Posted: Sat Aug 14, 2010 21:40 Post subject: Antenna Connector Repair
My 2 year old decided that my WRT350N was his toy and popped off the center paddle/antenna. The cable that was routing to it was pretty thin and offered no resistance at all. Sadly to say, it cut cleanly in half. Here's a shot of it to see what I'm talking about.
The wire on the right hand side is the one that went to the paddle.
I initially took it apart to see if I could solder it back together, but I'm not too familiar with the conductive properties of the cables used in antennas. As you can see in the next picture, It looks like there is an internal connector and an external sheath that are both conducting the signal.
I don't have much slack at all in the cable, so I'm stuck trying to figure out what I should do. If I have enough slack to make it work, can I simply join them back together and solder it? If I have to get a replacement cable, is there anything specific I should look for? Right now, both ends are soldered (one to the board and the other directly to the antenna). If I need a replacement cable, is there anything specific I need to know when soldering it back in?
This community is awesome and DD-WRT rocks! Thanks for taking the time to read my post.
Joined: 04 Jan 2007 Posts: 11564 Location: Wherever the wind blows- North America
Posted: Sun Aug 15, 2010 13:26 Post subject:
You'll need to replace that cable. Length inside the router isn't that important...meaning for a router antenna if the cable is 10cm long or 30cm long...it won't make much difference.
There are two connections to make...the cable is coax cable...meaning the outer braided sheath is ground...and the inner wire is the signal carrier.
You will need to very carefully strip back the outer braided sheath to get to the inner....it's tricky but you can do it....never solder bridge between the ground and signal...your antenna won't function if you do...use an ohm meter to verify that it is not shorted.
Do some google (or even Ebay) searches for wi-fi coax cable...pigtails are fine to purchase...you can cut off and strip back the ends if connectors are already present. But be aware...soldering and a steady hand will be needed to fix this one.
redhawk _________________ The only stupid question....is the unasked one.
Posted: Sun Aug 15, 2010 21:20 Post subject: Thanks!
Thanks for the tips. You pretty much confirmed what I thought, but it's good to know what I'm in for. I've soldered some PCB components in the past, so I think I'm up for it. Thanks again for the help and hopefully I'll be able to give back to the community based off of my experience from this.
