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Jd1020
New member
Username: Jd1020

Post Number: 2
Registered: 10-2006
Posted on Tuesday, December 05, 2006 - 6:25 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

If I put up an Antron 99 antenna, friends tell me I need 50 ft. of coax cable. My question is: To locate the radio where I want to in the house, I need at least 75 ft and possibly 100 ft. Would this change the SWR setting or decrease the antenna reception and output? Can you screw 2 different lengths of coax cable together without any problems?
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Streaky
Member
Username: Streaky

Post Number: 70
Registered: 3-2006
Posted on Tuesday, December 05, 2006 - 10:31 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Jd1020
If you use high quality coax (eg. LMR 400)or equivalant then 100 foot runs are no problem.It will not change the swr and from what I have read on this forum if you use abarrel connector you can attach another peice ofcoax with hardly any loss at all

Streaky
CEF #805
CVC #98
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Tech808
Moderator
Username: Tech808

Post Number: 12451
Registered: 8-2002


Posted on Tuesday, December 05, 2006 - 11:37 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Jd1020,

I would suggest RG-213 or the
Altelicon CA-400 400 Series Cable which is far more reasonable in price than the LMR and has the EXACT same Specs.

CLICK on the BLUE LINK BELOW!

Altelicon CA-400

CA-400 Series Coax Cable
The CA-400 low loss cable is a high performance alternative to RG8/U, CommScope® WBC-400, Times Microwave Systems® LMR-400, Belden® 9914 / 9913 / 7810 and Andrew® CNT-400 coax cable.

Altelicon CA-400 is a UV resistant polyethylene lacketed high performance flexible Low Loss coaxial cable. This coaxial cable has become a "standard" of the outdoor wireless LAN and WLL industries. This lightweight cable has excellent low loss characteristics and a durable UV protected black polyethylene jacket. The Altelicon CA-400 features equal performance and mechanical characteristics to cables from CommScope®, Times Microwave Systems®, Belden and Andrew®.

Construction Specification (Layer - Material - Diameter)

Inner Conductor - Copper/Aluminum - 2.74mm / 0.108in

Dielectric - Physical Foam Polyethylene - 7.24mm / 0.285in

Outer Conductor - Bonded Aluminum Foil + Tinned Copper Braid - 8.13mm / 0.320in

Jacket - Black Polyethylene - 10.29mm / 0.405in

Electrical Characteristics

Capacitance : 77.1pF/m

Impedance : 50ohm

Velocity : 85%

Inner Conductor DC Resistance : 2.92(Ω/km)

Outer Conductor DC Resistance : 5.41(Ω/km)

Shielding Effectiveness : > 90dB

Cutoff Frequency : 16.2 GHz

Peak Power : 16KW

Mechanical and Environmental Characteristics

Min. Bend Radius : 51mm / 2.0in

Operating Temp. : -40°C to +80°C

Tensile Strength : 72.6kg / 160lb

Cable Weight : 0.099kg/m 0.068lb/ft

RoHS Compliant : Yes

Attenuation and Avg. Power (20°C)
(Frequency - Attenuation dB - Avg. Power)

30MHz - (2.2@100m / 0.7@100ft) - 3.30KW

50MHz - (2.9@100m / 0.9@100ft) - 2.60KW

150MHz - (5.0@100m / 1.5@100ft) - 1.50KW

220MHz - (6.10@100m / 1.86@100ft) - 1.20KW

450MHz - (8.9@100m / 2.7@100ft) - 0.83KW

900MHz - (12.8@100m / 3.9@100ft) - 0.58KW

1500MHz - (16.8@100m / 5.13@100ft) - 0.44KW

1800MHz - (18.6@100m / 5.67@100ft) - 0.40KW

2000MHz - (19.6@100m / 6.0@100ft) - 0.37KW

2500MHz - (22.2@100m / 6.8@100ft) - 0.33KW

5800MHz - (35.5@100m / 10.8@100ft) - 0.21KW



Hope this help's,

Lon
Tech808
CEF808
N9CEF
CVC#2
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Wildrat
Senior Member
Username: Wildrat

Post Number: 1159
Registered: 12-2003


Posted on Wednesday, December 06, 2006 - 12:02 am:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

JD1020,

I use the RG-213 that Copper sells and my run is around 120'. My SWR are nearly flat with my Imax 2K, and with the box on they are around 1.3. Don't worry to much about your coax length, just make sure all your connectors are soldered good.Well it's just past midnight and I am falling asleep, if you have more qurstions just ask.

WR
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Wildrat
Senior Member
Username: Wildrat

Post Number: 1160
Registered: 12-2003


Posted on Wednesday, December 06, 2006 - 12:09 am:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Missed your other question about connecting two cables. Yes you can, again make sure you have good connections and water tight. You may want to consider putting a PolyPhaser in the circuit.

WR
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Uillean
New member
Username: Uillean

Post Number: 3
Registered: 12-2006
Posted on Wednesday, December 06, 2006 - 8:17 am:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

JD,

Barrel connectors are not a problem, just make sure the PL259s are put together well (no solderless connectors!)and be sure to wrap the whole assembly with a good quality vinyl tape to keep water out. I have 2 barrels inline on the way to my quad (one at the 1/4 wave matching section and one 20 feet farther down--long story on that one) and in my case used this dielectric goop sold by Radioworks just because I happened to have some on hand (Copper may sell something similar), and wrapped the connectors with black water seal tape you can get at Home Depot.

It's been up over a year with no problems, VSWR is still below 1.2:1 over the 40 channels and doesn't rise above 1.5:1 anywhere I use it. Never has changed a bit during this time.
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Tech237
Moderator
Username: Tech237

Post Number: 648
Registered: 4-2004
Posted on Wednesday, December 06, 2006 - 12:49 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

JD,
Take look at the article (under Subscriptions/Articles) about coax length as this may give you a better understanding of the effects coax length can have on your system.

The loss on a 100ft of GOOD quality coax, such as the one suggested by Tech808, is minimal at 27MHz BUT the length can affect the apparent SWR of your antenna system.

Now as to barrel joiners although they cause little loss - if all solder joins are high quality and the connections are clean, moisture and dust can creep in not matter what you do. In all most all professional and commercial installations joins are avoided, and in order to prevent yourself from having future trouble I strongly suggest running you coax as a single piece.

This advise (if you are wondering) is backed by over 30 years of professional experience, which includes designing and implementing statewide radio systems for several Australia Emergency organizations.
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Sonny
Intermediate Member
Username: Sonny

Post Number: 128
Registered: 5-2004
Posted on Wednesday, December 06, 2006 - 8:08 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

JD get as close as you can to a full wave length like 108ft. 36ft being a full wave length :-)
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Jd1020
New member
Username: Jd1020

Post Number: 3
Registered: 10-2006
Posted on Wednesday, December 06, 2006 - 8:53 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Thanks to everyone for your replies and helpful information. I picked up my antenna and coax today from Coppers. Hopefully the weather will be where I can get it up this week-end. Thanks. Dale
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Uillean
New member
Username: Uillean

Post Number: 4
Registered: 12-2006
Posted on Wednesday, December 06, 2006 - 11:45 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Good Luck Jd.

(And a full wave length of coax at 27.2 MHz is either 31.8' or 23.8', depending on whether the dielectric is foam or poly. If that matters to you).

Uillean
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Tech808
Moderator
Username: Tech808

Post Number: 12463
Registered: 8-2002


Posted on Thursday, December 07, 2006 - 5:47 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post    Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

COPPER ELECTRONICS
Coax Line Loss Calculator



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Coax Line Loss Calculator


Lon
Tech808
CEF808
N9CEF
CVC#2

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