Mustangworld - Cutting your Factory Antenna

MW Note: The shorter you cut your factory antenna the worse radio reception gets, that's the trade off for looks. However you might live in a strong radio reception area and not experence noticeable loss for most popular radio stations.

In the how-to below, Steve didn't notice any reception loss with the length he cut. Some cut their antenna much shorter or opt for deleting the antenna altogether for a cleaner look, so it depends on what you want for your stang. There are other antenna options at your local parts store (windshield antenna kits, shorty matched flexi antennas, etc). Below is a free mod and free is nice when available :-)

Reader Tip: For frequencies in the normal FM band (90-100Mhz) a length between 26 and 31 " will be fine. If you want to go smaller I recommend you use multiple of this ie 13 to 15.5" in order to maintain reasonable reception. - John the Ham radio operator and SVT driver (not at the same time :-)

HOW-TO:

A lot of people dislike the look of the long antenna on the Mustang. It's length seems out of place with the style of the car. There is an easy mod you can do to shorten the antenna for a better look, with no apparent affect on radio reception or performance.

Before Cut (STOCK)

Remove the antenna from the car. To remove the tip, I clamped the antenna to a workbench and fit it into the notch of a nail puller (wrapped in some electrical tape to reduce nicks). The tip easily popped off with a couple whacks from a hammer. (Careful not to lose the tip. It's small and will go flying!)

Remove ball

Decide the length you want to cut the antenna down to. I went with 18" from the bottom, which makes it about even with the top of the roof. You could probably go as short as 17" or so, depending on the result you want. Measure carefully and cut with a hacksaw. Lightly sand or file down the cut end of the now shorter antenna to make reapplying the tip easier. Put a small amount of strong adhesive inside the original tip and place it back
onto the antenna. Make sure the tip is sitting straight before the adhesive dries.

Paint

The antenna and tip will get a little scuffed with this process. Give it a light touchup with a good quality spray paint before putting it back on the car.

After Cut

The result is a subtle, but much cleaner look for the antenna on the car. Radio reception did not seem affected by this modification.

- Steve

Before and after pics again:

Before Cut (STOCK)
(MW Note: Some fishing string and bait and you can leave the fly rod at home :-)

After Cut