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Project25_MASTR
Millennial Graying OBT Guy
I love it when people aren't afraid of drilling holes in the roof.
KampingAnthony1AolCo
Member
KampingAnthony1AolCo
Member
Very neat setup and cool truck. By the way this is on topic jwilson2013.
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
There are a couple of things that can happen:
Desense- this is when the transmitted signal is powerful enough to overwhelm the receiver. It's similar if you were trying to listen to someone whispering across the room, and someone came in talking loudly. Your FRS radio, that is probably radiating less than 300 milliwatts is probably doing this to your scanner. If they are in close proximity the FRS radio is "shouting" loud enough that the scanner can't hear the weaker signals. Not surprising at all, and unlikely to cause any permanent damage.
Outright damage- This happens when the transmitted signal is strong enough to do actual damage to the other radio. This is what happened between my dad's UHF Icom and his Yaesu 2 meter radio. The poor filtering on the amateur radio was overwhelmed by the proximity and power of the UHF radio, and it physically damaged the front end of the receiver.
Your scanner is suffering from desense from your FRS radio when you transmit. Moving them farther apart will reduce/prevent this.
KampingAnthony1AolCo
Member
That one radio in there looks mighty lonely!
Mike
Mike
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
Thank you for answering my question and being nice about it.
No problem. You had a good question and it deserved a proper answer.
Thanks!
I agree, it does! I have been trying to figure out what else I should get. Any suggestions?
Well I listened to your suggestions about my VHF antenna being to close to my Wilson cell phone booster antenna and installed a new Low-Profile or Phantom antenna for the Wilson booster about 2 feet away from my VHF antenna. So the middle antenna, which was used for my booster is no longer hooked to anything. I will either leave it as is or replace it with another low profile antenna rather than plugging it with a hole plug.
I also replaced the VHF antenna with a 21'' whip by Laird.
I also replaced the VHF antenna with a 21'' whip by Laird.
Attachments
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
https://www.tessco.com/products/displayProductInfo.do?sku=85487
Cap it off, that way the antenna close to the VHF whip won't mess with the pattern.
Or, put the VHF antenna in the center of the cab, where it has a more suitable ground plane for VHF, and put the Wilson antenna on the rear. You could still use the center NMO for a scanner or some other non transmitting device (GPS?)
Good looking set up, great looking truck.
I've been a Larsen customer for a long time, been happy with their antennas. I recently bought a half wave Laird VHF antenna for use on my Polaris Ranger. It'll get beat pretty hard where it's located. Looking to see how well it stands up. I figure if the Laird will survive, then I just might change the antennas on my truck. I'm sure where you are located, the antennas take quite a beating from the weather.
Cap it off, that way the antenna close to the VHF whip won't mess with the pattern.
Or, put the VHF antenna in the center of the cab, where it has a more suitable ground plane for VHF, and put the Wilson antenna on the rear. You could still use the center NMO for a scanner or some other non transmitting device (GPS?)
Good looking set up, great looking truck.
I've been a Larsen customer for a long time, been happy with their antennas. I recently bought a half wave Laird VHF antenna for use on my Polaris Ranger. It'll get beat pretty hard where it's located. Looking to see how well it stands up. I figure if the Laird will survive, then I just might change the antennas on my truck. I'm sure where you are located, the antennas take quite a beating from the weather.
scannermanner1
Member
I'm impressed that you would do NMO mounts in that brand new truck !!
I see you're in the DOT yard
I see you're in the DOT yard
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
I'm impressed that you would do NMO mounts in that brand new truck !!
I see you're in the DOT yard
Yeah, that takes some guts. I did my dad's 2013 Chevy, he picked it up at the dealer and drove straight to my house. I did make him drill the hole, though.
scannermanner1
Member
that is incredible !
you really can't go wrong with NMO mount when installed correctly
scannermanner1
Member
Any performance tests with the 2 different phone booster antennas yet??
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
Yeah, much better than brackets and magnets. No compromises. I've installed a lot of them over the years, and never had one leak. Putting them in on a brand new truck takes some confidence in their quality. But, then again, I guess for those that are amateur radio operators, trying to install a radio on the wife's mini-van, they get over ruled.
Haven't tried them out yet, I will post as to which one works better though.
Agreed, this is my third brand new truck that I've installed them on and have never had one leak. My first time I was a bit worried about drilling holes through a brand new vehicle, but now am confident they work great and can handle Maine winters without a problem.
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