galvanized ?????

[BOOTY MONSTER]

i was taking apart the old antenna and noticed just how badly rusted the "galvanized" U-clamps are .
the U , the nuts and the little bar/plate all rusted significantly .
thank goodness i'm a home brewer and didn't put it up expecting it to stay there for years , LOL
the long ones on the right held the insulating/mounting boards to the mast and the shorter ones held the vertical .

this is after about 2 years of use .
the galvanized pipe is just fine , but i will never trust or use those clamps again !


the clean nuts and bolts are cheap (compared to SS) #5 hardened and except for a few scratches look like new .
they were used since last summer .

 

[Captain Kilowatt]

That's why I like good stainless steel hardware. Those galvanized U-bolts look like they were in a salt air environment. Most hardware type galvanized hardware here looks like that after a couple years. It is usually just galvanized by having a coat of zinc which eventually literally washes away.You can get really good galvanized hardware that still looks good after a decade or more and professional riggers use it. It has a more smoother finish rather than the rough sprayed on appearance of the cheaper stuff.I have seen galvanized masts that have been up for 20 years or more that still look new.

 

[pro151]

Whether or not the hardware is hot dipped or cold dipped makes a big difference in performance and longevity in galvanized parts.

 

[BOOTY MONSTER]

well , the only thing galvanized on any future antenna i may make will be the mast .
lowes SS hardware is about 4 or 5 times more expensive than what home depot sells in the little 90 something cent bags so i get my SS nuts , bolts and washers from HD .

btw CK , im probably about 50-60 air miles east of the Chesapeake bay

 

[RatsoW8]

I replaced all the hardware in my tower with stainless. 5 years in the air still looked like new.

 

[ONAWHIM]

.

The lower set of fasteners are not galvanized.
They are cadmium plated.

Cadmium plating produces a finish that is highly corrosion resistant.
Cadmium plated fasteners have been used in the military for years.

I was a marine pipefitter for 20 years. these were specified for use below the bilge line in submarines.

.

 

[mackmobile43]

Dissimilar metals have a tendency to have ill effects towards each other.

 

[Captain Kilowatt]

Dissimilar metals have a tendency to have ill effects towards each other.

Do they ever. Throw in a little moisture and an RF field (circulating electrical currents) and you can watch the corrosion happen.

 

[Beetle]

Onawhim definitely nailed the cadmium plating on those two bolts. I was going to comment but he's had more personal experience with it.
Where did you work, Onawhim? Groton, maybe? I worked at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard.

 

[BOOTY MONSTER]

.

The lower set of fasteners are not galvanized.
They are cadmium plated.

Cadmium plating produces a finish that is highly corrosion resistant.
Cadmium plated fasteners have been used in the military for years.

I was a marine pipefitter for 20 years. these were specified for use below the bilge line in submarines.

.

i didnt mean to imply that the long bolt and nut were advertised as galvanized or weather proof/resistant . but thank you for the clarification ONAWHIM
how do these military grade fasteners compare to stainless steel ? are they just as good as SS ?

 

[GnG8d]

They aren't actually military grade, although I suppose they can be. Almost all of your grade 8 stuff will be cad plated, and cheaper than stainless.

Will it last as long as stainless? That's hard to tell and depends on usage. It is a plating so it can be scratched off leaving exposed metal. But, the base metal in a grade 8 fastener is of higher quality and less prone to rusting than zinc plated grade 2 hardware stuff.

I wouldn't be afraid of cad plated grade 8 over SS if there was a large enough price difference.

 

[BOOTY MONSTER]

thanks 359
i can get SS hardware at HD for just a little more than the #5 hardened stuff at lowes so ill stick with SS for my antennas .

 

[ONAWHIM]

Onawhim definitely nailed the cadmium plating on those two bolts. I was going to comment but he's had more personal experience with it.
Where did you work, Onawhim? Groton, maybe? I worked at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard.

Beetle, I worked at Electric Boat "EB".
I started in 78' and was an apprentice.
I did 20 years but the end of the Cold War rained on the parade.

We did see cadmium on certain applications.
Being cadmium doesn't make it mil spec per say, all kinds of metals are used for fasteners including; nicu, inconel, 304 stainless, cadmium steel, mild steel, even galvanized steel, and then each had a grade.

Every fickin' part did have a mil spec. The toilet paper probably had one too.

I was involved in every pipe system on the Tridents, Ohio Class, from nuclear to shit pipe.


William

 

[towerdog]

That's why I like good stainless steel hardware. Those galvanized U-bolts look like they were in a salt air environment. Most hardware type galvanized hardware here looks like that after a couple years. It is usually just galvanized by having a coat of zinc which eventually literally washes away.You can get really good galvanized hardware that still looks good after a decade or more and professional riggers use it. It has a more smoother finish rather than the rough sprayed on appearance of the cheaper stuff.I have seen galvanized masts that have been up for 20 years or more that still look new.

wrong, us professional riggers hate stainless, we curse it whenever we run into it. its crap, it siezes up when its torqued down, threads stretch making loosenig it an exercise of hell. btw we break it too when installing it, is brittle.

those bolts are cadmium plated, not as bad as stainless to work with but the next best thing to useless against rust. is alright if you coat it in cold galvanization spray like rustoleum or preferably Zinc-Clad from Sherwin Williams.

Do yourself, your tower and everyone else in the world a favor and get hot-dipped. There is no substitute for hot dipped, you can even find hot dipped at Lowes and Fastenal, its dull grey with no shine, and rough.

 

[GLR]

excellent thread