CB radios and mounting.

Daron-t4r

New member
Hey guys. I want to get a CB radio, and I've been looking at some CBs and it seems like most people here decided to go with the Cobra 75 series. I want to mount the CB either in the console, or preferably the "secret" compartment above the glove box.

From personal experience, what would you recommend? The console mounting allows for easier access to the unit, how important is that access? Also will the 75 fit in that compartment in the glove box?

Lastly, I've been looking for a fold-able antenna mount that I can mount to the factory roof but haven't had any luck, does anyone know of a company that sells these?
 
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Hey man,

I bought the 75 and I wanted to do the same thing. For some reason mine isnt working but I can tell you a couple things. The CB itself will fit in the compartment but only if the antenna input isnt there. I removed mine and it fits but mine isnt working so idk if thats the reason why it doesnt work. If you want to add an antenna, it definitely wont fit.

Jack
 
Hey man,

I bought the 75 and I wanted to do the same thing. For some reason mine isnt working but I can tell you a couple things. The CB itself will fit in the compartment but only if the antenna input isnt there. I removed mine and it fits but mine isnt working so idk if thats the reason why it doesnt work. If you want to add an antenna, it definitely wont fit.

Jack

You need an antenna don't you, maybe I'm misunderstanding but without an antenna how would the system work? Or are you referring to something else?
 
also, will the Cobra work as a PA as well if i buy a speaker? I saw this question brought up in another thread recently, but I don't know how much it pertained to me.
 
I just picked up this one

Compact Professional Mobile CB Radio - CB Radios at Uniden

Its VERY small and comes with PA and the basics. I velcroed mine to my side of the center console. I tucked the wires under the plastic lip and wired it to my firestick which is mounted on my CBI bumper. I ran the Coax along the driver side interior step panels. Took me about 2 hours total. Ill snap some pics tomorrow.

I used the white 5 inch PA horn. Mounted it to my frame, facing forward, right behind my front license plate.
 
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I used to love my old Cobra CB with the PA system in my old rig. However, i wouldnt ever blemish my 4Runners with (which is to me personally) an unsightly antenna. I wont do the magnet-base, as it'll destroy the finish/paint, nor will i bolt something into the body.

Ive heard of things like the "Secret Sam" antenna, which is hidden, and if i was ever to do an install, id want something of that sort.

Any CB'ers in here have anything of the "hidden antenna"-sort?
 
I mounted mine to the stereo metra adapter- so if I ever want to remove it, it's a $20 piece of plastic.

The mount is bolted to the side of the bumper, so when the tailgate is shut- no holes to show either. It fits in garages.
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zimm: Can you show us how that antenna mount is attached? Which mount is that?

I'm having a hard time deciding where I want to mount my antenna, which type to buy, etc.

Is that a "No Ground Plane" antenna? How is the reception with an antenna mounted along the side of the vehicle? I've read that the best place is center of the roof and was thinking about a 2' FireStik mounted to the roof rack.
 
It's a ground plane antenna. Reception is terrific and SWR is 1.1.

Mount is a "door jam" mount. bolted to bumper. I replaced the plastic fastener in the photo with a bolt to hold the bumper cover more securely.

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anyone know of a store that sells CBs where I can go and talk to someone? Also, I heard someone in another thread say that the PA jack that comes with the cobra CBs is garbage and only puts out 4 amps... not loud enough for someone up the trail to hear you... is this true?
 
It's a ground plane antenna. Reception is terrific and SWR is 1.1.

Mount is a "door jam" mount. bolted to bumper. I replaced the plastic fastener in the photo with a bolt to hold the bumper cover more securely.

Thanks for the pics, zimm! That's a huge help!

So that's a 4' FireStik?

I was reading up on the ground plane and everything I read recommends placing the antenna in the center of the roof so I was thinking about using a 2' FireStik mounted to the crossbar of the roof rack. That had me somewhat concerned about tree branches and garages, but this looks to be much more out of the way and if you can get the antenna that "tuned" then I think that I'll follow your lead. Being concerned about having a decent ground plane, I even thought about mounting the antenna in the hood/fender gap, but wasn't sure where I'd run the cable.

Does your cable run through the interior and out from under the tail light?

Thanks again!
 
Thanks for the pics, zimm! That's a huge help!

So that's a 4' FireStik?

I was reading up on the ground plane and everything I read recommends placing the antenna in the center of the roof so I was thinking about using a 2' FireStik mounted to the crossbar of the roof rack. That had me somewhat concerned about tree branches and garages, but this looks to be much more out of the way and if you can get the antenna that "tuned" then I think that I'll follow your lead. Being concerned about having a decent ground plane, I even thought about mounting the antenna in the hood/fender gap, but wasn't sure where I'd run the cable.

Does your cable run through the interior and out from under the tail light?

Thanks again!

Wire goes from bumper cover, into rubber grommet behind taillight, and through the interior to the center console. Running the wire took longer than anything else. The junction box is next to the shifter in the center console.

Actually it's a 3' firestik. I did a 4' but it was too tall. I read all that crap about ground plane too- sure if you need the most from your 4 watts of radio- drill a hole in the roof. But I park under a cover and need the clearance. For listening to truckers on the interstate, I think I'm getting several miles range. Being on the left, the antenna gets a clear view of oncoming trucker traffic. If you need more range, get the 4' stik which sticks above the roof.

To tune it, I bought an SWR meter from Radio Shack. They didn't even know they had one, but it was on the shelf. Had to buy a 1' jumper cable because the meter doesn't not come with cables. Best to just mail order all that with the radio/antenna/mount purchase.

My SWR was around 2.5-3.0 until I took the tuning screw completely off the antenna and now it's 1.1-1.4 depending on channel. It's even lower without the cap, but I left that on for looks. Again, I don't need complete performance, and it's still better than a handheld!

The cobra 75 doesn't have a PA capability, but I don't need that.
 
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anyone know of a store that sells CBs where I can go and talk to someone?
Any truck stop will have CBs, and truckers, so you can talk to them, or in Denver, I know its a little far from Vail but if you are in the area, try Radio Service Center Radio Service Center, Denver CO 80226
Also, I heard someone in another thread say that the PA jack that comes with the cobra CBs is garbage and only puts out 4 amps... not loud enough for someone up the trail to hear you... is this true?
IIRC and Im probley wrong, but I remember reading that all CBs sold in the US only have 3 watts of power, not you can get the radio "tuned and peaked" to give up to 6 watts, talk to the guys at Radio Service Center

hope this helps :cool:
 
If you want a loud PA get a police Unit. I believe they are around 100 watts. But it wont be a CB so youll have to run 2 units.

The PA on the CB is loud enough for people to hear you on the trail. It does get a little drowned out in the city where there are more cars and noise. The key is mounting the speaker towards the front of your vehicle out of the engine bay.
 
anyone know of a store that sells CBs where I can go and talk to someone?
Any truck stop will have CBs, and truckers, so you can talk to them, or in Denver, I know its a little far from Vail but if you are in the area, try Radio Service Center Radio Service Center, Denver CO 80226
Also, I heard someone in another thread say that the PA jack that comes with the cobra CBs is garbage and only puts out 4 amps... not loud enough for someone up the trail to hear you... is this true?
IIRC and Im probley wrong, but I remember reading that all CBs sold in the US only have 3 watts of power, not you can get the radio "tuned and peaked" to give up to 6 watts, talk to the guys at Radio Service Center

hope this helps :cool:

Thanks for the response!! I'm going to Denver this weekend so I'll definitely go there, since its near my buddy's house.

The secondary reason I want a CB besides wheeling and hearing trucker traffic is so that we can communicate up at our ranch in flattops Colorado. Ideally I want (like a said) an antenna that I fold up, because up there I want to have a good range of communication. Still havn't seen anyone bring anything up about a foldable mount that attached to the roof rack yet though so we'll see. I might end up just making one myself.

If you want a loud PA get a police Unit. I believe they are around 100 watts. But it wont be a CB so youll have to run 2 units.

The PA on the CB is loud enough for people to hear you on the trail. It does get a little drowned out in the city where there are more cars and noise. The key is mounting the speaker towards the front of your vehicle out of the engine bay.

I guess I'll shop around for a CB/PA combo... and If I can't find one, I'll settle for just the CB with the limited PA capabilities.

Most people on here probably don't have a PA speaker, but if someone does, would they mind posting pictures of how they mounted the speaker? Thanks!
 
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Pardon the wordiness of what follows, but for what it's worth, I use a magnet mount Wilson 5000 antenna (here: Amazon.com: Wilson 880-200152B 5000 Series Mobile CB Antenna with 62-in Whip: Electronics) (although if you're not adding any power, the Wilson 1000 works just as well and is cheaper - it's just got a smaller coil inside) coupled with, for now, an older Radioshack (Realistic) hand held/car adapted CB Radio unit that is no longer for sale but equivalent to this one from midland here: Midland Micro 40 Channel Hand Held CB Radio - 75... : Target

The nice thing about my setup is that it is 100% portable, can be removed completely without issue or stashed in the truck out of sight (with clever stowage of the whip), and still performs great. The Wilson antennas are widely considered the single best magnet-mount mobile antennas and come with trim-able, removable, stainless steel whip antennas that allow you to size them for the perfect SWR for the 4Runner, mine is seriously damn near 1.0 at Ch 1 and Ch 40, but not quite there. I could trim a bit more and probably get dead on - but this depends entirely on exactly where you mount the antenna on the roof. I put mine top dead center and can send and receive loud and clear for around a 10 mile radius in most cases, occasionally I get some pretty wild skip from other states, but that's another story. There are some better mobile antennas out there, however, but they are not mag mount.

If you DO go for a magnet mount antenna, be sure you're using at least ideally a 62'' solid steel whip antenna mounted ideally as high as you can, and place a custom cut buffer of panty-hose or something between the magnet and your truck to avoid scratches from bumps in the road (this has worked wonders for my application) - also, before doing anything, clean and wax the area you're going to mount the antenna on to avoid any damage to the paint. The magnets on the Wilsons will hold solid on the freeway and even if you happen to hit tree branches and stuff with the whip (it will just bend and remind you it's where with a noise). They've held solid while wheeling, too. The cable tucks neatly into the door of your choice, or you can do some drilling if you feel so inclined. The Wilson 1000 and 5000 unscrew from the magnet mount and come with a weather cap to put on there when it's taken off so you can just take down the antenna when going into the garage, etc and stick it in the truck or whatever. You can also start with a much cheaper, and smaller wilson/k40 magnet mount antenna, but you will NOT get the same performance out of them, although on a budget the little 'Wil isn't a bad buy to test out your radio at first. I would encourage you to avoid the K30/K40's, as in my experience they didn't hold up well at all and were vastly outperformed by the Wilson products, but your mileage may vary.

The firestiks are great, and I have many buddies that swear by them, but they do not work that well, in my humble experience, with any sort of practical magnet mount setup. You're gonna want to mount those on a bumper, hood clamp, or perhaps a custom roof rack setup if you feel so inclined. They hold up quite well over time, though and take a fair bit of abuse as long as the mount is done right. They're not a bad antenna at all. Also, some people think the Stainless Steel Whip Antennas make their vehicles look like a giant RC car. I personally don't think so/care, but if that's a nitpick of yours, the firestik type is the way to go.

Hope this has shed a little light on the issue for you. Let me know if I can clarify anything, etc. I love my CB setup, always listen to the truckers yammering on the freeway, etc. Occasionally hear some pretty hilarious things and have made some good contacts in the summers when all the ORVs come out to play. If you like the CB, you might one day consider getting your HAM license (It's nearly free, only requires a little bit of study) and getting a 2m/70cm setup installed at some point to make contacts far further than the ~10-20 mi line of sight that CB radio allows.

At any rate, hope you enjoy. Again, let me know if I can help.
 
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Daron,
just a tip, the guys that work there are OLD, they take their time, but they DO KNOW their CBs and HAMs, very fair, and helpful, Ive been there a few times, had them tune and peak my radio, bought an antenna from them.
They do carry new radios, have some used stuff, some are already tuned and peaked, decent selection, man, I might have to visit them again lol
 
Daron,
just a tip, the guys that work there are OLD, they take their time, but they DO KNOW their CBs and HAMs, very fair, and helpful, Ive been there a few times, had them tune and peak my radio, bought an antenna from them.
They do carry new radios, have some used stuff, some are already tuned and peaked, decent selection, man, I might have to visit them again lol

Thanks. I'm going there tomorrow so we'll see what I get out of it. Does anyone have a sound clip or video of how loud the CB's PA feature is?

Thanks, Jordan
 
I had a PA with my old rig, it was big, but the volume worked with the volume on the CB, it was pretty loud, my kids LOVED it when they was young, I picked it up at Radio Shack, sorry I dont remember the model # but it was something like $50 IIRC
 

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