MFJ-269C Testing coax cable faults and length

The MFJ-269C is so much more than an SWR analyzer. Here is another way it can be used to test coax, and you can see it helped me find a fault in some LMR400 instead of butchering the coax for patch cords.
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[@michaelmcghie]

Great video on explaining how the MFJ269D works for testing coax cables. Look forward to more videos

[@Spoolz07]

An excellent video, very helpful. I really appreciate the way you explain things properly. I wish you had written the manual for the MFJ-269C, it's not nearly as clear as what you've presented here! Keep up the good work, 73's.

[@peterlaurancearmenio5545]

MFJ is a great company we carried all of their products at Barry electronics in New York City when I was running it back in the 80s with KB2RVsk 73 KC2MMA

[@fourfortyroadrunner6701]

LOL "were" a great company

[@barrykery1175]

Nicely done informative / educational video. Well done. Lets ham know that the 269 is more than just a self contained SWR meter. Barry, KU3X

[@pantherpaw9]

Great Video sir! I just bought this meter, and had no idea how to use it. Thanks!

[@davidwest2773]

Thanks for helping with this. I bought a MFJ 259D Pro from giga.

[@grahamlwilson]

What a great bit of kit. I will have to get one of these now.

[@surgingcircuits6955]

Great! Just ordered a 269c yesterday, and can't wait for it to arrive. Thx!!

[@DD-gd3fr]

awesome Eric! great deminstration ,thank you

[@cobrasvt347]

How cool is that ! Thanks Eric.

[@conservativeg]

This beat trying to follow the manual. Thanks for posting this video.

[@warrenosborne1539]

This thing must have came from a museum,, I worked E@I At Kimberly Clark Linwood NC. I think the last TDR I ordered was a couple hundred bucks, and fit in my pocket.

[@brianshanahan3878]

Awesome video as usual!

[@tf7274]

My only complaint with mine is the paint quality. Mine came new in unopened packaging with scratches from the manufacturing process. If you look at it the wrong way the paint chips. Works really well. No issues.

[@ad4zuradio142]

Good job. I disagree with one of your commentators - quality is quality. Quality should = consistency done in manufacturing.

[@southernexposure123]

Thank you for making this very helpful video. I wonder if for testing the stiff coax it would make much difference to use a right angle connector on the MFJ. I hope to find more videos by you for all the testing operations the MFJ will do. Thanks again.

[@akademic2619]

Halving power means a 3dB loss, so if attenuation is 3db per 100 feet, the expected attenuation for 50 feet is 1.5dB or 30% reduction in power loss for 50% reduction in length. So while a shorter length is always best to contain loss, cutting the coax in half is silly if its going to hardly affect the available power at any frequency. Better to up the coax diameter and VF as you increase frequency, and even think about going balanced line for very long runs.

[@Sivolcss]

Very good. Congratulations from Brasil!

[@budokai6706]

Great video, thank you!

[@KennethSievers]

Well done, this helps me with mine! Good Job!!

[@colinsmith4185]

Superb practical tutorial,keep up the good work,Colin G1PGI

[@bobdemartino9752]

Love your videos. I'm getting into the hobby again and presently don't have a radio. I'm interested in QRP (cw) and have been looking at equipment. I've learned a lot from your videos, keep up the good work. kk4qyn 73

[@jorgezuni2818]

Great video .

[@MrTPF1]

Nice demo. Thanks!

[@rlmillr]

It was a good video to describe the MFJ operation but there were some generalizations about coax that are not completely correct. Although in the context you are referring to it probably is close. Coax quality has nothing to do with loss, it has to do with consistency across the entire length. At HF and maybe even VHF it is not that important but beyond that you will find that your low loss foam filled cable most likely sucks more than the rg-58. Quality RG-58 will go up to 20Ghz . RG-214 is 12Ghz. The rest will not make it even close to that high before the losses and freq response become erratic. The only reason this is important in this context is people should not be discouraged from using rg-58 for interconnecting equipment and low power (~100W or less) runs to their antenna. Most VHF applications has more to do with the antenna height than cable loss. If your running power then by all means get bigger coax although Rg-58 will handle 500W easily into a matched load, but it makes me nervous :) I have 30ft run to my jpole with rg-58 and at 1.7db loss on Vhf it is a perfectly acceptable solution. At 14Mhz 100ft is also 1.7db. Insignificant losses. I use rg-213 for power handling and for the long run to my UHF antenna. My 2 cents.

[@uploadJ]

re: "Quality RG-58 will go up to 20Ghz . RG-214 is 12Ghz." Pse, double check that.

[@rodschultz5311]

Great video

[@vu2vid]

very usefull❤

[@slickman1953]

Great video, VERY informative

[@garydanford220]

Learned a lot from this video, however I have a MFJ-213, could you do a video using the 213. Thanks

[@LMerryman]

Nice video, I've been eye'n the 269c for an investment. I haven't found how it works with 70cm yet like some of the sales descriptions show, I don't see a switch position for 415-470mhz.

[@322doug]

UHF starts at 300 MHz, so the UHF switch in the on position is for the 415-470 MHz.

[@kennethpeterson5610]

Is there a way the unit can tell me the length of my antenna feed line with it hooked up to the antenna??

[@kennethgeiser4948]

How about doing one with the 259C Distance to falt. I can’t seem to get mine to workThank you very much

[@ryantoomey611]

Is this feature only available on the 269 model? Is it supported on the 259 also? I have an MFJ 259 and can't seem to get into the advanced menu 2. The only thing I can get is return loss and reflection coefficient and it just simply says "advanced" with no number after it, if I press gate and mode again from there it just goes back to the main screen. My 259 is identical to your 269 except it doesn't have UHF.

[@CrustyCowboy]

How did you get to the screen where you put in the velocity factor. ? I have an MFJ 259c

[@jamesstafford9067]

I have a question, is it harmful to run an Astatic SWR meter inline while operating a cb? Or should this just be use strictly for testing? Thanks

[@floridasaltlife]

GREAT VIDEO

[@322doug]

great video,

[@thesavo]

Is it possible and how would you test spare 75-ohm cable?

[@luckydubeinrc5165]

were that mfj set to 75 ohms ? or 50 ?

[@SeAfasia]

I think that MFJ is must have tool a decent antenna analyser...73s

[@tgbz3301]

So, can it measure the electric length? I have a MFJ-269C and am now,after several years, playing with phased arrays... And I think I need the Electric length of some 75 ohm cable.

[@rabbibacongrease88]

Yes it can. Accuracy varies with temperature though.

[@stargasm1000]

14:27 I think your calculations are a bit off. 10' 9" is 10.75 (10.8) in. So you were right but it appears, based on what you're saying here, that 10.9 in. for example is 10' 9". It is not. You have to multiply the fractional part by 12 (.5 x 12 = 6", .75 x 12 = 9", etc.). I'm only saying this because it seems to be making quite a big difference.

[@jerrykutche9039]

Can you use it to test distance in feet on an attached Antenna? lets say 10 meter antenna. What freqs do I tune to for 0 ....

[@elliec3736]

Great video, thanks. What does it mean if I can only get down to 1 not 0? have i got a fault?

[@rodlink6258]

Very interesting. Hoping I can replicate with my rig expert zoom 55

[@jasontremblay1713]

Thank you I found this shortly after my message to you. Is there more videos on this analyzer.

[@peterjones3245]

Would like a presentation on the use of this analyser as a frequency counter...

[@ryantoomey611]

I have used it on my MFJ analyzer. From the main screen, just keep pressing the "mode" button until it says "freq. counter" on the screen, and hook up a BNC antenna to the "frequency counter input" port.

[@renaegibbons4976]

So I tried this on LMR 400 ultra flex... it was still connected to the antenna. my distance came up 57,000 plus feet... what did I do wrong? Do I need to disconnect it from the antenna?

[@CrisisGuildWOW]

Yes. With the antenna connected, it will count as length and since its not coax, who knows what values will return...

[@kevtheskin]

Good video cheers Kev MM0KJG

[@Travis141123]

Rg-58 is good for light cordage.

[@CrisisGuildWOW]

I use RG-58 to hog tie cattle with...

[@ryantoomey611]

Actually RG-58 isn't as useless as you think. It is pretty much the only option for mobile installations because running thicker cable would be extremely cumbersome if not impossible in the limited tight spaces of vehicles. Besides, coax runs in mobile installations are typically less than 20 feet so the losses are minimal. Rg-58 is also perfect to use a short jumpers to hook between equipment in your shack such as meters and tuners because due to its small diameter it is extremely flexible. Longer runs of RG-58 can be used on HF installations because the losses of RG-58 are much lower at HF frequencies.

[@dr.hillbilly503]

the numbers after the point are tenths of a foot not inches.

[@hechiceronocturno]

Does it work in meter instead feet???

[@kevtheskin]

Sorry to ask can you measure coax lenght with antenna connected

[@vidasvv]

Most of the time you can like a simple dipole it should get you in the ball bark. That's how I found a short where a damn squirrel decided to sharpen its teeth. Wish I would have had 1500 watts running at the time ! lol 73 N8AUM

[@vidasvv]

Nice job! TNX 4 the upload ! 7 N8AUM

[@JosephMassimino]

Maybe it is not 8 inches, but .8 of one foot? .8 represents 9.6 inches. Right? Wrong? .9 = 10.8 inches.

[@HamRadioConcepts]

Yes, i realized that after the upload... You are correct. close enough tho.

[@JosephMassimino]

Was that the pro model, or the standard MFJ-269C. Is the frequency range the biggest difference from the non-pro to the pro?

[@docholiday1034]

👍👍👍👍

[@patriot9455]

is the .8 8 inches or 8/10 s of a foot.

[@LMerryman]

8/10ths of a foot, which is 9.6 inches.

[@carlosperesdacosta436]

Usefull presentation. As you intend to pass your message to hams worldwide, may I suggest: 1. Speak slowly to permit adequate time to elaborate non english speaking users 2. Use metric units or imperial/metric units.

[@denelson83]

How do you get it to read out in metres?

[@CrisisGuildWOW]

You go buy one made in get cucked europe, thats how. ROFL!

[@wayneleake1971]

Shame on you. you should always have a few PL259's on hand to be able to replace bad oes, or set up another chunk of coax Wayne WA2YNE

[@HamRadioConcepts]

Just ordered some OM, :)

[@rickjudgejr1435]

What's the best for cb

[@CrisisGuildWOW]

Chicken wire for Chicken Bander...

[@hankhamner3671]

The MFJ 259c is an overpriced piece of junk. It can't be calibrated and is generally inaccurate. I have sent mine back for a full refund. Get a nanoVNA at $50. It will do everything the MFJ will do plus a bunch more. And, it is accurate and allows for easy calibration by the owner.

[@radius8283]

Too confusing. I’ll just use my Anritsu Site master

[@CrisisGuildWOW]

Depending on the model, those can run almost 10 grand. And if you really have one then what the hell are you doing watching an MFJ tutorial for? For that price, it should come with a big tata'ed pinup girl to press the buttons for you. Ya, I think I'll stick to the 250 dollar MFJ product and be forced to use a little more brain power for that kinda money. Nice job on the bragging rights purchase tho.

[@MMCgaming1]

Your thumb binding like that is making me cringe 😬

[@nicolasgalileo7209]

9.5 feet =9 feet and 6"

[@smorrisby]

That is some weird logic. Decimalising a foot!

[@WA4RRN]

How so? Americans decimalized the inch over 200 years ago!

[@smorrisby]

@@WA4RRN Like I said. Weird Totally illogical

[@Sophia-hs3rz]

Too long, get to the point

[@osvaldopatria1003]

SPANISH PLEASE

[@CrisisGuildWOW]

no esta que! Bueno? BUENO!!!!!

[@bryantdunn7984]

Will the 259 work as the 269?

[@thebrain4239]

DX Enginering Coax is at best average...