Best Antenna for Distance

[BossOutlaw88]

I'm thinking aboit purchasing two firesticks, but I need a second opinion.

[lonelyswmtrucker]

if u want a fiberglass antenna, i find FRANCIS to be the best; but u can NEVER beat a good ol stainless steel 102 whip; just 1 of those & u got it

[crzyjarmans]

Second opinion::: I'll Be will to bet?, You get tons of different "best antenna's" for distance, buy many different drivers, That's my opinion

[deann]

I personally am liking my Wilson 2000 just tune it properly with a 18 foot coaxial to get the right ground an swr if you want distance

[Rat]

Go with a single stainless. two is really a waist of time amd money u.less hou want the look of two antennas. coax length don' t matter. But get the longest antenna you can get by with. dont bull horn it as it kills your transmit.

[corneileous]

Practically any antenna will give you great results as long as it's mounted properly and in the right location and if it's tuned correctly. Really, the only time you need a wire whip-style antenna is for flexibility as fiberglass antennas don't have a whole lot of flex to them.

[duckco]

Ive been reading allot about the predator 10k seems to be pretty hot item not sure how true this really is just what i read though

[handlebar]

The standard reference antenna for a mobile is a "full" quarter wave (around 105 to 108 inches, depending upon exact frequency) over a perfect ground (which is as easy to find as the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus standing at the same intersection). A typical 102-inch whip over a typical metal rooftop is resonant on the 10 Meter amateur band, above 28 MHz.
After that, everything that shortens the radiating element (the "whip") or reduces the effective ground plane will produce a compromise. Some compromises might only be measurable in a lab, or predictable on a graph, but may not really show up in real-world use. Some will seriously harm your range.
Unfortunately, a lot of mobile CB antennas are kinda like fishing lures: they're designed to attract fishermen rather than fish. But lotsa folks treat their radio systems as part of their vehicle's fashion -- Nitro Knobs® didn't come about because anyone really *needs* to be able to read a book at 40 paces from the face of their radio in fluorescent blue. Oversized coils, or little enclosures with hash oil or anything else, are generally laughable for someone running under a couple thousand watts.
Remember the basics: As much antenna whip length as you can get, as high up as you can get it, fed with the *shortest* coax you can (no, there is NOT any magic length requirement for a single antenna's coax), as far as you can keep it from parallel vertical metallic surfaces (stacks, metal bodies, etc.), as close to plumb as you can get it, over the best ground plane (different from DC ground) you can manage.
Dual antennas, even with a proper phasing harness, double the potential for a hardware failure. If you want the look of duals, you'd be better served to go with a single standard (50 ohm) feedline to an antenna on one side the other, and an unwired antenna on the other side as a spare. Then, if your "real" antenna quits, you can swap them out as a quick replacement and maintain visual symmetry.
Hope this helps.
Handlebar

[BossOutlaw88]

I got dual Firesticks reading a SWR of 1. Good or bad? It gets out about five miles. I can hold a convo now lol! The trucks say my radio sounds good everytime I ask for a radio check.

[handlebar]

I got dual Firesticks reading a SWR of 1. Good or bad? It gets out about five miles. I can hold a convo now lol! The trucks say my radio sounds good everytime I ask for a radio check.

Boss,
Sounds to me like you're accomplishing what I perceive to be your main goals -- you're able to get out five miles, and folks tell you that your radio sounds fine.
If the *only* thing you were able to determine was that you had an SWR of 1.0:1, it is conceivable your coax was connected to a dummy load, or a was full of water, etc. But since it's clearly working fine, it seems you've already got the best opinion you could hope for
BTW, if you did the install yourself: great job! Not everyone gets those right )
73,
Handlebar