[TowerTalk] OR2800 rotor cable

[Jim Brown]

On Thu, 22 Apr 2010 04:28:58 +0000, k2wd at comcast.net wrote:

>Anyone know where I can find suitable rotor cable for the OR2800 rotor (2x 
>12ga, 2x 18ga shielded pair). 

3x#12 is very common house wiring (phase, neutral, and a ground). Shielded 
twisted pair is quite common in the pro audio world. BUT -- take a careful 
look at what the circuit is doing. Is the shield ONLY a shield, or is it 
also an active conductor?  Very common usually means very inexpensive. 

We have learned in the pro audio world that a foil/drain shield on twisted 
pair has terrible RFI properties. On the other hand, an unshielded twisted 
pair has very good rejection of noise and RFI. 

I suggest that you study the rotor control to see exactly what those cables  
are connecting. In my Yaesu rotor, one pair runs a DC motor, and three 
conductors monitor the position of a rotary pot that indicates rotor 
position. I have a long run between rotor and shack, so I used two 250 ft 
runs of 3-conductor house wire from the shack to the tower, and a 130 ft 
run of nicer cable that I found at a surplus house to run up the tower. It 
works quite well. 

73,

Jim K9YC