Overwhelmed with CB info

OK, so I think I want to purchase a CB (trail and regular road usage) I have been looking at the midland 1001LWX, I like this one because of the weather capability. However, I am not sure if this is a good CB for what I need it for. Also, I have read mixed reviews on the antennas (Firestik) and the mounts. I know I def want to mount it on the rear hatch, but I do not want to drill into the body. Also, spring or no spring? I am just really overwhelmed with all the information and configurations. I want a fairly reasonable set-up under 100 bucks and something that is going to be effective. I understand that there are posts out there, but it was a lot of information. The help I need is just direct me towards the correct mount for the rear hatch and sufficient amount of cable to use to put it in this position. Thanks for the help in advance. Also, I am not attached to the Firestik brand as well. So, I am not sure what else exists. Since Wallyword and Amazon will be having deals tomorrow I would like to be able to get on the good prices, if any.
 

XTP_Dyer

First Fill-Up (of many)
Location
Nashville
If I was knowledgeable about CB's, I would help you out. Unfortunately, I am not.

Do this in order to help others help you by sharing a little bit more info as to what you're looking to get out of your CB (Specific uses, appearance, sizing for fitment location, etc.)

Good luck!
 
I have been looking around on here and TNX for information. The Midland is a good size because I want to place it in the space that is under the dash console in front of the shifter. But, I am also not stuck on the Midland brand. I know the mount that I want, but I can't seem to find it again. It is made for rear hatches with no drilling, but people have used it with success on the rear hatch of the X. I mainly want it for communications on the road (highway driving) and trails when and if I do go. That is about it. I want to make sure I get all the stuff I need, because I am off the month of August and would like to be able to install this thing because I will have the time to be able to go slow and be patient with it.
 

XTP_Dyer

First Fill-Up (of many)
Location
Nashville
So if I'm understanding this correctly (please correct me if I'm wrong)

You're looking for something that will have a good snug fit under the radio and your main concern is range (as you'll be using it on the highway and less on trails). Correct?
 

robcarync

Sliders
Location
Raleigh, NC
Take all CB reviews with a grain of salt. Who knows if the author wired it in correctly, tuned their antenna, or had any clue what they were doing.

http://www.firestik.com/Tech_Docs.htm

^^^This is your friend^^^

I got a 30 buck Cobra CB from Walmart. The Cobra dx 19 iii. I thought it was awful when I first got it...but of course I had a crappy magnet mount antenna on my roof.

Then I upgraded to a 4' Firestik with spring mount. I mounted it using a U-bolt on my front bumper head light guard. Man I felt cool, but it still wasn't that great.

Then I finally made a legit mount to my head light guard by welding on a tab and actually making a 6" GROUND WIRE with ring terminals to SECURELY GROUND THE MOUNT... WOW that was incredible! What a difference.

Then I finally got an SWR meter and tuned it...and WOW...confirmed range of at least 5 miles!


Point is, my radio is a cheap-o from Wal Mart and works fine. Even with a Firestik Firefly antenna with a spring and a stud mount, my reception and transmission was not great. It was only after I did a much more thorough and SMART job installing and confirming connections that I got up to snuff. Installation error is a far larger factor than what radio you buy. All radios are limited to 4 watts power. The difference in performance will be in your antenna, antenna location, and wiring skills.

I have a smart phone that gives me enough weather, so I never bothered too much with the weather function. I use mine for wheeling only, and every once in a while, a shout out on the highway to see if people hear me.


Lesson to be learned: Learn how they work and how they need to be installed!!!!

7546585094_e48aaccba3_z.jpg
 
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The Midland is a good size for the space in front of the shifter. I just want to know the mount that would work for the hatch as well as the correct amount of cable I need as well as an antenna and spring if needed.

The installation doesn't seem hard, just the tuning part. Also, the grounding of the mount is something to be aware of as well. I just can't find the mount I visualize in my mind, but I have seen it because members have used it with no probs.

Edit: I found the mount for the hatch, it is the Diamond KC400-3/8C.
 
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robcarync

Sliders
Location
Raleigh, NC
To give you some more information on what you specifically asked about:

Coaxial Cable: 18 feet of coaxial cable seems to be the standard. No need to get the Firestik "Fire Ring" fancy cable stuff. Just standard coaxial is fine. Just make sure you get the proper mount to mate up with standard coaxial.

Springs: I used a heavy duty spring. Seems to be personal preference and what kind of antenna you get. I have a 4 foot Firestik Firely and use a heavy duty spring. You can also get a more flexible antenna which would eliminate the need for it. They are cheap and easy, so most add them.

Antenna: 4 feet was a bit over kill for me, in hind sight. My friend has a mini 2 foot Firestik Firefly antenna that he mounted high up on his hatch, and he has had good success after tuning it. 3 feet seems to be the usual recommendation for Xterra hatch mounts. 4 feet is better for signal, but worse for garages, parking decks, tight trails, etc.

Antenna Location: Antennas work best when they are tall and unobstructed, with a flat surface underneath it ("ground plane") to reflect the signal. You could have a 4 foot antenna, but if you hatch mount it very low, not much is actually over the roof line. That can impact your range. A 2 foot antenna that is hatch mounted with the mount higher up the hatch seam would work about as good. A 4 foot antenna in the center of your roof would be the theoretical best, as it is tall, unobstructed, and the roof is a large and flat surface. I chose to mount mine on my front bumper head light guard. The mount is even with the hood, and the antenna is mostly unobstructed, and the signal can reflect off the hood. Of course, I have a steel bumper for this.

Radios: You can also look into the Cobra radio I have...the dx19III or dx19IV. Cheap and functional. As mentioned above, most radios are the same except size, number of knobs, and some extra features like the weather bands. More expensive option is the Cobra 75 ws xt which is a tiny, remote mount CB radio. All the controls are in the hand set, which is VERY easy for mounting and reducing clutter.

Mounts:

Most antenna mounts revolve around a simple stud mount. You need a bracket with a hole through it to mount it. The bottom half of the mount needs to be grounded...which is usually done automatically assuming the mounting bracket piece is connected to metal somewhere. That isn't always a good clean connection, so I used some extra wire with ring terminals crimped on the ends. I stuck one ring terminal on the bottom side of the mounting bracket, and ran the other to a sheet metal screw that screwed directly into the steel of my front bumper. This was the single biggest improvement to my reception and range. The stud/threaded adapter on the top side are electrically insulated from each other (nylon insulating washer, plus nylon injected internally to the mount), so the bottom half is grounded, and the top half that the antenna/spring screw into is not. If you hatch mount it, you may want to find a place to run a dedicated ground wire to.

Note that this explanation doesn't really answer the question about the no drill mount. How you get your mounting bracket to your desired location is irrelevant, electrically speaking. Just make sure you understand how the stud mount goes together and how to ground it. Most no drill mounts I have seen involve a U-bolt type mount that you can attach to a roof rack or something similar.


ant-mount.jpg
 

TJTJ

Skid Plates
Founding Member
Location
NJ
I'll confirm all of the above, and add for emphasis that performance-wise, a cheap CB with a good antenna mount and tuning will blow the doors off a super fancy expensive CB with a poor antenna/tune.
 
Just pulled the trigger on the midland 1001 with weather, along with 18' of coaxial with PL-259 connectors, stud mount, and 2ft tunable Firestik. Now I just need to get the Diamond hatch mount. I am sure I will be back asking more questions about install, etc.
 

granitex

Skid Plates
Founding Member
Location
Columbus OH
I have made a couple of mounts for people over the years that are a lot like the one that Casper posted. Mine were just a muffler clamp with a flat stock welded on the bottom sticking out far enough to run the antenna stud through. Not quite as refined as the ARB one, but I have never had one fail.

There are only about a million different ways to mount them, each has pros and cons so at the end of the day it all comes down to what you want.

By the way I have mine on the roof, and have only destroyed two of them on trees, and that is with a spring. But I would rather have that than dents and scratches from one slapinig the crap out of the side of my truck.
 
http://www.theantennafarm.com/catalog/diamond-k400-3-8c-5011.html

what is that wire coming out of the mount? Coax cable? Is that the ground? But, the specs of the mount say that the mount is grounded by the set screws in the back of the mount which hold the mount to the hatch? It seems odd because I thought the coax cable I bought would be good enough. However, the wire that comes with this mount doesnt seem to be a coax cable. Maybe I am missing something.

I will be purchasing this one http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/hamantm/0978.html and using the coax cable and stud mount I bought. Is that sufficient? Just trying to see if I need more stuff or the 18' of coax I bought would work without the wire that comes with some of the K400 mounts.
 
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robcarync

Sliders
Location
Raleigh, NC
http://www.theantennafarm.com/catalog/diamond-k400-3-8c-5011.html

what is that wire coming out of the mount? Coax cable? Is that the ground? But, the specs of the mount say that the mount is grounded by the set screws in the back of the mount which hold the mount to the hatch? It seems odd because I thought the coax cable I bought would be good enough. However, the wire that comes with this mount doesnt seem to be a coax cable. Maybe I am missing something.

I will be purchasing this one http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/hamantm/0978.html and using the coax cable and stud mount I bought. Is that sufficient? Just trying to see if I need more stuff or the 18' of coax I bought would work without the wire that comes with some of the K400 mounts.

coaxla.gif



The first link you posted says it has 6.5 feet of coaxial cable attached to it. The ground connection is part of the coaxial cable: the outside section "copper mesh" must be grounded, and the inside section of the wire has a radio signal. You could use that, but you would still need more cable to reach the front.

With a traditional stud mount and a traditional coax cable (identical connectors on both sides), you need to make sure the bottom side of the mount is grounded properly, as that will make contact with the outer connector which is tied into the copper mesh. It looks like that mount has coax with a connector on one end, and individual wire connectors on the mount side. It is basically the same as cutting a connector off the end, and separating out the two individual connections.

I think if that first link showed you the backside of the mount, it would make more sense. See attachment below. Note that the ground wire there...isn't really "grounded"... Think of it more as the connection that needs to be grounded. If you were to go with this mount, you would want to find a good way to make that section connect to ground.

I still would not trust the ground connection through a set screw...The set screw may be making a connection from the antenna base to the separate ground wire in the cable...but I would not trust the screws holding it to a metal hatch as the ground connection.

My first antenna mount with my Firestik was a steel bar on a U-bolt. The antenna mount was bolted directly to the steel tab, which bolted directly to the U-bolt, which wrapped around the headlight tube with paint scratched off underneath on a steel bumper. By all logic, that should be a good ground connection. It wasn't until I made a jumper wire around the base of the mount and screwed it directly into the steel bumper that I got a clear signal.



All in all...buy the bare mount, stud connector, and 18 feet of coax. Mount it up on your hatch, and create a 6" jumper wire on the bottom side of the mount and tie it into a hatch shock mount or some hinge bolt depending on where you mount it. Just make sure it doesn't get bound up as you open or close the hatch. Depending on the geometry of the black plastic mount, you may need a 90 degree connector or something to allow the coaxial cable connector to clear.
 

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Got my Cb, antenna, coax, mount (pretty hefty). Just waiting on the stud mount then I will go pick up a MD spring at the local communications store. How did you power the CB? direct connection to battery? Connect it to a piggyback fuse in the fusebox? Or the standard cig lighter? Also, is there a picture somewhere of how to store the extra coax? I am a visual learner. I will post pics up when I get it installed. I will probably have the same shop tune the CB to the proper SWR.
 

Mr Bills

Bought an X
Location
Area Code 530
This is the best example of how to store excess coax that I could find with a google search. The reason you don't want to loop the excess cable is that is creates an RF choke. [Please ignore the caption - it applies to something else.]

coax4.jpg


As far as power, the best method is both positive and negative wires directly to the battery (positive wire fused of course). I run 12 ga. for mine.
 
Thanks for the picture. So to get that you put it in a circular loop, then twist it to make the figure 8 shape? Also, thanks for the info in the power supply, the Midland came with a connector, I guess just cut that off and extend the wire? I have my 20" light bar connected directly to the battery, should I disconnect that and find power from somewhere else for that accessory? I just dont want to overload the battery, or would it really matter? Thanks again for the help.
 

GPD605X

Lockers Installed
Founding Member
Location
Gulfport, MS
Antenna mounting option two:
No drilling required
Mounted at the highest point on the vehicle for best reception
Folds out of the way when not needed, so you can still drive into your garage (if you fit before you installed the antenna that is)

If the pic uploaded like they were supposed to, then this is the setup I had on my old X, Pepe` SR.
It's an ARB antenna mount for their bumpers (same diameter as our racks) flipped upside down and installed on the factory rack. It's upside down so that when the antenna is folded over, it's as low as possible.
Added to that is an "EasyOver" antenna adapter.
Best setup I've ever had, and most useful.
ARB Bumper Mount Adapter at 4Wheel Parts (CLICK ME)

Easy Over fold-over CB Antenna Mount at Amazon (CLICK ME)
Hope that helps,
JP
What'd you use to hold the antenna down? According to Amazon, I can get the CB antenna mount, 18' RG-58A/U Coaxial Cable With Pl-259 Connectors and Firestik SS-3H Heavy Duty Stainless Steel Antenna Spring for $28.49 and that bracket for $34.99. I imagine that's all I would need to use your setup?
 
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