Antennas: Magnet vs Hard Mount

[Nick23]

I have always used magnet mount antennas. When I started this hobby I used the lil Wilson and k30. I also have used a Predator 10-k with a magnet with great results. I have been reading that hard mounts have better TX and RX. Just how much better are hard mounts with antennas such as Sirio 5000 and the Wilson 1000/5000 vs the same antenna with a magnet mount? I know if someone wants to run some big watts hard mounts are the only way to go.

Any info would be great
Thanks
Nick

 

[w9cll]

Antenna Mounts

 

[North Texas Mudduck]

Nothing like a solid true ground

 

[959]

I run a Wilson 1k mag mount works like a dream I run 1k amp with it and a cobra 29 with a rfx on it I have a swr of 1.2 to 1.4 with no problems at all to me a mag mount is the only way to go why cut a hole in your nice car on 11 meters I don't think a hard mount or a mag mount will do much better maybe on 10 metters or 15 - 160 a hard mount is better but on 11 meters I think it is all good with either mount its all in the antenna and swr you have

 

[GnG8d]

I ran a w1000 magnet mounted on my dually for sometime before I switched to the W1000 hard mount. There was an instantly noticeable gain on receive listening to the same locals from my driveway.

The added bonus is the professional looking install and no coax showing anywhere. I don't run a mobile radio anymore, so I just put the weather cap on the base and tucked the coax away. If I ever decide to put a radio back in, the coax and mount are already there.

 

[North Texas Mudduck]

when i first started out a ran a magmount wilson 1000 then found a magmount 5000
then got the nerve up to punch a hole and i will say i had been missing alot

witha solid mount and a magmount i could switch out between the 2 at a flip of switch

with a solid mount and a 55 antenna or a 22 inch shaft predator 10k i could hear locals talking at 38 and 40 miles
with the magmount 5000 i could hear them but couldnt get a signal or sometimes i couldnt understand what was being said

those that run the big magmounts they hear that you can add a big ground strap
wow does that really screw things up

so i guess those that run the little power the magmounts are ok but a antenna system that the mfj says its 1.0 to 1.1 with a match eff of 100% to 99 % match
sure does make the difference
which will make the radio perform better.

 

[9C1Driver]

I run a Wilson 1k mag mount works like a dream I run 1k amp with it and a cobra 29 with a rfx on it I have a swr of 1.2 to 1.4 with no problems at all to me a mag mount is the only way to go why cut a hole in your nice car on 11 meters I don't think a hard mount or a mag mount will do much better maybe on 10 metters or 15 - 160 a hard mount is better but on 11 meters I think it is all good with either mount its all in the antenna and swr you have

I have run a Wilson 5k Mag mount on several company cars since 1996 with the same results. Largest amp I ran was a Texas Star 667. That said you are really pushing the ground capability of a mag mount at 1000 watts. I found that once you get above 600-700 watts with a mag mount the ground will start to float on you.

 

[Turbo T]

Hard mounts = less noise, better ground

Mag mounts = convenience

 

[Road Squawker]

(edit)... on 11 meters I don't think a hard mount or a mag mount will do much better....... maybe on 10 metters or 15 - 160 a hard mount is better but on 11 meters I think it is all good with either mount...

yeah,.......... 11 meters is a special band,............... the laws of RF don't apply to it

 

[GnG8d]

yeah,.......... 11 meters is a special band,............... the laws of RF don't apply to it

Some would certainly have you believe, lol.

 

[The Jerk]

When I ran an amp with my w1000 and later w5000, all it did was bubble the paint under the magnet. I hard mounted and have never looked back.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G730A using Tapatalk

 

[Ratfink]

I ran a mag mount for a brief time and noticed I decent jump from that to a "puck" mount I will never go back. I will say that a friend of mine has a tri-mag and a 22" predstor and a tx star 250 and wow does he ever talk from his mobile he does the same or better as the guys running 8 pills. His is also setup correctly and not ghetto like the other locals, which all of them are 40 miles away from me. Mag mount have their place and there comes a time to upgrade your mount and move forward it is worth the time money and effort for anyone looking to better their setup. Even going from one antenna to 2 made a huge difference talking wise. I can take a cobra 29 doing 9 watts bird against my buddy's mobile with his power on and tie him up talking to a station 40 miles away while we are setting side by side.

 

[M0GVZ]

I run a Wilson 1k mag mount works like a dream I run 1k amp with it and a cobra 29 with a rfx on it I have a swr of 1.2 to 1.4 with no problems at all

Low SWR doesn't tell the whole story. I guess you've never checked for common mode?

 

[The Jerk]

Don't get me wrong, they definitely have their place...I have a "portable" setup that I can throw into rental cars, I use a W1000 because its easy.

But on my daily drivers they are, and always will be, hard mounted. The difference in performance is very notable...

 

[Ratfink]

Don't get me wrong, they definitely have their place...I have a "portable" setup that I can throw into rental cars, I use a W1000 because its easy.

But on my daily drivers they are, and always will be, hard mounted. The difference in performance is very notable...

Some people don't like drilling a hole but the way I see it is puck it and forget about it. No more coax issues due to weather or user error no more cleaning underneath the magnet and with a puck you can run any antenna you want at any given time .