lo profile 11meter antenna

[JCunningham17]

I have a 17 Camaro SS that i want to put a radio in but having a big antenna isnt really something i want to do. they probably dont make anything decent like a rear window antenna or anything. A president NY maybe. Actually i could even do a roof mount without having to drill as there is a hole for the xm antenna in the rear center of the roof. not positive on the radio. maybe a uniden cmx760 and a rm203.

 

[n3obl]

low profile and cb just dont go together. Simplest would be a lil wilson mag mount antenna.

 

[jassing]

I would go with a trunk mount. A roof mount is best if it's centered on the roof. A trunk mount is an easy install, as long as you can still open the trunk w/o the antenna hitting the roof. No matter what, you'll end up with some paint rub/loss of glossiness. AVOID magnetic mounts, those tear up the paint.
Another optional location is a hood mount. it's on a bent bar that mounts on the quarter panel and comes up between the hood & the panel. it looks a little like the old am/fm antennas -- I think this might be your best bet to save the paint job...

Just my $.02

 

[JCunningham17]

the gaps wont allow a trunk or fender mount. and I wouldnt be able to open the truck with the antenna on. If i did a magnet mount id put some clear vinyl on the car.

 

[JCunningham17]

i have a new Wilson 1000 mag mount sitting here. i could get a roof mount kit for it and put it in the xm antenna hole. i can listen to XM with my phone over the car radio.

 

[jassing]

Vinyl between the mount & car would make hte antenna work poorly. It needs the connection to the metal... The paint is already in the way, making them a poor choice, but adding an insulating layer would make it perform if worse.

Get a sturdy roof mount, it needs to be really solid so that hits to the antenna don't pull up the sheet metal. I would use a spring if you go that route.
Don't forget to tune the antenna after the install.

 

[JCunningham17]

o ya i have a pretty decent swr meter

 

[russbrill]

I have a 17 Camaro SS that i want to put a radio in but having a big antenna isnt really something i want to do. they probably dont make anything decent like a rear window antenna or anything. A president NY maybe. Actually i could even do a roof mount without having to drill as there is a hole for the xm antenna in the rear center of the roof. not positive on the radio. maybe a uniden cmx760 and a rm203.

A K40 if you do a permanent mount.. The K40 has a quarter turn release so you can remove the coil and stinger.. Works great when going through the car wash... If you use a mag mount one of these will work, little Wilson, Wilson 1000, and or K40...

 

[n9mxq]

Why not NMO since you have an existing hole? I have one I'm hoping to put on my Jeep (Was on my Pickup until the motor blew). Easy enough to unscrew and cap for garages/car wash.. With the added benefit of not looking like a CB antenna to most people.

 

[2IR473]

A couple of thoughts on this...
If you run an RM203 behind the radio, a magnetic mount is not a good way to go. If you are running additional RF power, you want to reduce the possibility of damaging the RM203 as well as the vehicle electronics by making sure you have a good antenna install, and reduce any stray RF that could cause damage to the vehicle electronics.

Also, modern vehicles have extensive electronics, and it is likely that the radio will be impacted by this, such as excessive noise in the RX. When you add the additional performance enhancements of the SS package, it adds to the potential for noise (high output ignition, direct injection, fuel pump noise, etc.).

I had a ‘96 Impala SS, and I had to bond the body and exhaust system to the frame, in order to run a Magnum 357 (which had a 100 watt RF deck). The bonding helped eliminate the excessive ignition noise from the car, and also helped make the SWR very acceptable.

I used a Larsen NMO-27B (B for black) on a trunk lip-mount. I’d be surprised if you couldn’t get something like that on the edge of your trunk. It worked well (when properly bonded) and it looked good on a performance vehicle. Plus, as an added benefit, I had a badge back then since I was a LEO, and having the Impala SS along with the Larsen antenna on the back, got traffic out of my way !

 

[JCunningham17]

that NMO-27B would look good. On the police Interceptors Camaro they put the antenna on the trunk but in the rear just in front of the spoiler. that way they can open the trunk. I could cut a hole in the trunk lid. The trunk lid is easily replaced if i ever sell the car. I think i will go that route. thanks. Should i do a RF filter? I have a Snake Radio Customs Uniden 980SSB with a RM203 and Wilson 5000 roof mount in my 17 Silverado. I dont notice any noise with the truck running or off. Doesnt even interfere with the XM.

 

[JCunningham17]

does it matter 3/4" or 3/8" hole?

https://www.theantennafarm.com/catalog/larsen-nmokhfudpli-1867

https://www.theantennafarm.com/catalog/larsen-nmo27b-6439 or with a wipe https://www.theantennafarm.com/catalog/larsen-nmo27bs-8342 and a Uniden Uniden CMX760 I can do the whole system in the trunk. the mic has all the controls and it attached the the box with a ethernet cable. I wanted to do another 980 because i wanted side bands but there is no room in the cockpit where it won't be in the way or hurt someone in a accident. I forgot about the roof hole for the xm antenna. The steel is very very thin to save weight. It won't support a antenna with out adding a plate. The trunk is thicker aluminum. I n=bet this antenna will stop people from trying to race me.

 

[mmckenna]

that NMO-27B would look good.

I've been running the NMO-27 off and on for nearing 30 years. You won't find a higher quality antenna. It's not hobby/cb grade junk.

On the police Interceptors Camaro they put the antenna on the trunk but in the rear just in front of the spoiler. that way they can open the trunk.

If that works, that works. You may have someone tell you that it 'must' be in the center of the vehicle to make use of the full ground plane potential the vehicle can offer. That would mean the NMO mount dead center of the roof.
That's probably not what you want to do, although it would work a bit better. Truth is, on a passenger car, you'll never have enough metal under the antenna to be a 'perfect' ground plane. The car just isn't big enough. So, we do the best we can. Mounting it there on the trunk will make it slightly directional towards the front of the vehicle, but it'll work just fine.
Just be sure the trunk lid is metal, and not composite, plastic, etc.

I could cut a hole in the trunk lid. The trunk lid is easily replaced if i ever sell the car.

Or, put a NMO cap on there. Or, replace the NMO-27 with a NMO base cell antenna and tell the new owner it works great for coverage. Truth is, a properly installed NMO mount will not impact trade in value.

I think i will go that route. thanks. Should i do a RF filter? I have a Snake Radio Customs Uniden 980SSB with a RM203 and Wilson 5000 roof mount in my 17 Silverado. I dont notice any noise with the truck running or off. Doesnt even interfere with the XM.

A properly installed CB with properly installed and tuned antenna shouldn't need filters. It's usually poor installation that causes issues.
Power for the radio and the amplifier need to come straight off the battery. Ground the negative leads to the vehicle chassis, NOT the negative terminal of the battery.
Ground the radio chassis and amp chassis direct to the vehicle body with as short a strap as you can use. Do not rely on the negative power lead or the coax shield for your ground.
Route power wiring away from other vehicle wiring by several inches. Cross other wiring bundles at 90º angles.
Same with the coaxial cable, keep it well away from other vehicle wiring.
Make sure your antenna is properly tuned.

I've never needed to run any sort of power filtering on any radios I've installed. Never needed one on a CB, but I've never run an amplifier. While there are rare applications where one might be needed, most of the issues can be solved with proper install techniques. Too many want to rush the install and cut corners. That leads to issues.

 

[JCunningham17]

thanks. I did run the ground to the battery on the Silverado. ill change it. The trunk is aluminum on the car. I ordered a NMO-27B didnt get the spring loaded. dont thing ill be hitting anything with it. it will be shorter than my truck is tall.

 

[JCunningham17]

well i zoomed in on the pics of the police cars. they do roof mounts on the roof. The xm antenna hole is square but a 3/8" mount would work. I ordered the 3/4" There is a support going down the center of the roof. The trunk actually opens so far that it tilts down so I would have to fab a stop so the antenna doesnt hit the roof.

 

[mmckenna]

I've never used a spring on my NMO-27, and it was mounted on the top of full size pickups. Of course I removed it before parking garages, but tons of off road, tree branches, etc. The whips are really flexible, so I don't think it would be necessary on your car.

I've heard the changed the coating on the whip to something more durable. At one point mine had the black whip, but I swapped it for the chrome whip. The older black whips would suffer from the black coating coming off when it hit something. Started to look a little bad after a while. Purely cosmetic and didn't impact the performance. I could touch them up with a black sharpie and it would work for a while.
But, like I said, I was told they changed the coating material and it's no longer an issue.
But the black does look good.

 

[tunnelmot]

My vote is the Larsen NMO-27 with a proper quality NMO mount on the trunk deck further rearward as stated. Looks profesional, and you can screw a raincap on for washes, etc. Larsen knows what's up and when it's time to sell an NMO delete plug is a non-issue compared to all the other junk people leave on their cars at trade in time. If I were to add 11 meter to the mobile, the Larsen is the only whip I would consider. I would love to see someone with the proper equipment sweep the Larsen(properly mounted) to all the 3/8" mount junk out there and finally put the questions to rest

 

[tunnelmot]

Oh wow. Looks like mmckenna already hooked us up in this thread!
Larsen NMO27 reviews? Pictures?
Shows how long it's been since I've checked out the CB forum...

 

[FiveFilter]

Just to address a few fears expressed above about the use of magnet-mount, no-holes-in-roof antennas:

---They don't damage paint if you take reasonable precautions, like not pulling the attached mag mount over a dirty surface, which could cause scratches, of course. Also, I always remove my mag-mounts when not being used for a few days, since moisture can accumulate under the mount and potentially affect the paint in some way. If the mount is left in place over long periods, it makes sense to remove it once in a while and wipe off the moisture and any accumulated dirt. However, if left in place for really long periods, the paint underneath the mount could be less sun-damaged than the rest of the roof, which could give the unprotected part of the roof a little different patina than the small part protected by the mount.

---If it makes you queasy to put a mag mount directly on the painted surface, a thin piece of plastic won't affect performance. I've done it myself without experiencing any performance problems. The RF signal to ground is unaffected by plastic. However, I generally don't bother to use any such protective measure since I've found it to be unnecessary.

---An amplifier the power of a 100-watt Italy RL203 will not experience problems with a mag mount. I use a 203P with mag mount antennas all the time without problems. There are limits, of course, to the use of really powerful amplifiers. I've read of folks using some of the big amplifiers with mag mounts and finding the paint to eventually discolor a bit under the mount. However, the problems come with the use of amps that produce hundreds or even thousands of amps which really heats up the connectivity surfaces between the mount and the painted metal. If such power is desired, then perhaps punching holes is the best course to keep the paint pristine, if, however, you don't count the hole you punched through the paint as affecting the definition of a pristine condition

 

[JCunningham17]

im going to do the NMO27B roof mount on the trunk. I can replace the trunk lid if I want to resell. I like professional looking installations so no coax showing. I already ordered everything. wish i could post pics here.