fireslayer123
Member
Well this is driving me nuts, so I will finally break down and ask for assistance.
I bought a Class "C" motor home last fall and it came with a "through the glass" antenna. I found that it only works about 1/4 of a mile so I decided to buy a magnetic antenna for the hood, because I am not ready to drill a hole in my new ride. I found out that I have a fiberglass hood, so I decided to buy an 18' extension and run it to the back. I installed a metal plate at the top of the ladder and stuck it to that. Just to be sure that I was getting a good ground, I ran a separate wire with the coax and bolted it to the plate that the antenna sits on.
I borrowed a SWR meter and I am way off. In fact the needle only moves a little. So with the suggestion of the SWR owner, I began to trim the antenna. It was getting better (down to 3) but then it got worse again. Out of frustration, I stuck the antenna to the rear bumper and lo and behold, I was down to 2. Obviously this is a horrible location for an antenna, but I was actually able to hear people talking. Mostly skip from Bakersfield some 300miles away.
Knowing that this is a horrible mess that I have created, I borrowed a buddies magnetic antenna just to see if things work without an extension. I took an elbow bracket and screwed it to the inside of the front fender in the engine compartment. (it is a 90* and comes out of the fender and goes horizontal over the fender.It gives me a good ground and a flat surface for the antenna to stick to)
When I checked the swr meter, it was pretty bad. Way above 3.
Now a few questions:
1) Why won't a magnetic antenna work when fully grounded and not using an extension? I have used mag antenna's in the past and they worked well enough.
2) Why am I getting a better signal from the back bumper then I am from the top of the ladder with a grounded plate?
3) When I tried to check my ground on the back bumper with an ohm meter, I wasn't even getting a ground until I scraped through the coating on the bumper. The antenna isn't even getting grounded and it works pretty well.
4) 1/4" at a time I ended up taking almost 8 inches of antenna off before it began to work (I was down to a 2 on the swr) The antenna has the 18' of extension in it and it works better from the bumper. Is the extension acting like an antenna? Is that why I needed to remove so much antenna?
I'm stumped
Dave
I bought a Class "C" motor home last fall and it came with a "through the glass" antenna. I found that it only works about 1/4 of a mile so I decided to buy a magnetic antenna for the hood, because I am not ready to drill a hole in my new ride. I found out that I have a fiberglass hood, so I decided to buy an 18' extension and run it to the back. I installed a metal plate at the top of the ladder and stuck it to that. Just to be sure that I was getting a good ground, I ran a separate wire with the coax and bolted it to the plate that the antenna sits on.
I borrowed a SWR meter and I am way off. In fact the needle only moves a little. So with the suggestion of the SWR owner, I began to trim the antenna. It was getting better (down to 3) but then it got worse again. Out of frustration, I stuck the antenna to the rear bumper and lo and behold, I was down to 2. Obviously this is a horrible location for an antenna, but I was actually able to hear people talking. Mostly skip from Bakersfield some 300miles away.
Knowing that this is a horrible mess that I have created, I borrowed a buddies magnetic antenna just to see if things work without an extension. I took an elbow bracket and screwed it to the inside of the front fender in the engine compartment. (it is a 90* and comes out of the fender and goes horizontal over the fender.It gives me a good ground and a flat surface for the antenna to stick to)
When I checked the swr meter, it was pretty bad. Way above 3.
Now a few questions:
1) Why won't a magnetic antenna work when fully grounded and not using an extension? I have used mag antenna's in the past and they worked well enough.
2) Why am I getting a better signal from the back bumper then I am from the top of the ladder with a grounded plate?
3) When I tried to check my ground on the back bumper with an ohm meter, I wasn't even getting a ground until I scraped through the coating on the bumper. The antenna isn't even getting grounded and it works pretty well.
4) 1/4" at a time I ended up taking almost 8 inches of antenna off before it began to work (I was down to a 2 on the swr) The antenna has the 18' of extension in it and it works better from the bumper. Is the extension acting like an antenna? Is that why I needed to remove so much antenna?
I'm stumped
Dave