Hello all,
Try as I may, I can not find in-line female BNC connectors. ASny tip-off’s would be most gratefully received.
73 and HNY,
Dave 2E0BYA.
In reply to 2E0BYA:
This what you’re after?
Carolyn (G6WRW)
In reply to 2E0BYA:
Google is your friend!
Typing the title of your posting got me 6 pages of hits including Carolyn’s suggestion (about 300 total). However maybe I can make another suggestion; why not just fit male BNCs and pick up a female to female adapter from Maplins £3.29 Order Code: YW02C?
Another suggestion if using VHF/UHF is to pick up a 3 way female T and use it to attach a tuned 1/4 wave stub which may help with interference when there are commercial transmitters on a summit. A couple up tuned stubs from RG174 would add very little weight to you rucksack.
Happy New Year
73 Steve GW7AAV
In reply to GW7AAV:
Steve
RG174 would be a poor choice of cable for VHF/UHF feeder due to its high loss. Equally it would be a poor choice for a stub as its losses would result in a low Q, lossy filter. I feel sure Dave intends using the cable for HF.
73
Richard
G3CWI
In reply to GW7AAV:
Maplins £3.29
Strewth, you have to be rich to shop at Maplin nowadays!
Rallies are your friend. Look in the slummy boxes at radio rallies and you will 2nd-hand adaptors for 50p or so. Often you can acquire premium branded stuff for pennies. However, this is like investing in the stock market, a long term activity. I’ve been collecting for nearly 20 years and no longer count adaptors but simply weigh the box they live in. Over 1kg now 
If you can’t get an narrow entry connector, you can use those designed for RG-58 with RG-174 if you have some heatshrink and a PVA hot glue gun. Fit the connector and the cable will exit with a huge space around it. Fill the back of the connector with hot melt glue and allow lots of time for it to cool down, make sure the cable is central in the glue. Now, when it’s cold fit about 3cm of heatshrink over rear body of the connector, you’ll need 6 or 7mm unshrunk i.d. tubing. Fillup the heatshrink with glue. The heatshrink shrinks with the heat of the glue squeezing the excess out of the end. When cold, trim the excess with a sharp knife.
The end result is that the glue holds the cable in place and the heatshrink/glue tale provides strain relief and bending support on entry to the connector. It’s strong and waterproof, mine has lasted for 107 activations so far. Useful when you need a connector and most the world is on a 2 week Christmas shutdown.
Andy
MM0FMF
In reply to G3CWI:
I bow to your superior knowledge on that one Richard, I have never used RG174 and I had not checked the specifications, I was thinking it was the very thin stuff that is lowish loss at VHF/UHF. If he intends to use it HF then why not connect direct to the dipole and cut out the need for the female BNC?
In reply to MM0FMF:
I agree with you on rallies Andy, but most of us don’t want to wait until one comes along and Maplins may be expensive but are just down the high street for a lot of us. Ordering on the internet will double the price if you need to pay postage so Maplins are still a good bet and you can check the stock levels at your local store before you leave home. Convenience is something we sometimes have pay for unfortunately and in the present economic climate maybe we need to use them or loose them.
73 Steve GW7AAV
In reply to 2E0BYA:
Hi Dave,
I think the female ones are often called ‘Jacks’ or UG89’s (as against UG88 for the male one with the pin).
Generally, I just use RG58 size male & female BNC’s on both RG316 and RG178 (used for 2 to 8m feeds on HF & VHF) merely because I have plenty in stock. Making thicknesses up with heatshrink for both outer and centre conductor makes this possible and they keep a good hold at the clamp.
Waterproof integrity can be added with Raychem ATUM glued-interior heatshrink, self-amalgamating tape or some of G3CWI’s excellent black rubber compound, not forgetting the pin where it protrudes from the insulator. A small resealable poly bag, holed at one corner, passed over the BNC and taped to the coax as a shroud completes the job, making the feeder draggable through wet grass without problems, even with the bag open.
73, John G4YSS.
In reply to GW7AAV:
In reply to 2E0BYA:
Google is your friend!
Yes and No. I have googled at length, but have yet to come across what I have a picture of in my mind’s eye, which is a Greenpar type, nice solid looking, compression fitting shiny thing. I have however found bits and bobs like Carolyn has linked to (thanks Carolyn) as well and potentially useful bulkhead connectors.
The “making up diameter” approach sounds good, another brilliant practical approach from 'FMF.
The idea was to use a single feeder for both HF and VHF. I know RG-174 is not ideal for VHF, but I have used some really rubbish RG-58 before to feed slimjims with about 3W and still have great success. In the interests of always trying to reduce the weight of my kit, I wanted to have a play. We already have a few female to female adapters, but again, this is a little bit more loss to add on to an already lossy feedline, so I’m trying to keep connections to a minimum.
Maplin can be hideously expensive, sometimes twice or thrice what other outlets are pitched at, but they are handily sat on a retail park not so far away. Humph.
Thank you all for your replies, its given me plenty to be getting on with.
73,
Dave 2E0BYA.
In reply to 2E0BYA:
nice solid looking, compression fitting shiny thing.
http://www.ccsukltd.co.uk/pages/default.aspx?productID=16263&mode=productDetails
Andy
MM0FMF
In reply to MM0FMF:
Just the ticket! Thanks Andy.
73,
Dave 2E0BYA
In reply to 2E0BYA:
Alternatively, try these, ebay 390016714942 .
RG174 with one end already terminated with waterproof BNC socket, other end
free to connect to whatever you want (in my case HF dipole centre)and four of them to play with. They are actually 5m long, not 4m, I have had two batches without problem.
Mike G4BLH