Regarding the RP-SMA “FEMALE” PDF drawing on page http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/produc … cts_id=592 :
It seems like every manufacturer in mainland China is gender-confused when it comes to RP-SMA connectors. The Western rule for determining the gender of a connector is: 1) If the center contact is a hole (a “jack”) then the gender of the connector is “FEMALE” REGARDLESS of the gender of the outside shell. 2) If the center contact is a pin ( a “plug”) then the gender of the connector is “MALE” REGARDLESS of the gender of the outside shell.
Every connector manufacturer in the Western hemisphere follows these rules. It’s simple: If you can figure out what is your own gender then you can figure out what gender a connector is. Apparently, the mainland Chinese have been brainwashed in regards to what determines gender. Perhaps Taiwan should re-educate the mainland.
So, the SMA and RP-SMA gender line-up is this :
SMA, in General: Center contact gender is OPPOSITE of the shell gender.
SMA-M Male center contact with a female outside shell;
SMA-F Female center contact wit a male outside shell;
RP-SMA, in General: Center contact gender is the SAME as the shell gender.
RP-SMA-M Male center contact with a MALE outside shell;
RP-SMA-F Female center contact wit a FEMALE outside shell;
The OUTSIDE SHELL is “Reversed”, NOT the center contact.
This is not hard to understand. The mainland “just doesn’t get it”. Note that the PDF drawing was from a Chinese company. Neither the central contact or the outer shell is “female”, but the description says “SMA FEMALE RP”. All the Western connector manufacturers follow the rules-of-thumb above.