Anyone have any recommendations for the best place to buy large quantities of
coax and antenna wire from?
I am in the midst of installing a new tower and need to start ordering
materials. I need 2000ft of LMR400 style cable, 200ft of LMR600, probably
1000ft or so of dipole wire, and misc wire antenna related stuff (insulators,
center feed baluns or insulators, rope, etc). Also 200ft or so of HD rotor
cable. At these quantities I want to buy from a wholesaler, or a place which
is going to provide decent pricing. Shipping is also a concern, so if I can
find a supplier within driving distance, all the better. Any suggestions?
Has anyone used the newer Belden RF400 series cable? Or the knockoff brands of
LMR400 equivalent? There are two vendors on eBay selling 1000ft rolls of LMR400
equivalent cable for $325/1000ft roll, which so far seems hard to beat. Even
better, they are within driving distance to pick it up.
Also, is anyone using standard LMR400 in a loop near their rotor? I used 9913
in my last installation, and it seemed to hold up ok after a number of years'
rotations. I later replaced it with 9913F7 while performing maintenance as
a preventative measure more than anything else (easier to change while the
tower is down). Just wondering if it is worth the extra expense of buying the
flex versions...
One more question - Which type of wire does everyone recommend for wire
antennas? I plan to install a full wave delta loop for 75m, a full wave
delta loop for 160m, a full length dipole for 75, and a maybe a few others (60m
comes to mind). Looking at some of the vendor sites, I see there is a number
of types of wire available. Is one type preferred over the other? I am on a
hill where I experience higher than normal winds, so I don't want to skimp and
wind up spending more time repairing antennas then using them.
Thanks
Eric
K2WD
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