Need help setting up CB

M

metalli445

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Feb 11, 2008
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I just came across a smoking deal on a Cobra 29 WX NW ST. I've done a little research on CB's but the more I read the more I realize there is a lot to learn. Here's my situation...

I have to park in a parking garage everyday for work that I barely fit in as it is. I'm thinking I want to go with a magnetic mount. Will this scratch my paint up? Can I put a rag down and then the magnet on top of it? I read that on top of the roof is the best place to put it because the signal has a larger surface area to bounce off of. What about on top of my toolbox? Do you think the magnet will stick to it and would it be a good place to put it when I'm going to use the CB? I was thinking about going with a Firestik MU8R9 9 foot antenna coaxial cable. Should I get the 18 foot one just to be safe? From what I understand this goes from the back of the cb, routed through the interior to the magnetic mount I want to use. Then from what I understand I need to buy an antenna that attaches to the magnet. Is this correct? I was going to buy a Wilson 5000 antenna. Is this overkill? I also do some offroading and I don't think this could stand up to hitting limbs. What antenna would be good for hitting limbs and still do fairly decent on the open roads. I don't want an antenna any longer then 4' if possible. I kow the wilson 5000 is longer but its a great antenna. Can someone tell me where I'm going wrong or what I can do that will make a better setup? I just started reading into this yesterday so I can use any advice. Links would be great!
 
Oh boy, where to start......at the beginning I guess :D

Get the 18 ft lead of coax, that was always the minimum we ran between radio and antenna, no the magnet mount is not going to stick to your toolbox unless it is made from steel. Magnets will scratch the paint even through a rag, any dirt or grit caught between magnet and paint will scratch said paint.

look for a mirror mount, use the 90* angle half to mount the antenna to your toolbox, from the mount, run a wire to the frame for a ground and use a spring between the antenna and mount. Using a spring will take some of the bend pressure off of the antenna. Yes, top of the truck is the best, but unless you are looking for the very last little bit of performance from the radio you won't be able to tell the difference.
 
http://www.firestik.com/Tech_Docs.htm

As for antennas, I prefer K40 and Wilson. I HATE Barjan antennas. They flat SUCK!

I used a mag mount for quite a while, years ago. Need to use a plastic sandwich baggie (or something similar), to prevent paint damage. Also, move it around some. Don't keep it in the same spot all of the time. The paint needs to dry out, or they will be an issue. And, as said before, magnets won't stick to aluminum.
 
Thanks for the info guys. I was on my way camping when I came across a CB shop so I decided to stop in. I have my radio peaked and tuned and I ended up buying a lil wil. I had the swr on it done and I I'm just not happy with the results. My friends father gave me a wilson 500 which seems to work much better but the rubber insulation around the cable already had worn off due to the door opening and shutting on the cable but it still works better than the lil wil. Since I wasn't getting much range I kinda lost interest in having a CB. I just installed cab lights on my truck where I had to drill 15 holes in the roof so I feel better about doing the Wilson 5000 roof mount but I haven't had the motivation to do it yet. I'm still trying to decide if I just want to get the wilson 5000 magnet mount so its not perminant or the roof top mount. Decisions, decisions...
 
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where is your antenna mounted? Might help by running some grounding wires to it and such to make sure the antenna has a good ground plane. Also what did the SWR end up being when they set it?
 
Well the two antenna's I have now are magnet mounts and I tried them in the center of my roof. If I remember correctly when I looked at the meter, the lil wil was something like 1.1 or 1.2. It was really good the guy said. I'm not sure what the wilson 500's SWR is because I haven't had it checked out, but all I know is that it works better then the lil wil.
 
What performance problem are you having? I am wondering if the RF gain is turned way down and the squelch is set to high. With the SWR you have you should be able to get 10-15 miles out that set up. Right now in my truck I am running a Cobra 29 LTD NW peaked and tuned with co-phased 4.5ft K40 antennas with and SWR of 2 and if I have my RF gain turned all the way up I can pick up people 30 miles away from me. The only time that I really have any problems with my radio is when I am running my strobes.
 
I would go with the Wilson "Lil Will" if your not going to be running footwarmer. It will handle all the power your 29 can push...If properly tuned, you should put 35-45 watts out...
 
CB wont recieve

I have a Cobra 29 hooked through a linear and I can talk out very well but I can not recieve at all. Any ideas why? I am using a k40 magnetic antenna everything is grounded well.
 
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