Ham Radio / Antenna Placement

[WB6YPF]

New to the forum with my 2023 Wildtrak. Looking for ideas for mounting locations for a VHF/UHF Radio and Antenna.
Hoping not to leave too many holes that might hurt resale value.
Thanks in advance.
Bill WB6YPF

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[Happy]

Our dual band antenna is mounted to the passenger side of the spare tire. I made a bracket out of thin sheet metal from Lowes. Used the existing tire mount bolts to attach and ran the coax cable through the rubber gromet already in place. The cable then enters the Bronco in the same wire bundle as the tailgate wire. Our radio is a model that splits the radio body from the control head, so our cable is not all the way to the front. If your radio does not split, then the antenna cable does get a little long if you go this route, but a good cable will help.

This set up does not make any new holes and it provides pretty good protection to the antenna.

 

[Johnny Rebel]

I run a dual band Yaesu FTM-400 in both of our Broncos and also run dual antennas mounted on the cowl in front of the A-pillars. Never had a problem with performance.

This is the only pic I’ve got handy that shows the placement on the cowl.

 

[STEED77]

I just did a GMRS antenna today.. came out good.. need to check the SWR yet.

 

[615_Bronco]

I just did a GMRS antenna today.. came out good.. need to check the SWR yet.

What did you use?
One of the problem with the wide SAS tires.

 

[STEED77]

I used a cheap Amazon Jeep one... I had to drill it some and get creative to clear the base.... There look to be a few options that might work also.

https://tinyurl.com/4jtrftx9

 

[Copperhorse73]

I just installed this one from @Mountains2Metal , I like it.
https://mountains2metal.com/tailgate-flag-antenna-mount-bracket/

 

[Diller]

New to the forum with my 2023 Wildtrak. Looking for ideas for mounting locations for a VHF/UHF Radio and Antenna.
Hoping not to leave too many holes that might hurt resale value.
Thanks in advance.
Bill WB6YPF

Here is what I used, not cheap, but well worth the cost.
https://swarfworks.com/bronco-cb/vhf/uhf-antenna-mount/

 

[Happy]

That is a nice mount. Glad to see the market is growing.

 

[WB6YPF]

Thanks everyone. I must say I’m impressed at how the Bronco is set up for accessories. And how many are available.
Now I just need to figure out where to put the radio. I’m hoping to use my Kenwood TM-742A with detectable face. But there sure isn’t a lot of room like there was in my ‘85. My Wild Trak has the LUX Package and it seems like even less room than other models.

 

[Kilgore]

I'm beginning a V/UHF and an HF screwdriver antenna installation.
Ordered this for the V/UHF mount.

https://www.trailrax.com/products/ford-bronco-trail-sight-accessory-mount

Custom fabricating a mount for the HF antenna. No pic yet. It's still a work in progress.

73
Kilgore (WB6AGE)

 

[Diller]

Thanks everyone. I must say I’m impressed at how the Bronco is set up for accessories. And how many are available.
Now I just need to figure out where to put the radio. I’m hoping to use my Kenwood TM-742A with detectable face. But there sure isn’t a lot of room like there was in my ‘85. My Wild Trak has the LUX Package and it seems like even less room than other models.

I'm installing an FT-8800, that I have laying around. I ordered the Bullet Point mount system, to mount the head on the dash, and will likely place the body under the passenger seat.

 

[Murfman]

I'd like to see pix of your head unit mounting options. I have my GMRS mounted under the gear shift with mic plug jack below the heater controls. Need to install a race radio or dual channel radio for 151.625 freq for my Baja trip in 2025 and am looking at clean mounting options. I'd rather mount a dual band that I would use later on than a race radio that I'd use for 1 trip.

Murf
73
WA1FFX

 

[ksdon]

Hey Murf, It's been awhile since I've revisited this channel. I do believe that 151.625 is getting extremely busy and many are moving away from this frequency. But if you need it, then you need it. This is the old Red Dot channel in the MURS radio band. In the USA your supposed to have a license now a days, but many continue to use it since so many older radios still have it. A handheld radio with this channel using an antenna mounted on the driver side by the windshield can be easily rounted inside. That would be my suggestion. It would work well with the outside antenna and takes up very little room. Below is a picture my old 151.625....., it takes a lot of space to have this mounted.

Not being any type of expert, I believe that most newer radios with this frequency require being programmed. No big issue if you buy from a place that can do this for you.

Best wishes and enjoy Baja...sounds wonderful to get to go there.

 

[Murfman]

Group requirement is for 50 Watt trans so handheld is out.

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