It sure would be horrible to have to throw it away for sure. I had some
stuff here that was 25 years old and it seemed to be way more flexible than
I remember it to be, almost rubber like, the dielectric had turned yellow.
I made some patch cables out of some of it and all seemed well until I ran
1500 through it and the SWR went high. So, I guess what I am saying is when
you do the test that Gerald suggested below make sure you run some power
through it when checking the SWR.
When I worked for AT&T Broadband they would require we dumped any cable
after 5 years, I course I didn't hi hi, it would be re-cycled hi hi.
Mike
I never did you the stuff, but still have for other projects like radial
etc.
-----Original Message-----
This isn't totally based on actual experience per se, however I'd sure be
reluctant to chuck it without giving it a chance.
I'd try some simple tests. First peel back the sheathing and braid about a
foot. The dielectric ideally should look white. If it is a darker color, I'd
trim back a ways further. If it's still dark, I'd be a bit concerned.
Then you could put some connectors on it and hook it up between a
transmitter and dummy load. The VSWR should be 1:1. If not, there is
probably something wrong with the coax. Then measure the power going in and
out and compare the loss against Belden ratings. If everything looks OK,
then I'd say you are probably good to go.
If you had access to an oscilloscope, you could do even more testing such as
looking for odd reflections.
--
Gerald Boutin, VE1DT
To: towertalk@contesting.com
Subject: [TowerTalk] Old coax
From: "Ken Anderson" <k6ta@volcano.net>
Reply-to: k6ta@volcano.net
Date: Sun, 6 Jul 2008 12:26:35 -0700 (PDT)
List-post: <towertalk@contesting.com">mailto:towertalk@contesting.com>
I have a roll of RG214A/U that is approximately 25 years old. Coax is
700-800 feet on its original spool and was residual from a commercial
installation. The spool has been stored outside, out of rain and sun,
all these years.
There is no markings on coax other than RG info but I believe it was
manufactured by Belden.
What is peoples experience with the usability of such coax?
Ken, K6TA
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