Splicing Garmin 24 HD radar cable

[Suijin]

I need to splice my Garmin 24 HD (GMR 24 HD) radar cable. It was already spliced with each of the 8 wires spliced in a small pressed 1/4" round transparent yellowish plastic blob, seemingly with some heat tool. I've seen it before I'm just not sure what it's called. I had to cut it at the splice when the mast came down last week.

I've read a few threads on the subject here at CF, and the advice spans "It's a black art, very difficult and time consuming, requires prior skills" all the way to "throw it on a terminal bar". Seems that some radar are more forgiving than others, and I'm hoping someone can tell me where mine fits before I go down any dead ends.

Ideally, I'd like to throw it on a terminal bar because that's easy, and if it needs to come off again a plug will not easily fit through the access way where the cable is run. If I need to get out the solder gun and put a plug on, I can make that work if someone can tell me the specific type of plug I need.

On a related note, the radar power and cable were run not through the chase where the rest of the mast cables made their way up to their connections, but a different, longer route. Is there a good reason to run the cables away from the rest of the mast wires (lights and VHF)?

Thanks in advance for any and all advice.

[hellosailor]

Garmin may sell yellow plastic blobs for the job, or tell you what they are called.

[Suijin]

I had thought the radome dated from 1998, but it may be newer, and it looks like it's just Cat5 cable and that I can just put an RJ-45 plug on each use a coupler for the splice, then heat shrink the assembly.

I now remember where I've seen those yellow blobs before...landline telephone wire splices of yore.

And the manual for the radome, which I finally dug up, mentions running the cable away from power and VHF, so it's going back to it's old route, as much of a PITA as that is.

[boatbod]

All Garmin radars use what is essentially an ethernet cable with added power wires. You probably *could* splice it on a terminal bar and it *might* work, but you'd be much better off maintaining the relationship of the twisted pairs and using RJ45 plugs and a suitable connector.