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tool cuts through the cable like but-ter and makes the cleanest cut I

have ever seen without deform-ing the end of the cable.

Next, use the supplied DXE-CG-8U cable gripper to hold the cable. The gripper is about 11⁄2 inches in diameter. You’ll appreciate it if you’ve ever had your hand cramp while trying to hold the 0.405-inch diameter coax securely.

Next, insert the cable end into the side of the DXE-UT-8213 stripping tool labeled “1st Cut.” Make sure the cable is straight, not bent from being rolled on a spool, and that it is inserted straight into the tool, not at an angle. Keep the gripper close to the stripping tool so the cable does not flex.

Slowly turn the stripping tool in a clockwise direction. You’ll

feel it take a bite and start to cut. Keep turning and use a little pressure, and you’ll see copper and plastic cut-tings start to fall out of a hole in the side of the tool (see Figure 8). It re-minded me of turning a wooden table leg on a lathe.

At some point, you’ll feel the tool stop cutting and spin freely. Pull the cable out, and you should see a gleaming copper center conductor stripped to the right length for a PL-259. Next, turn the stripping tool around, insert the cable end, and repeat the operation. This step removes the outer jacket and exposes the correct length of braid for a PL-259 connector. The result should look like Figure 9.

Next, use the included Xcelite 170M side cutters to trim back the braid

Reviewed by Mark Wilson, K1RO QST Product Review Editor k1ro@arrl.org

I don’t know how many coaxial cable connectors I’ve installed over the years. A couple hun-dred, probably. To prepare the cable for a PL-259 connec-tor, I’ll use diagonal cutters, a razor knife, wire stripper, and scissors. The ARRL Handbook shows the proper dimensions for the braid and center conductor, but usu-ally I just eyeball it. It’s not brain surgery, but the coax dielectric and outer jacket are tough stuff. Sometimes it takes a few tries to pre-pare the cable end to the right dimensions without nicking the braid or center conductor or deforming the dielectric material.

DX Engineering offers cable preparation tools designed to ease the pain of installing PL-259 and two-piece N connectors on certain types of coaxial cable. This review discusses the DXE-UT-KIT4 that includes a complete set of tools for preparing RG-8 and RG-8X size cable packaged in a sturdy, padded case. All of these tools are available separately.

Working with RG-8 Size CableThe instructions and DX Engineering website list several types of DX Engineering, Belden, Davis RF, and Times Microwave RG-8 size cable that have been tested with the DXE-UT-8213 stripping tool included with the kit. The tool is designed to work with cable that uses a rigid PVC (polyvinyl chloride) or PE (polyethyl-ene) jacket material and won’t work with cables that have a soft, flex-

Bottom Line

DX Engineering Coaxial Cable Preparation Tools

DX Engineering’s coaxial cable preparation tools are well made and make it easier to do a good job of pre-paring for connector installation. They only work with certain types of cable, so make sure that tools and cable are compatible with your needs.

ible outer jacket. I ordered some DX Engineering DXE-213U cable to try.

The kit includes a comprehensive instruction manual with detailed in-structions and many color photos. The first step is to make a clean cut at the end of the cable using the supplied Channellock 911 cable cutters. This

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Figure 8 — The DX Engineering DXE-CG-8U cable gripper is used to hold the cable while the DXE-UT-8213 stripping tool does its work. Cut pieces of braid, cable jacket, and dielectric material are ejected from the tool as it cuts.

Figure 9 — The stripped cable end, ready for a connector. Figure 10 — The DXE-UT-80P con-

nector assembly tool screws onto the PL-259 connector and provides a good grip while twisting the con-nector onto the prepared cable.slightly and remove any stray strands.

Then install the PL-259. A bit of the coaxial cable jacket screws into the back of the PL-259 connector to help secure it to the end of the cable. In the past, when I could not get a good grip, I’ve used pliers — not ideal, as it’s easy to damage the connector plating. The kit includes a DXE-UT-80P con-nector assembly tool that screws onto the PL-259 connector and gives a good grip for this step (see Figure 10).

Once the PL-259 is seated, remove the tool, solder the braid and center con-ductor, and you’re done. I prefer using high-quality silver-plated PL-259s, such as those from Amphenol or DX Engineering. They are more expensive, but they are always the right size and take solder easily.

The DXE-UT-8213 can also be used to prepare RG-8 size cable for two-piece Type N connectors. If you’ve ever struggled with the small parts and

tight dimensions required for conven-tional N connectors, you’ll appreciate these. They are no more difficult to install than a PL-259. The only differ-ence in cable prep is that you need to shorten the center conductor and use the included DXE-UT-80N connector assembly tool to thread the connector body onto the cable.

All of the tools worked well. The one issue I had was that sometimes the DXE-UT-8213 first cut did not remove all of the dielectric from the center conductor. Sometimes, it left a very thin layer that I had to remove before proceeding. That was easy enough to do because the tool had already removed the bulk of the material. I thought that perhaps the cutting blade was dull and replaced it (two spares and an Allen wrench are included in

the kit), but that made no difference.

I contacted DX Engineering and quickly received some hints from Tom Parkinson, KB8UUZ. He explained that the tool depends on tight dimen-sional tolerances to cut correctly, and that there can be small variations in the cable itself. Also, sometimes the dielectric material works its way into the center conductor strands, making it harder to remove. Tom also empha-sized the importance of making sure the cable is straight, the end is round, and the cable is inserted straight into the stripping tool. Finally, Tom sug-gested more practice.

Preparing RG-8XThe kit also includes a DXE-UT-808X stripping tool and DXE-CG-8X cable gripper for RG-8X. The instructions say that the stripping tool has been tested with just three types of RG8X — DX Engineering DXE-8X, Belden 9258, and Times LMR-240. I tried it with DXE-8X (see Figure 11).

RG-8X uses a standard PL-259 with a reducer that screws into the back of the connector shell. For RG-8X, the “1st cut” removes the cable’s outer jacket. Then, you fold the braid back over the outer jacket to expose the center conductor and dielectric. Turn the tool around and use the other end to strip the dielectric from the center conductor.

Next, slide the reducer up to the end of the cable and trim the braid back so that it is clear of the reducer threads. Screw the reducer into the PL-259 body and solder the braid and center conductor.

The RG-8X tools stripped the cable cleanly every time. The instructions say that with LMR-240, the tool may leave some dielectric on the center conductor. If that happens, it’s easy enough to clean off.

Final ThoughtsAfter making some new cables for my station, I hunted around my garage for

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some random cable scraps to try. (I knew I saved this stuff for a reason.) None of the pieces I found were on the “approved list” in the manual. LMR-400UF (the “ultra-flexible” ver-sion with the soft jacket) didn’t work at all, as the manual warned. A really

old piece of Times RG-213 stripped perfectly. A piece of Belden RG-11 stripped okay, except for a layer of dielectric on the center conductor. (I expected that because the center con-ductor of 75 Ω RG-11 is smaller than 50 Ω RG-8.) The outer jacket on a

Figure 11 — The DXE-UT-808X stripping tool for RG-8X.

piece of private label RG-213 was just slightly too big to fit into the stripping tool. Same with a piece of private label RG-8X.

All of the components in the DX Engineering coaxial cable prep kit are well made. Because they depend on very close dimensional tolerances to work properly, they are sensitive to manufacturing differences among cable types, and you will need to pick the right cable. The instructions are ex-cellent, as are several DX Engineering videos on YouTube showing the tools in use. If you plan to assemble a lot of connectors, take a look.

Manufacturer: DX Engineering, 1200 Southeast Ave., Talmadge, OH 44278; www.dxengineering.com; tel. 800-777-0703. Price: DXE-UT-KIT4, $199. DXE-UT-RB-HD replacement blades (pack of 2), $19.95.