Skip to content
View in the app

A better way to browse. Learn more.

Ham Radio Base -Powered By Ham CQ DX

A full-screen app on your home screen with push notifications, badges and more.

To install this app on iOS and iPadOS
  1. Tap the Share icon in Safari
  2. Scroll the menu and tap Add to Home Screen.
  3. Tap Add in the top-right corner.
To install this app on Android
  1. Tap the 3-dot menu (⋮) in the top-right corner of the browser.
  2. Tap Add to Home screen or Install app.
  3. Confirm by tapping Install.
Solar
SFI 201
SN 126
A 14
K 1 Quiet
X-Ray C4.3
Wind 398.1 km/s
Aurora 1
Updated 11:30 UTC HamQSL · N0NBH
Day 80/40m Poor 30/20m Good 17/15m Good 12/10m Good
Night 80/40m Good 30/20m Good 17/15m Good 12/10m Poor

Callsign Lookup
_
Vanity Call Signs Available
Enter filters above and click Search.
ⓘ Callsign lookups are in real time via the FCC database. Vanity callsign availability is refreshed daily at 6:00 AM CST. The vanity search may be unavailable for a few minutes during this update.
Live DX spots
Live DX Spots — 70cm via PSKReporter · scroll or pinch to zoom
Band
Mode
Time
Loading map data…
MHz DX Spotter Info
Recent spots
Select a band above to load spots
Ready — select a band to fetch live spots

antenna placement on a pickup truck — getting RF away from the cab

 Loading...

so ive been running a 2m/70cm mobile setup in my F-150 for about 6 months now and i keep getting audio feedback or what i think is RF getting into the cab audio somehow. its not terrible but its noticeable especially when i key up on 70cm. the radio is a Yaesu FTM-400 mounted under the dash, coax runs along the firewall and up through the door seal area.

the antenna right now is a mag mount NMO on the roof toward the back. i know mag mounts arent ideal but i havent wanted to drill yet. wondering if anyone has dealt with this on a pickup specifically and whether moving the antenna further back toward the cab-over-bed area would help or if this is more of a grounding issue. the truck has the composite bed liner and i wasnt sure if that matters for ground plane stuff.

also my SWR on 2m is fine, reads under 1.5:1, so i dont think its the antenna itself. just something feels off about the installation and i want to clean it up before winter.

  • Replies 1
  • Views 16
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Featured Replies

had almost the exact same thing on my old Tacoma. turned out the coax shield wasnt making great contact at the mag mount base, which was causing RF to travel back down the outside of the coax instead of staying on the shield. classic common mode current problem. what fixed it for me was adding a few ferrite chokes on the coax run close to the antenna feedpoint. mix 31 toroids work great for VHF/UHF, you can slip the coax through a couple of them and it makes a noticeable difference. also worth checking how the coax is routed — if its running parallel to the power leads for any length that can cause issues too.

the composite liner shouldnt matter much for the antenna ground plane since the mag mount is on the metal roof of the cab anyway. if you ever do decide to drill, an NMO mount through the roof with a proper ground connection will be a big improvement over the mag mount regardless.

honestly might just be a bonding issue with the truck body. i ran into something similar and spent weeks chasing RF problems before someone told me to just bond the hood and trunk lid (or in your case the bed) with braided ground straps. made a huge difference on my install. not saying thats definitely your problem but its worth checking before you start moving the antenna around.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

Account

Navigation

Search

Search

Configure browser push notifications

Chrome (Android)
  1. Tap the lock icon next to the address bar.
  2. Tap Permissions → Notifications.
  3. Adjust your preference.
Chrome (Desktop)
  1. Click the padlock icon in the address bar.
  2. Select Site settings.
  3. Find Notifications and adjust your preference.