kenworth t680 install.

[Slowmover]

Skip today woulda been like trying to yell above the rapids in a river. Lost voices appearing from all over. A snatch of words, then gone.

Yet, ones ears can hear amongst the types of noises now, with better antennas, speaker (+ location) . . and treating lines with ferrites.

So noisy was Skip we hardly heard a thing from right around us coming down IH-81 thru the Shenandoah Valley which usually is busy for AM-19. I’d bet most drivers had it turned off or nearly so.

So what I’ve termed “optional” isn’t when the goal is maximization. But it might be your LAST step when doing an install.

 

[Slowmover]

Back in FTW for an overnight.

Pic to come but wrapped power thru a great big ol’ Mix 31 ferrite toroid.

And — all of a sudden — them hopper-bottom boys lined up down at the Lightcrust Flour Mill was given the gift of tongues, such that strangers and kin alike all knew their own.

Interpretation: Boy, this truck is noisy thru the factory binding posts.

Was noisy.

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[Slowmover]

Here are the pieces I’ll use to better mount the 7’ Skipshooters (which have done fine in the 4,300+ miles the first eight days on this truck), as they’ll enable me to also mount the P-E MC1-500-50 MINI COAX Line Isolators at the antenna feedpoint. $59.95/ea.

If it’ll work, I’ll use a pair of 90 adapters to curl the feed to the MC1-500 between the arms with coax then attached via another 90 to the trailing edge of the lower arm and thence to the body plug.

Still have to make the antenna mount RF Bond which will route internally to the steel of the arm-to-cab bolts.

There’ll also be better (larger, stronger) antenna studs used. ($20/ea)

Found these mounts today on the shelf at the KENLY PETRO (IOWA 80) on Truck Stop Road, X106 on IH-95 in North Carolina. $34.99/ea.

The mirror arm folds back for transport or service. Can’t have these mounts interfere (to front or rear).

As before, this ALSO enables the use of higher quality coax. How that’s routed see the J-Rich video I linked in my first post of this thread.

(BELLS CB) Aries A-18 BELDEN RG-59 & AMPHENOL PL-259. $45.00

I’ll test to see what RX effect is produced on the AM/FM/WX/XM DELPHI Dash radio bypassing the coax system has.

And, yeah, I’ll have spent close to $400 on different antennas, mounts, custom-made coax plus chokes and misc versus what factory provided before I get the coax into the truck. (The exterior parts to the antenna system).

Cheaper routes exist as a path through all phases of this installation.

So don’t be put off by expense as noted.
Focus on what matters MOST.

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[Slowmover]

Duty

A note on expense: I’m already past $1,000 in the gear I’ve highlighted in this thread. FWIW, my other big truck mobile installs have had parts (no labor) adding up to $1,200 to $1,300.

Remember that quality gear which is carefully installed & used will last seven to ten years or more. A low annual cost over the lifetime. Pays for itself several times annually in income offset (less time lost being en-route).

Safety (highway risk reduction) is the big thing. Avoiding a loss of control accident due to road conditions : you’re at 25-mph on an icy Pennsylvania Interstate and find out that JUST OVER THE CREST a three-car pileup has blocked both lanes and pedestrians are getting out.

Takes but once.

WAZE worthless. Same with GPS or phone maps. It just happened. And some eastbound guy is screaming on AM-19 ‘cause he sees all of y’all headed up that grade and knows what’s about to happen. He has a crap radio. But you don’t . . . and you slow to 10-mph and block both lanes at the summit, flashers going and YOU’RE GETTING HEARD BY ALL OTHERS AROUND.

Only a Citizen Band Radio made it possible .

What’s the value of avoiding killing innocent others?
Of NOT turning over your truck?

I lived that exact scenario. (And you aren’t reading this by accident). Please factor in more than $$ as to value.

Chasing down and eliminating noise ain’t cheap or easy in a big truck. See the noise filters — any type listed — as that which you can add later. That’s more than $300 of what I’ve listed thus far. And there isn’t much more to go. (There are ALSO far cheaper DIY substitutes to how I’m adding “filtration”.)

Get the noise floor down (what you hear with no one transmitting). SNR (signal-to-noise ratio) improvements aren’t expensive so much as time-consuming.

Just throwing a radio into a company truck means N-O-I-S-E. Even an expensive one. That was “the radio” I heard and no one else did. The crap radio even if he paid $280 for it (as it was plugged into a bad power & antenna system set; what we are improving thru this thread).


This gear goes with you when you move out.


The Rest of the Story: I gave them folks a blast of my air horn to SHOW them the Interstate was closed; my truck across both lanes. They were driving, sliding, and pushing those wrecks off the icy road as I came to a stop.

We bought them the seconds they needed.
Death took the side road.

Radio: Use in an Emergency by Citizens.


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[Slowmover]

 

[Slowmover]

Just to add a little to the thread. I came out of a t880 day cab a few months back and the one I was in had coax issues that never got ironed out. A buddy of mine just got out of a 2019 t680 sleeper from national carriers and we found his had a box that fed the am/fm stereo out of his passenger mirror antenna. I didn't think paccar did that mess anymore but in his case it was so. He used his own coax and a vise grip mount on the driver side to mount a firestik.

Hopefully yours won't have that garbage signal box, I had that issue in the freightshaker too.

Keep us posted!

— AM/FM radio doesn’t like the Skipshooters.

— And this radio doesn’t get out like it should (50W or so).

I’ll wish it weren’t summer (not so hot as it might be is still hot), since pulling mirrors & panels to run coax needs to be done. (Same for power).

The KW is a good runner (dumb truck driver found the jake; VVT, actually) and have gotten details of handling in hand (scrape 5th and move center pin + tire pressures) and now to get to dealer shop to remedy ride height plus counter-steer (needs shocks + a non-dummy knows trig) and get an inverter to install at our shop.

Life is easier with a clutch. No waiting to start (bleep, bloop) just turn key. Idle at will. No damned radar, etc. 5k in 10-days. Chase LTL and gig ‘em on the grades. Etc.

Doesn’t hold much fuel — and small reefer tank — so buy fuel 1-2X daily mainly to keep topped up. Plan for 5 and average 6. (No more, ”fuel on Sunday and drive into Wednesday”). My choice of where is welcome. (The job details have added up nicely re choice-making, IMO).

Just need a TALKIN’ radio to go with it.

Forgot that the Weatherford, TX Petro has a CB shop (does installs for those who want it; part with cash get 3-miles) and need to get the DX-979 back working as the simple first step. Plus KL-203 for now. (Prez no belong here.)

— Stop off at home and get some more tools plus that gear and do an HOS re-set away from house out there. At a drivers home-away-from-home. Will see if boss goes for that re-set burning his diesel. (Actually, its idle a few hours and nap in the quiet of engine-off except mid-day; grateful for a quiet reefer).

Back & forth in the Carolinas yesterday to get load off, and in a few hours get loaded to FTW after washout & truck wash last night. Handy that the route is 1,200-miles of IH-20 all the way.

Bad that I have to traverse ATL. Good that I’m not on the highway of the damned (IH-85) in order to do it.

And stop for boudin in Shreveport!!


Edit: Got trapped at shipper by delayed order. Spent a 34-reset rebuilding 7-way truck-to-trailer harness plus double air line, etc (added my double spring hanger to one present and removed cut off power cord inside frap wrap). Now a decent double-coil ready to deploy outwards versus being a Level Two mess dragging on catwalk and against sleeper back..

Stayed at IOWA80 at Kenly, NC a couple of nights ago, but giant store was out of the 2-way/7-way plug scrubber brush I need. That job not finished. Priced an exact replacement air/power set and it was $415. (Ouch, no wonder boss avoided). But lazy previous driver could have done what I did; it was just a dirty job. But he’d have rather have had points on his record for Inspection failure.

— I’m no saint when it comes to “ship-shape”, some stuff may get ignored. But some stuff you can’t.

With a forecast of heavy rains — am just outside hurricane warning zones — couldn’t see pulling mirror arms even if I’d had the Dremel kit, so truck stuff got the nod.

Besides, no 120V power in truck till I get an inverter bought & installed. Disassembly and reassembly MUCH faster with power tools (note how JRich used truck air system to power grinder).

But I did make sure to buy coffee tonight in event power goes out at C-store by morning.


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[Slowmover]

Took the HUSTLER QDs off. Radio showed 1.0:1 SWR across 40.

Now, per Eldorado828 concerns:

— Still can’t get the radio check (distance) a 50W radio + 7’ Skipshooters ought to get.

So — whatever mixer box runs CB, and the AM/FM/WX radio thru the same coax is limiting reasonable 11-Meter performance with what we saw in the video is a multi-part coax system (at least three joined lengths each arm to each antenna; six total versus two) designed to aid cheap truck manufacture.

— Each coax length from radio to mirror is broken into three pieces (six adapters). Total of (12) adapters and (6) pieces of coax versus (3) adapters and (2) coax arms end-to-end as it should be.

“Coax System” in name only.

What’s present has performed better than what a 3-yr old 370k mile truck could be expected to deliver (understood that mirror arm grounds haven’t been addressed).

Just cleaning those and adding RF Bond to the antenna mount to body (plus elsewhere) won’t be enough for those wanting to avoid the step of adding NEW coax.

Damned affirmative-action engineered “coax system”. Won’t do the basic.


Edit: Several hours later at sunrise. Tornado warnings, torrential downpours south of here . . . and I’m not 1/4-mile off of IH95 where it seems I almost can’t be heard. (Steady rain here, nothing remarkable).

Had a 1/4-mile confirmation yesterday across a giant parking lot in front of a DC. Before I “improved” SWR; so maybe 1.0 is indication of a fault.

— Went back to check SWR with RF Power at Max. Rises from

1.1:1 on CH-1 to
1.3:1 on CH-40.
(CH-20 @ 1.2:1)

Backed down RF Power to 1/2.

Leave in 90-minutes to get yesterday’s load. 12-miles. A high water flood zone to cross via state highway noted yesterday (the Gallberry Swamp).

You’d think that drivers — today — would have radios both ON and turned UP. I dislike not being able to reach out the short distances expected of a company truck CB. I can hear just fine.

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[Slowmover]

Okay. Got past the house and grabbed a few items to keep the install moving along:

Have the WEST MOUNTAIN RADIO CLEARSPEECH DSP Speaker installed with Velcro & zip ties:

1). Over left shoulder.

2). Angled down to envelope perception.

3). Ease of use.


— The PRESIDENT LINCOLN II currently installed needed help in amplification. This speaker delivers. I can run windows open and still hear everything.

— Digital Signal Processing cleans up RX (see threads this speaker as title).

NO need for NB/ANL. Back off RF Gain a scooch.

This last two weeks was a LONG two weeks without this speaker. CB Radio goes from irritating (hash noise plus asshats on air would make anyone turn it off), to not noticing A-hats very much.

— Hash so well reduced it’s like having a new radio —


Yes, you need to mount any external speaker in the manner shown, please.

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[Slowmover]

Of the last two posts:

— Before today I could barely make the radio listenable without cutting off ALL but the closest users. (1-2/miles maybe city center; 5-10/miles only in quiet countryside).

— I now have the radio 97% of wide-open. (Meaning, if they’re on AM-19 within 15-miles — and we are out of the city center — I’ve got them. Farther under better conditions. This is only the mobiles, NOT the base stations).

Second effect is like going from 4” TV speaker to Dolby Theater Surround Sound. Xtra high audio quality speaker is worth the price. All sorts of detail shows up.

This upgrade completes audio changes. It’s the equivalent of new & better quality coax plus taller, better antennas. Or adding an amp to hit 50-150W. Assume other radio operators have serious rig/vehicle deficiencies, and you must compensate for those shortcomings AS WELL AS improve your own rig

Add DSP . . and you’ll never leave home without it.
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[Slowmover]

Am presently parked in Reefer Alley at a huge DC after installing DSP Speaker. And can easily hear IH-35 3/4-mile W, and occasionally IH-20 N of here several miles depending on that guys radio rig.

At 0800-0900 still have trucks inbound to make their appointments at receivers all over Dallas/Fort Worth. Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. Plenty of chatter. Been here 3-hours to get a door.

Have Linc at 40% of RF Power. Mic Gain up to full. Two reports from over 2-miles away verify settings as excellent. (I suspect Mic-G a touch high, but it’s “loud” by report; stock unmodified mic).

Almost 6,000-miles and (as expected) no problems with 7’ Skipshooters. Only positives.


I’m pretty sure — and have been — that the t680 Kenworth will wind up much the better radio platfotm than the 579 Peterbilt versus my very first impressions.

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[Slowmover]

Dug this GearKeeper mic hanger out of the bag to see if I prefer it over the KW clip. (Got that HD brass clip at a marine supply store; need only a lip to hang this device, then). These are about $30 and are great if you’re willing to get them dialed in per location and swing-tendency.

Upgraded the included antenna-mount studs to TOP GUN stainless pieces bought several years back.,Covers a greater surface area of the mount. Machined. Isn’t going to crack like lower-quality stud it replaced.

The included Pro-Comm studs are not what I’d want for any antenna over 4’.

The Skipshooters at seven feet generate plenty of gyrational torque at highway speed. The weak point is (should remain) the antenna ferrule, not the stud nut.

(This addition brings the antenna mount upgrade to $60/each side.)

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[Crawdad]

Used to save up those loyalty fuel points for all those accessories. Mics, speakers, Gear Keeper, stud mounts, antennas, coax, XM Rx'r. Great way to get toys for nuttin'.

 

[Slowmover]

Used to save up those loyalty fuel points for all those accessories. Mics, speakers, Gear Keeper, stud mounts, antennas, coax, XM Rx'r. Great way to get toys for nuttin'.

Higher price markup, and — with only a few exceptions (brand) — oftentimes too cheaply made except for emergency use.

That said, I can probably tell you the differences in that store section between each chain.


A driver is better off with:

Clays Radio

Bobs CB

Bells CB

WALCOTT Radio

WeAreCB

I also use:

PALOMAR ENGINEERS

DX ENGINEERING

and several smaller.
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[Crawdad]

Not talking cheap BarJan accessories, 636Ls, Gear Keepers, etc. are the same quality , or lack thereof, at truck stops as they are at the "peak and tune" specialists.

 

[Slowmover]

Not talking cheap BarJan accessories, 636Ls, Gear Keepers, etc. are the same quality , or lack thereof, at truck stops as they are at the "peak and tune" specialists.

Same for WILSON and most radios. Usually okay EXCEPT markup.

But coax, connectors, etc is trash. Same for shops carry same brands.