Self made test cables for VNA......

[KungFuJosh]

The reason I don't agree with your deduction, is that the connectors are not specifically for 5.4mm cables. 5mm cables are common. I've not seen anybody else with 5.4mm. Frankly, it's silly. Even if the connector kinda fits, we know that RF stuff is extra sensitive.

Please share a link to a specific 5.4mm N type crimp connector so we can see what it says about diameter and other details.

[knudch]

https://www.reichelt.com/de/en/shop/product/n-plug_crimp_type_belden_h155_-280433
Sorry German supplier

https://www.ecomponent.eu/connettore-n-maschio-a-crimpare-per-cavo-coassiale-belden-h155
Italian

https://www.koax24.de/shop/article/n-stecker-gerade-crimpcrimp-020454.html
German

[knudch]

I always put a piece of shrinking tube with glue as a relief for the cable
Special important with cables like Hyperflex with thin braided shield combined with a foil shield
It cracks easily during use

[knudch]

I don't know why

But no US brand's comes to my mind when we talk about RF connectors and cables
In old days Kings was a name...existing still ?
Radiall..UK or US ?..gone
Amphenol was a brand but hear nothing about them regarding serious  RF coax connectors
cables...
German/EU serious brands, Hubert&Suhner, Spinner, Rosenberger
Times Microwave (amphenol I think)
A number of China/Taiwan brands very good price/performance
Italian brands always known for low-price

Knud

[KungFuJosh]

Supposedly Gore cables HQ is in the US. I've not seen any cables better than that, but I'm sure some exist.

I looked around, but it doesn't seem like I can get those connectors in the US at all.

ETA: Thanks for those links. I didn't know Belden H155 was also 5.4mm. Now I can try and find something through that.

ETA2: Belden H155A01 and M&P HF5 both have inner conductors at 1.4mm diameter, so in theory it should work. Maybe you need a better crimping tool.

[Rubo]

I don't know why

But no US brand's comes to my mind when we talk about RF connectors and cables
In old days Kings was a name...existing still ?
Radiall..UK or US ?..gone
Amphenol was a brand but hear nothing about them regarding serious  RF coax connectors
cables...
German/EU serious brands, Hubert&Suhner, Spinner, Rosenberger
Times Microwave (amphenol I think)
A number of China/Taiwan brands very good price/performance
Italian brands always known for low-price

Knud

Amphenol bought Times Microwave, it's right on their website "an Amphenol company".

As far as US brands, Belden is a US brand, so is Molex, Pomona, Fairview Microwave, and I'm sure there are more. How many of them actually make their own products, I do not know.

When it comes to RF connectors, I trust Amphenol/Times Microwave stuff and if I can find them in stock, that's what I get.

Have good experience with H&S & Rosenberger, but they are less readily available in US.

[Rubo]

Supposedly Gore cables HQ is in the US. I've not seen any cables better than that, but I'm sure some exist.

I looked around, but it doesn't seem like I can get those connectors in the US at all.

ETA: Thanks for those links. I didn't know Belden H155 was also 5.4mm. Now I can try and find something through that.

ETA2: Belden H155A01 and M&P HF5 both have inner conductors at 1.4mm diameter, so in theory it should work. Maybe you need a better crimping tool.

Gore are not only headquartered in US, but most of their high end cables are also made here.

Best cables I've ever come accross are Junkosha. But I can neither find them on ebay nor afford them new
Shahriar (The Signal Path) has couple of videos about high end cables. In one of them he demonstrates how good Junkosha cables are.

[KungFuJosh]

Gore cables aren't cheap either. We're just luck to find them used on feeBay sometimes.

ETA: Here's one for ya: https://www.ebay.com/itm/332173190708 let me know how it is. 

[Rubo]

Gore cables aren't cheap either. We're just luck to find them used on feeBay sometimes.

ETA: Here's one for ya: https://www.ebay.com/itm/332173190708 let me know how it is. 

I know, but I've had more luck finding Gore for "reasonable" $$ than Junkosha.

The one you linked above is not quite the type of cable we are talking about.

Here are a couple of examples:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/187893200636

or

https://www.ebay.com/itm/263399824501

And both are shipped from outside of US.

[KungFuJosh]

Hard pass at the pricing / importing. The second one's photos look like Gore's phaseflex sheathing.

Anyway, I don't need any cables. I didn't need all the Gore cables either...but at least they're awesome. 

BTW- you'll see a few more options if you search just for Junflon.

[Rubo]

BTW- you'll see a few more options if search just for Junflon.

"Those are not the droids you are looking for" 

They are the "commercial" grade cables/connectors.

Gore PhaseFlex (and Junkosha equivalent) are "instrument/metrology" grade cables/connectors.

Like I said previously, if I have to make cables myself, I just use RG400 with decent RG58 connectors (from either Amphenol or Times) for every day use/abuse.

For my ham radio stuff at home, I use Belden 9913F7 or Davis RF Bury-Flex (don't go higher than 500MHz there). RG400 in my vehicles.

[KungFuJosh]

Ah, I see. The connectors are what seems to be the standout difference. Can't tell much about the coax from shitty ebay photos.

[Rubo]

Yup. Gore does have DS that has all the information to decode their part numbers.

For example the last cable we (both) bought has the following part # OSZKUZKU036

OS    - is the cable type
ZKU  - is Type N male (Field Grade) connector (so both ends are N)
036   - is the lenght in inches

Part number for the higher grabe cable would be OUQ01Q01036

OU    - cable type
Q01   - Type N male (Instrument Grade) connector
036   - lenght

P.S. I'm attaching the full datasheet bellow.

 gore-phaseflex-gmca-datasheet-us.pdf (918.36 kB - downloaded 7 times.)

[KungFuJosh]

OS & OU are both 18GHz cables.

I also have a couple 0WD01D01048.0.

OW 26.5GHz
D01D01 3.5mm Male to 3.5mm Male
48.0 length

[Rubo]

Nice 

Almost all of my TE cables are N type, I have stayed away from buying SMA/3.5mm/2.92mm cables.
I'll go broke if I start branching out to other connector types 

[KungFuJosh]

Too late.   

[knudch]

It could look like the big brands have "divided" the market into there regions
Fx: If you go for serious cables/connectors (Not specific VNA ) in EU/Asia then 
Hubert&Suhner, Spinner, Rosenberger...and you get your pocket emptied

I only heard about Gore cables, no experience

I am planning to make some test cables out of this:
https://www.rf-microwave.com/en/huber-suhner/enviroflex-400/coaxial-cable-enviroflex-400-50ohm-spex-5mm/ef400/

Not cheap...
But good for test cables and robust over time.

Knud

I don't know why

But no US brand's comes to my mind when we talk about RF connectors and cables
In old days Kings was a name...existing still ?
Radiall..UK or US ?..gone
Amphenol was a brand but hear nothing about them regarding serious  RF coax connectors
cables...
German/EU serious brands, Hubert&Suhner, Spinner, Rosenberger
Times Microwave (amphenol I think)
A number of China/Taiwan brands very good price/performance
Italian brands always known for low-price

Knud

Amphenol bought Times Microwave, it's right on their website "an Amphenol company".

As far as US brands, Belden is a US brand, so is Molex, Pomona, Fairview Microwave, and I'm sure there are more. How many of them actually make their own products, I do not know.

When it comes to RF connectors, I trust Amphenol/Times Microwave stuff and if I can find them in stock, that's what I get.

Have good experience with H&S & Rosenberger, but they are less readily available in US.

[Squarewave]

Bit of a minefield this one isn't it. I guess I have to choose between, what's flexible and convenient for to be test leads and from what I can get. Maybe LRM195 (in that size and availability bracket) is the best for me out of all of these?

[knudch]

I would choose a double braid shielded cable from a well known brand
Foil shielded cable is not my like for lab/bench use
Tend to crack over time.

A 5mm cable is a good compromise between stability versus flexibility

What upper frequency range ?
select a cable which is decent specified (not necessarily low atten.) also above your use frequency.

What can you get ?

Knud   

[tooki]

For GHz VNA measurements, I use RG402, sometimes it's called SS402.

RG402 and SS402 aren’t the same thing. Related, but not the same.

True RG402 is a semirigid cable that uses a solid copper tube as the outer conductor and has no outer jacket. SS402 is a semiflexible cable that uses a spiral strip (hence SS) as the outer conductor, and has a jacket.

There also exist semiflexible RG402 variants that use tin-saturated copper braid as the outer conductor, but with no jacket.

It also what comes with the LiteVNA for example.

LiteVNA ships with SS405 cable.

[Rubo]

Bit of a minefield this one isn't it. I guess I have to choose between, what's flexible and convenient for to be test leads and from what I can get. Maybe LRM195 (in that size and availability bracket) is the best for me out of all of these?

Yup, pretty much 

I keep mentioning RG400, because it has double silver plated copper braid for the shield vs the aluminum foil & copper braid, that also avoids dissimilar metal problems down the road.
It's the same size (or close enough) to LMR195/RG58, so you can use connectors for these when making your own cables. Biggest downside to it, it's a little stiffer than the other two.

[Rubo]

I am planning to make some test cables out of this:
https://www.rf-microwave.com/en/huber-suhner/enviroflex-400/coaxial-cable-enviroflex-400-50ohm-spex-5mm/ef400/

Not cheap...
But good for test cables and robust over time.

Knud

Enviroflex 400 is just another variation of the RG400, IIRC the main difference is in the jacket (low smoke & better UV stability).