Mobile listening setup almost complete....

[canav844]

In a 2005 MINI Cooper

Installed:
Uniden B996T Programmed and in the glove box (with thru glass antenna)
Cobra 19 Ultra III CB (with thru glass antenna)
Motorola Talkabout T7400 FRS/GMRS with remote speaker/microphone
Valentine One Radar Locater with remote display
Garmin c550 GPS

Still to be put in:
Uniden BC-RH96 for B996T (will be under center console switches, casing partially modified)
External speaker for B996T
Complete wiring for 3 additional switched power supplies in glove box (to power the scanner and remote, hardware is in just needs wire run)

Some quick photos from this evening:

I'll update with 996 photos once the glove box wiring is cleaned up.

 

[af5rn]

Antenna pics! It's all about the antennae!

What kind of through-glass antennae are you using, and how is the performance?

 

[CLTX11]

I have never seen the inside of a cooper before, that looks good.

 

[RESCUE4NFD]

Nice Ride...

 

[SAR923]

I can't quite tell where everything is at but it sounds like you'll be well equipped. Let me guess...street racing a big hobby of yours?

 

[LOf674]

c550?

Curious how you mounted your garmin?

 

[canav844]

Let me guess...street racing a big hobby of yours?

Not in the slightest, street racing is a fools game. I'm a dispatcher, going through the Highway Patrol Officer process street racing is the last thing I'd do, and I do not appreciate insulations otherwise. The track (NASA member) with people that know how to drive in a controlled environment is much more smarter safer and more enjoyable, I payed a good chunk of change for my car I'm not gonna be dumb and wreck it. (Sorry if I seem rude but this hit a nerve I see too many lives wasted as a result of such poor choices behind the wheel)

I appreciate the other comments though,

The Garmin is mounted with the supplied suction cups but I mounted a piece of plexi-glass onto the side of the console using screws and holes already on the car to hold the trim around the radio. the back side of this also gave me the perfect spot to mount the CB mic without having to risk harming the dashboard.

The antennae I just picked up from the local RadioShack, one is made for CB the other made for scanners. I don't have much of a tin top roof with such a large sunroof and it's a hatch, so making the compromise for a thru-glass didn't seem like that bad of an option. The CB gets about 5-10miles of range which is usually good enough to keep me entertained and know about accidents before I reach them, and I'd estimate the scanner antenna to pull in towers that are easily 20-30mi away, but I haven't ever really taken the time to check where I was in relation to the towers. at any rate it is certainly better than the reception I got off my handhelds without antenna modifications that got me into scanning as a hobby (A Sportys aircraft one and a RadioShack pro-95) and the P25 systems are crystal clear.

I'll try and get the antenna photos while I'm out there cleaning up the glove box wiring so I can make the scanner more easily functional (for the longest time I'd just sit it on the passenger seat and tuck it away when I wasn't driving becauseI didn't know where to put it)

 

[SAR923]

OK, you are a safe driver and follow the law. How come you need a radar locator? I spent 30 years as a cop and have seen lots of street racer injuries and deaths too but I never had a radar locatior in my POV.

 

[andrewccm]

Hope you got a good anti-theft device too..

Looks like you have it well planned out. I couldn't comfortably fit in one of those vehicles, but think you have done a nice job so far..

Thanks for sharing.

 

[canav844]

OK, you are a safe driver and follow the law. How come you need a radar locator? I spent 30 years as a cop and have seen lots of street racer injuries and deaths too but I never had a radar locatior in my POV.

It's not a need it's a hobby, just like scanning. I like to know whats going on around me, and certainly when it pertains to the environment which directly effects me. It's the same as me dusting off the old handheld and plugging in airshow frequencies when I go watch the planes, or the race control frequencies at a NASCAR or Rolex race. Not everyone does it but I like to know what is going on. The more information I have the more relaxed I am, and being relaxed behind the wheel means I can focus on what the cars around me that aren't communicating their intentions are doing. To say radar detector/locator= street racer is no different in my mind than saying scanner = terrorist; and I'm quite sure this board proves otherwise.

I ended up babysitting my friends kids this evening so no time for more photos. I was really hoping that posting this might bring out a few others with MINIs though, while I've meet a few HAMs in the MINI community, I'm yet to find any serious scanner listeners and feel like putting radio equipment in this car is uncharted territory.

(BTW I'm 6'2"and the seat is only halfway back, small on the outside, huge on the inside)

 

[APTN]

I never imagined that much equipment in a mini cooper.

 

[canav844]

Scanner and antenna photos as promised.

 

[af5rn]

That's one antenna. You said you had two. Which one is that, the scanner antenna? And how is your performance with each antenna? Can you quantify it for us?

 

[canav844]

That's one antenna. You said you had two. Which one is that, the scanner antenna? And how is your performance with each antenna? Can you quantify it for us?

The other antenna is a mirror image, barring the SWR pinhole on the interior side of the thru-glass piece, and the different connectors on the back of the radio/scanners. The Scanner antenna is best reception I've ever had with a scanner, but I'd always used some variation of the "rubber duck" antennas, some times with a 6ft extension. I've since tuned the CB antenna but haven't really played with it enough to get an idea on the range. I realized after the mounting of them, that I put them way too low, visually it's nice, but I also realize the car is blocking potential signal receptions, so I'm weighing my options to fix that (it also tends to whistle on the highway, which can be annoying).

But my current basis for further quantifying the scanner range is also interrupted at the moment as I suffered a HD failure a few months ago and ever since re-installing my ARC software I've had issues loading frequencies, so I've only got one local trunked system stored in the scanner right now with which to evaluate the setup. Programming is one of the few areas I'm wishing it was as easy as my old RadioShack handheld scanner's interface, both on scanner and in PC

Ref the RD: I only mentioned it so the display would not be confused as being a component with any of the radio equipment, I'd like to keep further RD talk on the RD forums with that community as it is a hobby in it's own right. Lets keep this thread on topic, scanners and radios.

 

[af5rn]

Thanks for the update! I look forward to hearing more about your experiences with the glass-mount antennae. With so many people out there being so terrified of drilling holes in their 1973 Ford Pinto, they are often looked at options that it would be helpful to have some quantitative reports on.

And FYI, radar is radio, and detecting it is scanning.

 

[scannerfreak]

I have deleted several posts..Please do not hijack threads..

 

[snikliw87]

Just curious... how does the wire get from the back of the glass to that antenna? Also is it adhesive?

 

[GrumpyGuard]

You might want to try putting shrink tubing on your antenna, it will stop the whistle when you drive on the highway. I have a similar antenna on my car. This works good and it did not seem to interfear with the reception or transmission of my radio equipment.

 

[af5rn]

As long as the whistle isn't audible from 50 feet or more away, it's not illegal.