Ham radio mounting options

[EngineHostler]

Other than drilling a hole through the aluminum roof, what others folks using for VHF/UHF installations? Currently considering a lip mount on the rear hatch.

TIA - KA5MTE

 

[DieselMonk]

mounting on the roof rail and or crossbars.

 

[Gary Waugh]

I use a small mag mount dual band (144 & 420Mhz) on the roof, I opened the rear side window and passed tha cable through the window (at the front near the hinge) that was 10 years ago and have never had a leak, I like that it meant no holes had to be drilled in the car, I then passed the cable under the carpet to the drivers foot well, where I have the radio mounted, I did wire the radio directly to the car battery so I can use it with or without the engine running, also these units can take a lot of current when transmitting so I preferred to connect it directly to the battery rather than trying to connect to a cigarette lighter plug.

 

[EngineHostler]

I use a small mag mount dual band (144 & 420Mhz) on the roof, I opened the rear side window and passed tha cable through the window (at the front near the hinge) that was 10 years ago and have never had a leak, I like that it meant no holes had to be drilled in the car, I then passed the cable under the carpet to the drivers foot well, where I have the radio mounted, I did wire the radio directly to the car battery so I can use it with or without the engine running, also these units can take a lot of current when transmitting so I preferred to connect it directly to the battery rather than trying to connect to a cigarette lighter plug.

Unfortunately, that won't work on the 2022. All the exterior body panels are aluminum to save weight and aluminum is not magnetic. I like the idea of mounting the radio (Yaesu FTM400DR) under the dash as that make the remote head and microphone connections without using any extension cables. I'll duck down under dash and see what spot is best. I had been running the radio in the aux port of F250SD, but was limited to 25 watts as I'd blow the fuse on 50 watts.

 

[EngineHostler]

mounting on the roof rail and or crossbars.

That was in my thought process (slow as it is). I'm looking into it.

 

[DieselMonk]

Combine that with a hide away mount that folds the antenna backwards to get in and out of garage. Overlanders do that trick with their cell boost antennas.

 

[bb37]

NCG Comet sells mounting brackets that attach to the tops of the front fenders. They use existing fender mounting holes and allow you to use an NMO mount to attach an antenna.

Left side p/n FO3ANTNCG. Right side p/n FO3ANTNCG-R.

NCG - FO3ANTNCG - Mount for F-150, Super-Duty, Expedition - cometantenna

FO3ANTNCG Vehicle specific fender bracket, no holes to drill. FO3ANTNCG : Drivers side installation. FO3ANTNCG-R : Passenger side installation. Fits these vehicles: Ford F-150: 2015-2020 Ford Super-Duty F-250, F-350: 2017-2026 Expedition: 2018-2024 Uses the existing fender bolt, bracket extends...

www.cometantenna.com

They are available from various amateur radio dealers. I purchased a pair, but I haven't installed them yet. My plan is to tackle my radio install in May...of 2025.

de AK9R

 

[Erniehjr]

I thought about drilling a hole in the roof like I had on my mini van and pickup truck, but that complicated getting in the garage and going through the car wash. I would have had to struggle to reach the antenna and take it off in those situations.

I did two mounts on my Exp 2022, one using the Comet vehicle specific bracket that attaches to the fender bolt, under the hood. That antenna is a 1/4 wave 2 meter antenna (19"). Works good there. I can still fit in the garage and go through the car wash without taking it off. The coax was fed through a rubber plug in the firewall (near the steering wheel).

Second mount is for my HF antenna (ATAS 120A). I modified an adjustable trunk lip mount and bolted it to the roof rack near the back. I ran a ground braid from the metal rack and antenna mount bolts, to the 2 bolts holding the rack to the roof. That made for a good ground. Coax was fed down the back and into the hatch.

 

[HILLY]

NCG Comet sells mounting brackets that attach to the tops of the front fenders. They use existing fender mounting holes and allow you to use an NMO mount to attach an antenna.

Left side p/n FO3ANTNCG. Right side p/n FO3ANTNCG-R.

NCG - FO3ANTNCG - Mount for F-150, Super-Duty, Expedition - cometantenna

FO3ANTNCG Vehicle specific fender bracket, no holes to drill. FO3ANTNCG : Drivers side installation. FO3ANTNCG-R : Passenger side installation. Fits these vehicles: Ford F-150: 2015-2020 Ford Super-Duty F-250, F-350: 2017-2026 Expedition: 2018-2024 Uses the existing fender bolt, bracket extends...

www.cometantenna.com

They are available from various amateur radio dealers. I purchased a pair, but I haven't installed them yet. My plan is to tackle my radio install in May...of 2025.

de AK9R

As I was reading down the thread I was thinking ditch light brackets.

I have these on my truck for actual lights, but wonder if it would work all the same. These are very beefy and solidly mounted.

2018-2024 Ford Expedition SDHQ Built A-Pillar Light Mount Kit

These brackets allow you to run aftermarket LED light pods on the hood of your 2018-Current Ford Expedition without significant vehicle modifications

sdhqoffroad.com

 

[bb37]

I have these on my truck for actual lights, but wonder if it would work all the same.

Could you post some photos of these brackets on your Expedition?

 

[HILLY]

 

[K0LTZ]

Antenna mounting solutions for '03-06 models?

 

[EngineHostler]

NCG Comet sells mounting brackets that attach to the tops of the front fenders. They use existing fender mounting holes and allow you to use an NMO mount to attach an antenna.

Left side p/n FO3ANTNCG. Right side p/n FO3ANTNCG-R.

I wish I would have paid attention to this before. I took the Diamond Antenna roof rack mount back because the 2022 rail is so narrow, plus it doesn't mount level. The front screw and bold end up to close to the paint for my comfort.

I swapped it for a NGC FO4ANTNCG which looked like it might work. STOP! It doesn't. According to the HRO Atlanta's web site they have the above mount hanging on the wall. I read all the instruction sheets of what was there and none of them mentioned Expedition. I'll get back there and do a swap for the one I have, hopefully they will be the same price and it will be a direct swap without playing with money game.

Thanks for all the assistance.
73 - KA5MTE

 

[EngineHostler]

I did two mounts on my Exp 2022, one using the Comet vehicle specific bracket that attaches to the fender bolt, under the hood. That antenna is a 1/4 wave 2 meter antenna (19"). Works good there. I can still fit in the garage and go through the car wash without taking it off. The coax was fed through a rubber plug in the firewall (near the steering wheel).

I've included two pictures one showing the Diamond Antenna on the GNC mount where I wanted it not where GNC said to mount it. Second shows two rubber boots through the firewall. Which one did you go through the upper or lower? Did you cut through the boot or fish it through with the other wires?

 

[EngineHostler]

Antenna mounting solutions for '

You are lucky that you have a steel body vehicle, so you have multiple options and locations. You can go with a body mount at the front, driver's side and figure out a way to route the antenna cable into the passenger area. Or you can go with a magnet mount or lip mount on the top of one of the rear doors or on the top or side of the hatch.

When I first got my technician ticket in 1981, I went with a Larson NMO mag mount on the rear truck deck and worked great until I moved it to a 1988 Chevy Suburban. Mag mount was moved between vehicles and within 3 months it shorted out and took out the finals in the radio.

At that point it was time to upgrade to 2m/70cm. New radio and new antenna. I went with a body mount at the hood and a Diamond dual band antenna (NR790A I think). While the radio and antenna worked great, the mount for the antenna was not up to grade like the hood mounts today, and I had to drill holes into the fender for the mount to attach to. The antenna and mount shook like crazy at highway speeds.

To fix that, I purchased a Diamond K400C antenna mounts. Since the NR700A was a UHF connector, the SO-239 antenna connection was perfect. I installed that on the top of the passenger door right behind the driver. With a little bit of stretch I could fold over the antenna going into a parking garage instead of getting out and removing it. That particular mount and antenna I've been using almost 26 years. The mount and antenna are installed on my 1999 Ford F-250 Crew Cab on the rear door behind the driver.

There's an age old argument has has been around a long as I've been a ham on what is the best base connector for a mobile antenna, NMO or UHF connector. I've found both to work well and both to be water tight.

With most of the new Diamond and Comet Antennas, you do not have to have a hard ground to a metal surface. The ground is loaded into the base of the antenna. Aluminum like steel, will reflect RF energy and with base loaded antennas you should be in good shape.

Just do your due diligence and you'll come up with a good solution. PM me if you have questions.

73 de KA5MTE

 

[bb37]

NMO is superior to the UHF mount. NMO was designed for mobile use and is water tight when installed properly. The UHF mounts on the Japanese antennas may work OK, but I would not use them if NMO was an option.

 

[DieselMonk]

NMO is superior to the UHF mount. NMO was designed for mobile use and is water tight when installed properly. The UHF mounts on the Japanese antennas may work OK, but I would not use them if NMO was an option.

NMO hands down.