Welcome to the new FlexRadio Community! Please review the new Community Rules and other important new Community information on the Message Board.
If you are having a problem, please refer to the product documentation or check the Help Center for known solutions.
Need technical support from FlexRadio? It's as simple as Creating a HelpDesk ticket.

loose power lead

Bvarcd
Bvarcd Member ✭✭
Praise the Lord.   I thought I had wrecked my new Flex 6500.  Blinking red lights, error codes, hints that fuses might be needed.  I was feeling really bad when I gave up and went to bed. Next morning I found that the black power lead had worked loose.  I fixed that and...  BACK TO NORMAL OPERATION.    This is my first Flex and I am in awe at the brainpower that is built into that black box.  

Comments

  • Steve K9ZW
    Steve K9ZW Member ✭✭✭
    edited March 2017

    I've had this problem too.

    Anderson Power Poles are far from my first choice, period. 

    There is always a trade-off between easy pull--away (Power Pole wins this) and secure connection (Power Pole is a failure here).

    I like the Cliffcon power connectors - http://www.cliffuk.co.uk/products/cliffcon/pole4.htm  but only the Hilberling transceiver came with them as original equipment.



    imageimage

    But be aware that if the cable gets pulled and you have used Cliffcon connectors, the gear will move with the cable. 

    Perhaps there are other established connectors that offer some breakaway while being more secure at the same time?

    73

    Steve K9ZW

  • roger na4rr
    roger na4rr Member
    edited June 2017
    I run my 6700 mobile and have had problems several times with the power pole connector not making good contact with each other.  The radio will do all kinds of strange things.  I have learned to push and pull on the connector to make things work.  I would rather have a different power connection but I'm quite sure that wont be in the flex to do list. If your radio just sits on the desk i doubt you will ever have a problem.   I think I'm going to hot glue it all together. 

    roger
  • Kevin
    Kevin Member
    edited July 2019
    Glad it was something simple David. I don't know how you slept that night!

    I am not a Powerpole fan. Even desk mounted the weight of the power cable is enough to make me concerned both about pulling out and about powerpoles being secured to a circuit board and not a chassis (I think, hard to tell). Seems to be a lot of motion. I have my power cord secured to the desk to relieve some of the stress on the Flex Powerpole connector.

    I would have preferred a more positive interlocking standard connector with stability provided by the chassis, not the circuit board. Not just for the Flex but as a standard in the shack. At minimum, it would have been nice if these  retention clips could be used.
    image

    Based on  the drawing below there seems to be an awful lot of engineering put into such a simple set of requirements. I have to question the functionality of the detent which is intended to keep connectors mated and the wiping action intended to keep the contacts clean.
    image

    Maybe powerpoles are an improvement when compared to Fahnestock clips. Maybe.

    Kevin K4VD

Leave a Comment

Rich Text Editor. To edit a paragraph's style, hit tab to get to the paragraph menu. From there you will be able to pick one style. Nothing defaults to paragraph. An inline formatting menu will show up when you select text. Hit tab to get into that menu. Some elements, such as rich link embeds, images, loading indicators, and error messages may get inserted into the editor. You may navigate to these using the arrow keys inside of the editor and delete them with the delete or backspace key.