Grounding question

[Bankrupt]

Originally Posted by tater gater

when i drove a sterling had the same problem,i ended up using a tiger tail. you isolate the antenna from ground plastic washer on top and bottom then get 2 thin nuts to run up on the bottom of ant before the coax put a 8 gauge wire about 5 ft long this creates a false ground .you can trim the wire to set swr. wilson sold a kit to do this for a while.it worked great for me

Is that the same thing as ground plane?....only longer?

[fr8rookie]

Also on a Sterling they like to run the CB and AM-FM radio into the same coax via a box under the dash. this alone will cause problems on performance of your radio. Run your own coax to one mirror or behind the cab for your Cb and check SWRs then add an extra ground if necessary. This set up is not always used but if you use your own coax it will help.

[tater gater]

Originally Posted by Bankrupt

Is that the same thing as ground plane?....only longer?

im not sure the tech that ive been using for 15 plus years set it up for me it worked so i did not question him

[BeerCanMark]

Originally Posted by tater gater

you can trim the wire to set swr.

Trimming your wire will not help you set your " True SWR "
If you have to adjust the length of ground wire or length of coax cable, you have an impedance problem.

Your only tricking your radio everything is o.k.

[ls57racer]

Welcome to Truckingboards BeerCanMark........

[Lyv Wire]

Originally Posted by tater gater

im not sure the tech that ive been using for 15 plus years set it up for me it worked so i did not question him

TATERGATOR,

You are correct sir ! Most folks have never used this or heard of it . As you stated earlier it's a "floating ground plane" and Wilson used to market these. (Look at the Wilson website) [ use the antenna drop down , look at floating ground kit for a full explanation] I think it's called a Floating Ground Kit. And the wire that you are talking about trimming is not the COAX ....IT is the wire that makes up the ground side of the floating "Ground" which is a misnomer. DO NOT GROUND this wire to the frame . This wire has to remain ungrounded as it acts as a COUNTER POISE. In some instances this is the only way to make an antenna work on some of these vehicles withoout re-designing the electrical layout of the tractor. *** AND whose shop is going to allow a driver to re-wire the entire tractor ???***

Does it work well for you tater gator ?? You must have a well experienced tech doing your work ! Anyone ever use this set-up slip seating ??? Just wondering ??......

GOOD LUCK