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View Full Version : mounting a steel whip on an 03 silverado



winky
05-14-2014, 07:37 PM
I have received a ton of help in the introduce your self section. it was suggested that i make a post here on this topic and i believe that would probably be best.

i am trying to mount a 102" whip on my truck. currently it is mounted on a 6" hd spring that is attached to my tool box and a ground strap to help with ground. i have one of those fancy wally world cobra 19 iii cb radios. im looking for the best setup to get the most range out of my system. i live in north alabama so there isn't much flat terrain. i was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on what kind of range i should be getting with my current setup and how i could improve it ( i know there are many factors that can determine range just looking for a ball park) i would love to get 15-20 miles out of my system if possible

im posting some pictures of my truck and setup now to give everyone an idea of what im working with. thanks in advance!

- winky


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stang
05-14-2014, 08:48 PM
It depends what you want. For the all out best dead center of that roof, from there it's a matter of compromise. Someone makes a 3 or 4 mag mount that will SUPPOSEDLY take a 102" . I've never seen one myself. I've got the same issue though. A 102" on the roof of my Cherokee would be way up over 14' I'm sure. I think 13'4" is max "legal" height. Over that and your gonna hit stop lights etc. , not to mention all types of drive through. A hard mount is better than a mag mount but not everyone is willing to put big holes in the roof.

Like already stated SWR is very important. A flat 1 is 100% of possible power transmitting, a 1.5 is somewhere around 75-80%. It just gets worse from there. Anything higher than 3 will fry a radio. Personally I've never transmitted with higher than 1.5.

Good Luck

winky
05-14-2014, 09:45 PM
Sorry guess I should have stated that. Roof mount is out of the question. I'm already tipping the sagging traffic lights around town haha. I wouldn't be opposed to making a lift bracket IF the work required to make it and mount it wouldn't outweigh its benefits. Hopefully this weekend I'll be able to get some free time and check the swr if my meter comes in. I suppose a few people around here have base stations or amps because I can constantly hear one guy from Tennessee (so he says) but he can't hear me.

the caveman
05-15-2014, 08:30 AM
make sure the base of your antenna looks exactly like this. this is a correct way of mounting. although i wouldve used a tougher mount and antenna stud.:300 (115):

Tallman
05-15-2014, 10:23 AM
I would put a ball mount in the vertical back wall of the tool box. You could drop the over all height of the antenna by at least a foot. The ball mount is about the only thing strong enough for a 102" S.S. Whip.