New to CB and New to the Forum...

[slowmover]

DELRIN is on my list. Needed.

I went to crank down my puck mount and the “rubber” gasket just didn’t have the resistance to crush I wanted to see.

No matter what I change, the hard part (location) will make it worthwhile.

FWIW, I’m using a 1.5” SS hex head screw as “cover” for mine when antennas off. Not really weatherproof, but it keeps the trash out. I guess I should cut a gasket for it. Found it in my pocket one day, don’t remember where/what it was associated.

Big Ears are like watching a garden take shape. Son sent results of grading and topsoil amendment. Now the lawn is taking shape to hold the slope:



The hard part is over (heavy work) once 12-VDC is quiet and first iteration of coax system proves out. Location is easy once chosen, cabling is the bear.

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[niceguy71]

Speaker mounted under seat has its problems...

Namely this:

View attachment 166816

Can barely get my liquor bottle (first aid?) under there, let alone a speaker 🤣

Could mount forward of there, but gonna take a inadvertent beating (kicking) from time to time.

View attachment 166817

Just needed to know what 'er guts looked like...

Could have been a much smaller radio

You remember the first time you took her top off to see what was underneath?


View attachment 166820

Re-rerouted (again) the wiring (there's some serious cable management going on behind that lower cover).

KLF2 in route from eBay going in there too ($34 and free shipping for brand new).

Photos to follow after DC upgrades


View attachment 166818

Lawd, lawd...

Ain't that the purdiest lil hole you seen all week?!

View attachment 166821

Ta-da!

She's got monster ears! Air miles unknown, but I can hear truck stop chatter and I'm a 25 minute drive from there.

It's hard to tell in the photo but the black piece is the FM shark fin antenna on the back of the cab.

The GR45 is back on the camper shell with a Breedlove puck mount.

I don't know that I ever got George at Breedlove to understand what I actually wanted (a custom piece with 4" puck, 6" backing plate, QD on top, SO beneath).

Kept sending me replies with model numbers for stock options that were not those things. Finally pulled the trigger on a 2" puck with SO and QD.

Local machinist making custom plates 5.75" above and below. Ordered a 6" sheet of 1/8" delrin to isolate. Should be bulletproof on top.

This is a rig to go through the woods???? And the CB is to keep you in contact with logging trucks and excavator,,,.. but I take it your going to be removing the antenna everyday to go through the woods??? Then when back on paved roads you'll put it back on???
Hell of a project....
I would have had a magnet mount antenna that could be replaced cheaply on the right side of the hood near the rear of hood so I could keep an eye on it..... If a tree branch hits it on the hood it isn't likely to go anyplace.... And if it did you just get out and stand it back up.
But if you don't mind the keep taking it on and off it is a heck of system... Just a shame you won't have a CB when your at work ... Meaning most of the day

 

[slowmover]

This is a rig to go through the woods???? And the CB is to keep you in contact with logging trucks and excavator,,,.. but I take it your going to be removing the antenna everyday to go through the woods??? Then when back on paved roads you'll put it back on???
Hell of a project....
I would have had a magnet mount antenna that could be replaced cheaply on the right side of the hood near the rear of hood so I could keep an eye on it..... If a tree branch hits it on the hood it isn't likely to go anyplace.... And if it did you just get out and stand it back up.
But if you don't mind the keep taking it on and off it is a heck of system... Just a shame you won't have a CB when your at work ... Meaning most of the day

Yeah, he’s surprised us. Made highway the priority. Mag mount thrown out on hood would work pretty well after fold-over.

Think he’ll buy a Tram 3500, but upgrade the coax to LMR-240UF with a feedpoint ft240-61 choke wrapped with 400 under heat-shrink then apply gold leaf to the base to call it the Plus Model just to mess with you?

Stranger things are already happening.

“Someone” around here showed that the T3500 on a mag-mount is LOUD & PROUD across the woods for a few miles . . with an ancient radio.

Bonding Hood and Fenders to Batt Neg fender point shared with 12-VDC system probably already on the list.

Maybe he’ll paint the base white and print out in red, “TRD Special”, to mess with an even larger crowd. Coax already run with connectors at both ends.

Johnny Reb, Yank.

Always on the Job.



My son or this young man. Family men. Got used to having to think ahead ‘cause the myth of the Corps transcends its current reality. Problems to solve from within while never losing sight of what’s from without.

Their surprises are gratifying to behold.

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[niceguy71]

Yeah, he’s surprised us. Made highway the priority. Mag mount thrown out on hood would work pretty well after fold-over.

Think he’ll buy a Tram 3500, but upgrade the coax to LMR-240UF with a feedpoint ft240-61 choke wrapped with 400 under heat-shrink then apply gold leaf to the base to call it the Plus Model just to mess with you?

Stranger things are already happening.

“Someone” around here showed that the T3500 on a mag-mount is LOUD & PROUD across the woods for a few miles . . with an ancient radio.

Bonding Hood and Fenders to Batt Neg fender point shared with 12-VDC system probably already on the list.

Maybe he’ll paint the base white and print out in red, “TRD Special”, to mess with an even larger crowd. Coax already run with connectors at both ends.

Johnny Reb, Yank.

Always on the Job.

View attachment 166829

My son or this young man. Family men. Got used to having to think ahead ‘cause the myth of the Corps transcends its current reality. Problems to solve from within while never losing sight of what’s from without.

Their surprises are gratifying to behold.

.

Whatever he does, we know it won't be half assed ( is that a Massachusetts saying??) I'm thinking he'll be listening to my handheld CB tests???? I've only gotten 4. 5 miles from the base... But I bet he'll hear them

 

[slowmover]

Whatever he does, we know it won't be half assed ( is that a Massachusetts saying??) I'm thinking he'll be listening to my handheld CB tests???? I've only gotten 4. 5 miles from the base... But I bet he'll hear them

Post in thread 'another range test of the 1989 President Grant and Tram 3500 .... 16.5 miles through a tall forest.'
another range test of the 1989 President Grant and Tram 3500 .... 16.5 miles through a tall forest.

And likewise when Skip rears up.

You’ll ask him across 28-LSB again why he’s running a branch trimmer antenna. Tell him mouth-watering stories of the lobster roll shack on the coast while he’s eating his garlic bologna on Wonder Bread. “Gotta go, just pulled in!”

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[jcrmadden]

Just a shame you won't have a CB when your at work ... Meaning most of the day

I still have the other two mounts wired up with QD studs attached, and the 4.5' Skipshooter lives in the bed of the truck.





When I leave the highway (assuming clearance becomes an issue) the Skipshooter comes out and the GR45 migrates to the bed where it also fits nicely (the top hat slides behind that row of milk crates and the QD rests on my lunch box).

The coax cables for the lower mounts are just under the rear seats and can be swapped out easy-ish... I will have a switch eventually.

Maybe a four way switch so I can throw a Tram in the mix too! 😉

Maybe he’ll paint the base white and print out in red, “TRD Special”, to mess with an even larger crowd. Coax already run with connectors at both ends.

This. I like this. It's on the list! 🤣

 

[slowmover]

Starting a GoFundMe to pass the hat he washes and waxes that bed. Grampa had to squint. (If you apologize, points deduction ensues).

TRD Antenna is funny. Especially if one can follow the rule of:

“I looked in his truck and all I saw was a radio and a mic”



One could backlight the hollow U510 and pass the mic cord thru shell on the way to The Big Iron.

TacomaWorld won’t be the same.

“Wadda ya mean it’s hard. Just throw in a little radio and plop a mag mount on the hood. Yeah, I get seven miles out on the trail. Y’all don’t?”

Use a cracked-face pawnshop U980 and video talking to eastern Mass on LSB-28 without showing the GR45 behind you.

Semper Gumby in civilian life staying in shape:
Improvise! Adapt! Overcome!


.

 

[slowmover]

Starting a GoFundMe to pass the hat he washes and waxes that bed. Grampa had to squint. (If you apologize, points deduction ensues).

TRD Antenna is funny. Especially if one can follow the rule of:

“I looked in his truck and all I saw was a radio and a mic”

View attachment 166844

One could backlight the hollow U510 and pass the mic cord thru shell on the way to The Big Iron.

TacomaWorld won’t be the same.

“Wadda ya mean it’s hard. Just throw in a little radio and plop a mag mount on the hood. Yeah, I get seven miles out on the trail. Y’all don’t?”

Use a cracked-face pawnshop U980 and video talking to eastern Mass on LSB-28 without showing the GR45 behind you.

Semper Gumby in civilian life staying in shape:
Improvise! Adapt! Overcome!


.

A special TRD package from 2006 offered only in Kazakhstan.



A gold-plated CB-3 to get things going?

Or the real thing:

“ . . Corona balls are the little round things on the tips of most mobile antennas. The problem is, most commercial corona balls (typically 1/2 inch in diameter) are too small to be effective, especially if you run high power. What's more, they often have sharp points like protruding set screws which negate their purpose in the first place. They're easy to make.

Naugatuck sells 1 inch aluminum balls predrilled and tapped for a 10x32 set screw. You only need to drill a hole for the hole for the whip about 15° from the predrilled hole. It should be noted that a 1 inch aluminum ball is a good compromise between weight and size, but only if you use a standard (or shortened) 102 inch whip.

Whips like those supplied with some commercial VHF antennas are not strong enough to properly support a one inch ball.”

from: Controlling Static

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[jcrmadden]

Still not finished, but getting closer...

"Custom" Breedlove mount with quick disconnect on 6" plates...



Amphenol 90's, Palomar Engineers CMC, and more bonding...



LMR240 coax (neat and tidy)...



Fused 12 awg from the red top (with a run of 8 awg on standby for a future accessory)...



Kenwood KLF2 and second noise filter as close to the radio as possible (waiting on two more 90's and a better jumper before mounting CMC)...



With the 7' Skipshooter tuned up real nice (SWR of 1.066 @ 27.185)





I'll get a video uploaded and linked one of these days to showcase the audio

 

[niceguy71]

how's it been working so far?... have you tried 37 LSB yet??? tell us some of your contact locations