This thread has morphed ,,, and the SAFTY aspect pointed out..... I am 6'2"
210 lb and had bo problems manhandling R#25 & 45 .... 55 was to much to
control with the limited leverage. As for powered winches.
The first 20' was always manual haul up and the gin pole used from there on.
I have a capstan winch (110 V AC)
with a 15 ft long foot activation switch . This give you a great view of the
raising object.
As for the safety issue of climbing.. I think we were all guilty of not
following safety procedures in the past
especially when we were younger or in thick of battle ( trudging through
calf deep snow @ .04:00 Z to replace a burnt out W2DU balun on a 160 dipole in
the middle of the contest. Flash light, new Bencher balun, two copper bugs
stuffed in my jacket pocket,,,, only thing to hold me to the tower was m knee
through the Z rung....
YOUNG and DUMB ...
Back to a ditty that was drilled into my head by one of my mentors
There are Bold Climbers
There are OLD climbers
BUT there are NO
OLD BOLD CLIMBERS
Wayne W3EA
> From: bill_mader@hotmail.com
> To: towertalk@contesting.com
> Date: Fri, 4 Dec 2015 08:22:56 -0700
> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Erecting tower sections solo
>
> I have to agree forcefully with Roger. It has nothing to do with the fact
> we're both 5'7", have had two strokes, and one (documented) heart attack, and
> just last month for me, are both in our 70's. In my early teens I used a 30
> ft. telescopic mast to hold up one end of my T2FD (Terminated Tilted Folded
> Dipole) and my 6 meters beam. It was easier to lash my Dad's ladder to the
> mast to access the rotator/beam than to lower and raise the mast by myself.
>
> One day, I climbed to the top, clicked the safety belt lanyard, and leaned
> back to work. I didn't visually confirm the click and grabbed the ladder
> several feet down. I climbed down and did other stuff that day. I have
> always visually and physically checked all safety devices ever since.
>
> I have "bulbed" radio and TV towers as tall as 750 ft. installed and taken
> down too many 25G/45G towers to count, and never had a close call in over 55
> years after the incident above. I also have used all appropriate safety gear
> and install a safety climb for my next installation. Why? I like living and
> still have many things I want to do.
>
> I also race sports cars, but I have a full roll cage, fire suit,
> extinguisher, certified helmet and HANS device, gloves, balaclava, etc. It's
> not worth our lives to take chances. A friend in Traverse City MI died
> because he unbelted as he climbed over the platform of his windmill tower
> then fainted due to diabetes. He never left the hospital alive.
>
> I worked on oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico for what may be my last job.
> During my next to last hitch, some guys didn't follow procedures (on the
> Production side, not our drilling side) which lead to an explosion and
> resulting fire that nearly cause one-third of us to jump overboard. Safety
> is a cultural thing as is ignoring safety. The latter results in tragedy,
> unnecessary tragedy. Shortcuts are not worth taking!
>
> I can't do everything as easily as I could 30 years ago. But I can and will
> do them safely, if not more so. There is still a lot of DX and contests to
> work. Don't cut your fun short!
>
> 73, Bill, K8TE
> Rio Rancho NM
>
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