[Milsurplus] RCA phono connector impedance

[W2HX]

Bob, that explanation makes sense. I know I have seen male RCA connectors that use fully-formed cylindrical outer shields which are mechanically robust, but I don’t recall seeing that style on older RCA connectors of the KWM era. Those older males typically had "leaves" on the outer shield conductor which would seem susceptible to damage if the radio wasn't slid in perfectly. So, unless the radios had 2 or 4 guide pins to perfectly center the connectors prior to their mating, I am still skeptical that the RCA was a good mechanical solution. If Collins's primary customer to satisfy was the military, there were so many other slip-on coaxial connectors that could have been chosen, but if the primary customers were hams in a fixed shack, then the RCA would seem logical. Who knows! Fun to speculate so many years later.


73 Eugene W2HX
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-----Original Message-----
From: milsurplus-bounces at mailman.qth.net <milsurplus-bounces at mailman.qth.net> On Behalf Of Robert Nickels
Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2023 2:16 PM
To: milsurplus at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Milsurplus] RCA phono connector impedance

On 11/29/2023 12:47 PM, W2HX wrote:
> the RCA connector is suboptimal from a mechanical perspective.

That depends on how gentle you are, Eugene ;-)  I've certainly never had mechanical problems with one at home, but one of Collins design goals for the KWM-2 was to enable it to be used both at a fixed station and mobile, and the RCA connectors were no doubt chosen to enable the slide-in mobile mount (351D-2).    This concept originated with the
KWM-1 but probably in response to users,  the custom ITT Cannon multipin rectangular connector was abandoned in favor or readily available types.

In it's version of the KWM-2, Hallicrafters used the same approach in the MR-150 mobile rack for the SR-150 transceiver. RCA plugs and a standard Cinch-Jones connector allowed all connections to be made simultaneously when the radio was slid in.    As with Collins, the idea was to show that the investment in a top of the line transceiver could easily be moved between home and car.

73, Bob W9RAN

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