School me on CB antenna cable
- Thread starter Rwhat
- Start date
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I don't have anything to really say...I've bought this before.
GI JOE'S: MINI 8 EZ CB COAX w/SCREW-ON PL259 END
here is another site
COAX CABLE - SparkysCBShack.com
I would just buy from a local CB shop if there is one anywhere near you....
GI JOE'S: MINI 8 EZ CB COAX w/SCREW-ON PL259 END
here is another site
COAX CABLE - SparkysCBShack.com
I would just buy from a local CB shop if there is one anywhere near you....
Any good quality 50-ohm coax, with PL-259 connectors on both ends, assuming you are going with a standard antenna mount.
The Midland 75-822 is a cool little radio. It can transform from a mobile to portable in a heartbeat.
That said, you'll want to set it up in your rig as a mobile with the 12v plug and antenna hook up. Unless you have stock in Duracell.
I have a similar setup with a different radio and I use a mag mount Wilson on the roof just in front of the stock roof rack. The cable runs along the roof rack (tie wrapped) and down to the driver's side passenger door.
It runs (Gorilla duct taped) along the inside top of the door opening to the post and then in and down to the floor. Then it's under the carpet to the center console and up to the radio. One of these days I'll make it permanent but I'm toying with the idea of a new roof rack and I don't want to go drilling in the roof until I figure that one out.
The important thing I wanted to bring up is this: You'll need an SWR meter. Get one from Radio Shack.
CB/High-Frequency Ham Power SWR Meter - RadioShack.com
This tunes your antenna properly. Don't even think about operating your radio without an SWR tune. A buddy set up his new CB without one on a J**p and after
tearing his hair out borrowed mine. Two minutes later discovered a bad cable. Well, it looked fine. :whoops:
After plugging in a new cable and tuning the rig with the SWR meter he was amazed at how well he was both transmitting and receiving. He was able to talk to trucks passing on the freeway a mile and a half away like they were across the street.
Just a thought...
That said, you'll want to set it up in your rig as a mobile with the 12v plug and antenna hook up. Unless you have stock in Duracell.
I have a similar setup with a different radio and I use a mag mount Wilson on the roof just in front of the stock roof rack. The cable runs along the roof rack (tie wrapped) and down to the driver's side passenger door.
It runs (Gorilla duct taped) along the inside top of the door opening to the post and then in and down to the floor. Then it's under the carpet to the center console and up to the radio. One of these days I'll make it permanent but I'm toying with the idea of a new roof rack and I don't want to go drilling in the roof until I figure that one out.
The important thing I wanted to bring up is this: You'll need an SWR meter. Get one from Radio Shack.
CB/High-Frequency Ham Power SWR Meter - RadioShack.com
This tunes your antenna properly. Don't even think about operating your radio without an SWR tune. A buddy set up his new CB without one on a J**p and after
tearing his hair out borrowed mine. Two minutes later discovered a bad cable. Well, it looked fine. :whoops: After plugging in a new cable and tuning the rig with the SWR meter he was amazed at how well he was both transmitting and receiving. He was able to talk to trucks passing on the freeway a mile and a half away like they were across the street.
Just a thought...
About tunning antenna ..saw YouTube Vid explaining you should do that in open space .. the Guy I'm the Vid was in the middle of nowhere .. question is how much space you need for proper tune?
In my experience there is no critical distance. In theory you should do it away from metal structures and power lines but in practice I have tuned a bunch of cb antennas for folks using an expensive ham radio antenna analyzer, and I have yet to see a difference in the required antenna length from inside a garage to a motel parking lot to out in the middle of a pasture. I even experimented on my own trucks, and there wasn't any difference between inside my metal shop building and out in the middle of the pasture. Just my personal experience; YMMV.
thanks .. coz I'm planning try on this one ..
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Where are you going to mount it? That's a 1/4-wave antenna so it will require a good ground plane, like your roof or hood.
here .:? I don't have much roof
My idea it's improve my send / reception ability with better antenna ... this white one it's cheap one from radio shack ..
here .:? I don't have much roof
My idea it's improve my send / reception ability with better antenna ... this white one it's cheap one from radio shack ..
You are close enough and have enough antenna above the hood that you may get enough ground plane for a 1/4-wave there, but be sure to check it with an SWR meter before transmitting.
I tried to set one up out of the rain in a carwash stall. The SWR were stupid high but I did it the best I could with my mind made up to not use it so much and get a new mag mount ASAP. Channel 1 was 2.3:1 and 40 was 3:1. When I pulled out I noticed the radio meter reading way low so I pulled in walmart away from the poles and it was down around 1.2:1-1.7:1. Much better. Still sucks, but more better.
thanks .. the end of my actual antenna ( pictured ) it's barely over my " roof " ( few inches ) I was debating the idea of magnet K30 over the hood with short wipe ..
I used the YouTube video and Internet info to tune my radio/antenna and I have a question.
After adjusting the 3' firestik antenna, I replaced the weather cap each time. I had a hell of a time achieving the lower level on the SWR meter. Then I just left the weather cap off and I was successful in dialing in the SWR, 1.5 on both CH 1 and CH 40. Putting the cap back on the SWR went up to 4.6 to 7.5 with no other adjustments.
What the heck????
After adjusting the 3' firestik antenna, I replaced the weather cap each time. I had a hell of a time achieving the lower level on the SWR meter. Then I just left the weather cap off and I was successful in dialing in the SWR, 1.5 on both CH 1 and CH 40. Putting the cap back on the SWR went up to 4.6 to 7.5 with no other adjustments.
What the heck????
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I used the YouTube video and Internet info to tune my radio/antenna and I have a question.
After adjusting the 3' firestik antenna, I replaced the weather cap each time. I had a hell of a time achieving the lower level on the SWR meter. Then I just left the weather cap off and I was successful in dialing in the SWR, 1.5 on both CH 1 and CH 40. Putting the cap back on the SWR went up to 4.6 to 7.5 with no other adjustments.
What the heck????
Try removing the "adjustable" part from the antenna, and then replace the weather cap. This brought my tunable Wilson antenna into a perfect tune.
Steve
I'll give it a try, thanks!
Ok, I removed the weather cap and the adjustable piece of my antenna. I then placed the weather cap back on and the SWR showed a higher reading than before. I then replaced the adjustable pieces and the weather cap. After doing so, the SWR showed a better reading on CH 1 and 40 than I had previously recorded. Still scratching my head, I left everything as is and the radio reception seems great.