Double checked a bad RG6 connector 3 times before I finally replaced it

Was on a job last Tuesday at an old folks home in Akron and kept getting intermittent signal loss on one line. Checked my compression fitting 3 times, looked fine. Spent 45 minutes chasing it down the wall. Finally just cut it off and re-terminated. Problem solved. Sometimes the connector LOOKS good but is garbage inside. Ever had one of those?

2 comments

2 Comments

matthew70314d ago

Honestly, maybe 45 minutes is a bit dramatic for a bad connector? I mean, usually you can tell within a minute or two if a compression fitting is shot by just pushing on it a little. Idk, maybe it's just me, but if you're already checking it three times with your meter and it's still acting up, just swap it out on the third look instead of chasing the wall. I've had times where I swore it was the connector and it ended up being a staple too close to the cable or a bad splitter upstream. Still, if it worked after re-terminating, then yeah, it was probably the connector, but 45 minutes feels like overthinking it.

richard11014d ago

Wait, are you sure it was actually the connector and not a bad barrel or a loose ground somewhere? I mean, I've had RG6 connectors look totally fine on the outside but the center conductor wasn't making good contact inside the fitting, but usually that shows up right away with a signal meter. Idk, maybe it's just me, but I've had more luck checking compression fittings by wiggling the cable while watching the meter, cause a tiny break inside can be hidden. Still, you're right that most of the time just re-doing the connector is the fastest fix for those mystery signal drops.