[BULK] - Re: [TowerTalk] Old coax connectors . . .

[Steve Katz]

> OK, I'll bite. I have seen three kinds of insulation on the PL 259's;
> brown,
> white and clear. Is there a performance difference? Is one considered
> better?
> 
> //There are more variations than that, actually!  I've also seen black,
> dark green, translucent white and opaque white -- and I think some old
> ones having a red colored dielectric.  The very shiny opaque white
> *should* be PTFE (Teflon), which is by far the best of the bunch, but
> sometimes offshore manufacturers use an opaque white which looks very much
> like Teflon but is really a low-temp plastic.  It's easy to test for
> Teflon: Use a propane torch to apply heat to the center pin for about ten
> seconds.  Teflon will take this just fine, and nothing happens.  If it's
> plastic, it melts and that's the end of the connector.  The tan colored
> dielectric in Amphenol PL-259s (they used to call it "Rexolite") is pretty
> good with regard to DWV and RF characteristics but can absorb moisture and
> will flash over under some conditions where Teflon won't.  I'd stay away
> from the "other colors," since they're unknown plastic materials.
> -WB2WIK/6
> 
> 
> 73, Bruce K1MY
> 
> 
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