use the rear pocket to keep it the farthest from the cab. But, because the bed is not steel, the grounding will be poor. So, I think I need to run a ground line from one of the screws (underside) to somewhere on the frame. I then will run the RG58 into the cab from one of the rear or underside pass-throughs.
I like the Cobra 75 All Road unit because I can mount the brains under the rear seat and tap any of the 12v lines in the area, and plug the handset into one of the front USBs either in the small pocket under the HVAC controls or in the console. It's Bluetooth, so the handset communicates with the brains wirelessly. Stuff has come a long way. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BYL3NV6L/?tag=seriouexplor-20
Last, I need an antenna. I am thinking a 2' Firestik to keep things low profile, particularly when I pull into parking garages. I don't want to have to disconnect the antenna. http://www.firestik.com/Catalog/FS2-FS5.htm Or, will the small metal plate plus ground wire be insufficient to meet the requirement of a ground plane?
Thoughts, criticisms, ideas? I know there's a lot of knowledge here on radios -- folks who have forgotten way more than I will ever know. I am hoping you can save me headaches as I put the rest of these items together and install.
Thanks!
I now have an F-150, which presents the problem of aluminum surfaces all around. So, to mount a 2 or 4 foot antenna, I need to get a little more creative. I picked up a Firestik MK-294R bed stake mount, which I should be able to install under my Bedlocker rails. I will use the rear pocket to keep it the farthest from the cab. But, because the bed is not steel, the grounding will be poor. So, I think I need to run a ground line from one of the screws (underside) to somewhere on the frame. I then will run the RG58 into the cab from one of the rear or underside pass-throughs.
I like the Cobra 75 All Road unit because I can mount the brains under the rear seat and tap any of the 12v lines in the area, and plug the handset into one of the front USBs either in the small pocket under the HVAC controls or in the console. It's Bluetooth, so the handset communicates with the brains wirelessly. Stuff has come a long way. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BYL3NV6L/?tag=seriouexplor-20
Last, I need an antenna. I am thinking a 2' Firestik to keep things low profile, particularly when I pull into parking garages. I don't want to have to disconnect the antenna. http://www.firestik.com/Catalog/FS2-FS5.htm Or, will the small metal plate plus ground wire be insufficient to meet the requirement of a ground plane?
Thoughts, criticisms, ideas? I know there's a lot of knowledge here on radios -- folks who have forgotten way more than I will ever know. I am hoping you can save me headaches as I put the rest of these items together and install.
Thanks!
