Gary "Joe" Mayfield wrote:
>I kind of like the cold shrink tape....... I have avoided the gooey
>putty stuff.
Sometimes you need a little of both. For example, a bulkhead SO239-PL259
connection will always leave a small gap between the flange and the end
of the ring. There's no way to stretch tape tightly into that gap, so
water *will* creep in.
I never use Coax-Seal to cover the entire connector because of the mess
it makes... but there is another way:
Take a *small* amount of Coax-Seal and mold it into an O-ring where the
round barrel of the SO239 joins onto the flange. Then screw the PL259
down onto that O-ring to make a tight seal, and run your finger around
to smooth it down. Now continue as before and wrap the whole thing with
tape. You'll find that the tape bonds with the Coax-Seal to make a
completely waterproof connection.
However, the best answer is never to use bulkhead connectors outdoors!
This is the big advantage of homebrewing things like remote coax
switches - you can make your own choices about waterproofing. Whenever
possible, I bring 'tails' of coax out of the enclosure through proper
waterproof cable glands, and then use inline jack connectors which are a
much better shape to wrap with tape. This method of waterproofing is
completely reliable and has never once let me down.
>To be honest has anyone really had connector weatherproofing issues?
Good grief, yes!!!
--
73 from Europe's Wet Coast
Ian GM3SEK
http://www.ifwtech.co.uk/g3sek
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