Beta testers needed (cb bracket) [REOPENED]

[Seanz0rz]

so i posted up about my CB bracket a while back. finally in a decent enough position to start producing them.

however. i want 2 people to test for me. i need people who wheel hard and often, use the rear door often, etc.

youre cost: we will discuss that, it will be greatly discounted from the final cost. essentially i am paying you to test these for me.

whos in? i really want people who will abuse these, i want to be positive they can handle all situations. post up if you are interested, and why i should pick you.

http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m141/hamiltoncomputers/bracket.jpg

[Seanz0rz]

bump, no takers?

[04 Rocko Taco]

pick me pick me!!!!

I wheel hard, too hard, and often, when I have a clutch.... wait... you probably want these on a 3rd gen, huh? dang!

[mastacox]

I am going to want one of these eventually, but as of right now I don't have a CB... Maybe a christmas present to myself.

[Whitey]

I don't wheel hard, but I sure use the hell out of my liftgate!
http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd246/jrwhite13/Picture298.jpg

[MillerPKA]

I'll be in if you can get me some specifics on price and whatnot, i'll give it a workout. currently have a bumper mount but was looking to relocate to the taillight. send me more info to millerpka at gmail.com

[RunnerUp]

you know im interested if im not too late

[RunnerUp]

had to get my post in quick, so here is why you should pick me... one, i wanted to buy one from you awhile ago, two, i wheel often, and hard, and DEF. do A TON of urban offroading (tampa traffic sucks) i always use my liftgate, because the window destroys my sheriff stars, and those things are impossible to get now. i promise, if picked, i will go to the ends of the earth (well... atleast florida) to try and break it, or find some inherent flaw in the design.

[Seanz0rz]

got one. Any other takers? Ready to ship next week. Bracket and screws only

[MillerPKA]

one? i said i was in was i supposed to write a persuasive essay too?

[Seanz0rz]

yea, the idea was to convince me that you'd be a good candidate for a tester. i want someone who is going to pound on this thing, and not afraid to tell me what they think of it.

ill shoot you a pm with the details to see if you are game.

[Whitey]

Lets be honest here, how do you expect people to "pound" on a antenna mount.

[4runnerchevy]

I have a very big hammer, send the thing my way !

[Seanz0rz]

haha, someone like me, who has a 4 foot firestik with out a spring, uses the door at least twice a day, sometimes several dozen times. no mall crawlers please. someone who will catch the antenna on trees, whip it around in a rock garden, etc.

i have a year or so of dev. into this bracket, and its worked great for me. however ive changed the design slightly, so i figure between the three of us, any issues should come up, and with 2 extra brains, maybe they will find something that i overlooked. just trying to produce the best product i can.

[elripster]

Lets be honest here, how do you expect people to "pound" on a antenna mount.


I was thinking the same thing. What's hard on a mount? Is really slow wheeling on a trail? Hitting trees? Or maybe tens of thousands of miles of high speed freeway?

My recommendation is to overbuild this, powder coat it, and go with it. Fatigue testing takes a long time so make sure it won't fatigue. You don't want it to rust, that will speed up fatigue.

Frank

[elripster]

Have you performed FEA on it yet?

Frank

[Seanz0rz]

please enlighten me to FEA procedures frank!

[slosurfer]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finite_element_analysis

[Tankota]

That seems like a lot of math for a CB bracket!

[Seanz0rz]

i understood there would be no math...

as much as id like to do the math, i dont know quite the forces acting on it, so im designing it to be much stronger than it needs to be. but i want to find any flaws.

[Cebby]

i understood there would be no math...

as much as id like to do the math, i dont know quite the forces acting on it, so im designing it to be much stronger than it needs to be. but i want to find any flaws.


That's overkill for what you are doing.

Build it.
Test it.
Improve it. (if needed)
Sell it.

[habanero]

I shook the power antenna bracket off my truck. :D


But....I don't get as much chance to wheel as I'd like or hit big stuff or managed to knock the wheels off the tandem bike that hangs back there so I prolly wouldn't even be able to scrape it off. I'm out.

[slosurfer]

I think the weakest part in your "link" will be the sheet metal that it attaches to, so the more you can do to spread the forces out will help since it will act like a lever on the screws when it gets whipping around.

[Seanz0rz]

which is what happened to my old firestik mount, and part of the reason i got rid of it.



I shook the power antenna bracket off my truck. :D


haha so did i! stupid spotweld failed.

[habanero]

Same here. A little nut, washers, a bolt, some loc-tite, a drill- ta da!

I'll be watching for yer results and possibly a resulting bracket later on. :)

[Seanz0rz]

well im like 95% confident in my product, but i want to be 100% before i start selling it for full price to the general public.

[Flomaster]

I haven't seen a photo yet, but have you actually mounted one on a truck yet? I'd like to see one mounted.
-=Jason=-

[Seanz0rz]

i have photos of my version 1.

http://www.ultimateyota.com/index.php?option=com_smf&Itemid=26&topic=5097.0

[Cebby]

OK - I just took a good look at this baby (never saw the pics before). I agree with whoever said that the weak link is the body.

Can you get to the back of the area where the sheet metal screws are screwed in if you pull the taillight out? If you can, I'd advise making a backing plate with holes that align with your front mount plate, then use nuts and slim headed bolts (maybe button head socket type and either nylock nuts or thread locker) and through bolt it.

[elripster]

Call me a simpleton but couldn't you just mount that antenna to the bumper? Or, make a mount that attaches to the bumper? If you catch that mount on something it will bend into the tailgate. Bumpers are cheap used, and typically we care less if they get banged up.

Frank

[Seanz0rz]

you cannot get to the back of the screws as far as i can tell. you may be able to if you remove the interior panel.

agreed, weak link is the sheet metal. thats why this fits under the door pad, a part of the body which seems to be much stronger, and spreads the load over a much larger area than the firestik mount.

i really dislike antennas mounted to chrome bumpers... as for it hitting the rear door, it is so tucked in on the body, that you have MUCH bigger things to worry about than this bracket coming in contact with the rear door.

[Seanz0rz]

got one made monday, ill make the other on saturday and ship them out next week. im having a bit of an issue with the wire feed on the welder, so i need to get that worked out.

[Seanz0rz]

pay up suckas! brackets are done, and ready to be shipped out next week!

ill get pics of of the finished products tonight.

[Seanz0rz]

here is the finished bracket that will be sent to my two beta testers:
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m141/hamiltoncomputers/cbbracket014.jpg

huge thanks to these guys for testing them for me.
once i get initial results back from them, i will make any necessary modifications to the design, and then start producing these from a jig. so far each one needs to be hand formed, but im working on a press that will correctly shape the flat stock.

[Seanz0rz]

i still have one of these available!!! interested to get the box off my desk, who wants it?! i do ask who ever purchases gives it a good testing!

[ttora4runner]

i still have one of these available!!! interested to get the box off my desk, who wants it?! i do ask who ever purchases gives it a good testing!




I'd be interested but I don't have my CB reinstalled yet.

[04 Rocko Taco]

I'm still sticking by my guns and saying that would fit a 1st gen as-is.

I know I know. I just got my rig back, I'll get you some pictures tonite.

[Seanz0rz]

I'm still sticking by my guns and saying that would fit a 1st gen as-is.

I know I know. I just got my rig back, I'll get you some pictures tonite.


way ahead of you on that... PM me and well talk.

[04 Rocko Taco]

10-4.

Good thing too, cause I spent all nite inside a front axle, instead of outside my tailgate. :)

[RunnerUp]

alright, so i was one of the lucky beta testers for this bracket, installation was very straight forward and a 4 year old that could operate a drill can do it.

so far i have driven through low parking garages, hit multiple curbs, dragged my antenna through trees and opened and lowered my liftgate prob. close to 50 times. the mount is still in there solid and no signs of it becoming loose.

the only issue, which i am positive will be fixed in the production unit, is that with my 4ft wilson antenna, the lift gate hits it when its almost all the way open. no big deal, but if the mount hole were over perhaps a 1/2" then that would not happen... anyways, on to the pictures.

the way it mounts to your truck, prob took 10 minutes to install, including shaving down the rubber stops.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v723/runnerup/CB001.jpg

another angle
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v723/runnerup/CB002.jpg

the only place it contacts the truck
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v723/runnerup/CB004.jpg

what it looks like installed
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v723/runnerup/CB003.jpg



again, sean did a great job, and i would pay full retail for a production version in a heart beat, considering that most CB mounts are not made for our trucks in particular, and the ones that you can get to work usually dont look nice. this is the ONLY solution. thanks sean for making a great product, and i wish you the best of luck in marketing these. when you do start, i have a couple friends that would like one.

[Seanz0rz]

thanks for the good review!

can you get a pic of your truck, profile, from the left side? looks like the bracket leans too far towards the rear. might have been a change in the later 4runners or something, just curious.

as for pushing the antenna out more, thats a tough thing to do, ill keep it in mind on my next tester!

[4runnerchevy]

Looks like it survived. You should have me bolt one to my runner, then I'll take it thru the jungle.

Anyway, you could have a punch made that would do the shape and the holes in one shot. I think you should do em in stainless, so you can have a plain finish, as well as powder coated finish. Also we all love to scratch our crap up so rust would not be an issue. Most grades of stainless would also be stronger than mild steel, in that application. One more thing, are those mounting holes countersunk, for flat head screws ?

Good Job, I love it when someone builds a better mouse trap.

[RunnerUp]

sean, ill take a pic of my truck from the side tomorrow, a little too :drink: from fishing all night. either way, i freaking love it, get great range!

[Seanz0rz]

holes on this prototype were not countersunk. i used bugle head screws that i found lying around. the production version will have countersunk heads.

oh and kevin, a 1st gen bracket is right around the corner...

[4runnerchevy]

I was wondering about the countersink, cause they help locate mount and give the mounting more strength. If need another ,mount i'll let you know, besides that kind of mount won't work with my cage.