so after about three weekends of messing around i think i finally have a decent mobile setup going in my F-150. running a Yaesu FT-7900R for the dual band and i gotta say the install was way more involved than i expected when i started this whole project.

biggest headache was the antenna. i tried one of those mag mounts first just to test and the receive was okay but i kept getting RF feedback into the mic whenever i keyed up anywhere above like 25 watts. ended up doing a proper NMO mount through the roof which i was nervous about drilling but honestly it was worth it. audio is way cleaner now and the SWR actually makes sense.

the other thing that tripped me up was running the power cable. i went directly to the battery like everyone says to do and i ran it through the firewall grommet but i nicked the insulation a little on the sharp edge of the hole and didnt notice for like two weeks. nothing bad happened but i added some split loom and a extra fuse close to the battery just to be safe after i caught it.

anyway if anyone is just starting their first mobile install and has questions feel free to ask, happy to share what worked and what didnt. also curious what antennas people are running on trucks if anyone has recommendations, im using a Diamond NR770HB right now and its fine but wondering if theres something better for mostly local repeater work and some simplex.

congrats on getting it sorted, those mag mount RF feedback issues are super common and a lot of people just live with it which is a shame because it really does mess with audio quality. the NMO mount was the right call.

for the antenna question, if youre mostly doing local repeaters the NR770 is honestly pretty solid, ive used one for years. the one thing i'd maybe look at is the Comet SBB-5NMO if you want a little more gain on 70cm, it performs noticeably better up there in my experience and the 2m performance is close enough to the Diamond that you wont miss anything. though for simplex on 2m the lower angle of radiation on a longer antenna can actually work against you sometimes for nearby stations so it kinda depends.

also good catch on the insulation nick, that kind of thing is how electrical gremlins start. i always run the cable through a rubber grommet and then put a dab of silicone around it just to be sure nothing is rubbing.

im in a similar boat right now actually, just got my tech license last month and trying to figure out the mobile thing. i have a hatchback so the roof mount idea makes me nervous, did you find any good resources for the drilling part or did you just kind of wing it? i keep reading conflicting stuff about whether to go through the roof or just use the trunk lip or whatever