BNC connector with lock - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: tkamiya
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 18, 2018, 03:13:08 pm
content: In my lab, there is one guy who can be quite careless. (ME)Is there such thing has BNC connector cap with lock? I need something that, for example, locks with allen bolt or something, that it would take extra effort to remove. Disconnecting the bulkhead connector internally is not an option.

author: iainwhite
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 18, 2018, 03:24:03 pm
content: Could you drill a small hole in the BNC shroud and mount a machine screw thru it to block a connector being attached?

author: tkamiya
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 18, 2018, 04:33:15 pm
content: I can. I was thinking that will dent/scratch the bulkhead connector but I can use plastic screws, can't I? Good idea. Thank you.

author: MarkF
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 18, 2018, 10:30:31 pm
content: What about one of these?

author: Cerebus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 18, 2018, 11:29:06 pm
content: Or one of these:

author: Neomys Sapiens
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 19, 2018, 12:50:08 am
content: There is a ingenious BNC connector with locking nut made by Huber & Suhner. It is a non-catalogue part, so you would have to order around 20. (They send me an offer which was below 200.-)I'll look for the part number in the next few days.

author: tkamiya
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 19, 2018, 06:10:51 pm
content: Mark,Good idea. I wear size small.Cerebus,Another good idea, EXCEPT my arms aren't long enough to hold that and beat up myself.

author: tkamiya
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 19, 2018, 06:24:28 pm
content: I got it. I took MarkF's concept and applied it in different ways.Kind of hard to see but it's a rubber cap and a zip tie.

author: Cerebus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 19, 2018, 06:31:18 pm
content: Quote from: tkamiya on September 19, 2018, 06:10:51 pmI'm sure if you asked your wife/girlfriend/S.O./cat would be only too happy to relieve you of the effort.I hadn't quite twigged that you were trying to protect the lab from yourself. Your options for dealing with yourself are broader than if you are (as I thought) trying to dissuade a colleague. You can be nastier in persuading yourself than management will accept when persuading colleagues or subtler in reminding yourself not to fiddle than you would need to be in stopping the lab idiot in their tracks. If I need to remind myself to not touch/adjust something I just stick a bit of that blue painter's tape over it - firm enough to protect from a knock, removes easily and cleanly, and the blue is eye catching against typical electronics colours.

author: Gyro
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 19, 2018, 06:46:24 pm
content: Quote from: tkamiya on September 19, 2018, 06:24:28 pmAlong the same lines. If you need the connector to be shielded by a metal cap or terminator, cut one or two thick wire inserts and put them in the skirt slots to block them and prevent rotation and removal. Secure them in place with a cable tie.

author: tkamiya
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 19, 2018, 07:20:57 pm
content: I'm also a photographer and I used to have my own darkroom here at home. I used film and enlarger, so a lot of things I used are NOT to be opened unless the room is dark. Each container has some kind of lock, but I used to put a masking tape over it.One reason is to slow me down just enough to THINK. Exactly the same reason suggested by Cerebus. It was amazingly effective.Yes, I'm trying to protect stuff from myself. My spectrum analyzer has two ports. One is DC protected and the other one is not. More than once, I didn't catch myself until the last moment. So I was looking for similar slow me down device. If I burn an attenuator or an input amplifier, it's basically toast.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 19, 2018, 08:37:58 pm
content: With a sharpened piece of steel tubing to use like a gasket punch cut a ring of bright red or orange plastic sheet and then with another smaller piece of tube make a hole inside it to form a plastic washer that just fits the input connectors.It will serve as a clear warning to 'check before connecting' !You could also add some warning text to it with a Sharpie.

author: Richard Crowley
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 19, 2018, 08:49:30 pm
content: If you have enough panel space, perhaps one of these toggle switch guards would fit over a BNC connector?

author: Neomys Sapiens
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 19, 2018, 09:32:35 pm
content: Correction: the offer was 67.20€ for 10 pieces (minimum quantity)Designation is 11_BNC-50-3-42/133_NEThe connector is locked by a nut, which blocks the bayonet.