Bill
On paper, you're right. For the vast majority of
hams, N connectors are silly.
However, there are many other considerations of
station design that influence connector choice.
Most of my connections are outdoors and my station is
built with nearly 100% hardline. All cables can be
used and swapped for any frequency I might use, 1.8
MHz to 2.4 GHz, and I frequently play around with odds
and ends like this.
If I was a typical ham, running an HF/VHF station
employing conventional coax, then that would probably
also mean I'd use the PL-259. But I am not the
typical ham.
Another consideration is the sheer amount of cables
and connectors I have, probably 100+ connections, and
almost a half-mile of cable. The N connector is
significantly more durable and reliable than the
PL-259 when installed and supported properly; in fact,
only the 7-16 DIN is more durable in practice. I
simply can not afford the time to maintain multiple
connector types.
Correctly installed, an N fitting should never be
subject to a pull-stress of the type you describe, and
I have never heard of a thermally related failure, in
22 years of broadcast engineering work, in many
climates.
No commercial communications infrastructure today uses
the PL-259 and for good reason. Most hams need to
save a buck or two and that is fine, but for a truly
flexible and reliable installation, there's no way I'd
select the PL-259.
/steve
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