RatsoW8
Supporting Member, W9WDX ARC Member - WD8T
WireW...I still have some of this left over from my first marriage. Glad to send you a box brother. Yea, she divorced me but damit I had a tower!!!!
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To The Average Schmuck Who Thinks He Wants A Tower
- Thread starter Wire Weasel
- Start date
No viable trees to hang antennas from and besides any trees are on my neigbor's property. Have 60' free-standing tower festooned, festooned I tell you with antennas. Couldn't operate without it. The top part is cut off, but what's not shown is the TH3 tri-bander, a 6M 3-el beam and my 2M Ringo ARX2B collinear. Barely visible is my inverted-Vee. The antenna at the side of he house is my trusty Penetrator 500.
Attachments
Sooooo...why won't your wife let you put up a tower?
They don't call him weasel for nothing
A tower is just a 3 legged pole so it should only cost 3 times as much to stand it up right?
I'll do the math:
20' pole $100 to erect
20' tower $300 to erect
60' pole $300
60' tower $900
Any questions mr. weasel? $900 will buy a set of tires for the misses car or 2 new pairs of shoes
Oh and $900 spent on anything else will not get you an erection for a long time.
WireW...I still have some of this left over from my first marriage. Glad to send you a box brother. Yea, she divorced me but damit I had a tower!!!!
Funny pic Ratso !!
This thread isn't about me, it was addressed to "The Average Schmuck"
So thanks for showing up Mack
Cost for my tower so far:
Rohn AX40, already disassembled w/ unused "dirt drum" base - $125 on craigslist, 40 miles away
Rustoleum Rusty Metal Primer (galvanization was mostly gone) - $13
Rustoleum Smoke Gray Paint - $38
Acetone - $5
1/8" wall, 1.25" OD DOM tubing (fabbing concrete legs) - ~$40
6 pack of 312 Wheat beer (welder payment, I didn't trust myself enough) - $7.99
4x4x3' hole - Free, I dug it myself
Remesh & Rebar - ~$30
What's left to do:
Dig the hole out a little bit more
Weld L-brackets to tower legs, buy some threaded rod and instant concrete. Dig some small holes, put the threaded rods in the 3 small holes of concrete. Run the rod through the L-brackets. Use two nuts on each bracket to adjust tower for plumb.
Fabricate a wood frame around the hole
Get concrete delivered
Fabricate a simple clamp-on gin pole
Wait 30 days while the concrete is setting
Assemble tower
I haven't quite decided on antennas or coax yet. I think I'm going to be running a 3-element 10m yagi, my 5-el 2m yagi (vertical) offset 1/4 wl from the mast, and probably a Diamond X30A dual-band at the top. If I can find a nice length of Heliax LDF4-50A for the top vertical, I'll use that. If not, I'll use LMR400 for the whole run, rather than just the ends. The 2m and 10m yagi will be fed by LMR400.
If there's room, I'm going to put a yagi up for 13cm band so I can experiment a bit.
Rohn AX40, already disassembled w/ unused "dirt drum" base - $125 on craigslist, 40 miles away
Rustoleum Rusty Metal Primer (galvanization was mostly gone) - $13
Rustoleum Smoke Gray Paint - $38
Acetone - $5
1/8" wall, 1.25" OD DOM tubing (fabbing concrete legs) - ~$40
6 pack of 312 Wheat beer (welder payment, I didn't trust myself enough) - $7.99
4x4x3' hole - Free, I dug it myself
Remesh & Rebar - ~$30
What's left to do:
Dig the hole out a little bit more
Weld L-brackets to tower legs, buy some threaded rod and instant concrete. Dig some small holes, put the threaded rods in the 3 small holes of concrete. Run the rod through the L-brackets. Use two nuts on each bracket to adjust tower for plumb.
Fabricate a wood frame around the hole
Get concrete delivered
Fabricate a simple clamp-on gin pole
Wait 30 days while the concrete is setting
Assemble tower
I haven't quite decided on antennas or coax yet. I think I'm going to be running a 3-element 10m yagi, my 5-el 2m yagi (vertical) offset 1/4 wl from the mast, and probably a Diamond X30A dual-band at the top. If I can find a nice length of Heliax LDF4-50A for the top vertical, I'll use that. If not, I'll use LMR400 for the whole run, rather than just the ends. The 2m and 10m yagi will be fed by LMR400.
If there's room, I'm going to put a yagi up for 13cm band so I can experiment a bit.
Me and a friend of mine ( who was into 11-meter ) installed a 40' tower in my neighborhood, I was pleased with this little 40' tower. And so was my wife who by the way operated the Base Station while i was in my Semi-Truck. Worked out great.
More power to your towers !!!
Don't get me wrong, I have nothing personally against towers. They've never done anything to me. I just don't need one. Merely trying to give the noobies some pointers and idea as to real total cost and effort to install.
Some things are easier said than done and towers are WAY easier said than done.
Don't get me wrong, I have nothing personally against towers. They've never done anything to me. I just don't need one. Merely trying to give the noobies some pointers and idea as to real total cost and effort to install.
Some things are easier said than done and towers are WAY easier said than done.
I don't know. With a little cooperation from the weather, I'll have mine up soon enough and haven't had to call in any favors.
i think wire weasel's post was right on point.
he wasnt talking about the people on this forum who know what they are doing, and trying to discourage them from putting up towers; he was talking about those that dont know what they are doing, who try to put up towers.
here is a couple of examples of what he's talking about:
YouTube - How NOT To Raise A Tower #1
YouTube - How To Raise A Tower The Right Way #2
LC
he wasnt talking about the people on this forum who know what they are doing, and trying to discourage them from putting up towers; he was talking about those that dont know what they are doing, who try to put up towers.
here is a couple of examples of what he's talking about:
YouTube - How NOT To Raise A Tower #1
YouTube - How To Raise A Tower The Right Way #2
LC
i like this one too.
you dont have to be putting up a tower to be stupid.
i love this one because its hams yelling at other hams!
YouTube - How NOT to put up an antenna at Field Day
LC
you dont have to be putting up a tower to be stupid.
i love this one because its hams yelling at other hams!
YouTube - How NOT to put up an antenna at Field Day
LC
Hey Ed, what kind of tower is that? I can't quite tell from the looks of it. Delhi (probably not) or Trylon Titan? Maybe other?
It's a Delhi DMX56HD. No.8 bottom section through to a No. 2 top section. 56' feet, plus the top pipe, 4' above the top plate. Tri-bander at 58', feed-point of 2M at about 65' +/- approximately.
Agreed! My installed tower was treated with cold galvanizing. I'm currently working on a short tower to replace the pole for my Penetrator. Lot's of scraping and steel brushing and then the cold galvanizing over the offending parts. Then flat white paint all over to match the siding on the house. Can't antagonize the neighbors too much!