Fresh Batch of Drifter Mounts ready to ship

[Outdoorlogic]

3rd Gen Whip Mounts all powder coated and ready to ship!

T4R special coupon

DRIFTER
Outdoor Logic - Antenna Mounts

 

[steezemcqueen]

These mounts are awesome. They even cover up that dent under your tail light!

 

[hungwin jza80]

Mine should be arriving today!

 

[absalom]

I wish I had known before buying my mount, that putting the antenna on the corner of the vehicle is simply the worst spot to mount it.

 

[quicksilvr]

I wish I had known before buying my mount, that putting the antenna on the corner of the vehicle is simply the worst spot to mount it.

Explain?

 

[absalom]

Explain?

Gladly, but I'll preface it by saying this is not my own research. Upon receiving my mount I installed my antenna and then headed to CB Exchange in Mesa, AZ to get my SWR tuned. The owner, though impressed with the quality of my mount, was quick to point out that CB antennas function best when mounted "high and dead center". He rambled on and on about grounding planes, and how metal underneath the antenna serves as a runway for the signal.

Example; if you have the antenna mounted on the left rear corner of your truck (like I do), then the radio signal will be strongest out of the front right corner of the vehicle. However, the radio signal will strongly suffer out of the direct rear, right rear and left rear.

So while the mount positions the antenna in a very aesthetically pleasing manner, it does very little to provide us with the strongest possible signal.

 

[quicksilvr]

Interesting. In real life, does anyone that uses a CB on a regular basis notice a decrease in range from using the Drifter style mount? If I used a CB, I'd definitely use the Drifter style mount, just for the practicality and aesthetics. Can't see the range being affected so much as to make anyone NOT want to use it solely for that purpose, but maybe so.

 

[Pikeman]

Well I was a long haul trucker for years and they are mounted on most big rigs on the corner of the cab. While the gentleman from the CB shop is correct on best placement it is usually not practical for most people to either use a magnet mount(gets dirt trapped under scrtches paint and rusts and falls off regularly) or pull their headliner, drill a hole and do a roof mount. Most Jeeps run a bracket off their tail light in one corner same as the drifter mount. I had my antenna mounted to the rear bumper for a couple years prior to the Drifter mount and once tuned had no issues getting signal out. While it is not the most ideal place it is not the worst and one of the most common locations to mount an antenna on most 4x4 vehicles.

 

[Outdoorlogic]

Gladly, but I'll preface it by saying this is not my own research. Upon receiving my mount I installed my antenna and then headed to CB Exchange in Mesa, AZ to get my SWR tuned. The owner, though impressed with the quality of my mount, was quick to point out that CB antennas function best when mounted "high and dead center". He rambled on and on about grounding planes, and how metal underneath the antenna serves as a runway for the signal.

Example; if you have the antenna mounted on the left rear corner of your truck (like I do), then the radio signal will be strongest out of the front right corner of the vehicle. However, the radio signal will strongly suffer out of the direct rear, right rear and left rear.

So while the mount positions the antenna in a very aesthetically pleasing manner, it does very little to provide us with the strongest possible signal.

While I do not disagree that the best possible place to put a mount is top dead center of your vehicle, for many it is not practical. Try driving under a covered parking lot with that set up( lol I've done this ). We have sold many of these mounts with happy customers. Most are looking for basic abilities to reach out and touch the rigs in front of them. We have had many use this mount with HAM radios and reach out touch where ever they want. The average consumer is only purchasing a small CB unit with little power to do much more then talk to the end of the line or front of the line on the trail. Jeeps have been mounting off the rear corners long before 4 Runners entered the game. And They dont have a top metal center to mount to. ( Yes some had hard tops).... Absalom I wouldn't let the CB "pro" discourage you. It would be liking leaving your 4 Runner Stock because the engineers at Toyota never designed us to lift and modify our rigs. The beauty of it all is we take what we have and make it work for the applications we need.

 

[Outdoorlogic]

You type faster lol:ak472:

Well I was a long haul trucker for years and they are mounted on most big rigs on the corner of the cab. While the gentleman from the CB shop is correct on best placement it is usually not practical for most people to either use a magnet mount(gets dirt trapped under scrtches paint and rusts and falls off regularly) or pull their headliner, drill a hole and do a roof mount. Most Jeeps run a bracket off their tail light in one corner same as the drifter mount. I had my antenna mounted to the rear bumper for a couple years prior to the Drifter mount and once tuned had no issues getting signal out. While it is not the most ideal place it is not the worst and one of the most common locations to mount an antenna on most 4x4 vehicles.

 

[quicksilvr]

You type faster lol:ak472:

hahaha.



I was going to assume the same things. We used CB's on the farm when I grew up, and as long as you had the antenna standing up, it didn't seem to matter too much whether it was on top the cab in the middle, or just stuck on behind the cab on the edge of the truck bed.


I might by a mount just so I can be cool....even though I have no CB. lol

 

[Pikeman]

You type faster lol:ak472:

Actually I made it bring your dog to work day and I had Ranger type it.

 

[A.Wilson013]

I love the looks of my ODL mount.

I do not love the paint that is missing on my hatch from the times I have forgotten to push in on the mount while closing the hatch. Or the rust forming on the seams on the underside of the mount.

It does look great though.

 

[Pikeman]

Ranger browsing T4r while I work.

 

[Outdoorlogic]

That is awesome I need to get one of moose doing that

Ranger browsing T4r while I work.

 

[opie74]

While technically the best place to mount is high and center....

As long as the antenna is properly grounded to the chassis, you will have enough reach to accomplish the goal of staying in touch with your group. On my previous vehicle I had mine mounted on the left front fender and a buddy has his behind his spare tire on his wrangler. We live approx. 2-3 miles apart in the city and we could talk to one another just fine.

 

[hungwin jza80]

How is everyone grounding their antennas with the powdercoated mounts? Isn't the PC interrupting a good ground?

 

[4ever4running]

Is the coupon code still active? I just tried to enter it and it gave me an error message. I will buy one either way but I figure its worth asking about if I can get a couple bucks off. Thanks!

 

[Outdoorlogic]

code: DRIFTER

should still be active...Will have the web man take a peek.. If you have problems give me a call or shoot me an email

 

[4ever4running]

I received my mount on Friday and got it installed this weekend. I didn't scrape any paint off my truck or the mount and I was able to tune my antenna to an SWR of 1.2-1.4. Bump for a great mount at a great discounted price!