Coax cable question

[CN/NECR]

Hello All,

I'm new too these "Coax Cables" thing.I have an antenna,that is about 30ft above my house,and I need to buy coax cable(BNC ends)But theres soo many different sizes and I'm not sure what is best for that height.
I was looking at RG8 cable,that seems thick enough for outside.Well anyway,I hope to hear from someone.
Thanks.




Darren

[clearblock]

What type of antenna do you have and is this for a scanner? Good quality RG8U is ok for a 30' run. For longer runs, low loss types like Belden 9913 or Times LMR400 are better. The cable will normally have a type UHF or N connector. BNC connectors are not usually used on antennas. They are not suitable for outdoor use.

[CN/NECR]

Well you may think this is funny,but I'm useing a Hustler MRM antenna,for mobile use,but this is just temporary,unitl I get my hands on Traintenna.The Hustler antenna has BNC end and it's RG58,so I thought I can run BNC cable down to my room in the bastment.Yes it is for my scanner,so I thought I'd use BNC,but After I get the Traintenna,I will purchase the Uniden BC8T,or maybe BC350C.
Well anyway,I thank you for your information.I can possibly wait,before I actually go ahead with this,it's just cause Iw ant to start up a live scanner feed,so the faster I get everything,the better.

Take care.


Darren

[EdM]

go to radio shack and buy a hunk of coax with connectors already installed which match either your antenna or your radio. rg8 is fine, bnc is fine (that is what god made scotch 33 for).. for a 30' or so run, it is difficult to measure the differance,,,...... ed k2lck

[clearblock]

go to radio shack and buy a hunk of coax with connectors already installed which match either your antenna or your radio. rg8 is fine, bnc is fine (that is what god made scotch 33 for).. for a 30' or so run, it is difficult to measure the differance,,,...... ed k2lck

You are not going to find RG8 with BNC connectors installed at Radio Shack. You would have to get a cable with UHF conectors and UHF/BNC adapters.

The BNC series connector is intended for the smaller diameter cables.
There is one type of BNC made for RG8. The UG-959U is a rare item and costs over $13.

I don't like to see one piece UHF/BNC adapters used on a scanner or portable radio. The most common repair I see with radios with BNC connectors is someone has used heavy cable with an adapter or replaced the stock antenna on a portable with an oversized gain type. The stress on the BNC receptacle breaks the solder connection between the receptacle center pin and the circuit board in the radio or even breaks the board or the radio housing.

A short flexible coax jumper of RG58 should be used with a male BNC on one end and an female UHF on the other to transition from RG8 or heavier cable to a device with a BNC connector.

The BNC is strictly a light duty connector designed primarily for laboratory type use where quick connect/disconnect is important. Yes, you can weatherproof it with tape but it is still a mechanically poor connection that is likely to get noisy eventually.

[EdM]

hey, gimme a break... the purpose of the post was to tell the guy to use radio shack and not to worry about rg8 vs rg58 fer a 30' run..... C is to N as BNC is to TNC.. you can get the uhf (259) connectors for either 8 or 58... but best to just buy a cable from radio shack that comes close to fitting your requirements, even if you hafta buy an adapter fer one end or the other....it is only a scanner, it is not like you are gonna squirt 500 watts thru it.....and no way I would ask a guy to put a bnc or n on a hunk of coax if he had never done it b4.....but you are correctt, I slipped into yesteryear (lab) terminology when I referred to (or thought of) a hunk of rg58 as a BNC cable...solly... Ed K2LCK

[Terminal Proceed]

I generally prefer to shop at Grove Communications for my antenna needs. I find that dealing with about 99% of the employees at radio shack is like talking to a walking coma patient. The majority of them are idiots with no clue about the products they sell.

At least at Grove, the majority of their employees are Hams - so you can ask a question and get a knowledgable answer.

I don't have their web site address handy but doing a search on them will bring it up - they are located in the Carolinas I believe. AND you can get coax from them with a 259 connector on one end and a bnc on the other.

[CN/NECR]

Thank you very much,for all the suggestions,I will look into searching for that website,thanks again.

[EdM]

Yeh, the guys in RS are idiots. But your are notgoing there for advice, you are going there to buy a product.... Anyone who gets advice from a salesman is likely to get hosed, That is what places like this are for... And don't get your advice from a ham salesman either.....
Several years ago I went into a Ham radio store in Delaware to buy among other things, a 12v power cable fer one of my ICOM radios.. The guy asked me "is a kenwood cable OK?" I said sure, not really cariing... Come time to pay the bill, the Kenwood cable was $34 and I knew that the ICOM cable was about $21. I told him that Ireally needed the ICOM cable, which he also had, and never went back into that store.. BTW , the salesman was a ham with a two letter call.... I dont own any shares in RS, but I also know what I want and they are all over...
It should also be noted that everyone has the "best" antenna, but the truth be known, an antenna is an antenna, and when you don't know what you are buying, best to talk to someone who does., listeniing also helps..

Ed K2LCK

[clearblock]

I generally prefer to shop at Grove Communications for my antenna needs. I don't have their web site address handy...

http://www.grove-ent.com/

They are good to deal with for scanners, antennas and accessories.