Roger Halstead wrote in message . ..
On 12 Aug 2003 09:08:08 -0700, (Brian Kelly) wrote:


Select a catalog tower and stick 100% to the manufaucturer's
installation and operation directions. It'll cost more but you'll
sleep better.

After seeing the work I put into mine, the size of the parts, the
strength of the guys, the 17,000# guy anchors, my wife put her foot
down and said no more climbing the other guy's towers around town.
Course, she says I shouldn't be doing that kind of work for the young
guys at my age

She's right.

although I hear no complaints when I go up and work on
mine.

She knows when to stick and when to fold.

http://www.rogerhalstead.com/tower.htm

Yumpin Yesus! Whatta "backyard" antenna farm!

We had one who was going to install a 100 foot 25G and mount the rotor
at the base. Although basically a sound idea in theory,

Done all the time and saves a lotta climbing.

he
unfortunately was using 1 1/2 chrome molly tube with 1/2 inch wall
and the rotor was supported between the tower legs about a foot above
the base.

No . . ! Good thing he didn't design yer nice old Debbie . .

I could barely manage to pick up one section of the tube and he had 6.
(I'm not all that big, but I do lift weights) Imagine the weight on
the rotor and tower base, let alone the momentum from the mass even
without the antennas.

We had a longggg talk.

I'll bet.

He decided to mount the rotor on a separately supported steel plate
anchored to big concrete blocks on either side, but finally abandoned
the idea as getting too complex.

Ya take the vertical antenna & mast load out with a thrust bearing
either in the top plate or somewhere close to the top, run some loosly
guided 2-3" EMT down the tower and . . . does a great job of knocking
down the torsional start/braking/wind spikes throughout the system AND
reduces the number of climbs. A second thrust brg just above the
rotator is even better. I dunno where they come from.


Roger Halstead (K8RI EN73 & ARRL Life Member)
www.rogerhalstead.com
N833R World's oldest Debonair? (S# CD-2)

w3rv