[TowerTalk] Trailer Hitch Electrical Connectors for Rotator Cable

Fri Aug 22 00:25:19 EDT 2014

Most automotive stores sell black RTV for electrical connections that is not
corrosive.

Perry K4PWO

-----Original Message-----
From: TowerTalk [mailto:towertalk-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of
Patrick Greenlee
Sent: Thursday, August 21, 2014 1:48 PM
To: towertalk at contesting.com
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Trailer Hitch Electrical Connectors for Rotator
Cable

Maybe I should have issued a warning re the silicone with vinegar smell 
(acetic acid) as it is corrosive.  I guess I thought we all knew that.   
Way back when I repaired an aquarium with the RTV silicone rubber that put
out acetic acid while curing.  I was ignorant and killed some fish.  
I learned to put some baby guppies in like a canary in a coal mine to test
for environmental quality/suitability.  Sometimes I lost 2-3 batches of
guppies but eventually when the guppies made it for an extended period it
was time for the other fish.

There are many more types of silicone caulk and potting formulas available
from technical sources than the average person sees at the big box stores.
For connector sealing just read the info or smell it.  If it smells like
vinegar do not use it on electrical connections or to weatherproof
connectors.

Today's trivia quiz:  What does RTV stand for?

Hint: It is not a brand or an ingredient.

Scroll down for answer...

RTV is Room Temperature Vulcanizing.

Before RTV products were available Vulcanizing (as the name implies)
involved high temps. (Vulcan in this instance is not the home world of Mr.
(not doctor) Spock but instead is the Roman mythological god of fire from
whom terms such as volcano and vulcanologist were derived.

73,

Patrick NJ5G

.
On 8/21/2014 10:25 AM, Roger (K8RI) on TT wrote:
> On 8/21/2014 11:02 AM, Patrick Greenlee wrote:
>
> Be careful with Silicone calk. For sealed connectors, make sure it is 
> made for that purpose and not the corrosive type.  If it smells like 
> Acetic Acid, it is corrosive.  We purchased a bunch of circuits at 
> "the plant" that wetre potted in Silicone calk.  It ate the copper off 
> the boards.
>
> 73
>
> Roger (K8RI)
>
>
>> You may note the many comments regarding successful use of the 4 pin 
>> trailer connectors in pairs for 8 conductor cables. I noticed  NO
>> negative comments regarding their actual use.   I personally solder 
>> rather than crimp them onto my cables and cover with shrink with some 
>> silicone caulk injected but that is just my personal quirk. Butt 
>> splice with the waterproof splices as their plastic insulation is 
>> "shrink" and and there is hot melt sealant inside that guarantees a 
>> water proof seal.  These are used hundreds of feet underwater and 
>> work fine and last a long time. if you know how to get a good crimp 
>> you are ready for weather.
>>
>> I wouldn't abandon this nifty solution (molded 4 pin trailer
>> connectors) because of having to make 8 splices.
>>
>> Anyway, good luck whatever you choose to do.
>>
>> 73,
>>
>> Patrick NJ5G
>>
>>
>>
>> On 8/20/2014 9:16 PM, W3YY wrote:
>>> Thanks to all those who offered suggestions.
>>>
>>> In my case, I want connectors that don't have wires already 
>>> attached.  I don't want to have to butt splice my existing rotator 
>>> cable wires to wires coming from the connector, I want to connect my 
>>> rotator cable wires directly to the connector.  Many of the 
>>> commercial trailer hitch connectors have pigtails.  Those that 
>>> don't, don't seem to make clear how one does attach the wires, e.g., 
>>> crimp, solder, pressure fit, etc.  I found trying to evaluate 
>>> trailer hitch connectors on the Internet to be problematic.
>>>
>>> KF7P suggested making a connector using Anderson Power Pole 
>>> connectors.  I think that's definitely worth a try.  I have a large 
>>> stock of Anderson Power Pole connectors with 15  to 45 amp capacity 
>>> and the associated crimping tool.  The basic Anderson Power Pole 
>>> connector is not weatherproof, but I think with a proper tape job it 
>>> can be made weather resistant. Best of all, if it fails, it's a snap 
>>> to cut off the old one, strip and recrimp new contacts. And 
>>> reinstall.  Easily done, even up on the tower without the need of a 
>>> butane soldering gun.
>>>
>>> Will let the group know in a year or two how well this works.
>>>
>>> Again, thanks to all for helping me make a decision about this.
>>>
>>> 73, Bob - W3YY
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: TowerTalk [mailto:towertalk-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf 
>>> Of W3YY
>>> Sent: Wednesday, August 20, 2014 11:27 PM
>>> To: towertalk at contesting.com
>>> Subject: [TowerTalk] Trailer Hitch Electrical Connectors for Rotator 
>>> Cable
>>>
>>> Does anyone have any recommendations for trailer hitch electrical 
>>> connectors that work well as rotator control cable connectors?  I 
>>> would like to have at least 5 conductors in the connector, if 
>>> possible.
>>>
>>>
>>> 73, Bob - W3YY
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>
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