..will I lose if I cut my antennas. Would it be advisable to buy shorties?

 

Get the shorties. They're cheap and if you want to switch back for some reason (I put my stock antennas on if I'm going for more than a day or two away), you'll have 'em.

 

antennas are tuned for specific frequencies- length is a major part of the equation, the length of the antenna is related to the specific frequency range in which it operates

anyway, it would be a mistake to cut a good antenna.

rubber am/fm stubbies from pepboys are about $10 and work well unless you are headed for the boonies

mike