Reviews for Rugged Ridge Stubby Reflex Antenna for 97-22 Jeep Wrangler TJ, JK, JL & Gladiator JT
Easy install, looks good.
Got the 15" looks great and no reception lost
Looks great
I read some of the reviews before I bought it and thought, for the price I'll give it a try. I bought the 15" a few weeks ago and have none of the problems others have mentioned. I put it on a 2018 Wrangler JL, I didn't like how the OEM antenna whipped around in the car wash. So far we have not noticed and stations that we use not coming in. We live in rural MN so we only get so many anyhow but the ones that came in before come in now. Works great in car wash also. So, installation? Yeah, it was a piece of cake, no problems. Not sure why so many people were having problems. Mine fit right first time so issues.
Looks great. Reception is ok but we use Sirius all the time anyway. Easy installation.
Looks and works great, great product
So simple installing. Sound the same as the factory antenna
I was a little hesitant to order this item after reading some of the reviews but I am very happy with the antenna. Some reviews say that the antenna arrived with a noticeable bend but mine was arrow straight out of the package. It has a nice balance of strength and flexibility. The color also matches the fender flares and mirror housing exactly. If it gets a little sun bleached, just use a little Armor All Outlast or similar product on it. Some folks also said that there was a noticeable gap below the plastic base of the antenna when they installed it. I found the best way to hook this up is to install the adapter in the body first and then screw the antenna onto it. Lubricate the threads in the mounting pad on the body and the threads on the included adapter with WD-40 or Tri-Flow and then gently screw it into the mounting pad with a pair of pliers. Eyeball it as you go and screw it in just until the shoulder on the adapter between the large and small diameter threads is just below the horizontal surface of the mounting pad. Then after lubricating the threads in the antenna, just hand tighten it onto the adapter. Using a pair of dishwashing gloves, surgical gloves or rubber gloves will give you an excellent grip and there is no need to put a pair of pliers to the antenna itself. Snug it down good and it shouldn't ever back off. If you prefer, use a little blue locktite as additional insurance against loosening. I was also concerned what effect this antenna would have on radio reception. A lot of people mentioned that they experienced much poorer reception but I would have to say the impact on mine was not really noticeable. I'm not a student of electronics but I think antenna length is what really determines the quality of signal that you will get. I decided to go with the 15" length since it is a good balance between size and the ease of working around it. It sits just a hair above the height of the rear view mirror on the door. I've listened almost strictly to Sirius Radio since I got my Jeep so I really don't have a baseline for comparison but I drove around the neighborhood and only the weaker stations seemed to be slightly affected. I live in a mountainous area about 20 miles west of Colorado Springs and the radio still seemed to perform very well. I was still pulling in Denver stations as well. I have read that there is a separate interior antenna in Jeeps for Sirius / XM radios that runs along the roll bar under the zippered nylon cover and the external antenna is only for AM/FM reception. That may be the case because my Sirius radio reception does not seem to have been affected by this swap. Overall, I couldn't be happier with this purchase. It was a cheap mod, fast and easy to install, the impact on AM/FM reception seems to be negligible, you don't have to worry about high winds or hooking tree limbs and the thing looks bitchin' ..... :)
Good reception!
Looks a lot nicer than stock antenna.