Anyone ever install a CB in a Tuffy?

[JLH911]

I have the Tuffy model that has the spot for a DIN size stereo and I was wondering if anyone has ever installed a Standard sized CB in this DIN slot.

I know the DIN slot is not big enough for the CB, but it looks like that with a Air powered saw, I could get it trimmed enough to get it to fit.

I know someone may say, "Why don't you put your stereo in the DIN slot of the Tuffy and the CB where the stereo goes. I thought of that, but I want to be able to lock BOTH up in the Tuffy. Only the stereo would be safe.

Using this way I could lock the faceplate for the stereo in the Tuffy and the CB would be in the DIN slot of the Tuffy. Get it?

What do you guys think?

 

[JLH911]

No one? Wow, guess I'll be the first and I'll post pictures.

 

[greentruck]

My Trunktracker IV scanner is worth way more than my CB. And it has a DIN mount, so that's what I dropped into my Tuffy. Plus with the e-brake in my 80, offsetting the Tuffy leaves just enough space between the driver space and the Tuffy to mount the CB externally, so that's what happened with mine.

I'm sure people will want to know how the CB install goes. There's not a lot of extra room in the mount. What is there is towards the inside of the Tuffy, so that's where you have to trim to get the slack needed.

I'd say the key is to measure first to ensure that the needed space is actually there before you start.

 

[JLH911]

I'm actually going to do what you did after looking at the whole setup.

I'm going to mount it on the outside of the tuffy right behind the e-brake.

I started thinking about it and decided I didn't want to cut up the Tuffy

My Trunktracker IV scanner is worth way more than my CB. And it has a DIN mount, so that's what I dropped into my Tuffy. Plus with the e-brake in my 80, offsetting the Tuffy leaves just enough space between the driver space and the Tuffy to mount the CB externally, so that's what happened with mine.

I'm sure people will want to know how the CB install goes. There's not a lot of extra room in the mount. What is there is towards the inside of the Tuffy, so that's where you have to trim to get the slack needed.

I'd say the key is to measure first to ensure that the needed space is actually there before you start.

 

[1911]

I put a Cobra 18 WXST II in my Tuffy, it fit easily and in fact I had to wrap some foam tape around the radio because it was a little small for the opening. A PITA to get it in, you have to drop it in from the top all the way to the bottom, hook up the coax and the bottom mount, then push it back up into the DIN slot. No room for side mounts unless you want to drill more holes in the side of the Tuffy.

 

[greentruck]

JLH911,
Probably for the best. The steel is tough in those things, so I assume even that inside radio panel is, too. I had to do just a small bit of Dremeling at a couple of spots for something else and it took some grinding to get it done.

One more thing. The side mount works fine for the CB speaker. For the scanner, I set a remote speaker underneath the Tuffy. I have mine set up kind of high, because I use the Tuffy to support my right elbow because of a bad right shoulder. The 80 is nice and quiet, so I can hear fine as long as I don't crank up the tunes.

I also managed to tuck a 400 watt inverter underneath, too, and slapped a set of three 12-volt outlets on the back side for good measure. I attached my cupholders on the backside, because I pushed things forward so my elbow would hit it right. It took a little tinkering with some bolts and square tubing, but turned out very nice and customized the console to meet all my needs, electronic and ergonomic.

 

[JLH911]

Could you post up pictures of this install? Would like to see it.

Thanks!

JLH911,
Probably for the best. The steel is tough in those things, so I assume even that inside radio panel is, too. I had to do just a small bit of Dremeling at a couple of spots for something else and it took some grinding to get it done.

One more thing. The side mount works fine for the CB speaker. For the scanner, I set a remote speaker underneath the Tuffy. I have mine set up kind of high, because I use the Tuffy to support my right elbow because of a bad right shoulder. The 80 is nice and quiet, so I can hear fine as long as I don't crank up the tunes.

I also managed to tuck a 400 watt inverter underneath, too, and slapped a set of three 12-volt outlets on the back side for good measure. I attached my cupholders on the backside, because I pushed things forward so my elbow would hit it right. It took a little tinkering with some bolts and square tubing, but turned out very nice and customized the console to meet all my needs, electronic and ergonomic.

 

[greentruck]

JLH911,
Well, let me give this a try. It will be my first try at pics here, so if it doesn't go well, I'll try something else. There will be four pics.

The first shows a side view that gives an idea of how the Tuffy sits in relation to the driver's seat. I'm tall and have the DS seat all the way back, but have no seat extender, if that helps. It's very important to maintain clearance for use of the emergency brake when doing this install, as well as proper operation of seats and seatbelts. There are, I think, three different widths of these Tuffys avauilable and this is the 8" wide one installed in a FZJ80.

Like I said, the Tuffy is pushed pretty far forward. I took part of an old mudflap, cut it to cover the opening left by removal of the stock center console, and then riveted it to the shift console opening. I painted the shiny rivets black with some of my model railroad black paint that I had, so it looks good. Note that there is a mount that the front end of the Tuffy can sit on and be bolted to into the original metric bolt mounts, but you must relocate a wire harness by pushing towards the DS seat. I covered it with some carpet and plastic tied it in place to protect it. It is placed idealy so that my elbow sits on the big pad and my hand rests exactly either on the steering wheel or on the shifter when it's in D.

The second picture is taken overhead. It shows the scanner in the Tuffy DIN mount location, the CB attached to the side of the Tuffy, and the top of a fire extinguisher that I mounted behind the CB, since that's a handy place to have it. The CB is on a standard mount and is actually pushed in at the top against the Tuffy, as you can kind of see in this photo. You can adjust the angle of it, just like it was hanging under the dash, etc, so no big deal. I don't tend to use my CB much, except for long trips, road emergencies, convoys, or other special circumstances. I leave it set to Ch 19 AM, so if I suddenly need it on the road, that's where I usually need it and it's right at hand. For other uses, I can set the channel/mode and forget it, so it being kind of out of sight if not a big deal.

The third picture shows an overall look at the backside of the Tuffy, with the cupholders attached and the fire extinguisher, with the electrical goodies below. I used some spare steel angle I had sitting around and adapted the mount that came with the extinguisher to attach it to the side of the Tuffy. Hopefully never needed, but close at hand if it is and out of the way until then.

Note the green foam added around the area next to the lock assembly on the Tuffy. My wife's elbow sometimes sits there more comfortably, so I added that for her, although once in awhile mine does that too when on long trips and I'm shifting position. It's thin, and high density. I got it from the liner in a container for IIRC a 120mm shell container I picked up surplus a decade or so back. Nice stuff, but no idea where to get more of it.

Note also that if you're mounting this in an 80, the middle row of seats will almost, but not quite fold with the cupholders in the position it's in. I may raise it a couple of inches to fix that when I get a chance. The exact relationship will vary, of course, depending on exactly where you bolt the Tuffy in your own truck, so that will need to be worked out as you go if it is a concern in your install.

[continued below]

 

[greentruck]

The fourth pic is a close-up of the lower part of the Tuffy mount. It shows the way I extended the height, using the supplied Tuffy leg assembly. You can see the back two pieces of square steel tubing. Each has a bolt inside which supplies tension. There are two more you can't see further forward to attach the Tuffy leg assembly. Then in the middle of the floor of the Tuffy, I drilled a couple of holes and used a pair of longer metric bolts that go into the original console's bolt mounts. Thus the Tuffy leg assembly just sets on the floor, while the further forward metric bolts go through into the original console mounting holes.

The 12-volt 3-gang outlets is screwed to the Tuffy leg assembly. The 400-watt inverter is just something I picked up at Harbor Freight sale for 50% and happened to just exactly slide into the space left by the leg extension I fabricated once I shaved a little off the outside cooling fin on each side. You may want to measure first to make that happen, rather than counting on luck like I did. It is not mounted other than a slide fit in there from the back that is tight enough it's never going anywhere, so I figured that's good enough.

I won't bother to describe the wiring on all this, other than to say I used the cable from a set of battery cables I got on sale for $10 for the power supply to the inverter, fused with a 60-amp fuse holder I got at Radio Shack near the battery.

BTW, for more pics and info on a Tuffy install in an 80, here's the link:
https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/258917-how-install-tuffy-security-console-your-80-81-a.html

 

[pappy]

I'm late on the take here. Yes, I installed a Uniden 538 because it fit and had a front fire speaker.

 

[greentruck]

pappy,
What width is your Tuffy? Looks like the radio compartment is wider than the main compartment?

 

[1911]

The Cobra 18 I put in was noisy so I replaced it with a Uniden 78XL, which the local cb shop said was much better shielded and grounded than the Cobra. The Uniden 78 would not fit in the DIN opening of the Tuffy without grinding, but with a few passes of the Dremel tool and bastard file, it went in snugly. Once the opening was big enough, this radio was actually easier to install than the smaller Cobra. It fills up the space in the radio compartment enough that it was practical to drill holes in the side of the radio cubby and use the side mounts in the radio. Also, since it is longer than the Cobra 18 the antenna and power connectors are closer to the bottom of the cubby and much easier to get to. It still picks up some ignition and fan motor noise from the truck, but nothing like the Cobra was doing. I did have to run an external speaker on the dash since this radio does not have a front-firing speaker like the Cobra 18 did. For as little as I use the CB, I'm happy with the way it works.

 

[greentruck]

Hey 1911,
Nice write-up. I see that your Tuffy is in your FJ40 and looks to be the 6 1/2" wide one. You really had to shoehorn the Uniden in there, but it definitely will fit.

The narrow Tuffy does provide more options. You get almost the same lockable space as the wider models, plus exactly the same lockable radio space. But it also provides for an even wider outside, side mount for radios between the seats for someone who wants to do a sidemount like I did in my 80. So if providing a spot to mount a bigger radio than will fit inside is an issue, the 6 1/2" Tuffy and a sidemount on it might be another way to solve the problem.

 

[1911]

Hey 1911,
Nice write-up. I see that your Tuffy is in your FJ40 and looks to be the 6 1/2" wide one. You really had to shoehorn the Uniden in there, but it definitely will fit.

The narrow Tuffy does provide more options. You get almost the same lockable space as the wider models, plus exactly the same lockable radio space. But it also provides for an even wider outside, side mount for radios between the seats for someone who wants to do a sidemount like I did in my 80. So if providing a spot to mount a bigger radio than will fit inside is an issue, the 6 1/2" Tuffy and a sidemount on it might be another way to solve the problem.

Thanks. The Uniden 78 is definitely an efficient use of the space. It is the 6-1/2" Tuffy, though to be honest I didn't know they came in different widths when I got it - just got the one recommended for a 40. As you might be able to tell from my photos above, the stock seats actually rub the radio caddy and come quite close to the main locking compartment. There is maybe the thickness of a hand's space between the seat and the Tuffy on both sides, enough room for the seat belt latch but not a lot else in this application (late 40).

 

[JLH911]

Thanks 1911. That's the very CB I got myself. I ended up installing the CB like Greentruck did. Funny, it's in the VERY same spot. Works good there. The speaker fires off real good in that position to my right ear.

 

[greentruck]

I figured I'd add a comment about a retrofit I amde to my semi- wiring. I noted I used a set of bargain booster cables as the feed and ground from the battery for the 400watt inverter. This was a bargain given the price of buying suitable cable off the shelf.

I did properly fuse this at the battery in case the postive lead was compromised due to vibration or accident. But I got to thinking that booster cable insulation is pretty soft, thus could be less protective than optimal.

I got some plastic split loom protective material and went back over the inverter wiring and the other hot wiring I installed to the Tuffy console. Should have done it in the first place. Fuses are good, but with the vibration our trucks get, it's best to consider a little extra protection from the get go, rather than retrofitting, which simply takes more time.