FWIW, the quick disconnects available from Norm's Rotor have gold pins on
both halves.
Pricey, but don't expect any corrosion..
After nearly 40 years of using the old Ham IV 8-screw terminal strips
(never had a reliability problem)
we are now converting to Norm's disconnects. As geriatrics become an issue,
every extra minute on the tower hurts. Disconnecting and reconnecting the
8-wires can consume 15-30 finger-fumbling vision-impaired minutes ---
dealing with rusty screws and wires, slipping wire ends under those screws
that really don't unscrew far enough to make the job easy, keeping the
wires from oozing out from under the screws while tightening them,
re-stripping and forming the wire ends if any broke during the
disconnecting operation, finally making sure the connections are correct
and tight,
Maybe y'alll got a better way, but we always have done it with the rotor
laying precariously *LOOSE* on its side, on the rotor shelf, in order to
get necessary easy access to the terminal strip, Not something you want
especially if some wasps seize the opportunity to attack.. A Rohn 25 rotor
shelf is not very wide, makes a lousy workbench. It is now a 10 second
operation with the rotor solidly bolted in place.....
73, Don N7EF
On Thu, Nov 6, 2014 at 6:07 PM, W3YY <w3yy@cox.net> wrote:
> Bill -
>
> I too have used connectors to provide quick disconnect points for my rotors
> at the top of tower. The thought was I could either carry a controller up
> to the rotator and plug it in for trouble-shooting or remove the rotator
> quickly for repair and reinstallation.
>
> Great plans, but it turned out to just cause problems. After 11 years,
> I've
> never had a need to ever disconnect the rotor, but the very well-sealed
> Cinch-Jones connectors I used somehow still accumulated moisture and became
> corroded, causing erratic rotator operation and bearing indications. I
> would have been better off just running the cable directly to the rotor.
>
> If I now use a disconnect, I just use a terminal strip in a weather
> resistant box. I like the euro-type terminal strip, but any type will
> probably do. If there ever is any corrosion developing, the terminal strip
> is easily replaced at the top of the tower without any soldering (like the
> Cinch-Jones and other solder-type connectors). It might take 1 second to
> remove a connector and 10 minutes to replace a terminal strip, but if you
> only do it every 5-10 years, who cares. And connectors provide a failure
> point that can corrode and be a pain to replace at the top of the tower.
>
> 73, Bob - W3YY
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: TowerTalk [mailto:towertalk-bounces@contesting.com] On Behalf Of
> Bill
> Straw via TowerTalk
> Sent: Wednesday, November 05, 2014 3:38 PM
> To: towertalk@contesting.com
> Subject: [TowerTalk] Rotor cable / Steppir cable connectors
>
> I'm spending way too much time trying to find what I need, time to ask...
>
> I need to be able to break apart my rotor cable, so I need a weatherproof
> M/F set for 8 conductor 18 AWG.
>
> Also I need to break apart the Steppir control cable, 12 conductor + shield
> 22 AWG.
>
> These disconnects are at the top of the tower so a weatherproof M/F set is
> very important.
>
> 73, Bill KO7SS
> _______________________________________________
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