So i've been running a lip mount on my F-150 for about two years now with a Tram 1185 and honestly it works fine but I keep reading that a proper NMO through the roof gives you way better ground plane and lower takeoff angle or whatever. My buddy drilled his Ram and says its night and day but i dunno if he's just justifying the fact that he put a hole in his truck.

The thing is i do a lot of highway driving and i'm on the local 2m repeater a ton, range isn't really an issue right now. But i'm thinking about adding a second antenna for 70cm too and i'd need to run two cables anyway so maybe thats when it makes sense to commit to roof mounts. Just not sure if i want two holes in a truck i'm still paying for lol.

Anyone actually done a side by side comparison? Like is the NMO difference something you'd actually notice day to day or is it more of a theoretical thing on paper?

Honestly for a repeater a few miles away you probably wont notice any difference. The lip mount degrades your ground plane a bit and you might get some pattern distortion toward the back of the truck but for everyday use its not gonna matter. Where it starts to matter is weak signal stuff or if you're trying to hit a repeater right at the edge of range.

That said if you're running two antennas anyway i'd just do the NMO mounts right. Drilling roof sheet metal isn't that scary if you tape it off and go slow. Get a good stainless ring terminal and seal it properly and it'll outlast the truck. The Larsen mounts are solid, been using one for years on a Silverado with no issues. Two holes is cleaner than two lip mounts dangling off the edge in my opinion.

yeah i had the same debate a while back and just went with the NMO. cant say i did any scientific test but the antenna sits better, no wobble, and i feel better about the coax run not having that weird bend at the door frame. practical stuff more than RF theory for me honestly. also resale isnt as bad as you think if you use a good grommet kit when you sell it.