Ok here is what I found. The wire was broken so I cut the connector off. I spoke w/ Jerry Rudbeck about it and he mentioned a capacitor in the connector, so I hit it w/ a lighter to loosen the solder and out it came. I am guessing this is the original connector and I guess the cable. Can someone tell me if that is true? Also is there anywhere to get a repro connector w/ capacitor or does it relly matter? Shemp

 

I would replaced the entire cable. That is what I did to my 65. the other end by the antenna is probably also corroded. It is a real pain in the *** job. I got mine from Paragon.

 

I would go to a local radio electric repair shop and see if they can repair it. if not a new antenna cable is in order

 

That is exactly why I don't want to do it. The antenna end is fine. This end looked good but I guess after being taken in and out many times the wire just broke. I am checking w/ a friend who owns a Tv stereo biz to see if he can find it. Shemp

 

Do the new cables have the capacitor in them, or does it not make that much of a difference? Shemp

 

I do not know. But I would think they would.

 

My guess is that it probably wouldn't make much difference ,especially on FM. Most everything, capacitors, shielding, antenna trimmer etc. are for AM reception. Like the old Steely Dan song says- No static at all, FMMMMMM.

Jim

 

I agree with Jim. The capacitor is in there so that the antenna and feed line can resonate properly on AM.

Without the correct value capacitor, correct feed line impedance (93 ohms, not 75 supplied from the current vendors) and correct inductor value (physical antenna dimensions), the circuit will not resonate properly at the desired frequencies (550-1600) and the input circuit Delco designed will ignore what it's supposed to recognize. In other words, the AM signals are grounded out. This is why so many of the C1 Wonderbars don't stop on many stations.

A full sized whip antenna for AM reception would be over two hundred feet long so the items mentioned above fool the radio into thinking it is seeing an antenna of that length.

For FM, the car antenna length is about as perfect as you could ask for just as it is. (shorter wavelength)

A good analogy is a carburetor. The needle valves are on there for a reason - to optimize performance. The capacitor in the cable and the antenna trimmer do the same thing for the radio. If they are not set correctly, the system efficiency goes down quickly.

Jeff, you can get a new Motorola connector here - http://www.debcoelectronics.com/Moto...ers=motorola-s

If you put the original capacitor in that connector and solder or crimp the shield carefully, it will be as good as new. Or, just skip the capacitor and enjoy the FM.