{"id":416,"date":"2011-09-20T16:15:18","date_gmt":"2011-09-20T20:15:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kb1awv.com\/?p=416"},"modified":"2011-09-20T16:22:39","modified_gmt":"2011-09-20T20:22:39","slug":"getting-the-coax-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/idlenot.com\/?p=416","title":{"rendered":"Getting The Coax In"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

You won't get through to the floor above with a 4" drill bit!<\/p><\/div>\n

How many different techniques for bringing a signal into the shack have you experimented with?\u00a0 I’ve tried a number of them.\u00a0 My first shack, outfitted with a Heathkit HW-101 transceiver, was in the basement.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Immediately to the left of the HW-101 was the foundation, sill plate, and as yet unfinished studded wall.\u00a0 There was also a single window.\u00a0\u00a0 When I was using an end-fed long wire as my radiator I merely tied it
\noff outside the window and then continued inside with a short insulated extension that slipped under the frame of the closed window and terminated it at a post on an MFJ\u00a0antenna tuner.\u00a0\u00a0Everything changed when I switched to a G5RV\u00a0fed by coax.\u00a0 That\u00a0time I drilled a hole\u00a0directly through the outer shingles and plywood wall and on through my new inner wall (diagonal furring strips).\u00a0 I lined the hole with a short piece of PVC tubing that was filled on both ends with Coax-Seal <\/a>putty.<\/p>\n

Things changed when I moved up one floor to the now vacant bedroom left to me by my son when he moved away to college.\u00a0 I placed a copper-clad panel between the window and sill and studded it with through-mount SO-239 connectors.\u00a0 These afforded me
\naccess to a roof-mounted VHF antenna, a tree-bound G5RV, and a ground mounted
\nGap Titan <\/a>vertical.\u00a0 At this higher elevation\u00a0 the ground wire was getting a little longer than I wanted it (10 meter in-shack radiation was sometimes a problem).<\/p>\n

Then we moved to the new house which is a colonial; two full floors and a basement.\u00a0 First I adapted the window panel to fit my new second floor window.\u00a0 Later I decided to change things because I wanted to install the shortest possible RF ground wire and put
\nthe screen back in the window (I now have one-piece screens, they do not move
\non a track).\u00a0 An advertisement for the MFJ<\/a>\u00a0soffit entrance panel got me thinking about a new entrance for the transmission line.\u00a0 If I purchased the MFJ\u00a0unit I would have to figure out how to remove a section of the soffit that makes up part of the overhang of my second floor room.\u00a0 I found that this involved the removal of lots of nails, molding, and panels.\u00a0 I like to keep a job simple.\u00a0 My solution was to drill a hole directly through the soffit right on up to the floor of my shack.\u00a0 My soffit is covered\u00a0with vinyl siding.\u00a0 Under the siding is what looks like 3\/4\u201d plywood followed by about 9\u201d of insulation-filled space which is topped by the floor boards and rug of my ham shack.\u00a0 My room also has walls and a bookcase; I did not want my drill bit to come up in either one of\u00a0those places.<\/p>\n

So how did I do it?\u00a0 I first made very careful measurements as to where I wanted the entrance hole to emerge from my rug.\u00a0 This was in the corner of the room and about
\n5\u201d from each adjoining wall.\u00a0 If I missed my mark I could end up in the wall or under the bookcase.\u00a0 I dropped a weighted line (plumb line) out the window and measured from the place on the rug where I wanted the hole to the edge of the line going out the window.\u00a0\u00a0 Then I went outside and marked the point on the soffit that was exactly
\nthe same distance from the string line as the prospective entrance point was.\u00a0 All I needed now was a depth measurement.\u00a0 I measured from a point 5\u201d inside the window to the outside vinyl siding.\u00a0\u00a0 Then I was able to find the intersection of the two lines; I had my drilling spot.\u00a0 I purchased a long 5\/8\u201d x 16\u201d spade bit (it will make a clean hole that is 14\u201d deep).\u00a0 I could have got one that was 1-1\/4\u201d in diameter, but that would have more than doubled the $10.00 price.\u00a0 \"\"<\/a>I drilled the hole\u00a0from the outside and in spite of my careful measurements I was about 2\u201d off, but not in the wall or under the bookcase.\u00a0 I then opened up\u00a0 each hole (floor, siding, soffit) with a 1-1\/4\u201d spade bit that only had to penetrate less than one inch on both sides.\u00a0\u00a0 Then I attempted to feed the coax through the hole.\u00a0 That did not go well.\u00a0 Although the hole was large enough the coax tended to go off to one side or another and never quite make it to the shack floor.\u00a0 I solved this problem by<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

PVC entering hole which will be finished off with chrome wash basin bushing<\/p><\/div>\n

cutting a piece of \u00be\u201d Schedule 40 PVC and lining the hole with that.\u00a0 The end that protruded into the shack was terminated with a \u00be\u201d connector that is usually used to connect two lengths of PVC tubing.\u00a0 The connector prevented the PVC from falling out of the hole.\u00a0 On the soffit side I used some liquid nails to glue a chrome sink drain surround over the hole to make it look better and that was it.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

The PVC pipe has been cut to size and capped with a 3\/4" connector.<\/p><\/div>\n

Now all I have to do is run in a ground wire and attach a ground bus bar to the wall where the coax enters.\u00a0 I may also close off each end of the PVC with some sort of plug such as a piece of rubber or flexible plastic with radiating cuts in the middle to allow the coax to pass through.\u00a0 I will tightly close off each entrance point with Duct Seal <\/a>(a kind of putty used by electricians) so all weather and insects will remain outside.<\/p>\n

List of Materials and Special Tools:<\/strong><\/p>\n

(1) 5\/8\u201d x 14\u201d spade bit (wood boring bit)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 $10.00<\/p>\n

(1) 1-1\/4\u201d x 4\u201d spade bit from a set\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 $1.50<\/p>\n

(1) 1 pound package of GB Duct Seal\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 $ 1.75<\/p>\n

(1) \u00be\u201d\u00a0 Sched. 40 PVC junction\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 $ 0.40<\/p>\n

(1) 10\u2019 x \u00be\u201d SCH 40 PVC pipe; ID 3\/4″, OD\u00a0~ 1-1\/16″\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 $ 3.00<\/p>\n

(1) Wash basin drain surround\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 junk box item<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

From top: 3\/4" PVC connector, 3\/4" ID PVC, 5\/8" bit, 1-1\/4" bit<\/p><\/div>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Lots of room for cables; now all I need do is to weatherproof the entrance.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n