I purchased a Motorola CDM1250 a while ago for a dedicated GMRS rig and finally got around to installing it in my 2103 F-150.
I chose to install the radio in the center console, so I made a mount from some 3/4" MDF and some 1" pine:
I laid on a few coats of Krylon textured flat black paint after a quick test fit. The whole unit drops in and out of the center console easily and fits snugly inside. To power the radio (and future radios) I installed a 50A sub panel inside the center console. I ran 10ga wire from the battery, through the firewall, and up the transmission hump to get power to the panel:
For now I'm running a mag mount with a 5/8 wave antenna. My truck has a sunroof which complicates antenna placement a little bit. My work has underground parking, and the truck has about 1" of clearance with the stock ride height and any roof mounted antenna will be damaged if it is not removed before entering the garage. Not sure what I want to do about that yet... I'm also planning on installing a scanner in the console as well, using a front fender mounted antenna placed near the stock AM/FM antenna which I have removed. Also on the todo list is adding a tray that will fill in the empty space around the radios, hide the fuse panel, and help regain some storage space.
I chose to install the radio in the center console, so I made a mount from some 3/4" MDF and some 1" pine:
I laid on a few coats of Krylon textured flat black paint after a quick test fit. The whole unit drops in and out of the center console easily and fits snugly inside. To power the radio (and future radios) I installed a 50A sub panel inside the center console. I ran 10ga wire from the battery, through the firewall, and up the transmission hump to get power to the panel:
For now I'm running a mag mount with a 5/8 wave antenna. My truck has a sunroof which complicates antenna placement a little bit. My work has underground parking, and the truck has about 1" of clearance with the stock ride height and any roof mounted antenna will be damaged if it is not removed before entering the garage. Not sure what I want to do about that yet... I'm also planning on installing a scanner in the console as well, using a front fender mounted antenna placed near the stock AM/FM antenna which I have removed. Also on the todo list is adding a tray that will fill in the empty space around the radios, hide the fuse panel, and help regain some storage space.
