CB (cobra 19) / SWR HELP

[FRONTIER636]

hey all...

so i just got a Cobra 19 DX IV with a 4' Firestik 2 antenna. so i went to the CB shop to get a CB Speaker & PA Horn.. so when i was there i asked the guy how much to tune my cb he asked what i had and he tells me "oh that one cant be tune" ... i was like hummmm okay and took off with my stuff .... i have been reading here and on the net and there is notting that is tellling me that the 19 cant be tune...

so my question is you guys with a cobra 19 did u guys tune yours ???

is that guys full of B.S and did not want to deal with me ???

thanks for you help

 

[Hill Bill E.]

Sounds like he was full of it.

All CB's can be tuned, or a better term, 'matched', to the antenna.

Check your antenna, I believe all Firesticks are tunable. (small screw under the rubber tip cap)

But you'll need an SWR meter to do it, unless the radio has one built in.

 

[fangars]

Hi Fronier636,
There are two style antennas from Firestik.
The FirestikII with the tunable tip and the older Firestik that you tune by cutting the length down at the tip bit by bit until you have a good signal.
You are ahead of the game by having the 4" FirestikII with the tunable tip, I have the same.
You can by an SWR meter at Radio Shack or online. Its a tricky thing to tune an antenna sometimes as there is more then just one variable that can screw your signal.

The CB itself is not that important compared to the antenna and it really does not matter much which brand or model you run as long as its a dependable unit.

The man you spoke with is a sack of crap, you would be doing others in your area a favor by letting the world know what and where that shop is.


Please read the documents in the following link for more information and I think it will clear a lot of questions up. http://www.firestik.com/Tech_Docs.htm

If you have any further questions feel free to ask anytime.

I am struggling right now to build onto my website a Firestik section, I am a Firestik distributor and live just a few miles from the factory. I have spoke with the owners many times and I can tell you chose a quality antenna and any problems you might have will usually come from a screwed up ground or bad tuning.

I had some issues with my own install that had to do with grounding problems but it was fixed and my CB+FirestikII served me well up in Moab for the goneMOAB event back in May.

This is my Xterra with the FirestikII rockin' the Arizona state flag on the Porcupine Rim Trail.

 

[drbandkgb]

I have that same CB works great....

 

[mcm4090]

I also have a Cobra 19 DX IV and Firestik antenna. Both work great.

 

[FRONTIER636]

Thanks for all your help guys

 

[Hootowl]

That was an amazingly ignorant or deceptive salesman you encountered! The antenna manufacturers usually have a procedure for SWR adjustment at their website. Or if one isn't available then it really isn't all that hard anyway. You do though need to check the SWR on two channels, not one channel, and I forgot which two they are.

The tunable tip screw was described for the Firestick and most fiberglass antennas have this approach.

For metal whip antennas, you move the antenna up and down in the whip mount until you get the minimum SWR number. One thing that I encountered with my Wilson 1000 antenna was that the mounting location on my Xterra that allowed usage of the Wilson magnet mount was located at the very tail end of the roof bumping right up against the rear hatch opening. This is a less that optimum location for a quality signal and it was reflected in a not to common situation. I had to replace the OEM 6 foot antenna with a 7 foot antenna then trim about 6 inches off it. Got a darn low SWR reading but also have a real tall antenna that whacks everything in creation! LOL! Metal whips though are great for limb whacking and the magnet is extremely strong so it takes a limb within about 1.5 foot or so of the roof to knock the magnet loose from the roof.

 

[Dirty_Jeeper]

Location is something to consider too. I put a 4 foot Firestick on our Jeep TJ mounted to the bumper with a Cobra 19. With only a soft top there was little choice as the wife didn't want to drill the body of the Jeep. Got it tuned but it worked like crap. With the tip being down low the Jeeps steel roll cage was creating issues.

When we upgraded to an after market bumper with a tire carrier, I mounted the same antenna near the top of the carrier. Works great now! So consider your mounting height and location on the vehicle.

On the same note I have a 5 foot Firestick mounted to the corner of my Jeep XJ bumper. Works great with that extra foot in length to clear the top of the vehicle.

 

[ntsqd]

Um, the man encountered may have been thinking "tune" as in tune up the radio's finals etc. (aka "Peak & Tune"), not "tune" the SWR since you don't tune the radio itself for SWR.

Just a little benefit of the doubt. People who are really into something can easily misunderstand the terminology used by a casual user. BT, DT.

btw, you might get better exposure on the topic in the Comms section.

 

[FRONTIER636]

This is how i put my antenna on my 06 frontier

 

[drbandkgb]

Better add a spring to that or your going to break the F/S

 

[CoastalDefender]

Better add a spring to that or your going to break the F/S

Yeah, I don't mean to be a buzzkill, but that looks like a really great location to get it ripped off and bend the box lip.

At the very least, add a spring.

 

[FRONTIER636]

yeah, i don't mean to be a buzzkill, but that looks like a really great location to get it ripped off and bend the box lip.

At the very least, add a spring.

yeah i ordered a hd spring but have gotten it yet and i got it with quick disconnect