[TowerTalk] LMR400-PL259s

[donovanf at starpower.net]

Box cutters are dangerous tools, intended to be used at a safe distance from body parts.  Using a box cutter near your opposite hand or other body parts can easily result in an accidental deep cut right to the bone, and now you have a serious injury to deal with.

If you use a box cutter to prepare coaxial cable, be sure you wear a substantial glove on the opposing hand!

73
Frank
W3LPL

---- Original message ----
>Date: Tue, 4 Sep 2007 21:26:05 -0400
>From: "Roger (K8RI)" <K8RI-on-TowerTalk at tm.net>  
>Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] LMR400-PL259s  
>To: <towertalk at contesting.com>
>
>
>
>
>>I understand what you mean, exactly.
>>
>> The "fanning" you describe is what happens when the conductor gets 
>> squashed
>> during the course of cutting it.  This happens if you use diagonal 
>> cutters,
>
>I have a problem understanding why would that cause a problem. Yes, it 
>squashes the cable a bit at the cut, but when you strip the cable you are 
>cutting well back from that point. Probably removing 3/4 of an inch of 
>dielectric, another quarter inch of braid and jacket, and another good half 
>inch of jacket which leaves a half inch of exposed braid the end of which is 
>about an inch from where the cable was cut.
>
>I normally use a "stripper", but even using a box cutter for the stripping 
>I've had no problems like this.
>Even with the box cutter I first cut the cable with cutters of one sort or 
>another including linemans pliers.
>Using the "box cutter" I then cut all the way around and deep into the 
>dielectric (not quite to the center conductor), grab a pair of pliers and 
>twist that part off. Then I cut through the jacket and braid about a quarter 
>inch back and pull both the jacket and braid off. (Normally I only trim the 
>foil back away from the end of the dielectric, but leave most of it.) The 
>final cut is about a half inch back on the jacket. This one I make deep 
>enough to score the jacket to the point where a bit of flexing or pulling 
>will cause it to seperate.
>
>Then again if you use crimp connectors you won't care if the braid bells out 
>or not as the back of the connector goes under it while the crimp sleeve 
>goes over it. Just remember to put the sleeve on first.
>
>> end cutters, etc.  It does *not* happen -- not even a tiny bit -- if you 
>> use
>> a real cable cutting tool, which is like a pair of mating half-moon 
>> cutting
>> surfaces that slice through the conductor and completely shear it, without
>> compressing it at all.  The use of the "right tool for the job" completely
>> takes care of the problem with LMR-400.
>>
>> But you're right: If you use "dikes" (diagonal cutters) or similar, this
>> will indeed happen.
>
>Haven't had it happen yet using straight edged "cable cutters", or even 
>linemans pliers and I've been using LMR-400 almost since it came out.
>
>73
>
>Roger (K8RI)
>
>
>>
>> WB2WIK/6
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Perry - K4PWO [mailto:k4pwo at comcast.net]
>> Sent: Tuesday, September 04, 2007 1:53 PM
>> To: towertalk at contesting.com
>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] LMR400-PL259s
>>
>> One source of problems fitting PL-259's is that, when you cut the LMR-400,
>> the soft copper clad aluminum "fans" preventing it from sliding into the
>> connector.  You can file the very tip to "round" the conductor or try
>> forming it back to round with pliers.  You will always have a little AL
>> exposed at the cut end but I usually trim the center long, solder the 
>> center
>>
>> pin, and then cut the center conductor flush with the PL-259's pin. 
>> Quality
>>
>> connectors help too!
>>
>> 73 de Perry - K4PWO
>>
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