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I may be opening myself up to lots of ridicule on this but here goes . . .

I want to mount two antennas on my 2011 Jeep Cherokee. One of them will be a dual band gain antenna for the mobile, and a second antenna for either a scanner or to connect the APRS tinytrak. I don't to drill holes into the roof because I'm whipped and the wife would cremate me (plus the garage door has very little clearance). I was going to put angle brackets off the front fenders but determined they are fiberglass and won't provide adequate hold for the screws. My only option is to go with something like a Comet or Diamond trunk lip/hatchback mount. I purchased a RS720NMO mount which is medium duty metal mount. As I went to go install it I realized that the spot on the rear hatchback door that I had in mind does not have the depth to allow the mount (due to a dimple in the frame). I can mount it lower on the hatchback door but that would be close to the bumper and I'd lose any antenna height I was hoping for. My thought was to install the mount on the rear glass that pops up off the rear hatchback door. This would allow me to bring the antenna up to just enough height so that the rod could be just above the roof line yet clear the garage door.

So my concern here is if I do this am I at risk of shattering the back window glass due to stress imposed on the antenna and mount from the wind driving at highway speeds? The dual band antenna will be either a Larsen or a Diamond, both are lightweight and about 3' tall. I know this is not even close to an ideal install but it is the best of two options that I have.

Has anyone done something similar to this or seen an install similar to this? It is my destiny to plan on buying new rear glass if I do this install? Should I revisit the idea of using front fender angle brackets if there is a way to better secure them in fiberglass?

Let the flaming begin!

IMHO, you're better off having a *professional* drills the holes for you. This way, the wife can't yell at you. Done correctly, it looks great and with black antennas is virtually invisible.

Install (3) NMOs on the roof and use dedicated, 1/4-wave antennas for each band and your scanner antenna. My antennas are < 18" high and work great. The 1/4-wave antennas for 2m and 70cm are 19" and 6" respectively. (You can bend the 19-incher at 45 deg angle to limit height.) My scanner antenna is 18" ... works on all bands...

Those 3 FT antennas suck. They rarely hold up over time and the ones I've tried (hustler, comet and diamond) all suffered from same symptoms. Two of them made noise at speeds greater than 45mph. The hustler had problems with its signal at high speed (> 55mph) ...kept cutting in and out. CB antennas are made of fiberglass and they are generally rock solid. These cheap HAM antennas rarely last.

BTW, the 1/4-wave whip antennas are about $12 or less. Simple, cheap but very effective and efficient. Transmitting from roof of vehicle is by far the most efficient use of power output and offers the best signal.

Buy a duplexer for your mobile rig (unless you use diff radios) and you're good to go.

PS. Garages and SUVs with antennas are rarely compatible. Park outside.

I've seen a number of Cherokees with antennas mounted on the rear side glass. Might be a worth a try. Glass mounts generally suck but it beats nothing. Just beware of using them with carbon impregnated glass. The antenna will not shatter the glass.

Nick - I agree with you 100%. Wish I could deck out the roof but holes are not an option. I've never had a whistling noise problem with either my Larsen (which has a closed coil) or the Diamond (open coil). Even when using them on a mag mount on the roof.

Rich - you stated "rear side glass". I was referring to the rear flip-up door glass. Just want to make sure we're referring to the same thing. If so, you've seen people with these swivel mounts attached to the glass? If so that makes me feel a bit more confident. The mount fits nice and snug in the space I have in mind. I almost never open the glass either so I don't have to worry about compromising the cable. I just wasn't sure how much strain the glass can take.

Thats because you haven't driven fast enough. :twisted:

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"A well regulated breakfast, being necessary to the healthy start of the day, the right of the people to keep and eat food shall not be infringed."

I was thinking of something like this but at a 1/4 wavelength to clear your garage.

If you go any kind of non metallic mount you need a no-groundplane type antenna especially if your gonna transmit.

We have used glassmounts like Rich is talking about for many different applications including direction finding equipment with decent enough results.

You could consider something like a Stico brand broadcast replacement antenna but they're spendy. Take a look around Stico's website. That will give you all kinds of ideas.

http://www.sti-co.com/antenna-products/covert-antenna

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"A well regulated breakfast, being necessary to the healthy start of the day, the right of the people to keep and eat food shall not be infringed."

This one looks like every scanner users dream! http://www.sti-co.com/antenna-products/ ... lug-n-play

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"A well regulated breakfast, being necessary to the healthy start of the day, the right of the people to keep and eat food shall not be infringed."

Thanks to all that replied. I discovered a way to move some of the channel molding that ran along the hatchback door to gain access to the metal body panel just under the rear glass. The RS720NMO fits perfectly in this spot and allows me to then run the coax up the hatchback to an area that I can bring it into the rear inside compartment. After running the cable in the inside compartment molding I have just enough coax left to run up to either the rear seats or front seat (depending on where I am going to mount the radio chassis). So now I can have the Micro-Trak running full time while still being able to run the dual band mobile on a different antenna. Now it's time to figure out how to get 12v to the mobile. Jeep mounts the car battery under the front seat. Moving the seat allows for some access to the battery but not much. The positive side is the most difficult to get to (wouldn't you know).

I live in Redmond and would be happy to help..

PM me your phone number. I will be around all day tomorrow. I can help you.