Power supplied to CBs is often less than optimal, and you can get interference from all the electrical stuff in the vehicle. Unless specifically addressed in installation instructions, do not Willy-nilly ground things - you can create a "ground loop" situation that can be harmful to the radio, or interfere with your signal output. "Grounding" can have unintended consequences, because it may defeat the design of the antenna system. Normally you do not have to know about that or be aware of it, because the antenna manufacturer engineers proper connections into the system. All this stuff has to be designed to be electrically in balance, and when you think about it, it is a wonder it works at all. The "ground plane" can be thought as a reflector of the vertical element. Many, if not most, boat antennas are designed that way, and if your CB was factory installed, it is probably that type.Ĭoax feeding the antenna has two conductors - the center connector typically goes into the vertical element, and the braid (shielding) conductor goes to the magnetic mount on some or the mounting screw down gadget on an antenna intended to be mounted on a metal surface that can act as a "ground plane". Some antennas CAN be mounted on fiberglass, because their construction has the dipole effect built into it. So, if you have a little extra time to read some theory to understand what is happening to your antenna, maybe this will help.ĬB (and most other) antennas work on a "dipole" system, and have elements that oppose each other - that is how they get the signal off into the air. I have written this note three times, and either get off into technical items not relevant to your antenna, or get lost.
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