Insulators: are they really necessary?

[DXman]

I have looked at a lot of pictures of ham insulations and I don't see many of them with "insulators" used on the guy lines



So are they really needed when guying a tower?



Also, can an array be grounded good enough thru the "thrust bearing" and "rotor" or should a ground strap be attached to the mast and bypass them to the tower?

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DXman


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[Moleculo]

I like to use static rope instead of guys.....easier to adjust, easier to install, and also non-conductive so you don't have to worry about insulators.



Moleculo


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[Moleculo]

Here is a link to the rope I use: www.synthetictextilesinc.com/supportham.html



The term "static" when referring to rope means it has little or no stretch. For comparison, most NON-static rope has about 30% stretch. The rope I use is double braided dacron/polyester, UV & mildew resistant. It's very easy to tie and you don't need to splice it. Avoid sliding the rope around sharp or hard edges to avoid wear and weakening. If you have hard edges on the tower or mast, use an eye, shackle, or something of that sort. When you cut the rope, burn the end to melt and seal it keep the rope from fraying.



Always remember to choose your knots carefully. You should use as few knots as possible. Few people realize this, but improper knots or improper use of knots in rope can weaken the strength of the rope by up to 60%!!! (I used to do logging and tree work in a former life. When you're hanging 100 feet up in a tree by a rope or two with a chainsaw and a bunch of equipment, your life depends on knowing how to do this stuff right!) I use a bowline knot at the tower / mast side, and a trucker's hitch on the anchor side (this is on my roof). The trucker's hitch is really nice because it's easy to tie and untie, and you can tighten up the guys by hand with no extra tools. Even though it's static line, it still will stretch slightly over time, so using a knot that lets you tighten it up easily is real nice. It will stretch less than guy wire does, however.



BTW, Phillystran is a manufacturer of rope; it is not a specific type of rope. They make many different types of ropes, not just the resin impregnated one Doc was talking about. For most CB / Ham application, the resin impregnated rope is WAAAYYYY overkill, too hard to work with, and not the correct choice. Phillystran makes polyester ropes that are much more suitable and similar to the rope in the link I provided above. Check out www.phillystran.com for more info on that.



If anyone wants to see a picture of how I tie the anchor of the ropes, I can take one this weekend and post it.





Moleculo


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[Moleculo]

Just saved me some work... <img src=http://users.joplin.com/dutch64804/beer.gif ALT=":beer"> <img src=http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/tongue.gif ALT=":b"> eer<img src=http://users.joplin.com/dutch64804/beer.gif ALT=":beer">


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[Moleculo]

If you tie the truckers hitch right, there shouldn't be any twisting of the rope. When done right, each segment should be straight, like and look like a little block and tackle made out of rope. All it is, really is a double slip knot in the main segment, then looped through the anchor and back through the slip knot loop, then cinch it up and put two half hitches around the slip knot loop to keep the tension.



BTW, what knot are you using? If it's not one I'm familiar with, I'd like to see it.


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[Moleculo]

I've always found static line to have less stretch initially. Remember, guy wire uses pretty soft metal. When I had guy wire up, it seemed like it stretched at least a good 10% after initially putting it up. It stretched enough that the turnbuckles couldn't take up all the slack so I had to re-wrap it at the base. Maybe I just had el-cheapo guy wire.


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[Moleculo]

Wow, that stuff IS stiffer than what I had. I just had small stuff...I'll have to look up what it was. I could definately twist it with my hands, though.


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