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Installed a Ham Antenna on the Wrangler Cowl

4K views 20 replies 8 participants last post by  kl0an 
#1 ·
Installed a ham radio antenna on the Wrangler a while back. Jeepers often use the ready-made antenna mounts that put the antenna on the back bumper or between the tailgate and spare tire, which are both terrible places that distort and reduce propagation...and might actually damage the radio.



So to get a good ground plane and reduce obstructions for best propagation, I put a trunk lip mount on the cowl. Then I ran the coax into the engine compartment and through the firewall for a nice clean install.

Full write-up with more pics is here.



Here's the other end of that coax, showing how I mounted the radio. Just put that write-up on the site, too.

 
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#2 ·
I have been looking at getting one of the late model Wranglers to replace my Expedition.

Antenna mounting is a problem with these Jeeps. I have even looked into the aftermarket aluminum hard tops. I found only one vendor and it does not appear to be a full hardtop.

For my purposes , at minimum I would want roof mounted a 5/8 wave UHF GMRS , Larson NMO27 CB , and Two Pyramid vehicular repeater 1/4 wave antennas. I may eve throw in an HF antenna on the rear .

Sent from my SM-T350 using Tapatalk
 
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#5 ·
I have been looking at getting one of the late model Wranglers to replace my Expedition.

Antenna mounting is a problem with these Jeeps.
That's quite the downsizing!

It is an issue, for sure. I brainstormed a lot of different ways, including mounting this halfwave dipole inside the hardtop. I could have made it work, but in the end I decided on the one I just posted. Every antenna is a compromise...Jeeps just offer fewer options with more compromises, I guess.

But the upside is you get to drive a Jeep! :thumb: Which is one reason I didn't use the dipole--I didn't want to have to reconfigure the antenna when I take the top off.

I don't know how much transmitting you plan on, but I would be a little concerned with irradiating my head in that location.
That's a good point. But at 5-8W max--same as a handheld with the antenna literally right next to your face--I don't think it's a concern.

On my 92 YJ, I mounted a CB antenna on the right rear quarter panel and a hamstick antenna on the left rear. Then I have a decent scanner mounted on the left front quarter panel about 6" in front of the drivers door.

If you have a wire dipole, when you get parked somewhere, you can throw one end up in a tree and the other end up in another tree and really reach out and touch that way. I've also seen where people take maybe dual 20 meter hamsticks and put them on one mount in a horizontal position with one of the ground wire on one side and the radio wire on the other. Then they just need to orient their jeep towards the area they want to talk to. Kinda hard driving down the road with those whips pointing in opposite directions so it's mainly used at a parked location.

On my truck, I have a scanner antenna on my Gem Top canopy, a CB antenna on the front quarter panel, and a Hy-Gain (I think is the name) antenna that has a fold over connection up on the other side of my canopy. It folds down when I'm driving. I've also got several various "stingers" that will mount in place from 10 meters up to 80 meters and both wide and narrow bands. I'f I'm parked, I stand that one up and it works great. I also have a 20 meter wire dipole for throwing the ends up into tall trees for the best contacts.

The CB is pretty much worthless as all you hear are the guys running illegal power amps, roger beeps, and cussing like sailors. Good luck making a worthwhile connection with those guys.

My main had radio is an old ICOM 706 that has 2 meters and the HF bands. Still works best of all my radios. I don't run any exterior amps as I'd rather have a better antenna than a battery draining amp on board.
That's quite the setup! I have an N9TAX Slim Jim for when I can string stuff up in a tree. Only a little experience with it so far but I like it.

I also have a Yaesu FT-818ND for the HF bands but no experience with it in a vehicle yet. I've been borrowing a friend's Chameleon MPAS and mounting it on a tripod. We've make short-ish range (for HF) point-to-point connections on it but haven't gotten a good connection yet from across the country. (I find that more valuable for our purposes than talking to randoms who happen to be on band at any given time.) It's tougher because the 817/818s are only 5W, but I like the mobile form factor. Maybe I'll get an amp for when I use it from a more stationary location.

Agree with you on the CB talk. I'll still probably get one just so I can hear a different demographic talk about what's going on around me if a situation gets bad. There are a lot of CBs out there, and this could be a good way to gather info. But I'll pay less attention to antenna placement for that because I won't plan on transmitting much at all. Maybe it'll go on the bumper... :D:
 
#3 ·
I don't know how much transmitting you plan on, but I would be a little concerned with irradiating my head in that location.

I'm not a HAM, but on boats, there is a second reason to mount radar dishes and VHF antennae several feet above your head.

Keeps you from cooking your brains.
 
#4 ·
On my 92 YJ, I mounted a CB antenna on the right rear quarter panel and a hamstick antenna on the left rear. Then I have a decent scanner mounted on the left front quarter panel about 6" in front of the drivers door.

If you have a wire dipole, when you get parked somewhere, you can throw one end up in a tree and the other end up in another tree and really reach out and touch that way. I've also seen where people take maybe dual 20 meter hamsticks and put them on one mount in a horizontal position with one of the ground wire on one side and the radio wire on the other. Then they just need to orient their jeep towards the area they want to talk to. Kinda hard driving down the road with those whips pointing in opposite directions so it's mainly used at a parked location.

On my truck, I have a scanner antenna on my Gem Top canopy, a CB antenna on the front quarter panel, and a Hy-Gain (I think is the name) antenna that has a fold over connection up on the other side of my canopy. It folds down when I'm driving. I've also got several various "stingers" that will mount in place from 10 meters up to 80 meters and both wide and narrow bands. I'f I'm parked, I stand that one up and it works great. I also have a 20 meter wire dipole for throwing the ends up into tall trees for the best contacts.

The CB is pretty much worthless as all you hear are the guys running illegal power amps, roger beeps, and cussing like sailors. Good luck making a worthwhile connection with those guys.

My main had radio is an old ICOM 706 that has 2 meters and the HF bands. Still works best of all my radios. I don't run any exterior amps as I'd rather have a better antenna than a battery draining amp on board.
 
#20 ·
Manual transmission is fine. It's fun to drive, and 90% of the people today don't know how to drive one, so you have less possibility of theft to worry about.

I recently saw a tube where two millennial were given 90 seconds to figure out how to make a call on a Princess phone from the 70s. They weren't any closer at the end of the time than they were when they first picked it up.

WW

shoot straight - stay safe
 
#16 ·
The wife and I both have Jeeps. The Wrangler types, not all those SUV's with the Jeep name on them they're making these days.

One thing I know is the Acronym for Jeep is absolutely true..

Just Empty Every Pocket.

Mine have been emptied so many times, it's like every parts store is run by pick pockets.. Shoot, I can drive by a parts store in my Jeep and my wallet is empty when I get to where I'm going..

My name is KL0AN and... I'm a Jeepaholic..
 
#18 ·
Yeah, my 92 YJ Has a 2500lb lift on the front, 4" body lift, Old Man Emu Spring lift, Taller shocks. I made my locker out of an old street sign.. Just bent it and made it fit in the back with the open end to the back door, that's the only way you get in it. I've got 33's on the Cherokee rims I put on mine. Jeep is red and I rattlecanned the rims with some black with metal flake. Also have double tube 3" bumpers on front and rear and single 3" bumpers on both sides. All are the 3" round type. I've got a hard top, bikini top and a tonneau cover for the back when I have the bikini top on it.

Good times, lots of money..
 
#19 · (Edited)
Fact of the matter is; mobile installation is a complicated science because of the variables, and unknowns. Variables are the pattern which is created by the RF off the antenna, which is reflected and suppressed in varying degrees.

In the pictures, on the 1st posts, those plots can be deceiving because another factor which plays into patterns is the "take-off" angle of the transmission. The signal will naturally elevate, but elevation may also be caused by the length of an antenna, and near field objects. A short antenna will have more elevation, and more scatter than a longer 1/4 wave antenna. 5/8 wave antennas are great for near in communications, but don't help if you want to work 250 miles or more. Small antennas (no matter what the seller claims), radiate in all directions, and mostly in areas of no use. The only good antenna is one which makes the communication point to point with the least waste of signal in other directions.

Frequency plays into this a lot. UHF is great for the road, but sucks in the woods. We use itinerant low band channels in the woods, CB also works OK if you can get past the chumps talking DX. Optionally, you could become a freebander. :) VHF High is also good on beaches (Jeep to boat).

Rule of thumb... antenna at least 1/4 wave. Ground under antenna, minimum 1/8 wave. Coax in one length, omitting jumpers and connectors. In Jeeps, get some ground braid, or pull out the braid from old RG8, and make sure all body panels are grounded TO THE CHASSIS. Don't depend on body assembly for the ground. As the vehicle ages, the connection becomes resistive and sometimes can become like a diode.

EDIT: If you put an antenna on the fiberglass top, get a 18" x 18" thin piece of brass, and attach it on the underside of the antenna mount. This is the ground plane for the antenna. Keep antennas away from the front of the vehicle. Chrysler was never real good with ignition/computer noise suppression. If you're CB, a 108" whip on the left rear panel works the best.

One other thing, if you turn on the radio and here noise, or a whine cause by RPMs, add a power choke to the DC line to the radio.
 
#21 ·
I also carried a Buddi Pole in my Jeep :https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&...pbnx3M2ZmaG9tZXBhZ2V8Z3g6NGViNDIyYTE2YjA3YjNh and it worked great, multi band HF, all PVD and wire. I had my sons helping us pack to move from Alaska down to Portland and I had the while antenna inside a piece of 4" pcv with caps on each end so I could take it with me when I traveled to bush villages with my old MFJ 9420 and could make contacts from there when I had time off.

Well, I looked all over for that dang tube once we moved and finally one day asked my younger son if he knew where it was. He said "Oh yeah, my brother threw it away back in Anchorage before we left."

Now I just need to sit back and make another one.

Only takes an hour or two but, the hardest part to find are the metal antennas that retract down into themselves. Need those to really fine tune.
 
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