Outer Limits 4x4 Board

hey can someone give ma a quick run down on how to wire up a uhf + ariel. thx
waandy

what do you need to know ?- the red wire goes to an accessory on wire (cigarette lighter will normally do, or stereo)

Black wire to a chassis ground

most antenna bases already cable on them with a plug. If you want to fit your own UHF plug /base you'll need to have a look at the style of the plug and how it is assembled, there's lots of variations.

Steve.

thx steve.
yea the ariel bits got me stumpd.
do you hook up both wires in the cable to your ariel or just 1?
i got some time off work afta my mate decided to roll his lux with me in it and bust my elbow and thought id put it to use and work on the rig.lol

waandy.

google it and u will find a few different ways.

also do a search in general 4x4, a few threads gone through on same subject.

btw, yes u need both shield and centre core hooked up and has to be done well as if not u can risk burning the uhf out.

The UHF antenna wire is co-axial cable. It has a conductor in the centre, an insulator around the conductor, a braid around that and the black sheath over that.

The braid goes connects to the body of the plug or antenna base, and the conductor goes to the pin of the connector or the threaded bit of the base the antenna screws on to.

Steve.

try not to cut the coax because i think it screws up ur reception

Not true Beauzooki, generally, shorter cable runs are better. It's just important to get the connections right and use quality components. Lots of stuff is supplied with crimped UHF connectors, and these can't be reused.

Steve.

just a quetion steve do u know if cutting the coax shorter on a ariel with an amplifier at the base (the shiney metal thing i think its an amp) woud screw up the reception or make it better or shouldnt change a thing.

josh

Beauzooki wrote:just a quetion steve do u know if cutting the coax shorter on a ariel with an amplifier at the base (the shiney metal thing i think its an amp) woud screw up the reception or make it better or shouldnt change a thing.

josh

amp thing u are refering too. is this a 20mm round cylinder style thing? or another one?

yer the 20mm round cylinder style thing

ever looked inside one? there is no power wires as u may have noticed and also there is basically nothing inside there.

it is called an elevated feed antenna and also usually ground independant so u dont have to mount it on a ground plane (such as middle of roof)

this is one

http://www.prestigecom.net.au/index.php ... ucts_id=97

well the a..hole who sold me one called it an amp and was saying they are heaps better

Beauzooki wrote:well the a..hole who sold me one called it an amp and was saying they are heaps better

i can say they are better. i have run one for years too. thou need to rebuild mine too many trees. the ground independant bit is the important bit.

u didnt get ripped just the ahole is calling it the wrong name.

Hi guys.

Just a few points which may help.

1) The shorter the coax length the better. This is because RG-58 coax has a high attenuation rate at UHF frequencies. Therefor, a shorter run of coax will mean that more power will be transfered to the antenna when transmitting, and a higher signal level will be seen by the radio when receiving.

2) HOWEVER, a long run of coax is MUCH better than a short run of coax with a poorly terminated connector! If you don't know exactly what you are doing with RF connectors then leave it as it is!

Poorly/incorrectly terminated connectors (or damaged coax) will cause poor receive (RX) and will cause a large percentage of RF power to be reflected back into the radio when you are transmitting (TX) - this will eventually lead to failure of the power transistors in your radio. Not good!

3) If you do decide to leave your coax at full length (which in real terms will not make a noticeable difference to every-day performance) then try not to 'coil' the excess coax up. This can cause undesirable interference problems. Also, keep the coax as far away from other wiring and looms as possible.

4) As nicbeer has said, the antenna you seem to have is known as an elevated feed 'ground independent' antenna. These are good because they can be mounted almost anywhere (like on your bullbar, or on the spare wheel bracket at the rear) without the need for a 'ground' or earth, and will radiate evenly in all directions. An antenna that requires a ground (a 'ground dependent' antenna) will only radiate evenly when it has a good ground plane, and is mounted in the center of that ground plane (eg - in the middle of your roof!)

Your antenna has no 'amp', the person you got it off is just confused about the scary topic of RF (like most people).

I hope that helps!

Good luck!!!

Pez

Pezooki wrote: 3) If you do decide to leave your coax at full length (which in real terms will not make a noticeable difference to every-day performance) then try not to 'coil' the excess coax up. This can cause undesirable interference problems. Also, keep the coax as far away from other wiring and looms as possible.
Pez

This is very interesting Pez, thanks. I've always just 'coiled' up the excess and cable tied it out the way. Obviously a bad habit
How much does it actually effect performance when it is coiled up?

Hi mate.

Coiling up the excess coax may not affect the performance of your UHF at all, however, it can...

The most common symptoms are:

1) On your UHF radio, excessive interference can be heard on receive (RX) from your cars ignition/electrical system.

2) and in some cases, interference may be received by your cars AM/FM stereo or CD player when you are Transmitting (TX) on your UHF radio.

Other factors can cause the above symptoms too, but it is best to avoid coiling the coax wherever possible.

Cheers,

Pez