am/fm/cb antenna

[Axle]

Seems everytime I look at my new '81 GMC it comes up with something new to taunt me with.

This time, it is the cable routing for the am/fm/cb antenna. Never touched one in my life, maybe seen one or two of this style on finished trucks, and now I have one. Problem is, I can't find the other end, or where it enters the cab (it is not attached to the radio, I only have the short antenna "joiner" attached to the radio along with a paperclip antenna hanging under the dash.

The cable coming from the antenna is there, and it routes INTO the cowl just under the corner of the windshield on the passenger side (red line in 2nd image). It does not follow the typical route of going into the engine compartment and through the firewall. There is maybe 6-8" of antenna wire exposed from antenna to where it disappears into the cowl.

I have the dashpad out, glovebox out, only thing I have not done is ripped off the pad that is glued to the firewall, or pulled out the plenum. I have found no holes, I have not found any cb/radio antenna splitter (unless its well tucked behind the plenum out of reach). Weather started turning, so I did not pull off the cowl cover to see in there.

Is the cable going into the cowl at the base of the windshield corner factory for this style antenna? If it is, where does it enter the passenger compartment? Or have I discovered another previous owner hack that was never finished?

Alex.

[Axle]

Sun broke through late this afternoon, so I took off the cowl. Looks like prior owner shenanigans, goes into the a-pillar. Be darned if I can find where it ends up, nothing is aparent at the roof line (there was a CB in this truck, still has the PA speaker in the engine compartment) took another look along the length of the underdash and nothing. If I found a hole, that would at least give me something to go after.

Alex.

[motornut]

the one I got came from a car.
It had a splitter to separate after the antenna.
I didn't use it tho,or the dual antenna.
what kind of unit?

[Axle]

I'm just trying to find the other end of the antenna wire. I have not located a splitter behind the dash, nor any signs or hints of the end of the cable anywhere. What you see in my above picture is as much as I have found.

Its obviously got to end up somewhere. Maybe. =-) Before pulling the cowl panel I was hoping somebody would say the antenna comes in from the kickpanel area behind the plenum and I'd have an excuse to pull it. But it looks like they wanted to run the cable up to the cab roof, or somehow they fished it along the body gap below the windshield and entered the cab in some as yet unlocated spot. But I'm starting to wonder if they realized they had an impossible task and just shoved the antenna wire into the hole they made and siliconed it up. Rerouting another cable in the conventional route is probably what I'll end up doing. But for somebody to go to the trouble of siliconing in a cable that goes nowwhere makes me wonder if it started off with a lot of beer and "lets try this"... I'll pull the passenger sunvisor next oppertunity and see if I find anything lurking up there, or coming up through the apillar.

Alex.

[motornut]

Originally Posted by Axle

I'm just trying to find the other end of the antenna wire. I have not located a splitter behind the dash, nor any signs or hints of the end of the cable anywhere. What you see in my above picture is as much as I have found.

Its obviously got to end up somewhere. Maybe. =-) Before pulling the cowl panel I was hoping somebody would say the antenna comes in from the kickpanel area behind the plenum and I'd have an excuse to pull it. But it looks like they wanted to run the cable up to the cab roof, or somehow they fished it along the body gap below the windshield and entered the cab in some as yet unlocated spot. But I'm starting to wonder if they realized they had an impossible task and just shoved the antenna wire into the hole they made and siliconed it up. Rerouting another cable in the conventional route is probably what I'll end up doing. But for somebody to go to the trouble of siliconing in a cable that goes nowwhere makes me wonder if it started off with a lot of beer and "lets try this"... I'll pull the passenger sunvisor next oppertunity and see if I find anything lurking up there, or coming up through the apillar.

Alex.

up top ,yes that was my next thought
some people run them threw where the door light wire grommet,but thats a new spot

[Axle]

Confirmed, found the other end jammed into the space above the sunvisor mount, and a nearly done depression where the antenna originally came out from under the sunvisor mount.

Alex.