In a message dated 98-01-06 20:20:10 EST, ftbrady@earthlink.net writes:
> I just got my first Texas Towers catalog today.
>
> $3059.00 for a 80 foot self supporting tower that will handle 13.3 sq feet?
>
> Is there a catch or is this a great tower buy or what?
>
> Is 'RTP' a new line?
>
Here's some info from an upcoming "Up The Tower" column in CQ Contest
magazine:
ROHN RTP
The UNR-Rohn Company has been manufacturing commercial towers for years
and
their primary self-supporting structure is the SSV tower. A couple of years
ago they added a top plate and rotator shelf to the SSV and introduced it as
the RTP (Rotator, Top Plate) series. The RTP is available in heights from 40
to 190 feet and wind speeds of 70 to 90 MPH. They are compliant with the
EIA/TIA-222 tower standard, are commercial-grade towers and are manufactured
in Illinois. It comes with anchor bolts and drawings for base configuration.
PE (Professional
Engineer) stamped drawings are available for additional cost. Sections are
typically 20 feet long.
Rohn dealers include TOWER TECH, Texas Towers and National Towers.
They can also supply the very valuable Rohn catalog.
TRYLON TITAN
The Trylon Titan is manufactured in Ontario, Canada. Almost 12,000
Titan towers have been installed in the last twenty years. The Titan does not
meet any current tower standards. The implication of this is that they can
make higher claims for tower capacity for a given configuration. Also, no PE
drawings are available. They can supply additional technical data so that a
local PE can do the calculations to obtain a building permit. Base bolts and
drawings are supplied with the tower. The top plate and rotator shelf are
extra ($40.00 each) and the sections are twenty feet long also. The US
distributor is TOWER TECH, Box 572, Woodinville, WA, 98072, 800-TOWERS8.
COMPARISONS
Amateur radio operators are a parsimonious bunch and don't always
believe in
the old axiom that "you get what you pay for". You can see by the accompanying
tables that the Rohn tower is significantly more costly and has less capacity
than the Titan.
In the commercial tower field, a good benchmark of cost is to look at
how
much material is in something, in this case the tower. You can see that the
RTP weighs more than the Titan. Obviously there is more steel in the Rohn
tower. Since it is TIA-222 compliant, you can correctly assume that the
additional steel is structural.
In the case of the Trylon, it doesn't meet the same standard but it has
obviously been professionally designed. By not complying with the US standard,
they can make their own claims about tower capacity. Obviously the Rohn SSV is
rated much more conservatively.
73, Steve K7LXC
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