Brian-
Most people are unaware that fence companies carry "top rail". Whenever I
mention
fence top rail, everyone envisions the backyard fence and its 1" or 1-1/4" top
rail.
There are, however, many larger diameters of top rail and they come in 22'
(and I
believe 24' lengths) - the largest diameters I have are 1-7/8" and 2-7/8".
And, if
you need a longer length, one can be nested. We have put up 1-1/2 lengths and
2
lengths for Field Day - erecting and guying 1-1/2 lengths is easy, erecting and
guying 2 lengths is harder.
We just completed a weekend operation with W1AW/6 and our antenna farm (3-el
20M
Yagi, 2-el 15M Quad, 40M Inv V, 80M Inv V, 2M j-pole, and ATV dish) on the roof
of a
12-story hotel here in Riverside. We had a 3-el 20M beam on a 22' length of
1-7/8"
top rail - it was tied to cell phone structure which happened to be on the roof
(the
highest tie point was at 7'). There was no mast wiggle at all and we did have
windy
afternoons.
Oh, the top rail was about $20. several years ago, and although it is surely
higher
today, it can't be more than $40. It is galvanized and sturdy - I used to use
this
to hold up an R7 vertical on my RV - 20 minutes to erect and 20 minutes to
store.
This is a cheap, durable and very effective solution. And, I presume the loss
of the
mast you are replacing was due to a poorly conceived guy wire system. Years
ago, I
experienced the loss of a poorly secured guy wire which released and then the
mast
bent. As they say, there's a lot to be said about respecting stored energy. :)
73-
Fred, W6TKV
Brian Maynard wrote:
> Hi Folks!
>
> For reasons I would rather not recount, I have a bent mast. I ordered
> a replacement from HRO - a USTowers M-20R 2" O.D. x 20' reinforced
> galvanized mast - listing at $259. Turns out the shipping would run
> $600-900!
>
> My question is: What other options can I explore for masts of similar
> length & strength (I am 3 miles from the Atlantic Coast)? Are there
> other suppliers closer to Rhode Island?
>
> Thanks for any advice. 73, Brian, K1NW
> _______________________________________________
>
> See: http://www.mscomputer.com for "Self Supporting Towers", "Wireless
> Weather Stations", and lot's more. Call Toll Free, 1-800-333-9041 with any
> questions and ask for Sherman, W2FLA.
>
> _______________________________________________
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>
>
_______________________________________________
See: http://www.mscomputer.com for "Self Supporting Towers", "Wireless Weather
Stations", and lot's more. Call Toll Free, 1-800-333-9041 with any questions
and ask for Sherman, W2FLA.
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