Coax Length

[Glorfendill]

I'm running a 4' Firestik II (FS4) on a 5" magnet mount with 12' coax. The Firestik however mentioned I should use 18' of cable. Is the difference something that is going to effect the performance of the antenna, or was the "Use with 18ft Fire-Flex Coax" merely a marketing ploy to sell their Fire-Flex Coax?

[Little Reb]

i had a firestik on my truck and i got that 18ft cable they had. It ended up being about 13 ft to long so i just cut it off were i needed it and put a new end on it and it worked fine. my was a 4ft firestik with the dodge dakota mount

[Phaze91460]

Wilson also pushes 18' but sells different lenghts. I bought 18' this weekend for my truck but it is too short for some locations I might put the radio.

[Falkon MX-5]

Most SWR meters are calibrated for about 18' coax. This is what I've heard. SWR is just a measure of the matching between the coax and the antenna, so IIRC SWR will technically be the same no matter what the length of cable is. Cutting or lengthening the coax just tricks the meter, doesn't change SWR.