Are the rods an antenna?

[aarthrj3811]

Hey everyone....If you have installed a CB radio in your auto you will know what I'm talking about. If not it's a good point to know. They use a 1/4 wave antenna and you have to match the antenna, cable and the radio for maximum output. You use a SWR meter to check this. You trim the antenna or the cable to get it as close to 1:1. as you can. If you go to far it will go back up again. Trim some more and it will start coming down again.

I was doing a Tig welding job with stainless steel rod and made a set of rods about 32 inches long. They would almost close. I trimmed a little off and they closed. I kept trimming and checking the rods until they were 4 inches long. I lost track of how many times they opened and closed but it was 5 or 6 times. This is why I think of my rods as an antenna and try to match them to my body

[PAPPY]

YES THEY ACT AS AN ANTENNA...YOU CAN MATCH THEM. I HAVE DONE THIS WITH MY SWR METER.....BUT THEY DON'T HAVE TO BE MATCHED...YOU CAN USE JUST ONE IF YOU LIKE...You can trim your cables on the SWR meter if you wish or make a set of trimmed cables equiped with aligator clips...Plug it into the cig. lighter on your vehicle and trim the rods....PAPPY

PUT YOU ON A PAIR OF RUBBER GLOVES BEFORE YOU TRIM THEM....