On 17/09/14 01:14, Lostgallifreyan wrote:
"gareth" wrote in news:lv91j4$gv9$1@dont-
email.me:

how difficult
it is to manufacture our own plugs and sockets, despite that BNC and N have
been around for 70 years, with SMC some time later!

Why do you want to do that? Some wheels are definitely best not reinvented.
BNC's can be had on eBay as easily as used matchsticks used to be seen on a
street, it's not like we have to make do without. N connectors are expensive,
but there are likely good reasons for that, partly bulk size, precision
requirements, and a lower size of market (by far) than for BNC.

Unless you wanted a bespoke connector at great expense to either do something
really new, or to freeze out an easy chance of anyone connecting to your
stuff, there is no point, the costs are extreme.

I've thought about doing similar from time to time. Not for RF mind
you, BNC serves me well here. My needs are more for audio/control
connectors.

My connection system has varied a bit over the years. In the beginning
I used 8-pin DIN connectors, which worked okay, but didn't quite have
enough contacts to handle all the controls I wanted.

I was looking for a connector that would handle:
- stereo audio (so 3 or 4 lines, depending if they were to share a
return line)
- microphone audio (2 lines)
- PTT
- 4 direction buttons

8 pins wasn't going to suffice for this. So I moved to DB15HD
connectors. Some might recognise these on VGA video cards. I used an
opposite polarity so as to prevent confusing them with a video card.
(one of my adaptor leads allowed me to use headsets with a computer)

These were convenient being all on one connector, and small, but they do
*not* like being exposed to weather much. I was replacing them on a
regular basis. The regular DB15 might be better, I haven't tried.

My next stop has been to split it into two connectors: a DIN5 carries
headset audio (microphone and two speakers), and the PTT and buttons are
on a separate DIN6.

This is more reliable, although I note the connectors have a tendency to
come apart from time to time. I put up with it though, because the same
connectors have lasted much better than the DB15HDs did.

If I did "my own", I'd probably use 6.5mm phono plugs taped together.
Crude, but effective. Kenwood still use a similar arrangement for their
handhelds and it works well enough there.