antenna location

mobiletechcom · Post by **mobiletechcom** » Fri Nov 21, 2003 11:41 am

I have a 2004 Ford Superduty ext. cab pickup. I have installed 2 X-9000 radios( UHF & LOW BAND 100w)Which location would be better for the Low Band antenna? Front left fender mount or to mount it on my tool box lid in the bed? The tool box is aluminum and not touching the bed, so id have to run a ground strap to the frame. thanks for the great web page,,seeya, Mobiletech

jim · Post by **jim** » Fri Nov 21, 2003 12:10 pm

Drill a hole in the center of the roof !

If you wanna be a wussy

and not drill your truck, the fender mount will work better for lowband than a grounded toolbox will.

commtek · Post by **commtek** » Fri Nov 21, 2003 1:42 pm

1. Hole in the roof!!
2. Fender mount

Along with the POOR ground plane, even if the tool box is grounded, a lot of the signal is attenuated by the nearby cab. Especially on low band. Besides, consider how much the vehicle depreciated just driving it off the lot. The hole you drill is minor in the big picture.

Mike in CT · Post by **Mike in CT** » Fri Nov 21, 2003 5:31 pm

loaded low bander in the center of the roof.

1/4 UHF spike in roof, also centered but towards front.

it will all work fine., quick and dependable installation, looks good (if that is a consideration).

if you decide to get rid of the truck, a cell antenna can be stuck in one of the holes. (might raise the trade in value... right)

you probably don't need anything more than a 1/4 wave for UHF, since you are probably on a repeater system.

73!

Mike in CT
KM1R

mobiletechcom · Post by **mobiletechcom** » Thu Nov 27, 2003 2:47 pm

Thanks, I'll have to go with the fender mount. I have a 6" lift kit on the truck with 36" tires and i dont want the antenna to rub on the garage door if i put it on the roof..thanks for the info