CB radio setup

Hi all..
I know some of these questions have been asked on other threads but I can't seem to find the information I'm after, would appreciate it if anyone would share their opinions on this setup i have in mind..

cb install:
I have thought about a few different places that I can mount the CB itself but the only place that seems suitable and doesnt look that bad is on top of the dash, I have a " [SIZE=-1]Midland Alan 48 Plus"[/SIZE] CB and am thinking about removing the radio and drilling a few small holes in the dash under the removable rubber cover like this one in the photo:







I'm just wondering how to run the cables from the battery through the bulk head, and how would you run the cable to the aerial?

Also is this bracket suitable, I have a magmount but would prefer a more fixed setup?



thanks.

I bought a small CB and put it in my center cubby box (Disco 2) ,Picked some power up underneath it,The mag mount on rear of the roof,Cable through inside top of back door,Run down side of door pillar into cubby box,Small extension speaker jobs a good un.What worried me was mounting it on top of dashboard as it is in full view of prying eyes and thieving gits.And hot summer sun.Just an idea,Ps i do like the look of it mounted on the dash,About 20 years ago i wanted to mount a CB in my works van so i drilled the roof and bolted the mounting brackets there it looked great mounted on the inside of the roof just in.front of the internal mirror.When i sold the van i left the CB there and the new owner loved it.

Heres where I fitted mine


Mag mount on the roof between the sunroofs, power taken fron the cigarette lighterfeed, as cigarette lighte has been converted to permanent live jobs a goodun

Allen 666 said:

What worried me was mounting it on top of dashboard as it is in full view of prying eyes and thieving gits.And hot summer sun

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ahh yes, this has crossed my mind, I knew in my shogun it was reasonably safe tucked away in a din mount behind the front dashboard facia, just underneath the heater controls (where a small dash pocket it located).. to get to it you would have to remove the gear stick knobs, the whole surround around the gear stick and a the other facia (if any of this makes sence).. needless to say it wasnt a 2 minute job if you fancied pinching it..
(but if they want something they are going to try their hardest to get it, so its a risk I might have to take)

I'm sure I did see a pic somewhere (might have even been your setup), of a CB been fitted in the center console, it looked clean setup, it did cross my mind, but I'm struggeling for space in the landy as the shogun had a few more compartments to store stuff, so the center console is already full with my tatt..

(I did mean to put a bit more info into my post but it was the end of my shift so I had to be quick).. I have seen the spare wheel brackets for sale but cant find one at the moment ... it looks like a very nice setup but have read somewhere that the back door is not a great place for an earth (not reliable due to the hinges been a weakpoint for an earth).. and the aerial has to be just above the vehicle so that the cb will SWR properly.

I try and limit as much damage to the vehicle as possible when it comes to mounting things, I hate drilling holes, had to do it with the shogun in a few places but I made sure they were as small as possible and not that noticable.

Gutter mount has crossed my mind but the thought of scratching the paintwork off inside the gutter kinda worries me (bare metal where water is channeled through) :doh: .. I know you cna buy clear sealent spray or something to help protect it, but scratching the paint off from underneath the gutter is not filling me with confidence as it will be noticable when removed.

Using my current mag mount is a possibility but it does retain water/moisture under the rubber, and I have noticed rust spots appearing on the shogun where it has been.

Running the wires to the battery is another thing that confuses me, are their grommits anywhere? (if dash mounting, how would you run the wires)?

Any info/advice on these questions much appreciated.

Also I got to give credit to the pic I used earlier.. they were obtained from www.discovery2.co.uk

lobberman said:

power taken fron the cigarette lighterfeed, as cigarette lighte has been converted to permanent live jobs a goodun

Click to expand...

Looks a nice clean setup, a lot smaller CB than I have, might have to consider changing it perhaps.. food for though..

Do you get any interference by connecting it to the cigarette lighter wires, when I first had mine I had it ona cigaret plug and would pick up noise from the wiper motor, I decided to go direct to the battery via a filter box, no more probs after that.

UKAirborne said:

Looks a nice clean setup, a lot smaller CB than I have, might have to consider changing it perhaps.. food for though..

Do you get any interference by connecting it to the cigarette lighter wires, when I first had mine I had it ona cigaret plug and would pick up noise from the wiper motor, I decided to go direct to the battery via a filter box, no more probs after that.

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So far no interference at all, I bought the whole kit for £70 of the bay, I think you can get the rig alone for £45 ish

I have the same aerial mount as in your picture. I got mine from Ebay but can't find the seller on there any more... I also got one of these to fix it: CB RADIO HEAVY DUTY SO239 FITTING ROOF FIXING MOUNT NEW | eBay

I think there is a quick release version so the arial can be removed when parked up - stops it being nicked... I have my cable tucked into the back door as I remove my CB when not in use. However, all I do is reconnect when needed and carry on. Not sure its the best or right way to do it but it works...

Here's mine...



Direct wiring to batt through bulkhead with rubber gromet and silicone.
Antenna through rear door along roof lining and down (under pillar) to unit.

Fitted mine above the drivers seat

Thats where i fitted mine, i drilled down through the dash and took my power from the radio supply, seems to work just fine.



The ariel i fitted on my roof light bar, the cable runs along the top of the dash tucked right down tight to the screen rubber, its out of sight there, then down the drivers door piller behind the trim, then back up the door piller tucked behind the rubber to the roof.

i fitted mine in the same place as urban panza did ...its a good place ..im well happy with it now ...

DISCOVERY1-DAZ said:

Fitted mine above the drivers seat

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ahh .. now I have seen that been done once before, but they had cut the map pocket out to fit the CB, how did you get that CB to fit, every CB I have seen on thunderpole/ 4x4cb.com has been too tall to fit .. that is a nice setup you have there.. out the way and all cables hidden

muddyfox said:

Direct wiring to batt through bulkhead with rubber gromet and silicone.
Antenna through rear door along roof lining and down (under pillar) to unit.

Click to expand...

Is there a hole in the bulkhead, ready to use or did you have to drill one? - did you have to remove all off the handles/trims to get the roof to come down to route the antenna cable - forgive my ignorance but I have no idea.. learning slowly though

horse62 said:

The ariel i fitted on my roof light bar, the cable runs along the top of the dash tucked right down tight to the screen rubber, its out of sight there, then down the drivers door piller behind the trim, then back up the door piller tucked behind the rubber to the roof.

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Thats a good point, I have fancied adding some roof lights at a later stage (when funds allow).. (can the roof light be used on the road or are they for off road use only.. I have asked this question but have never had a straight answer .. still fancy them though.. shall keep this setup in mind.

Thanks for the ideas, Very much appreciated.. Images are very handy.
Few more possibilities for me to explore, (I'm slowly confusing myself.. never had this much choice with accessories/setups of various things on the shogun, my bank account aint going to know whats hit it .

Any more info/pics feel free to post up, i'm interested to hear what you have to say, more food for thought, that and it might help others with their setup.. cheers!.. shall go away and think

muddyfox said:

Direct wiring to batt through bulkhead with rubber gromet and silicone.

Click to expand...

Ive had a look and the grommet thats used to route the wires through the bulkhead to the fuse box is pretty full up, cant feel theres any room to spare, however there is a grommet next to that but on the engine side of the bulkhead it cant be seen due to the breaking system components and the sound proofing which seems to be fixed in place in certain parts.. any advice on other grommets in the bulkhead, I noticed the bonnet release catch has a grommet, not sure if its wide enough to fit two cables through though..?

I too am thinking of fitting a cb I like the install shown in the original post with it mounted tidily on to of the dash, I also like the spare wheel mount for the aerial but how the hell do I get the aerial wire from the spare wheel through the back door then through the car to end up neatly at the cb????????????

Whitey1973 said:

I too am thinking of fitting a cb I like the install shown in the original post with it mounted tidily on to of the dash, I also like the spare wheel mount for the aerial but how the hell do I get the aerial wire from the spare wheel through the back door then through the car to end up neatly at the cb????????????

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A good question!, I'm keen to know how people have managed to do that, I'm not keen at pulling panels off and trim apart if there's no need to do so!.. dont need any more broken trim clips .. I'm sure someone out there has got the answers

I decided to mount the aerial on a mag mount, after realising the Sirio gutter mount I bought would not fit on the discovery 2 gutter due to the plastic weather strip - I was not for cutting the plastic so I decided to leave it and use my old mag mount as advices by Gwyn Lewis (4x4 specialist).

I followed the same kind of setup that is shown on the Discovery 2 website (Well worth a look at his website, some great advice and pictures!)

I ran the cable down the rear door rubber seal tacking it in place with a hot glue gun, then into the vehicle at the lowest point and adding a bit more glue to the point the cable enters the vehicle. I did this due to a fair bit of water ingress when the cable came in a at the side.

I then routed the cable over the wheel arch (I used some stiff garden wire to assist me with pulling the wire through - removal of the trim which holds the boot roller blind is required to get access). I then went down the passenger door seal, to the floor and hid the cable under the plastic floor plate which runs the remaining length of the vehicle to the drivers footwell, then behind the trim and up the side of the dashboard and hid the wires at the back of the dash, Doesn't look fantastic but its easily removable and was the easiest way to set it up (I may look into a more cosmetically pleasing setup in the future)

I found a grommet to route the power cables through to the engine bay above the accelerator pedal, but to get access you have to pull back the sound proofing in the engine bay carefully, removing a few clips where required.

The SWR meter will be removed, although some people recommend them to be kept inline).

Just thought I would update, as it may help someone with their setup.








The cable cover/organiser thingy (memory block) :doh: is pushed down the back of the dash out of sight.