[TowerTalk] What am I missing....balun

[Jim Thomson]

Date: Fri, 17 Feb 2017 15:44:50 -0700
From: Wes Stewart <wes_n7ws at triconet.org>
To: towertalk at contesting.com
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] What am I missing....balun

Maybe so, I could be wrong.  But my experience has been with RG142 which I had a 
bunch of at one time.  In the AZ sunshine the jacket cracked and I had a mess of 
tarnished silver on my hands.  And if you pigtail this stuff and try to seal it, 
nothing wants to stick.

(In my location where I run cable on the ground instead of digging trenches in 
the desert that will show for 100 years, I have a choice of rattlesnakes or pack 
rats.  I try to leave the snakes alone to keep the rats down, but when they come 
into the garage, they have to go and we have a rat problem.  I tried cats, but 
the coyotes and owls like them.  So it's Heliax to the rescue.)

>
>
> And when you criticize the enclosure and believe it is unnecessary, you're
> wrong; the outer jacket on that coax would last about 15 minutes out in the weather.
>
> Wes  N7WS
>
> ##  are u sure about that ?   FEP-9 is what is used on the outer jacket of RG-393.
> Its supposed to be impervious to extremes in heat, cold, UV, sunlight, and everything else
> you can throw at it.
>
> Jim  VE7RF


####   Both 142 and also 393 use the same FEP-9 outer jacket.  I found  only one site that stated
FEP-9  could be used outdoors.    All the other sites mention nothing about outdoor use.  
I have an application  where some short lengths of 393 will have to be used outdoors. I think
to be safe,  I will  wrap the entire length with some  33  or 88 tape first.   Then UV should not
be an issue.  That or some of that split loom plastic stuff. 

Jim  VE7RF