RG8 – Flexible Coaxial Cable (50 Ohm)

About

• “RG” refers to “Radio Guide”, originally a unit indicator for bulk RF cable in the U.S. military’s Joint Electronics Type Designation System.
• RG-8 is a 50-ohm coaxial cable that is used for radio transmission.
• These RG-8 cables are capable of very effective shielding. Heavy-duty cables like these are designed to stand the test of time irrespective of usage or surrounding conditions.

Usage:

• RG8 cables are used for radio frequency applications up to 4,000 MHz that require a characteristic impedance of 50 ohms and for radio antennas. The cable has good power handling capabilities that range from 180 watts at 1,000 MHz up to 1,200 watts at 50 MHz. Other applications include high-quality audio recording and 10Base5 standard Ethernet connections.

Construction of RG8 Cable:

• Conductor

  RG8 cable uses a stranded annealed copper inner conductor made up of seven strands of 21 American Gauge Wire (AWG). The diameter of the conductor is approximately 0.0855 inches.

• Dielectric

  This coaxial cable has a solid polyethylene dielectric with an overall diameter of 0.285 inches. This material has a dielectric constant of 2.3. It has good abrasion resistance and weathering properties.

• Shield

  The outer conductor or shield is a wire braid made from soft annealed copper wire. Braiding cover exceeds 95% for improved shielding.

• Jacket

  The coax cable has a protective outer jacket made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC) with an overall diameter of 0.405 inches.

RG8 Vs Rg58

RG8 is a thicker 50-ohm cable, at 12 AWG, that can provide a stronger signal than RG58. It is mainly used for amateur radio. There is also a version called RG8X, which is thinner at 16 AWG but provides similar signal quality.

See All RG Series Coaxial Cables here