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Ideas needed for a CB radio


DeaconKC

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Okay folks, I am wanting to mount my trusty old CB in my 2018 Ford F150. However, it is an aluminum bodied truck so my old magnetic antennae won't stick to the body. I really don't want to go drilling holes in it. Anybody got an idea?

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CB radio?  I remember using them in the 60s and 70s but thought they had pretty much died out.  In addition to the bumper mounted models they use to make antennas with suction cup bases that you could stick on a smooth surface.  You could also try gluing it on with rubber cement or some other cement that call be cut with a wire and the remains peeled off.

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Depending on what antenna you want to run and what kind of range you expect, there are a couple of options.

 

There are clamps that can be connected to your hood, truck bed and bumper.

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I used half a bracket to mount the antenna to the tube of a truck mirror, found a spot in the bed of my Tundra and mounted it there. I did need to drill one small hole, but it wasn’t noticeable there with the spray in bed liner.

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I did see an article on QRZ.com about mounting a ham radio in an F150 that might offer some insight. I’ll try to find it when I get home tonight. Trying to find things like that on my phone are a challenge.

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CB Radio??  Really??  No Kidding??  I haven't seen a Pick-up or a Car with an antenna farm for absolutely YEARS.  I actually have no clue to mounting on Al-U-Minimum.

 

Yep.  No help to the OP.  It's Thursday.  Just finished mowing the lawn.  Nope.  Still no good ideas.  Still have to rout the CoAx too.  Best of Luck.  CB.  Kind of Retro idnnit??

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1 minute ago, Colorado Coffinmaker said:

Best of Luck.  CB.  Kind of Retro idnnit??

Yes, but when traveling I like to be able monitor channel 19 when the Interstate comes to a standstill and I can't see where the line of traffic ends.  Sometimes it helps to find an exit in that situation, sometimes it doesn't.  I at least feel a little better knowing how far the obstruction is ahead of me.  Kinda like having a light at the end of the tunnel.

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Does it have a steel tool box? Might look at that for the magnetic mount. I installed CB's and car stereos, my first job LONG ago (summer of '76). It may have to be a grounded surface. I've slept since then and needless to say vehicles have changed just a bit. ;)

JHC

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Lift the hood, on the driver side pull the second bolt from the firewall on the front quarter panel under the lip of the hood. Use the bolt to install a z bracket for antenna mount. You might need to run a ground wire from the bracket to the frame

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3 hours ago, Chief Rick said:

Yes, but when traveling I like to be able monitor channel 19 when the Interstate comes to a standstill and I can't see where the line of traffic ends.  Sometimes it helps to find an exit in that situation, sometimes it doesn't.  I at least feel a little better knowing how far the obstruction is ahead of me.  Kinda like having a light at the end of the tunnel.

Believe it or not if you use Google map you can set it up to let you know what the traffic is like. I used google map all the time for traffic condition when I was driving trucks

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6 minutes ago, The Shoer 27979 said:

Believe it or not if you use Google map you can set it up to let you know what the traffic is like. I used google map all the time for traffic condition when I was driving trucks

My daughter (who is an OTR driver) and my wife both have their phones set up with this.  It's not always accurate, though, as the wife and I found out two weeks ago on a road trip to PA.

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The whole Citizens Band program has changed. New rules and procedures now. I don’t know if channels have changed. The FCC site explains it sort of.

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I have been without one since retiring 4 years ago, but Sunday we hit Memphis, where the traffic was so backed up we took over 2 hours to go 7 miles. I just want it for "the light at the end of the tunnel" as was mentioned above, or for the unseen emergency.

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I should elaborate, since I was typing from my phone earlier. I used half of a two piece mount, the half meant to hold the antenna, intended to clamp to a truck's mirror.

The F150 info for ham radio can be found here. I didn't read it completely, as I realized it didn't apply to my Tundra:

http://www.k0bg.com/bonding.html

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7 hours ago, Capt. James H. Callahan said:

Does it have a steel tool box? Might look at that for the magnetic mount. I installed CB's and car stereos, my first job LONG ago (summer of '76). It may have to be a grounded surface. I've slept since then and needless to say vehicles have changed just a bit. ;)

JHC

No tool box, but the roll-up tonneau cover may have some steel mountings, will check when I get home!

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I was going to suggest some double sided tape(The kind used for mounting the door protector strips,Made by 3-M) and a piece of sheet metal and find a nice flat spot to stick it to on the truck.

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Problem is I've had one in my truck since 2003. I now only turn it on when on the interstate highways and in Wichita proper but it's been mostly silent on all channels.

Years ago channel 19 saved me from a sure accident in the Flint Hills. I was warned by a trucker there was a dead deer lying on the highway at the same mile marker I was on and I was totally engulfed by a dense fog with very little visibility. In fact I had slowed down to 45 mph on I-35!

I managed to change lanes in time keeping me from a disaster. I just whish CB's where popular again for a better transportation communication.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

hey were more popular again. They have their place in transportation communication. 

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10 hours ago, Chief Rick said:

Yes, but when traveling I like to be able monitor channel 19 when the Interstate comes to a standstill and I can't see where the line of traffic ends.  Sometimes it helps to find an exit in that situation, sometimes it doesn't.  I at least feel a little better knowing how far the obstruction is ahead of me.  Kinda like having a light at the end of the tunnel.

All of us truckers use the waze app on our phone for such as that now. No time to pick the mic up anymore, as everyone is to busy texting. Don't even use the citizens band when communicating with my pilot car anymore. We just stay connected with our cell and blue tooth. To try and help with your project, several companies do sell stake pocket mounts for the bed of your truck. 

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They're called backup radios now. When traffic backs up they get turned on and used for 1 question. What lane do I need?

That and asking a driver if they want some commercial company while they're trying to get their 10.

 

Antennae need a good ground plane to work properly. Just mounting a sheet of metal isn't really the right way to do it. The reason magnet mounts work is cause they touch the grounded body of the vehicle. Without the ground not such a good wave propagation.

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