I cannot tell if my CB has a problem or if it is my friends.

I can receive well, but when i transmit, he says it comes through garbled and cut off. Is this a problem with my CB/antenna or his?

DId you adjust the SWR of your antenna?

I think it's your issue since you receive well.

If you are very close to your friend, the signal will overpower his, causing it to cut out and sound garbled.

Hold the mic a few inches from your mouth and speak clearly. Do not yell or put the mic against you mouth.

Your antenna may be too close to metal. For example, if you have a pickup and the antenna is mounted to the rear bumper, it may kill the signal or even cause it to squeal. CB antennas work best when they have a flat metal surface UNDER them to act as a 'ground plane'. This ground plane directs the signal. An improper set-up will reflect the signal back into the antenna.

I have an "L" bracket that sticks up above the truck and has a hole for the antenna to screw into, so if I understand what your saying, that is a good ground plane?

If it sticks up above the roof, the roof becomes the ground plane.
One example: If the antenna is mounted on the rear edge of the roof, the signal will be strongest toward the front of the truck, where the ground plane is.

whaddya think about a front bumper mount?

i'll only have my antennae on while trail riding, but I'm just going to do it to the side of the tool-box...

this should work, correct?

yes it will work, the whole ground plane thing is where you receive/trasmit the best. On most antenna the signal trasmits around the center of the antenna so the center of the should be above the roof of the truck.


Here is a little info I came acrossed.

• If you put 4 watts into a four-foot antenna, you will get the same power out of that antenna as if you were putting 2 watts into a 102-inch whip.
  
• If you put 4 watts into a 3-foot antenna you will get the same power out as if you wre putting about 1.5 watts into a 102-inch whip.
  
• If you put 4 watts into a 7.5 inch antenna on a hand held CB, it would put out as much power as a third of a watt into a 102-whip.
  
• If you put 4 watts into a 102-inch whip antenna, it is the same output as if you put 11 watts into a 3-foot whip.
  
• If you put 4 watts into a 102-inch whip antenna,, it is the same as if you put 14 watts into a 28-inch antenna.
  
• If you put 4 watts into a 102-inch whip antenna, it is the same as if you put 54 watts into a 7.5 antenna.

Wouldn't those different antenna lenghts throw the SWR way off tho?

I thought there was an optimal antenna length for every radio and mounting point.

The length of the antenna has to be a certain multiple of the standing wave length of the frequency you are broadcasting/receiving on for optimal efficiency.

I believe a 102" whip would be around 1/4 wave (a bit short of that).

quote:

whaddya think about a front bumper mount?

I have no problem with that. I think ill pick up a new antenna today and see what happens.

I was at CB Exchange yesterday getting a lesson on placement of the antenna. Of course, optimal place is in the center of the roof of your car or truck, you get full circle range.

If you place it on the rear bumper, you will have great front range and crappy rear range. If you place it on the front bumper, great rear range, crappy front range. So if you have a front bumper mount, you should be leading the pack, and if you have a rear bumper mount, you should be at the tail end of the pack. That is if you want to talk to everyone in the pack.

Another good option is the dual mid side mounts, best of all worlds. I have read the reviews on the Wilson 1000 & 5000, appear they are the best out there and work perfectly if you switch to HAM.

A front bumper mount is making more and more sense then.

I'll keep my wilson 1000 on the roof. (mostly because I drilled a big ass hole to mount the antenna base, )

..

IMHO... After radioing and 4x4ing for decades the magnetic-mount base-load on a metal roof has been the best 4x4 trail antenna. Low tree limbs will tip it over with any damage. However the wind can blow them over at 115 MPH... but I rarely get over 85 these days.

Main antenna is 14 feet from ground 73s good buddies WB5ZCR

Have a good one while you can still laugh about it.. Don S..
Globalization is a Corporate / Political plan designed to reduce the American blue collar worker to the lower standards of living of the third world blue collar workers.

quote:

Originally posted by gumybob:
Another good option is the dual mid side mounts, best of all worlds. I have read the reviews on the Wilson 1000 & 5000, appear they are the best out there and work perfectly if you switch to HAM.

That will give you great range forward and backward, but it will be severely limited to the sides. Excellent if you're in a truck on the interstate, not so good if you're winding your way through the desert trying to talk to a group spread out around you. At the ranges we use though, any location should work.

-Spike

Twins need to be about 9' apart, also.

According to the diagrams at CB Exchange, the twin mount gave you the greatest coverage overall, including side to side. You have the one on the right that gives you the range on the left side, and the one on the left covers the right side. The diagrams did not state a distance apart so they could very well have been talking about twin mounts on semi's. I have seen this chart somewhere else before.

http://www.signalengineering.com/ultimate/mobile_pattern_co.jpg

Radiation pattern of Co-Phased antennas. The pattern is now more consistent in every direction, and is less influenced by the body of the vehicle.

Hmm, that contradicts the information I got from several sources when I was researching where to mount my antenna. I also heard the antennas would not be effective less than ~9 feet apart- in effect they would cancel each other out. I guess you've got to decide who to trust and then try it yourself- can't argue with results. Like I said earlier, most of our trail communication is close range, you can damn near yell out the window to each other. People who get anal about antenna placement and length and power are looking for maximum range- which is like 2 miles anyway (skip excluded, as it's not very reliable). Stick a 3" cellular look-alike CB antenna on your driveshaft and it'll probably do the job.

-Spike

you can Co-Phased antennas with less then 9 feet apart with no problems. most people use the 50ohm on Co-Phase and you need to use 75ohm on co-phase. you do get better front and rear, and side is like you have a single antenna. As for extra power it isn't needed, most of the time it will make you sound like you are talking into a tin can. That is why my power is turned off unless I need to reach out and touch some one but most of the time the 200 watts I have doesn't get much farther the the avg radio. maybe 2-3 miles more.