CB and Antenna Combo

Discussion in 'CB Radio Forum' started by Vermaxtar, Mar 12, 2015.

  1. Vermaxtar

    Vermaxtar Light Load Member

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    Aug 30, 2012
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    A few months ago I bought a new Cobra 25 LX and I really like this radio. I like the looks of it and the great operation that it gives. I am in a new International Pro Star and when first hooking up the radio I was having problems with the stock antennas, always getting a "bad" antenna reading. I have had this problem before with some of these newer trucks.

    So I tried a few things to fix this problem but what finally worked was a Wilson "Little Will" antenna. I have it mounted next to my satellite antenna on a mount I fabricated with the whole ting secured at the top of my mirror. This thing works great and had no problem getting it tuned accurately. So if anyone has this type of problem I would highly recommend the "Little Will" antenna.
     
    Last edited: Mar 12, 2015
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  3. volvo244t

    volvo244t Road Train Member

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    Jun 24, 2010
    Bettendorf, IA
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    I dunno; I didn't think mine worked very well. SWR was decent after tuning it but range still sucked.

    In the '10 Prostar I was in, I had to bond the pretty chrome upper bracket cover to the mirror arm with a small piece of flat-braid before I could get the SWR down from nearly pegging. After that, it worked great, with a ~1.2 SWR. I was using a "Terminator II" double-coil antenna, the one they sell at Pilot.

    Now I'm in a Cascadia and use a Monkey Made in a vertical dipole configuration on a bird perch.
     
  4. Vermaxtar

    Vermaxtar Light Load Member

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    Really? With that L'il Will antenna SWR matched up perfectly. I had tried some other stick antenna's but I kept having the same problem. I have it mounted on some of that grey metal with holes on it that you can buy at Lowe's and just tie wrap secured at the top of the mirror mount which bolts to the top portion of the cab. I hear that there has been lots of problems with these new trucks because of the poor ground.
     
  5. volvo244t

    volvo244t Road Train Member

    1,779
    1,779
    Jun 24, 2010
    Bettendorf, IA
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    SWR is only a part of the picture. I talked to a guy in a Cascadia using the factory antennas and coax, who's SWR was 1.3, but he could barely get out across a parking lot...with an 80 watt radio.

    Anyway, I was using my LW on the roof of my car, which is what it's designed for...I can only imagine that with the inadequate ground plane on a modern aero truck, it's only going to be worse.

    I wish I had a picture of what I had to do with my Prostar... but like I said, once I did it, SWR plummeted and I actually had a good range. Also of note, though, is that I used flat braid sraps to bond the mirror arm to the door, the door to the cab, and the cab to the frame, in addition to bonding the chrome cover of the upper arm bracket to the mirror arm itself. This improves ground plane significantly.
     
    rabbiporkchop Thanks this.
  6. Vermaxtar

    Vermaxtar Light Load Member

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    Aug 30, 2012
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    Yep, I have heard of using the braid straps before and it sounds like you did a good job here. And the radio, I made a mistake earlier, I have the 25 lx radio and I really like it. I have had others throughout the years but this one does the job for me. I even like this one better than the 29 Classic.
     
  7. volvo244t

    volvo244t Road Train Member

    1,779
    1,779
    Jun 24, 2010
    Bettendorf, IA
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    I'm jealous. To my knowledge, the 25 LX was a limited production run. I haven't seen any on shelves in awhile, and when I did, I was tight on cash.

    As for the SWR thing, remember that a dummy load will show a 1:1 SWR, but you wont' transmit very far with a dummy load, will you?

    You want to run the longest antenna you can get away with. The minimum you should run is 36" and I believe the Little Wil might be shorter than that, though I can't remember; it's at home in Illinois and I'm in central Virginia at the moment. It's great if you just need to toss something up on the roof of your car for a roadtrip, and in that regard it's far better than the infamous cheapo center-loaded magnet mount antenna that's usually $9.99, but as a permanent antenna, it leaves something to be desired for sure.
     
  8. rabbiporkchop

    rabbiporkchop Road Train Member

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    Wapwallopen, Pa
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    Or you could make one from scratch like I did because nobody manufactures an 81 inch antenna specifically for the Cascadia or T600

    [​IMG]
     
  9. volvo244t

    volvo244t Road Train Member

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    Jun 24, 2010
    Bettendorf, IA
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    No, but you can get an 84" (7') SkipShooter antenna.

    That's an interesting looking antenna in any event. How's it perform?
     
  10. rabbiporkchop

    rabbiporkchop Road Train Member

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    Wapwallopen, Pa
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    The guy I gave it to talked 80 miles barefoot with a Stryker 955 and shoots skip all over the country using his 6 pill amplifier. He swears by it.

    The long Skipshooter is an excellent antenna if you don't mind replacing it once in a while.
     
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