Batboard

So my POV is a '98 jeep wrangler. I currently have a TK780 and the antenna is mounted to a "L" bracket which is bolted to the side of the jeep, over the rear fender. I was alittle "ify" at first about it, but it grew on me, I'm still able to switch from hard top to soft top, but now that I'm with another agency that uses UHF radio system. I'm adding a TK880 and I'm trying to figure out where to put the 2nd antenna. I would rather not drill into the body again, not sure if those hood mounts would work with my hood?

let me know, I'll try to get pics of the current set up.

thans

on my wrangler I have a light bar on the windshield frame, so I enlarged a hole and used a permenant mount and it works great.

I would have to agree the next best place would have to be a hood/fender mount the only thing keeping me from doing tht is engine noise leaking in. there are taillight mounts in the 4X4 magazines that i would consider. I am going to be adding a custom bumper so when I do that I am going to add a sparetire mount and the antenas will go there.

Run a small duplexer and a larsen triband or dual band antenna. i run that setup in my wifes Jeep, as she wouldn't let me put 2 antenna's on it. Both radios work really good, however you will loose some power on the tx side to the antenna.

JAS

Well just went to local radio shop and got a 1/4w larsen antenna -- I was wondering since I already have a "L" bracket with VHF on it, could I mount the antenna on its side and bend the shaft veritical on the side of the hood. I would rather have just 1 hole thats covered up and doesn't have some bracket stick out of the side.

any thought, working on getting some pics hosted to show what i'm talking about.

There are several companies which make a decent commercial dual band VHF / UHF antenna, Larsen, Antenex, etc. The Antenex seems to be a bit more broad banded.
They are designed as a half wave on VHF and a dual 5/8ths gain antenna on UHF so they work somewhat independently of a less than perfect ground, a bracket over a fender would qualify.
That single antenna, about 30 or so inches tall with a VHF / UHF duplexer would probably do just what you're looking to do, and end up perhaps a bit better than what you started out with especially if you're located in Kansas or some other big-sky state.

OTOH, a quarterwave VHF antenna "will" tune up reasonably well on UHF, it being a 3/4 wave antenna there, however, the radiation pattern is quite high which might work well in mountainous areas, but not too well for long distances in the flatlands (won't work too well in Kansas, Toto).

A tech I know, who works for another 2-way outfit, swears by the 3/4 wave antenna on UHF, but we live in Downstate New York with the Catskill mountain peaks at 2 to 4000 feet, in this terrain it might make some sense.

Stan

I put mine right behind the 3rd brake light. It's a dual band Comet.
on an L bracket. I also took a couple of the rods from those crappy little black hershey kiss antennas and made two ground radial elements. They hang down behind the spare tire to each side about 45 degrees. They aren't that visible at and they seemed to help alot when I tuned the SWR.


mancow