| Author |
Message |
    
Sofkow
| | Posted on Thursday, May 15, 2003 - 11:37 am: | 
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Which way do you think is best? I'm putting a hr2510 in my auto, and I've heard arguements for either way, fuse panel and direct to battery. Which, in your opinions, works the best?
I would also like to hear a few suggestions as to what some of you think are the best performing mobile antenna's.
thank y'all for any ideas. |
Dx431
| | Posted on Thursday, May 15, 2003 - 3:44 pm: |
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Sofkow,
I have a HR2510 in my P/U truck and it has always worked for me.Run the wires straight to the battery with 8g wire and fused at the battery, same as installing an amp. You shouldn't get as much motor noise.
As for moble ant. go, I like the 102" SS Whip. The thing I like about is, it has a low swr and will out perform some of your high $$ ant. and will handle high power so long as you install high grade coax, the whip will handle anything you throw at it.
Just my thoughts....
431 |
Wildbill
| | Posted on Thursday, May 15, 2003 - 10:03 pm: |
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If you don't want to run long runs of wire from your battery to radio, I'd suggest that you get the heavy duty power cord for the radio and plug it directly into your lighter socket. The heavy duty power cord has a fuse on the positive and negative side of the cord and the lighter is already fused at 20 amps. Triple protection. Wildbill |
Stepchild
| | Posted on Friday, May 16, 2003 - 12:51 am: |
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Sofkow,I'm with 431.Go straight to the battery.If your not running an amp you can get away with smaller wire like a 12ga but I wouldn't use anything smaller.Unless you have hight issues go with the 102" whip,other wise Wilson makes fine antennas.Weather it be top,center or base loaded they have what you'll need for any application.Good luck 73's |
Tech808
| | Posted on Friday, May 16, 2003 - 1:53 am: |
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Sofkow,
MY 2 CENTS WORTH!
DIRECT TO BATTERY & FUSED BOTH WIRES! USE at Least 10GA WIRE, Get a 10GA quick connect at auto store if you want to take it in & out.
12 ft of Black & 12 ft of Red plus 2 battery connections should cost you under 5 or 6 bucks.
Cigarette lighter plugs are an accident waiting to happen, I have several here that people have brought in totally MELTED!
Just my thought's
Lon
Tech808 |
Simon
| | Posted on Friday, May 16, 2003 - 9:14 am: |
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DO NOT USE a cigarette lighter plug. Causes problems with radios and in some cars can cause a problem with the ECM.
Do not go to the fuse panel for the second reason go directly to the battery. If you want the radio to power on/off with ignition use a relay on the ACC circuit to switch the hot lead that you run to the battery. I have used this method in cars and boats for radios of upto 200w PEP with no problems (over a 28 year period). |
Wildbill
| | Posted on Friday, May 16, 2003 - 10:07 am: |
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Cigarette Plugs are not an accident waiting to happen, if someone brought in some units that were melted, it's evident that there were trying to run something that was highly rated more than
the lighter itself was. The 12ga. wire will be more than sufficient to run that radio, unless you have had it modified to pull more amps than the norm. I use one on my vehicle and it works just fine. If you have a newer vehicle check with manufacturer, some of them carry literature on how to route wiring for radio equipment. Wildbill |
Weakeststation
| | Posted on Friday, May 16, 2003 - 11:23 am: |
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einny meiny miney moe...  |
nitemare 5AE586
| | Posted on Friday, May 16, 2003 - 11:56 am: |
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Hello wildbill,nitemare said that!!! |
Scrapiron63
| | Posted on Friday, May 16, 2003 - 2:27 pm: |
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In my pickups I always run to the battery with heavy wire,because I run an amplifier, but to do that you almost need to change batteries, get the kind that has both kinds of terminals.
But for over 30 years in my different cars, i've always used the cigarette lighter plug, just to run a radio, no amps,and without any problems to the cars or radios. Why not,,those plugs are heavy wired, the only way I can see you would burn one up is to overfuse it, most radios don't pull but 3 or 4 amps. Remember those plugs were build to heat that lighter to very high temperatures. Your not gonna bother the computer or whatever thur the electrical system, your radio signal is going thur the antenna, or is suppose to anyway, regardless of where it gets the 12 volts. Radios i've used include the old 23 channels, then the 40 channel cobras,etc, later when the exports became available, the first I used was the old Jackson, then the 2510s when they came out in the mid 1980s. After that I've ran the RCI 2950, Ranger 3300, and for the last several years, the Galaxy 88, which is my all time favorite. You just need to be sure and use a heavy type plug, and the wire that came with the radio, and cut that as short as possible. scrapiron |
Crafter
| | Posted on Friday, May 16, 2003 - 4:31 pm: |
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Nightmare....yep agree...Direct to battery with a good fuse system. |
Allagator
| | Posted on Friday, May 16, 2003 - 10:46 pm: |
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What's a lighter plug i gesss i dont have one of them thing's !!!!!! you never hook a radio up to a lighter plug even if it'a cheep radio !!! Trust all of us when we say to hook it up to the batt or main power at the fuse box !!!!! but if your real good with some wire you can wire a extra fuse in the fuse box just for the radio !!!!!!!!! |
Simon
| | Posted on Saturday, May 17, 2003 - 9:28 am: |
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ScrapIron
Tell that to the 20 or 30 people I know of that RF down the power line into the cigarette lighter wiring and then into the ECM has killed their ECMs at $800 or so a pop.
Under most conditions it shouldnt but can,does and has so why take the risk?? Most car manufacturers remove their warranty if they find a 5w or greater radio has been run via the lighter socket, so again why take a chance. Do it the right way the first time - no risk, no problems. |
Simon
| | Posted on Saturday, May 17, 2003 - 9:32 am: |
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ScrapIron
I should have stated in my orignal post that the 28years is professionally. Over that time I have designed, implemented and installed radios for Australian military, emergency services as well as several city councils, god knows how many businesses and more than the odd CBer, not too forgot all my own ham and cb radios. |
CM 3885
| | Posted on Sunday, May 18, 2003 - 3:45 am: |
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Dont risk it dude! Go RIGHT to the battery posts!!! Besides a hookup to the battery is more direct and you will not run the risk of frying the computer in the vehicle.. Although i disagree with a lot of the stuff Simon says he is 100% right about the ECM. |
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