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Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 06 Jan 2011, 21:52
by lloydy
Or am i paying more cuz it says off roader in the title
http://www.thunderpole.co.uk/cb_radio_p ... roader.htm
And do i get a mini orbitor or full size one?
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 06 Jan 2011, 21:55
by ELVIS
Midland wins against Intek everytime IMHO for similar money. (build quality and longevity)
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 06 Jan 2011, 21:56
by jed the spread
The off roader looks smaller than the starter so you can fit it where mine is if you remember.
jed
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 06 Jan 2011, 22:04
by lloydy
ELVIS wrote:Midland wins against Intek everytime IMHO for similar money. (build quality and longevity)
I shall have a google
jed the spread wrote:The off roader looks smaller than the starter so you can fit it where mine is if you remember.
jed
Yeah i was thinking the same, would like to put mine there.
Thinking of putting the ariel on that little loop on the rear quarter, at least until i get big mirrors
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 06 Jan 2011, 23:11
by Essex Nige
I brought one of those just before Xmas, was thinking about putting it in the ashtray hole
I've also got the starter one in my doka which does it's thing, it's not like I'm trying to break distance records
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 11 Jan 2011, 21:24
by lloydy
Is there anything wrong with mounting the ariel on the little metal bracket in the picture and running the cable down throught the vent, through engine bay, under the van and up into the cab?
Never seen this done, so there must be some reason? Will probably only be there a while, until i buy syncro mirrors anyway

Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 11 Jan 2011, 21:35
by silverbullet
RF noise from the engine will be a big problem - put a bracket on your "Apocalypse now" horn and run it in through the front grille as a temporary measure maybe?
Might need an artificial ground plane aerial though.
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 11 Jan 2011, 21:44
by syncropaddy
You need as big a ground plane as possible and that bracket wont allow that
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 11 Jan 2011, 21:47
by lloydy
Bugger! thought it was too simple. Now who's giving away syncro mirrors?...........
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 11 Jan 2011, 22:50
by Justavan
Mobs,
It is OK to run your co-axil cable down the air grill and along to your dash board and CB
AS a EX radio coms installer we used to do hundreds of Antennas from the corner of VW t25 using a simple gutter mount just above the vent and as long as you have got a decent arial then it will perform just fine.
The longer your arial the better your range. A long flexible stainless steel whip suits off road vehicles best.
You may have to make up a mounting bracket as it looks like your roof restricts using a clamp on antenna mount although I have nipped a bit off the bottom of the roof edge to install antenna clamps in the past but that is up to you.
As for radio suppression if your HT Leads and Alternator are in good order then it won't be a problem. If it is then fit a Radio Suppressor.
If you mount your antenna in the rear corner of your bus measure your co-axil cable from the base of the mount to the PL 259 plug that goes into the back of your CB to EXACTLY 18 feet in length and that will give you your proper tuned length and the maximum signal performance.
If you mount your CB near the front then reduce the co-axil length to EXACTLY 9 feet for best performance.
AS for Types of CB's the Midland range has the best value for money and reliable reputation these days but stick to a basic model as the more buttons they have the more they have to go wrong.
Hope this helps.......
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 11 Jan 2011, 23:14
by Simon Baxter
syncropaddy wrote:You need as big a ground plane as possible and that bracket wont allow that
It's metal and connected directly to the body making the whole of the van a ground plane.
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 11 Jan 2011, 23:15
by lloydy
Justavan wrote:Mobs,
It is OK to run your co-axil cable down the air grill and along to your dash board and CB
AS a EX radio coms installer we used to do hundreds of Antennas from the corner of VW t25 using a simple gutter mount just above the vent and as long as you have got a decent arial then it will perform just fine.
The longer your arial the better your range. A long flexible stainless steel whip suits off road vehicles best.
You may have to make up a mounting bracket as it looks like your roof restricts using a clamp on antenna mount although I have nipped a bit off the bottom of the roof edge to install antenna clamps in the past but that is up to you.
As for radio suppression if your HT Leads and Alternator are in good order then it won't be a problem. If it is then fit a Radio Suppressor.
If you mount your antenna in the rear corner of your bus measure your co-axil cable from the base of the mount to the PL 259 plug that goes into the back of your CB to EXACTLY 18 feet in length and that will give you your proper tuned length and the maximum signal performance.
If you mount your CB near the front then reduce the co-axil length to EXACTLY 9 feet for best performance.
AS for Types of CB's the Midland range has the best value for money and reliable reputation these days but stick to a basic model as the more buttons they have the more they have to go wrong.
Hope this helps.......
If i can get a mount for that little bracket in the pic, will it work?
Cheers for the info
Lloyd
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 11 Jan 2011, 23:16
by lloydy
Simon Baxter wrote:syncropaddy wrote:You need as big a ground plane as possible and that bracket wont allow that
It's metal and connected directly to the body making the whole of the van a ground plane.
that answers the last bit on previous post,
It's a 1.6td, so not much electrical going on in engine bay
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 11 Jan 2011, 23:17
by v-lux
If you mount your CB near the front then reduce the co-axil length to EXACTLY 9 feet for best performance.
This is interesting. What effect does having a precise amount of cable length have? and how does it do it?
Re: Would this be a good CB?
Posted: 12 Jan 2011, 13:20
by Simon Baxter
Magic.