Ralph Mowery wrote:

wrote in message
...
In rec.radio.amateur.antenna gareth wrote:
What's the solution to soldering through to the underlying braid in a
PL259
if the only
soldering iron small enough to engage the holes is a low-power jobbie?

Buy or borrow tools appropriate to the task.


That is the way to do it. Get a big soldering iron that will really put the
heat to it. I have used a Weller soldering gun in the past, but now use a
100 watt iron. I bought a used one at a hamfest. I think you can get some
at the Hobby Lobby store if in the US. They sell them to people that make
things out of leaded glass sort of like the old church windows.


An old Solon, ex BT, iron is ideal, I think they are about 50W but the key
thing is they have a decent sized bit. That means a good thermal mass to
get the plug up to temp. quickly.

In the UK, fitting a Coax plug is part of the Intermediate licence and I
teach the following method, especially for RG213 etc. Strip the PVC jacket.
Using the plug as a guide, decide which area of the braid will be under the
holes. Tin the braid, using a bit of liquid flux. The tinning must be very
light. Using a pipe cutter and the plug as a guide, cut the surplus braid
away. The tinning ensures a neat cut with no stray 'whiskers'. Next, trim
away the inner insulation, about 2mm beyond the tinned braid.

You should now be able to assemble the plug and see the inner emerge from
the centre pin and the tinned braid through the holes. A small amount of
liquid flux around the holes and solder, with a decent sized iron, and you
will get a good connection. Solder the inner.

I've taught countless Intermediates this technique, including my daughters
when they were about 10 or so. After all, fitting a 259 is a basic skill.
Anyone who claims to be a home brewer should surely be able to do it.
As for having a soldering iron large enough, it is the kind of thing I
would expect an active model engineer to have- if someone needed to borrow
one.