What Dennis said.... http://www.firestik.com/Catalog/NGP_DS.htm The only limitation is that it will only handle 30 watts max. Myself I currently use a RoadPro(tm) no ground plane Firestik style antenna mounted to the front luggage rack on my Westy and has worked VERY well for the past 14 years. But like Derek, I want something that is a bit stealthier and lower profile so the DS14-FG is probably the way I am going to soon. I don't run any linear amplifiers, but on occasion I do run an "Export" model version of the Jackson 200 Channel CB AM/FM/SSB which pumps out a healthy 25 to 30 watts or so. I'll most likely end up mounting it on the right side near the bottom right corner of the windshield opposite of the bottom left corner of the windshield. Back in the heyday of CB Radio craze, Antenna Specialists made a very good automotive AM/FM/CB disguise antenna but has since been discontinued. It was generally a universal base mount and I think the wattage max was around 20 watts so it could handle the 15 watt PEP (Peak-Envelope-Power) of CB Sideband transmissions. But this style of antenna is of no use to the Vanagon mounting style (which is the same as the Beetle btw) as it's for American Car fenders. You may have to go the Stico route to get what you want in your specifications. -- Jim Thompson 84 GL 1.9 "Gloria" 84 Westfalia 2.1 "Ole Putt" 72 411 Station Wagon "Pug" 75 914 1.8 "Nancy" Full Timing Since March 1999 oldvolkshome@gmail.com http://www.oldvolkshome.com Find me on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/people/Jim-Thompson/100000710343835 *********************************** On Tue, Dec 13, 2011 at 8:19 AM, Dennis Haynes <d23haynes57@hotmail.com> wrote: > Firestick DS14-FG. > > Dennis > > Sent from my Windows Phone > ________________________________ > From: Derek Drew > Sent: 12/13/2011 7:26 AM > To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM > Subject: Integrated AM/FM and Stealth CB (alarm) Antenna -- Anybody? > > This email is a query for someone knowledgeable about radio and CB > antennas to speak up. > > I've been parking for 30 years on the streets of Manhattan, and have > had little trouble. But its still nice to have the assurance of the > beepers going off if the bad guys come. In general, if they see > anything inside the van, they break in, but if they don't see > anything they don't, possibly because the van is too weird looking > and the owner's reaction to its being entered too unpredictable for > comfort. By contrast, I used to find people sleeping in my 72 bus all > the time in NYC in wintertime, but they never hurt anything aside > from the lingering after-smell of that type of person. > > I have a car alarm that transmits on a CB frequency (27Mhz) to alert > my beepers if somebody enters the vehicle while I am away from it. > > When I have to park too far from the apartment or be very high in a > tall office building, I turn a switch that ups the power of the 27Mhz > alarm signal from 4 watts to 50 watts, and this allows me to depend > on the signal penetrating basements and reach 6 long city blocks > instead of 2. > > I am having to mess with my antenna now and am wondering if anybody > had worked out how to get a quality setup for the antenna to transmit > on the CB bands as well as general AM/FM use. I could install a > dedicated CB antenna, but I'd prefer to use the factory OEM AM/FM > antenna for this purpose, or if I install a 2nd dedicated CB antenna > instead, I'd like it to be stealthy and not hurtful to the eye. (Most > CB antennas hurt my eye, or hurt themselves whacking trees above > while driving on parkways.) > > Normally, trying to use the stock antenna for both CB and AM/FM use > is possible, but the CB functionality is greatly degraded because > such antennas are the wrong length, and AM/FM antennas are generally > a joke for CB use for many other reasons... as I understand it the > lack of a ground plane, lack of proper resonant frequencies, no coil > load, etc. > > Accordingly, what I'd like to hear from a radio-head is what CB > antenna might be suitable to be used with Vanagon with the goal of > it being at least better than trying to use a stock OEM antenna, but > not look too much different from a standard AM/FM antenna (stealth). > If the antenna looks too much like a CB antenna, the bad guys might > break it off proactively, or worse, assume that there is a CB inside > the vehicle that they could steal, and it could be an inducement for > them to break in. > > For all I know, a radio-knowledgeable person would say to just string > something inside the fiberglass, or make a non-standard flat antenna, > or some non-traditional design. > > For my implementation, I'll either re-use the ancient Autopage > transmitter I have been using, which transmits at 27.195, or I will > implement a more modern solution, such as the DIRECTED ELECTRONICS > 795T or 795W CAR ALARM 3 CHANNEL VIBRATING PAGER (example: > http://www.amazon.com/DEI-795W-3-CHANNEL-VIBRATING-RECEIVER/dp/B00076WWTY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1323776835&sr=8-1 > or > http://www.ebay.com/itm/330653062442?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649 > ) > > I provide these links in case anybody else decides that they want to > be paged if somebody enters their vehicle without their knowledge and > they want a hint as to how to go about it. The device is simply > plugged into whatever alarm system is currently in the vehicle, or > even connected to door-pin operation, so it can operate along side of > any other alarm system functionality. Be advised that some modern car > alarms have the ability to transmit an alert to the remote control > as well (which would be almost a duplicate functionality) and > manufactures claim up to a mile reception of such a device. However, > i still want the old functionality to co-exist with the new one, > provided I eventually implement the new one, for added > assurance. For the record, other systems one can employ for added > assurance include Google maps / GPS transmitters (you can look Google > Maps to see where your rig is), Canadian model extended range car > alarms, and so-called "telematic" alarms that operate through the > Internet, effectively providing infinite range. > > Last time I tried to come up with a dual/CB AM FM antenna that could > transmit 50 watts on CB, the only solution I could find was to send > an OEM antenna out to Sti-Co, a company that specializes in making > stealth antennas. For $175 (in 1992) they modified my stock Vanagon > antenna so that the SWR at my transmit frequency of 27.195 was nearly > 1:1. They did this by putting something on the antenna lead line, > but not otherwise altering the antenna. I notice that they are still > alive and well, with a web site and catalog at > http://www.sti-co.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Stico-Cat-2010-revised-wo-ST-PD-veh.pdf, > apparently primarily directed toward law enforcement. In any case, > one option I see there is to NB-HF-DS antenna, which can handle 150 > watts, and which I cannot help imagine would be much more efficient > than trying to force a Vanagon antenna do the job. > > I'd like feedback from people knowledgeable about radio on this > issue. The argument that was made to me in 1992 was that it was fine > to use a Vanagon antenna to transmit CB efficiently because the > antenna only had to be tuned to operate at exactly 27.195 instead of > having it try to operate on the entire CB band range. In other words, > the argument was that by having an extremely narrow band antenna, one > could get away with using a vastly worse CB antenna and get the same > result as a quality CB antenna. Does this sound right? > > I notice that the CB antenna I just named is 36 inches tall, which as > I understand it is a compatible length for use with CBs. The best > length for FM antennas is something like 29 to 33 inches, and I > notice that my OEM antenna here extends 31 inches. So, I think that > whatever solution is arrived at, it would be best if the antenna were > 36 inches tall instead of 31, and that the operator would normally > use the antenna at 31 inches, but extend it out to 36 inches when > leaving the car and using the alarm functionality. > > Does this sound reasonable? > > Any ideas about how to go about this? > > > > _______________________________________________ > Derek Drew > Washington DC / New York > derekdrew@derekmail.com > Email is best normally but... > PHONE: 202-966-7907 (Call the number at left normally) > (alt/cell for diligent calling only): 703-408-1532 |
Please note - During the past 17 years of operation, several gigabytes of
Vanagon mail messages have been archived. Searching the entire collection
will take up to five minutes to complete. Please be patient!
Return to the archives @ gerry.vanagon.com
The vanagon mailing list archives are copyright (c) 1994-2011, and may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the list administrators. Posting messages to this mailing list grants a license to the mailing list administrators to reproduce the message in a compilation, either printed or electronic. All compilations will be not-for-profit, with any excess proceeds going to the Vanagon mailing list.
Any profits from list compilations go exclusively towards the management and operation of the Vanagon mailing list and vanagon mailing list web site.