PS Magazine - TB 43-PS-596
PS, The Preventative Maintenance Monthly
ISSUE 596
JULY 2002
Finally, treat the feedcone like the fragile piece of equipment it is. Make the feed-
cones one of the last things you store. Stencil the OE-254 storage bag to warn folks
not to toss things on top of it.
MS-116, MS-117, AB-24 Elements
Take your RF cable in hand and look it over from end to end.
The connector that mates your cable to the feedcone might be your OE-254’s
number one problem area.
Make sure the pin is not bent or
broken. You can straighten a bent
pin with needle-nosed pliers, but
do it carefully or you’ll be turning
the cable in with a broken pin.
A bent or broken pin is often the result of too much strain on the cable. To pre-
vent this, every time the antenna is raised, use the strain relief clamp, NSN 5975-
00-563-0229. Attach it to the upper guy plate of the mast like it says in Para 2-4 of
TM 11-5895-357-13. Be careful not to bend the clamp when you use it. A bent
clamp will not hold the cable.
The diamond pattern inside the
clamp does not quite do the holding
job it was intended to do. Help it out
by roughing it up a bit with a file.
Just scuff it. If you overdo it, the
clamp will cut into the cable.
45
PS 596
JULY 02
44
Your six antenna feed sockets catch
dirt and moisture that lead to corrosion.
Keep them clean with isopropyl alcohol,
NSN 6810-00-753-4993, and a foam
swab, NSN 7045-01-154-1317. Once
the swabs are no longer available,
(they’re AAC Y), use local purchase
sources.
CG-1889 RF Cable
Put a small bow or
loop in the cable just
below the feedcone.
Tape the cable to the
uppermost section of
the mast. Now tape the
cable down the mast
about every five feet to
give slack and keep the
pressure off the cable.
Once the contact areas are clean, spray them
with water-displacing compound. Then give them
a light coat of silicone compound.
Your element PM will be easier if, when the
antenna is erected, the elements are attached
hand-tight. Elements that have been muscled
together get damaged when they’re muscled apart.
Also, a wrapped layer of electrical tape, NSN
5970-00-419-4291, around each connection will
help keep moisture out and corrosion away.
For stubborn corrosion, try using a
small-arms bore brush, NSN 1005-00-
903-1296. Use handle, NSN 1005-01-
113-0321, for a better grip and more
twisting force.
Just twist the bore brush down into
the socket and turn it several times. The
stiff fibers loosen corrosion and clean
out the grooves.
Clean dirty
or corroded
sockets
Bore brush loosens
stubborn corrosion
Connector pin
missing, broken
or bent
Electrical tape moisture-
proofs electrical connections
Rough up
pattern
Tape cable
to antenna
Don’t overdo it,
though.
Too much
of this good thing
can wear out a
socket.
You must keep the antenna ele-
ments free from corrosion. To do
that, use water displacing compound,
NSN 6850-00-142-9409, and sili-
cone, NSN 6850-00-880-7616.
First, though, clean the connecting
area of each element with your
antenna’s guide rope.
Loop the rope around the element. Pull
back and forth from both ends of the rope.
The friction created by the rope cleans the
connecting area.
Don’t
use a scouring pad to do this clean-
ing! Scouring pads wear down the metal and
strip the element.
Don’t
use a
scouring pad
Clean
connections
Take more stress
off the cable
connector by using
electrical tape.
596. 44-45 (C)
6/3/02
1:49 PM
Page 1
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