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RG8x (mini) on 2m ???

M

mr_fx

Sr. Member
Oct 8, 2011
1,536
172
173
Kansas City
It seems people freak out about anything less than LMR400 but I doubt on a 50ft run I would be able to tell the difference between the 2 feedlines, maybe if we were talking hardline, but I doubt I could justify the cost and this is ready to go... so is it worth my time?

I pulled the specs on the specific RG8x I use

since I no longer own a own a HF rig I was thinking about putting this big 2m J pole up on the mast that my 10/11 meter antenna is on and using the current 50ft run of RG8x on it, I mean it's there already

JSC Wire & Cable
Mini-8/u
Type # 3060

@ 50ft @ 2m frequencies it would have about 2db loss or there abouts


Untitled Document
 

2dB attenuation with 50 watts from the radio would leave you with 31.5 watts at the antenna.
So you're losing 18.5 watts...

This is why you hear all the fuss about lossy coax, people want all the power they can get at the antenna.

As far as your question goes... run what you have.

I have run the same setup as well as 8 & mini 8 on a super J pole.
I've also used both Andrew FSJ and EFX on J poles and honestly I didn't notice much, if any, difference. But I was only going by what I heard....
I am not located too far from any of the repeaters or stations that I talked to and really didn't need an outside antenna, they could all hear me full quieting with 2 watts on a 1/4 wave HT.

If and when you have the money to spend on LMR or better, you can swap it out and "see" if you notice a difference.
 
I wouldn't use it unless it was all I had and could afford. If you talk to locals and are a repeater queen, then no harm done.

It's when your chewing the fat on simplex and some cool dude comes in real weak and barely readable that the db figures of low loss cable shines.
 
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2dB attenuation will become more important if you are trying to do long haul work.
I have also used 50 feet of Mini-8 on a 2 meter yagi because it was already there for another antenna I had there and it was fine at the time.
I switched to LMR-400 several months later, and were i was able to see the difference was when reaching out to a repeater that was 200+ miles north of me, it made the difference between using the machine "when I could get into it " to being able work it solid all the time.
If it is there use it and just save a few coins now and then as you can and plan on a up-grade later.
As You like to experiment with antennas I am sure that something will go up/down again so you will have another chance to change it.
Now if it was a tower that would be going up to stay for a long period of time, I would say going with premium the first time is a must.


73
Jeff
 
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I use lmr-400 mobile and rg213 on the base for vhf & uhf. Even tho there is some loss with pl259 on uhf i don't mind.
 
basically it comes down to rg213 at 5 ft off the ground or RG8x @ 35-40 ft

and LMR400 the is available locally is only going to gain me 0.5db less loss than the existing rg8x... @ 2m at 50 foot run
 
in the mobile I am running RG 174, but it is only a 6-7 ft run, so about 0.6 - 0.8 db loss

with RG8x mini in the same situation I would only have a 0.2 - 0.3 db loss


in that case going to LMR400 the difference in loss would be nearly immeasurable
0.15 - 0.225 db loss and would not be worth the hassle of the thicker cabling
 
mr_fx said:
in the mobile I am running RG 174, but it is only a 6-7 ft run, so about 0.6 - 0.8 db loss

with RG8x mini in the same situation I would only have a 0.2 - 0.3 db loss


in that case going to LMR400 the difference in loss would be nearly immeasurable
0.15 - 0.225 db loss and would not be worth the hassle of the thicker cabling
Click to expand...


Why are you running RG-174?? That is REALLY small stuff. I have a dual band mobile antenna that has a short piece of similar size cable near the end but it it NOT RG-174 but rather RG-316 which has a Teflon dielectric and is quite tough. It has high loss but only a short length is used near the end that would exit a vehicle making it less prone to pinching.
 
Captain Kilowatt said:
Why are you running RG-174?? That is REALLY small stuff. I have a dual band mobile antenna that has a short piece of similar size cable near the end but it it NOT RG-174 but rather RG-316 which has a Teflon dielectric and is quite tough. It has high loss but only a short length is used near the end that would exit a vehicle making it less prone to pinching.
Click to expand...

it was built in to the antenna, and the antenna was free
 
Captain Kilowatt said:
Why are you running RG-174?? That is REALLY small stuff. I have a dual band mobile antenna that has a short piece of similar size cable near the end but it it NOT RG-174 but rather RG-316 which has a Teflon dielectric and is quite tough. It has high loss but only a short length is used near the end that would exit a vehicle making it less prone to pinching.
Click to expand...

Well hey maybe the OP is driving a micromachine hihi:p
 
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