RE: RX Ant. Length
Some small Rxs come with a 1" wide card that allows you to wrap up as much of the excess as you need to. I seems to shorten range only a little bit, and it does neaten up the model's appearance not to have a cable flying in the breeze. You can also wrap your existing antenna around a soda straw; just don't cross any wraps over the others.
There are also base-loaded antennas like the Azarr's or Jim's Litetenna. These are about 5" total length, but they do shorten range 15%.