I have a cobra 29ltd classic radio. my question is where to mount it in my 1998 f150 xlt extended cab short bed, with the captains chairs not the bench. i really dont know where a good spot to mount it would be. i also would like to know where to place the antenna and what kind? ive heard alot about k-40s and wilsons but i dont know too much about anything having to do with cb radios and antennas. i heard mag mounts are not that great but at the same time they are the best because the use the whole truck as a signal booster..something like that. what about the glass mount ones? are those any good? also, i want good receiving and transmitting, i dont want to hear people really well and have them not hear me at all. i also cant mount a huge antenna because i have to get it in my garage. thanks

 

If you scroll down a ways you should find another question regarding CB mounting. Take a look there too. How about mounting it to the front of the console? Aiming up. You could run the wires under the carpet then into the console so they would be out of sight.

 

yeah thats not a bad idea..but i have no idea where to connect the wires too, i took apart part of my dash and cant access the wires that go to the igniion, maybe im not looking in the right place.. also what about good antennas? thanks

 

You can get a fuse tap and hook the power wire to the fuse box. The tap is just a small piece of metal that fits in with the fuse. It has an end on it that you can slip a spade connector onto. The ground can go to any good metal part of the dash or to a firewall bolt or something like that.
As for what kind of antenna I really have no idea.....I dont know much about CBs.

 

Finally a subject I can be somewhat helpful!

I have a Uniden Pc68XL and for the longest time I couldn't figure out where to mount the dadgum thing in my Lariat (with the leather 60/40 bench). I tried to use the straight bracket that came with my cb but because the dash has so many curves, it wouldn't fit anywhere.

I spent $8 on an adjustable bracket by Barjan (available at almost any truck stop). It's a 3 peice metal bracket. I bolted the center peice of it almost directly below the a/c controls, above the black plastic peice in the center of the dash, on the floor. I'll definitly post pics when I get back on my pc. After bolting the center peice, I bolted on the two "L" ends and adjusted them to be just a hair wider than my cb, it's an almost perfect fit. I used short wood screws with coarse threads, so they hold every thing snug and securely to the dash.

As for the antenna, I use a $20 magnet mount 1/4 wave made by Radio Shack. I have a 9 foot whip and a 5.5' foot Firestik, but theft is common where I work so I wouldn't dare mount either one. The 9 foot whip worked the best and it was the cheapest, $10 from a local cb shop.

 

I can take closer pics of the mounting if needed.. it's a 3 peice bracket, so it kinda curves to conform to the dash shape where it's mounted.

I hate messing with the truck's OEM wiring, plus I have to move the cb from vehicle to vehicle so I bought an adapter from a truck stop, it has the basic black plastic fitting for the back of my cb unit, and a standard 12v cigarette lighter plug on the other end.

 

thanks alot, but its kinda hard to see how it is mounted, i understand the bracket though, do you think you could take a few pictures like right in front of it? that would be great. so yours is plugged into the cig lighter? not actually wired in? thanks

 

In that location it would be not problem at all to splice your CB power line into your stero's power circuit. CB's are low current devices. Personally, I HATE plugging things in to the lighter, I don't like the cord hanging around. I wire everything down to my radar detector directly into the electrical system.

 

There she is.. the switch is for my offroad lights, I haven't hooked up the main power lead yet b/c I'm still investigating the relay idea. I know it doesn't sound secure that it's held in by wood screws, but it can hold my heavy full size cb while bouncing down a worn out dirt road without any problems.

I'd recommend attaching the bracket to your cb first then test fitting the entire unit in different locations before drilling any holes, take into consideration where your wiring is going to go, which side you'll be mounting your mic, etc. I goofed up when I mounted the mic clip in my 1994 F-150, I screwed it into the blank dash plate where the 4x4 button would normally go, so if I reached for the mic in a hurry, I'd risk bumping the automatic transmission shifter.

I like Aegis' way of direct wiring over my cigarette lighter setup, but it's the way I have to go since radio and radar detector theft is -very- common where I work, and I move the unit from car to car. Also explains why I use a magnet mount antenna.

 

One thing that I always look at before starting to drill any holes in a dash is where I am planning to drill, what would it look like if I removed whatever I drilled the holes for. Is it a panel that is cheap and easy to replace or would I have to replace the whole dash panel to get rid of the holes? Not much I hate worse than a whole bunch of empty holes drilled in a dash.

 

thanks alot for those pictures, it helps. but i what are the screws secured to? just right in the plastic? thanks guys

 

as far as an antenna I use a 5/8 wave cb/10 meter ham antenna, about 30 bucks at the shack, I just used it 'cuz my old realistic cb-fone 23 had been tweeks to about 6 watts, I could litteraly talk 60 miles away on 10 volts of power, even farther with the car running.

 

Yep.. there's no metal behind there and the threads are just holding on to the plastic. I drilled fairly small holes and used slightly larger screws with coarse, aggresive thread so they 'bite' very well. I'd just make sure the bracket is snug and tight, try to wiggle it a little with your hand to make sure the screws don't pop out.