Johnny1954
New Member
Alex,
Some really good news.
Went to the boat yesterday afternoon after work. Just like you recommended, I opened up the two access panels on the port side to see what you were talking about. It was pretty much as you said - there is a way to snake a cable down into the lower access area, and then forward.
After mulling things over, I thought, "What the heck", open up the starboard side and see if things are the same. I had to remove the starboard side and aft back bolsters from the bridge sofa as well as one of the struts that supported the bolster housing. This gave me the flexibility needed to get at the two starboard access panels.
I removed the top one and quickly realized the old adage: "Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good". What I found in this compartment was the other end of the connector to the antenna cable that I removed. (the "unexpected" problem in my original post was the fact that I unintentionally pulled a splice cable apart when I was trying to test how to pull the coax through the walls). In other words, I didn't have to pull cable. All that needed to be done, I thought, was to remove the connector from the cable I removed from the old antenna, attach it to the cable for the new one, plug it into its mate, and voila. But....
Came home last night on cloud nine. But then it hit me. The new antenna has RG-8X coax, while the old one had RG-58 coax. Don't think you can mix them. So, what to do?
I decided to take the easy way out. I went to West Marine to pick up a replacement antenna that used RG-58. Yes, the one I bought may be a little better, but I just didn't want to expose myself to the risk of having to run the new cable and experience the next chapter of Murphy's Law.
People at West Marine advised that you can connect the two different types of cable. So, used a newly purchased coupler to splice the new RG-8X coax to the RG-58 coax from the old antenna. Then spent another 90 minutes putting my bridge back together again.
Won't know if it all works until we drop in in a few weeks. Fingers crossed.
Thanks again, Alex, for getting me pointed in the right direction.
John
Some really good news.
Went to the boat yesterday afternoon after work. Just like you recommended, I opened up the two access panels on the port side to see what you were talking about. It was pretty much as you said - there is a way to snake a cable down into the lower access area, and then forward.
After mulling things over, I thought, "What the heck", open up the starboard side and see if things are the same. I had to remove the starboard side and aft back bolsters from the bridge sofa as well as one of the struts that supported the bolster housing. This gave me the flexibility needed to get at the two starboard access panels.
I removed the top one and quickly realized the old adage: "Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good". What I found in this compartment was the other end of the connector to the antenna cable that I removed. (the "unexpected" problem in my original post was the fact that I unintentionally pulled a splice cable apart when I was trying to test how to pull the coax through the walls). In other words, I didn't have to pull cable. All that needed to be done, I thought, was to remove the connector from the cable I removed from the old antenna, attach it to the cable for the new one, plug it into its mate, and voila. But....
Came home last night on cloud nine. But then it hit me. The new antenna has RG-8X coax, while the old one had RG-58 coax. Don't think you can mix them. So, what to do?
I decided to take the easy way out. I went to West Marine to pick up a replacement antenna that used RG-58. Yes, the one I bought may be a little better, but I just didn't want to expose myself to the risk of having to run the new cable and experience the next chapter of Murphy's Law.
People at West Marine advised that you can connect the two different types of cable. So, used a newly purchased coupler to splice the new RG-8X coax to the RG-58 coax from the old antenna. Then spent another 90 minutes putting my bridge back together again.
Won't know if it all works until we drop in in a few weeks. Fingers crossed.
Thanks again, Alex, for getting me pointed in the right direction.
John
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