Picked up the mast today. They did an outstanding job. No runs, drips, or
slag, even inside. A couple of cooling rack marks on the outside, other than
that a totally flawless job, and I'm a happy camper. Both TB-3's pass easily
over the entire mast with about 1/32" clearance the entire way. Whew...! I
could picture $100 or more to have a machine shop bore out the TB-3's if
this job went sour! My guess is the zinc is something less than 10 mils
thick, which although slightly thicker than I was promised, is just fine as
long as the TB-3's will slip over it.
Also picked up a couple of extra antenna/mast rigging loops from the local
rock climber's shop yesterday. These are 24" (48" of webbing with ends sewn
together) and are certified at 3000 KG, which I think is about 6600 lb. They
are a very tight weave, soft and supple, about 1" wide. Best part is they
were $3 each. They also had 4' and 6' available. I have been pleasantly
suprised by the reasonable cost of brand name webbing and carabiners at the
climber's shop here. Certified rope, however, is a bit pricey at $0.80/ft
for the big 12 mm Blue Water stuff (worth every penny) and of course less
for the 8 mm and 9 mm stuff. Following K7LXC's suggestions, I have built a
couple of double-tailed lanyards, one from 12 mm Blue Water (which is
slightly stiff and heavy, but hell for stout), and another a bit longer from
9 mm, which is significantly lighter, a nicer size to work with knot-wise,
and is still rated over 5,000 lb. I used screw-lock Black Diamond carabiners
for the center (D-ring) attachment, and the large size Black Diamond
auto-lock type for the tower hookup ends. The autolockers aren't cheap at
about $17 each, but are really easy to use one-handed (this is important),
and they instantly and positively lock up when you let the spring-loaded
gate go. Once they are locked, you CANNOT open them without deliberately
twisting the spring-loaded locking barrel 1/4 turn again first. The double
figure 8 knots K7LXC recommends work well, are as safe as knots can get, and
as a bonus are a piece of cake to properly tie. Point is, I feel safe as if
I'm in my easy chair when I'm clipped on using this stuff, and that's
important to me! Having finally collected some decent climbing stuff
together, I shudder looking back over the years at what I've seen folks use
for safety gear while climbing - including me! Thanks to Steve K7LXC for the
tips.
73, Jerry W5KP
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