CB Antenna Warning

JGBimle

JGBimle

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
Altoona, PA
I installed a Cobra 29 LX last week with a 3' Firestik II on a Firestik doorjamb mount that a lot of other members run on my back hatch. I haven't been able to tune it yet because I keep getting the CB Antenna Warning flash when I hold the push to talk button to tune. I can't find any problems with the mounting or installing of my antenna and also tried running a ground wire from the mount to the frame and still can't get it to work.

Any ideas?
 
M

midget

First Fill-Up (of many)
Location
what cheer,Iowa
Bigger ground wire... it sounds stupid but when Ive had to run ground wires Ive always used 12-8 gauge. Any less and I would get warnings and such. Also where is your ground at on the antenna? It should be on the bottom side of the stud. Id also back the screw top out half way to start with the 3'.

Just realized you said you had the 29 back the dynamike down to about a 1/4 turn and rf gain to about half and delta tune straight up. If the dynamike is up to high with to much gain itll act up in such a small vehicle.
 
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granitex

granitex

Skid Plates
Founding Member
Location
Columbus OH
Midget is on it, I find that it is almost always a bad ground of some sort. Is this a new radio or is an old one that has an unknown past.
 
JGBimle

JGBimle

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
Altoona, PA
Thanks for the tips I have some 12 gauge wire that Il try out tomorrow as well as adjust all the knobs in those such ways. When you say about the ground of the antenna do you mean where my additional wire is or are you talking about part of the antenna or bracket itself?

This is my first CB so Im pretty new to this stuff.

The radio is a brand new unit I just purchased and everything Iv read online seems to say that the antenna warning is usually a bad ground.
 
M

midget

First Fill-Up (of many)
Location
what cheer,Iowa
I was talking about the stud that bolts your antenna to the bracket and your coax screws into. Another thing that can cause this is if youvforget to put that plastic spacer between the antenna and bracket.
 
JGBimle

JGBimle

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
Altoona, PA
8ff58a7c.jpg


Heres my mount
 
JGBimle

JGBimle

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
Altoona, PA
I can try something else. The ground wire didn't work I still get the warning. I have a mag mount antenna I'm going to plug in and see if I get the warning
 
TKDx00

TKDx00

Lockers Installed
Founding Member
Location
S.Subs of Chicago, IL.
Just throwing this out...did you remove the paint from under the mount to create a metal to metal connection or the paint from under the ground wire and screw?
 
Davcos

Davcos

Wheeling
Founding Member
Location
Ontario, Canada
I have the same mount. Didn't need to remove any paint, the 4 screws going into the body touch bare metal. I had that same firestik coax with the "fire ring" or whatever on it. I took it to a local CB shop to get it tuned but they couldn't do it, bad ground or something like that. I replaced that coax with the regular style and everything worked perfect after that.
 
RacerXXL

RacerXXL

First Fill-Up (of many)
Founding Member
Location
North Alabama
Davcos said:
I have the same mount. Didn't need to remove any paint, the 4 screws going into the body touch bare metal. I had that same firestik coax with the "fire ring" or whatever on it. I took it to a local CB shop to get it tuned but they couldn't do it, bad ground or something like that. I replaced that coax with the regular style and everything worked perfect after that.
Click to expand...

I'm on my third one and the ground is extremely fragile on those cables, fragile to the point that I'll never use another one.
 
Muadeeb

Muadeeb

Nissan al Gaib
Admin
Location
Dallas
With no ground (or one of high resistance), the antenna system has no point of reference, so virtually all the power gets reflected back to the transmitter.
 
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