CB Antenna Mount Fab

[treducks]

Time for a CB install.

I wanted the antenna to be mounted in the bed using the utilitrack. I found a Firestik mount that I thought looked good and set to work in the Man Shed to make a bracket for the mount to attach to.

I took some measurements, cut the pieces to length and stuck the long piece in my vice and hammered a 90º bend in it. Holes were drilled and we were good to go.

Mount and bracket assembled and ready to be installed on the truck.

Assembly installed. Once I ran the antenna cable and installed the antenna I straightened everything out and bolted everything down tight. It's nice and solid and the antenna is pretty secure. Next step is the CB installation and pulling the assembly apart and finishing it off - grinding off sharp edges and giving it a coat of Rustoleum to make it all pretty.

[SDMF_Reaps]

The only thing I would be worried about in that setup is your ground plane. I'm not real sure how well the utilitrack is bonded to the box. Beyond that I know that the box is not bonded to the frame.

Since we are talking CB with 4 watts of output you'll want to have the best possible antenna system. Having a good ground plane will not only help get your signal out but it will also lower the noise level letting lighter signals in.

Here is a website I always tell people to check out. KØBG.COM

Checkout the section about far removed ground planes on this page.

Another page worth checking out is the bonding page. I found my HF noise went down when I bonded the four corners of the box and the two rear corners of the cab to the frame.

You are going to be operating around 27Mhz so this will definitely apply to your setup.

[SD_Frontier]

Here is what I used...



One half of a mirror mount, the L part obviously, and attached it to the utilitrack using two 1/4" spring nuts. Luckily the bolts for the mirror mount threaded right into the spring nuts. I then added a spring and a firestik quick disconnect for my firestik II. I'm using 18' RG8X coax to a Cobra 19 DX III.

Now, as far as grounding, is it a safety issue or a performance issue? I can ground the mount to the frame but I didn't have any wire today. I already picked up chatter from what sounded like two country boys in the middle of the suburban San Diego. So, I think this is good enough for trail use and possibly caravaning down the highway. I really don't need to be able to talk to someone miles down the road.

[treducks]

Thanks for the info SDMF.

Nice install SD_Frontier. I was originally going to do something similar but I needed the mount to be above the top of the bed as I'm installing a tonneau cover this week.

[SD_Frontier]

Originally Posted by treducks

Thanks for the info SDMF.

Nice install SD_Frontier. I was originally going to do something similar but I needed the mount to be above the top of the bed as I'm installing a tonneau cover this week.

Thanks but I think fabricating your own mount is more commendable. I just so happened to have the mirror mount from a several years ago still in my garage and saw someone else on this forum use spring nuts for the utilitrack. Gotta love ClubFrontier.

So will your mount and cable clear your tonneau cover? It may be a bad angle but the mount doesn't seem high enough out of the bed. I was surprised to see how low the cable actually went down after it was threaded into the mount.

[treducks]

Originally Posted by SD_Frontier

So will your mount and cable clear your tonneau cover? It may be a bad angle but the mount doesn't seem high enough out of the bed. I was surprised to see how low the cable actually went down after it was threaded into the mount.

I think so but I haven't got the tonneau yet so I may have to make a longer bracket. Once I get it sorted, I'll post more pictures.

[jcbaert]

This is a sweet mount. It's not super complicated but I like the fact that it gets the antenna up further. I might steal your idea and try something like this when I mount my antenna soon.

I'm not familiar with tonneau covers or how they fit, but don't they cover all the way to the front of the bed completely? How are you going to get the cover to fit if the bracket still goes down into the bed and mounts to the utilitrack?

[treducks]

Originally Posted by jcbaert

This is a sweet mount. It's not super complicated but I like the fact that it gets the antenna up further. I might steal your idea and try something like this when I mount my antenna soon.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by jcbaert

I'm not familiar with tonneau covers or how they fit, but don't they cover all the way to the front of the bed completely? How are you going to get the cover to fit if the bracket still goes down into the bed and mounts to the utilitrack?

I was hoping the bracket would squeeze between the edge of the bed and the tonneau with some modification. After looking at it this morning I decided to drop the bracket a bit so the mount is below the tonneau and have part of it protrude through. Hard to explain, but once I get it all together I'll post more pics.

[SD_Frontier]

Originally Posted by treducks

Thanks!

I was hoping the bracket would squeeze between the edge of the bed and the tonneau with some modification. After looking at it this morning I decided to drop the bracket a bit so the mount is below the tonneau and have part of it protrude through. Hard to explain, but once I get it all together I'll post more pics.

are you going hard or soft cover?

[treducks]

Originally Posted by SD_Frontier

are you going hard or soft cover?

Soft. Truxedo Lo Profile QT.