Grounding on Rago CB Mounts

snif6969

snif6969

New member
Hello Friends,

How did you ground your Rago CB mount ?

Since it's installed sandwiching the plastic bumper...

I'm guessing I also need to strip the paint by the mount/antenna mating surface


Thanks for your input :)

:pray:
 
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snif6969 said:
Hello Friends,

How did you ground your Rago CB mount ?

Since it's installed sandwiching the plastic bumper...

I'm guessing I also need to strip the paint by the mount/antenna mating surface


Thanks for your input :)

:pray:
Click to expand...

been meaning to post this. curious too. I got everything installed radio and all, didnt get to ground it so its not working yet.. Thinking maybe a longer ground and run it inside to ground? I google it and just see them mounted and not even wired. :doh:
 
vtecturtle said:
been meaning to post this. curious too. I got everything installed radio and all, didnt get to ground it so its not working yet.. Thinking maybe a longer ground and run it inside to ground? I google it and just see them mounted and not even wired. :doh:
Click to expand...

even on my diamond mount i ran its own ground and out it onto the plate. Since its a sandwhich plate and grounds from the entire plate. Run a wire and ground it from the back side to the chassis.
 
vtecturtle said:
been meaning to post this. curious too. I got everything installed radio and all, didnt get to ground it so its not working yet.. Thinking maybe a longer ground and run it inside to ground? I google it and just see them mounted and not even wired. :doh:
Click to expand...

I know ! All the pics are missing the wiring !
 
boyguan said:
even on my diamond mount i ran its own ground and out it onto the plate. Since its a sandwhich plate and grounds from the entire plate. Run a wire and ground it from the back side to the chassis.
Click to expand...

Starting to think that - wire a ground from the rear drivers side light to the inner part of the mount.

Now the question is - are those screws a good grounding method ?
 
snif6969 said:
Starting to think that - wire a ground from the rear drivers side light to the inner part of the mount.

Now the question is - are those screws a good grounding method ?
Click to expand...

should be. test it with a multimeter after. Usually threads are not coated and should ground easily
 
RF grounds =/= electrical grounds, make sure you use a grounding strap and not just a wire

If this is for CB i would probably just get an NGP antenna though, you won't really be grounding to anything that makes sense as a ground plane in that location.
 
Where is your mount located? Mine is on the passenger side of the hood. I ran a ground wire down to a bolt that was grounded. Some bolts attached to the body are not grounded, so check with a meter. Don't forget to tune your radio.
 
e60ral said:
RF grounds =/= electrical grounds, make sure you use a grounding strap and not just a wire

If this is for CB i would probably just get an NGP antenna though, you won't really be grounding to anything that makes sense as a ground plane in that location.
Click to expand...

I don't really know the difference to be honest, what should I look for ?

Zapper said:
Where is your mount located? Mine is on the passenger side of the hood. I ran a ground wire down to a bolt that was grounded. Some bolts attached to the body are not grounded, so check with a meter. Don't forget to tune your radio.
Click to expand...

Yeah friend of mine has a SWR meter for that purpose :)
I will be using the Rago Antenna mount with a Firestik, just like in this pic:

image_54afc56d-8280-43b8-b387-3ebf1b4d0c69_1349x.jpg
 
maybe ill just run a strap with the antenna wire?

Ill be doing a new rear bumper so this mount will only be temporary but i would like to get this working already lol
 

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vtecturtle said:
maybe ill just run a strap with the antenna wire?

Ill be doing a new rear bumper so this mount will only be temporary but i would like to get this working already lol
Click to expand...

Gosh that red antenna looks dope ! :mullet:

To be honest I'm not sure what's the preferred grounding method,

Antenna to mount to truck ?
Antenna to truck ?
 
OK OK - this is really a bonding issue and not a grounding issue since the vehicle is not really grounded at all. :closed_2:
 
snif6969 said:
I don't really know the difference to be honest, what should I look for ?



Yeah friend of mine has a SWR meter for that purpose :)
I will be using the Rago Antenna mount with a Firestik, just like in this pic:
Click to expand...
RF is on the skin of the wire, so RF grounding straps are usually flat braided cables so they have a lot of surface area. The orientation of the ground plane matters, so if you are using the rear quarter panel as a ground plane it's not the ideal orientation for antenna performance.

This is a poor description, but you can kind of think of the ground plane as what reflects the radio waves so the rear quarter panel is a weird orientation for reflecting radio waves from the antenna. You could also get a No Ground Plane (NGP) antenna which is specifically tuned to not need a ground plane.

If you just need enough range for trail coms I doubt it will make enough difference to matter, but if you are mounting to a plastic panel I would probably just get an NGP antenna and not worry about it. Firestik makes NGP antennas.

manganos said:
OK OK - this is really a bonding issue and not a grounding issue since the vehicle is not really grounded at all. :closed_2:
Click to expand...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_plane
 
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e60ral said:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_plane
Click to expand...

I'm well versed on what a GP is ;)

I remember back in the day of 16 pill davemades then when I was 13 I recieved my first ham ticket.

Not one place in the vehicle is an earth ground.

Then we can get into the discussion into the antenna and the placement of the antenna. Mounting it on the back with the Rago mount will give you a directional antenna. The best would be to locate the antenna in the middle of the vehicle to get an omni-directional pattern.
 
[MENTION=139789]RagoFabrication[/MENTION] if you could help us on this matter that would be awesome :)

I was hoping somebody with a Rago CB mount could answer, they seem pretty popular !

What other options are there ? (no metal drilling, specifically for 4R)
 
snif6969 said:
[MENTION=139789]RagoFabrication[/MENTION] if you could help us on this matter that would be awesome :)

I was hoping somebody with a Rago CB mount could answer, they seem pretty popular !

What other options are there ? (no metal drilling, specifically for 4R)
Click to expand...

Hey Guys...

For complete honesty....we are NOT CB experts and highly recommend consulting with a local CB shop.

With that being said, we do work with a local CB shop designing and manufacturing mounts for them.

We had a ton of requests for a lower bumper CB mount. This is the solution we came up with. When we consulted with the CB shop, they recommended the set-up we have posted on our website. As far as the routing, so far I haven't seen any one that has taken the time to hide the wires but it can be done with time and patience. We haven't wired ours simply because we don't have the time to tear out the interior to do it.

I know this isn't too helpful but I have sold a TON of them. Join our FB Group - Rago Cool Kids. You will get much more input from our customers.

Melissa Rago
 
Anyone have their final solution? I just mounted this and am having high SWR. I may just have to go with the non ground antenna and coax.
 
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