[TowerTalk] Re: Crappy PL259's

[David O Hachadorian]

My observations on soldering PL-259's:

1. Use Amphenols. I have seen too many goofy mechanical
discrepancies on the off brands (thin/fat/long center pins,
teflon insulators that pull out, insulators that melt,
short thread engagement on the shells, unexpected corrosion
on "gold" center pins). I like the cheap Amphenols that
you can get for a buck, individually wrapped in plastic
packaging. The packaging keeps then nice and shiny. Maybe
some of the off brands are ok, but I think
they vary from batch to batch. If you can get shiny Amphenols
for a buck, why screw around with the others?

2. Use a helper when soldering. Have her hold the coax and
rotate it around to the four holes while you are soldering.
Using a helper allows you to keep the iron in continuous
contact with the connector, keeping the heat up.

3. Don't try to get hole number 1 soldered perfectly
right away. Just drop some solder on there and hold the iron
on it for a while to improve heat transfer. Go on to the
other three holes, and solder them perfectly (by now, the connector
will be hot enough to do a good job). Then, go back
and finish soldering hole number 1. By this time, the entire
connector is very hot, and you can go around 360 degrees and
give it a smooth professional-looking finish.

The cardinal rule is: Never remove the iron from the connector
until the entire job is done. 

A 150 watt gun is plenty, if you have a helper.

Dave Hachadorian, K6LL
Yuma, AZ
K6LL@juno.com

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