Hi Guys, Contrary to "...tribal knowledge", I insist that clear silicone sealant---G.E. brand, whatever---still can't be beat on applications that are out-of-doors & in the open...!
I smear it all over my PL-259 connectors---and then some---that I use to hook-up my feeders to the bases / tuning networks of my extended inverted "L" arrays for 160-meters here: in the open air, there are no noxious / corrosive fumes to contend with... In the Spring, when it's time to roll-up the radials & store away the tuning networks, I simply get an X-acto knife & make a slit into the silicone the length of the connector, then peel the whole thing off in one piece. It's cheap, effective, and never allows water entry into the "works"---even when buried for (literally) months at a time under a foot & more of snow! I concur, however, with the "dangerous" potential side-effects of silicone...case in point: one Field Day, many moons ago, I used silicone as an adhesive to anchor a small air-variable capacitor down securely inside a Tupperware enclosure, used to tune a delta loop on 40. It was a dewey damp Sunday morning when we opened-up the Tupperware lid to se why the tuning of our antenna had gone awry...to our surprise, the rotor blades of the capacitor were completely coated in rust! Our only conclusion was that the noxious, vinegar-like smell of the silicone, in a sealed environment, had somehow "attacked" the steel capacitor, & aged it by a quantum leap! Used outdoors & in the open, however, I've never had that problem... ~73~ de Eddy VE3CUI - VE3XZ ******************************** ----- Original Message ----- From: "BILL GUYGER" <[email protected]> To: "Discussion of AM Radio in the Amateur Service" <[email protected]> Sent: Sunday, October 18, 2009 12:18 AM Subject: Re: [AMRadio] antennas > I missed the original post, but this thread seems to be about sealing coax connectors. I have started using 3M Scotchfil which is an electrical insulating "putty" that comes in 1" wide rolls. It's the same stuff that Andrew sells as "Vaporwrap" except that instead of being in sheet form it is 1" tape as noted. > > Scotchfil is available from any electrical supply and I think Home Depot carries it too. These putty style tapes and sheets flow under pressure to fill all gaps and really work well. They of course require plastic electrical tape to be applied over them to apply that pressure, and the trick is to apply a layer of the electrical tape directly to the connector before putting the Scotchfil or Vaporwrap on. This keeps the gooie tape from oozing into the threads which makes things easier when you have to remove the connector. > > Bill AD5OL > > > > > ________________________________ > From: Jim Wilhite <[email protected]> > To: Discussion of AM Radio in the Amateur Service <[email protected]> > Sent: Saturday, October 17, 2009 4:12:49 PM > Subject: Re: [AMRadio] antennas > > Hi Paul, > > Tacky tape is almost like Coax Seal in appearance and consistency. The > stuff I have is 1/2" wide and probably near 1/16" thick. I found this > by accident as well and did a search for it based on the name on the > cardboard roller at the center of the roll. Here is the website for it > so you can read it. > > http://tacky-tape.com/ > > ______________________________________________________________ > Our Main Website: http://www.amfone.net > AMRadio mailing list > Searchable Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > List Rules (must read!): http://w5ami.net/amradiofaq.html > List Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/amradio > Post: [email protected] > To unsubscribe, send an email to [email protected] with > the word unsubscribe in the message body. > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > ______________________________________________________________ Our Main Website: http://www.amfone.net AMRadio mailing list Searchable Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ List Rules (must read!): http://w5ami.net/amradiofaq.html List Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/amradio Post: [email protected] To unsubscribe, send an email to [email protected] with the word unsubscribe in the message body. This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
