| Author |
Message |
    
Cadilac
New member
Username: Cadilac
Post Number: 4
Registered: 1-2006
| | Posted on Friday, January 27, 2006 - 3:15 pm: | 
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Does anyone have any ideas for urban CB operation, meaning CB operation on those areas where you can put up a beam, vertical, or run a wire to a tree? This is a situation that's facing a number of operators. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.S |
Rover
Intermediate Member
Username: Rover
Post Number: 320
Registered: 2-2004
| | Posted on Friday, January 27, 2006 - 5:11 pm: |
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I assume you are talking about those pesky Homeowner's Associations and restrictive covenants which seem to be getting more common. Really, there isn't much you CAN do about them because they are private contracts entered into by private parties and not government controlled. Before you sign on the dotted line, ask for a copy of any restrictive covenants or restrictions BEFORE closing on the property. Also check in your existing neighborhood for current restrictions on antennas and what you can do about "stealth" antenna installations.
When I bought my house 20 years ago, that is the first thing I checked on. NO restrictions! So I put up several dipoles, a 70 foot tower, an all-band vertical, and an A-99. Not the nosy neighbors could do about it.  I don't spend hours on end talking on the radio and, so far, I have had few complaints.
The BEST thing one can do WRT putting up antennas is to check for an OLDER neighborhood where there are NO HOA's or CC & R's. Personally, I will NOT tolerate such restrictions on my hobbies, nor stand for interference from neighbors. IOW, I believe your business ends at my property line and what I do 'over here' is none of your beeswax.
And if I run into one of those control freaks that wants to try to tell me what I can do on my own property, he might end up with a fat lip! LOL!
73 |
Troublemaker
Intermediate Member
Username: Troublemaker
Post Number: 260
Registered: 2-2004
| | Posted on Friday, January 27, 2006 - 6:41 pm: |
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YEAH!!!! WHAT HE SAID!!!!!!  |
Cadilac
New member
Username: Cadilac
Post Number: 5
Registered: 1-2006
| | Posted on Friday, January 27, 2006 - 10:13 pm: |
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Yes, it's really something. I live in an apartment, they have a balcony, but they seem not to want anything on it. What I do for now is stick my mag mount on the railing when the maintainance folks go home. |
Tech833
Moderator
Username: Tech833
Post Number: 1174
Registered: 8-2002
| | Posted on Saturday, January 28, 2006 - 12:54 am: |
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If you have heating and A/C units on the roof, see if you can stick a mag mount on one of those. I did that once for my dad in an upstairs apartment with a K-40 mag mount and he had one of the biggest signals on the band! |
Tech237
Moderator
Username: Tech237
Post Number: 239
Registered: 4-2004
| | Posted on Saturday, January 28, 2006 - 10:44 am: |
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I once setup an antenna for a friend in a no antenna apartment block. Wha we did was to run a 4 element co-linear antenna in the crawl space UNDER the apartment.
2 years and 80+ countires later he moved to the house he bought and last time I spoke to him was still using it. |
Kid_vicious
Senior Member
Username: Kid_vicious
Post Number: 1098
Registered: 9-2004
| | Posted on Saturday, January 28, 2006 - 3:47 pm: |
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there are antennas made for boats that dont need a groundplane. i dont think that they work too well though.
how about a horizontal dipole? if you can get up to the roof, string it across the top, or along the facia board, and use a wire color very close to the color of the roof. run the cable down the wall, and it will look like TV cable.
there are options, but you might have to be sneaky!
i actually used to string a dipole from the top corner to the bottom corner across the room of my upstairs apt. and i was able to talk to stations more than 10 miles away. not great, but not bad!
when i lived in apts. i became much more of a shortwave listener than a CB'er.
matt |
Slugo4449
Member
Username: Slugo4449
Post Number: 62
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Sunday, January 29, 2006 - 5:42 pm: |
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Try a loop or a delta loop. You just need 4 ceramic insulators some 50 ohm coax and some wire. I used the equation of 1005 divided by the frequency. Just feed it a quarter wavelength up the side and it is vertically polarized. You should be able to get one of these inside the balcony area. Just take some cloths pins and pin an american flag on it. Then tell them it falls under our Federal Constitution as free speech. |
Dmh
Junior Member
Username: Dmh
Post Number: 16
Registered: 5-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, February 02, 2006 - 5:07 pm: |
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How long can the coax run be without loosing too much signal? |
Slugo4449
Member
Username: Slugo4449
Post Number: 65
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Thursday, February 02, 2006 - 8:53 pm: |
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DMH:
It all has to do with the type of coax you are using and the loss factor. How long do you think you would need? Then a bunch of us can answer that question.
Marty
KG6QKJ |
Tech833
Moderator
Username: Tech833
Post Number: 1184
Registered: 8-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, February 02, 2006 - 9:36 pm: |
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If you use Heliax, it can be miles. If you use RG-8, it has to be real short. |
Capt205
Member
Username: Capt205
Post Number: 60
Registered: 5-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, March 11, 2006 - 10:59 pm: |
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I once nailed two 4x8 sheets of galvanized metal roofing up on the roof, then stuck a mag mount K-40 on it in the center. It worked pretty good. |
