Dittel radio Q

My FSG-60M worked fine in my panel last season. During pre-annual
checkout, it powers up but Rx/Tx produces nothing but static on any
frequency; almost like the antenna is not connected. My handheld works
fine on the ship antenna. I tried powering the radio circuit with a
power supply set to 14v with the same results.

I pulled the radio from the tray, and removed the tray from the panel.
The radio works fine in the tray when the tray is not in the panel.
When I reinstall the tray into the panel, the radio again powers up but
Rx/Tx nothing.

I'd like to buy a clue, please.

Ken

Ken,
I would carefully trace the "goodness" of the antenna lead from the tray to
the ship. A short or on open would get your symptoms.
I think a simple Ohm-meter would work. With the radio-to-tray connection
disconnected, you should see almost an open-ckt (meg-ohms) from the ship's
antenna to cable shield/ground. And you should see a closed circuit from the
antenna to the coax center-conductor.
Good luck.

Heinz

Even better, try an antenna analyzer like an MFJ-269. It can measure the
impedence of the antenna system, including the coaxial lead from the radio.
If there is a problem with the lead, it can determine the distance to fault.
It can also measure the loss in a given piece of coax.

If you're anywhere near Knoxville, TN (Chilhowee Gliderport), I have one and
would be happy to hook it up and check it out for you. Otherwise, most
avionics shops have this kind of gear.


Mark


"Heinz Gehlhaar" wrote in message
...
Ken,
I would carefully trace the "goodness" of the antenna lead from the tray
to
the ship. A short or on open would get your symptoms.
I think a simple Ohm-meter would work. With the radio-to-tray connection
disconnected, you should see almost an open-ckt (meg-ohms) from the ship's
antenna to cable shield/ground. And you should see a closed circuit from
the
antenna to the coax center-conductor.
Good luck.

Heinz

Well, I figured it out this evening. The antenna cable, right where it
goes into the BNC connector that then attaches to the tray, is
intermittent. If the cable is bent at a right angle to attach to the
tray, it becomes 'open'. If the cable is lying flat on the floor
attached to the tray, it's good.

How do you remove the BNC connector, strip and prepare the coaxial
cable, then put a new BNC connector back on? Is this a mechanical
connection or does it require soldering/crimping?

As an aside, since the problem is that the cable is being bent 90
degrees to attach to the tray, can I replace the 'straight' BNC
connector with a 90 degree connector, and eliminate this issue in the
future?

Ken

PS: I'm a ham, and I've used an SWR meter on my glider antenna also. I
guess the cable was in it's 'good' position when I did that test, as the
results were acceptable.


In article ,
"Mark Lenox" wrote:

Even better, try an antenna analyzer like an MFJ-269. It can measure the
impedence of the antenna system, including the coaxial lead from the radio.
If there is a problem with the lead, it can determine the distance to fault.
It can also measure the loss in a given piece of coax.

If you're anywhere near Knoxville, TN (Chilhowee Gliderport), I have one and
would be happy to hook it up and check it out for you. Otherwise, most
avionics shops have this kind of gear.


Mark


"Heinz Gehlhaar" wrote in message
...
Ken,
I would carefully trace the "goodness" of the antenna lead from the tray
to
the ship. A short or on open would get your symptoms.
I think a simple Ohm-meter would work. With the radio-to-tray connection
disconnected, you should see almost an open-ckt (meg-ohms) from the ship's
antenna to cable shield/ground. And you should see a closed circuit from
the
antenna to the coax center-conductor.
Good luck.

Heinz

You can install the bnc either by a crimped connector or a soldered one. I
have seen a lot of poorly made bnc connections. I used to hate to solder
them so I purchased the proper tools to use crimped connectors. It was not
cheap, but I wish I had purchased it years ago. It is excellent. I would
not solder a bnc anymore.

You can buy a right angle bnc "extender" - but be careful. I have seen some
that used an internal piece of coiled wire to make assembly easier. Using
one of those would be a disaster. If you use one, make sure it is a name
brand.

Colin

Ken,



Ditto what Colin Lamb said in another response. Use good crimp
connectors. Don't come within 10 nautical miles of the screw on type
connectors. They are for emergency use only (which is what you will
have eventually if you use them). If you have a little room, you can
make a gentle bend - 1 to 2 inch radius in the cable to get it going in
the correct direction in the tray. If it is subject to movement and
vibration then secure it to something solid using tywraps. And you can
also add multiple layers of heat shrink tubing of increasing lengths to
the necessary area to provide stress relief if it cannot be secured for
some mounting reason.



Regards,



Larry

-- zero one -

USA

Ken:
I have the proper crimp tool and straight connector. If you e-mail me
your address to , I'll send it along. Just
promise to return it.
Best regards
Mike

In article .com,
"Mike" wrote:

Ken:
I have the proper crimp tool and straight connector. If you e-mail me
your address to , I'll send it along. Just
promise to return it.
Best regards
Mike

Hello Mike,

That is a very kind offer, and I appreciate it very much! However I've
also located a friend who lives nearby who has the tool, so I'll try him
first.

One thing I'm concerned about is making sure that I use the correct
connector. I examined the coaxial cable today, expecting to find some
labeling on the outer black insulating cover, like RG-58 or -59U; no
label was found anywhere on the yard of coax that I could examine.

The old connector came off easily, as it was held to the cable via a set
screw that apparently is supposed to penetrate the outer insulating
sheath to make an electrical connection between the connector shell and
the coax braid sheath. It appears that the center coax conductor
depends upon touching the center connector conductor; a weak design for
sure.

The only thing I know about the cable is that it IS coax and the outside
diameter is about 3.75mm. Since it's from Europe, is there anyone from
Europe who knows coax specs and what this cable is likely to be, so I
can get the correct connector? Or does it really matter for this
application?

Best regards,
Ken
San Jose, California

They do make a right angle adaptor for installations where you have
no room behind the radio,

Ken (KP)



Ken Ward wrote:
Well, I figured it out this evening. The antenna cable, right where it
goes into the BNC connector that then attaches to the tray, is
intermittent. If the cable is bent at a right angle to attach to the
tray, it becomes 'open'. If the cable is lying flat on the floor
attached to the tray, it's good.

How do you remove the BNC connector, strip and prepare the coaxial
cable, then put a new BNC connector back on? Is this a mechanical
connection or does it require soldering/crimping?

As an aside, since the problem is that the cable is being bent 90
degrees to attach to the tray, can I replace the 'straight' BNC
connector with a 90 degree connector, and eliminate this issue in the
future?

Ken

PS: I'm a ham, and I've used an SWR meter on my glider antenna also. I
guess the cable was in it's 'good' position when I did that test, as the
results were acceptable.


In article ,
"Mark Lenox" wrote:

Even better, try an antenna analyzer like an MFJ-269. It can measure the
impedence of the antenna system, including the coaxial lead from the radio.
If there is a problem with the lead, it can determine the distance to fault.
It can also measure the loss in a given piece of coax.

If you're anywhere near Knoxville, TN (Chilhowee Gliderport), I have one and
would be happy to hook it up and check it out for you. Otherwise, most
avionics shops have this kind of gear.


Mark


"Heinz Gehlhaar" wrote in message
...
Ken,
I would carefully trace the "goodness" of the antenna lead from the tray
to
the ship. A short or on open would get your symptoms.
I think a simple Ohm-meter would work. With the radio-to-tray connection
disconnected, you should see almost an open-ckt (meg-ohms) from the ship's
antenna to cable shield/ground. And you should see a closed circuit from
the
antenna to the coax center-conductor.
Good luck.

Heinz