Kaon mirror mount for UHF antenna?

[pedrogb]

Hi all
Has anyone mounted their antenna on the passenger side mirror with the new kaon mount?

Side Mirror Antenna Mount to suit Ineos Grenadier

Side Mirror Antenna Mount to suit Ineos Grenadier

www.kaon.com.au

My wife hates the bull bar mount, says it interferes with her vision. As a passenger.
It's this or get the antenna up onto the roof.
I've already put a solar panel on the roof, running the cable up there would be more painful.
My question is whether it is very noisy with wind etc?
Thanks
Pedro

 

[Clark Kent]

Hi all
Has anyone mounted their antenna on the passenger side mirror with the new kaon mount?

Side Mirror Antenna Mount to suit Ineos Grenadier

Side Mirror Antenna Mount to suit Ineos Grenadier

www.kaon.com.au

My wife hates the bull bar mount, says it interferes with her vision. As a passenger.
It's this or get the antenna up onto the roof.
I've already put a solar panel on the roof, running the cable up there would be more painful.
My question is whether it is very noisy with wind etc?
Thanks
Pedro

@pedrogb
Justin Emerson posted about his Kaon mirror mount on the Aus FB group here.

My old school understanding is that UHF antennae work best with an unobstructed line of sight all around, so in in order of best reception: the roof, then the bull bar, then elsewhere. The Kaon mount places the antenna where it's shielded on the right hand side by the body. I have no idea how much this affects modern antennae or if it's enough to still be concerned about.

 

[holdmybeer]

Hey, a small but real consideration for a transmitting antenna that’s an arm’s length from your passenger: You’d be moving the source of RF energy significantly closer to your passenger’s head.

Eyes are the most prone to RF energy absorption. It’s heating, non-ionizing radiation. But there is still safety to consider if you’re pushing more than a few watts at the antenna. Typical handheld power vs mobile power. Square of the distance and all that.

I’m also wrestling with where to put a VHF & UHF antenna. Bullbar is still my compromised preference for performance because I’d prefer roof but already with rack and traction boards and tires I’m probably at 2.20 m and getting close to clearance in some undergrounds I frequent.

 

[Clark Kent]

Hey, a small but real consideration for a transmitting antenna that’s an arm’s length from your passenger: You’d be moving the source of RF energy significantly closer to your passenger’s head.

Eyes are the most prone to RF energy absorption. It’s heating, non-ionizing radiation. But there is still safety to consider if you’re pushing more than a few watts at the antenna. Typical handheld power vs mobile power. Square of the distance and all that.

I’m also wrestling with where to put a VHF & UHF antenna. Bullbar is still my compromised preference for performance because I’d prefer roof but already with rack and traction boards and tires I’m probably at 2.20 m and getting close to clearance in some undergrounds I frequent.

Good point about the RF. Our unlicensed mobile units are 5 watts.

For your own installation is a folding antenna mount an option? Plenty of choices available. This one is Rhino Rack's offering.

If you combine a folding mount with some motorcycle mirror mounts onto the grab rail like this it reduces the height to about the same as the plastic roof bar.

 

[TheDocAUS]

Hi all
Has anyone mounted their antenna on the passenger side mirror with the new kaon mount?

Side Mirror Antenna Mount to suit Ineos Grenadier

Side Mirror Antenna Mount to suit Ineos Grenadier

www.kaon.com.au

My wife hates the bull bar mount, says it interferes with her vision. As a passenger.
It's this or get the antenna up onto the roof.
I've already put a solar panel on the roof, running the cable up there would be more painful.
My question is whether it is very noisy with wind etc?
Thanks
Pedro

That is a new offering from KAON, so you may need to be the guinea pig and test it.

I did add it to the list of aerial brackets, with thanks.

It is a good install video.

View: https://youtu.be/3GE4GV3xtds

 

[pedrogb]

It's one of the big thick antenna as well, watching the install video I think I'd have to replace it as well. All sounds too hard. I like the idea of the mount on the side of one of the actual roof rack bars., folding down when not being used. I'll wait until it's cooler up here, it will be a long day pulling everything apart and putting it back together.
Thanks
Pedro

 

[TheDocAUS]

An alternate solution is to use a thinner aerial, like the RFI CD63 Black 6.5dbi removable aerial. It is very thin, so the driver’s vision is barely impacted. The twists you see 1/2 down the whip is there to absorb vibrations/corrugations. When travelling across corrugations The Doc calls it the hula girl.

Aerial left of screen:

 

[holdmybeer]

Good point about the RF. Our unlicensed mobile units are 5 watts.

That’s handheld power. I wouldn’t worry about that at all.

I like your mount.

 

[DenisM]

It's one of the big thick antenna as well, watching the install video I think I'd have to replace it as well. All sounds too hard. I like the idea of the mount on the side of one of the actual roof rack bars., folding down when not being used. I'll wait until it's cooler up here, it will be a long day pulling everything apart and putting it back together.
Thanks
Pedro

I used a A$4.50 "Simpson Strong Tie" bracket from Bunnings. Fastened it to the slot in vertical face of the roof bar and attached a GME fold down bracket Mb042b. The antenna folds across the roof (dictated by constraints of vertical clearance under the garage door). Ground independent mount makes it easy to swap between 2.1dba or 6.3 dba antennae according to situation.

 

[Clark Kent]

That’s handheld power. I wouldn’t worry about that at all.

I like your mount.

It's not my mount but it is a nice setup. It belongs to another forum member Dave who doesn't post. Credit to Dave if he's reading and recognises his mount.

As per @DenisM's pic you can do a lot with a folding mount.

 

[Shopkeep]

That is a new offering from KAON, so you may need to be the guinea pig and test it.

I did add it to the list of aerial brackets, with thanks. It is a good install video.

View: https://youtu.be/3GE4GV3xtds

Really good install video, worth watching even if you are not interested in the mount. It does make for a very easy UHF install for RHD cars, there is power there and you can mount the chassis behind the glove box.

 

[Ovrland Bill]