[TowerTalk] Coax Connectors

Roger Kissel kc8hz at hotmail.com
Thu Jan 4 09:19:35 EST 2007


Hi All

I'm curious about coax connectors and how YOU assemble yours.

Of course, we all would like to use Type Ns for the impedance uniformity, in 
comparison to the old fashioned PL-259s.

What I'm wondering is:
Do you solder the braid into the connector body when you mount a PL259 onto 
a piece of RG-8 or RG-213 ?

If you do, TELL US WHY YOU SOLDER IT.  Then tell us how successful you are 
with your solder job.

I have never successfully soldered the braid because I have never had an 
iron that would heat the body hot enough to flow the solder without melting 
the dielectric. And then these people who use a 50 watt iron so they can get 
inside those holes are, in my opinion, fooling themselves.



I fan the braid back over the outer jacket and screw the body over it, 
capturing it with a fairly good mechanical connection. However, sometimes, 
the jacket is too stiff/thick and/or the braid is too bulky so I have to 
remove some of the braid to be able to do the screw-job.

Then, of course, I solder the center pin and am good to go.

BTW HF and PL-259s are synonymous. I don't know any SERIOUS ham who would 
use a 259 for UHF.   Uhhh, why do they call a PL259 a "UHF connector" ?!?

73
RoGrrr

_________________________________________________________________
>From photos to predictions, The MSN Entertainment Guide to Golden Globes has 
it all. http://tv.msn.com/tv/globes2007/?icid=nctagline1



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