Mario and Tom raise interesting points.
When I changed out the old TH6 for a nice shiny C31XR I worried about the
insulated elements. I asked Force 12 about it. I was told there has been
only one reported instance of insulator failure in that application and
that was using "excessive" power levels.
Since it was inconvenient to do other wise, I simply put the thing up and
forged ahead. After two seasons of running it (with max legal power) on top
of the 71 foot shunt feed tower, the insulators are still functioning as
insulators.
My coax is NOT taped to the tower leg, and is NOT grounded at the base
either. This may be a lightning issue, but it would appear to not be a RF
issue in this particular installation.
On the other hand, maybe it's better to be safe than sorry. Certainly
everyone is not as lazy as I am!
73,
Larry - W7IUV
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