Hi, all.

On our local ARES/RACES mnet last night, we discussed the importance of 
having interchangeable HF, VHF, and UHF equipment, should the need ever 
arise.

As we discussed the issue, I immediately became aware that I had created a 
problem for myself, with the purchase of my new Kenwood TMV71A, and TS480 
rigs.  Initially, I had things pretty much set up with Anderson Power Pole 
connections for all of my equipment, most of which was either Icom or HT's 
of one kind or another.

Now, I'm facing the need to adapt  my Kenwood stuff to work with the 
Anderson power poles.

So, I have a few questions:

1.  Is West Mountain Radio still the best place to get Anderson Power poles, 
or is there now a better source?


2.  I know this may sound elementary, but, for my new Kenwood equipment, 
would you guys recommend that I cut off and replace the supplied molex 
connector between the rig and the power cord, and put power poles there, or 
just put them on the very end of the power cord?  Adding them to the end of 
the power cord seems to me that you'd then introduce two potential failure 
points into the power connection--one at the power pole, and the other at 
the original molex connection.

3.  If I do the Anderson Power pole connections independently, how do I know 
which are the red and black pins, or do they only fit into the housing one 
way?  Also, on the typical connector housing, what's the proper way to 
arrange the pins, or do they only go in one way?

4.  Does anyone use the crimping tool for these connectors, and if so, are 
the connections made as reliable as soldered connections?  Also, where can I 
get the crimping tool?

5.  Does anyone have a nice easy-to-use step-by-step blind-friendly set of 
instructions for putting the power poles together?

If anyone wants to e-mail me privately on this, that's fine.  Just use:

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However, maybe others could benefit from whatever info is provided here.

Thanks as always, and 73 from Tom Behler:  KB8TYJ