On Fri, 16 Feb 1996, ralph h young wrote:
> Anyway, I had been thinking about a big crank-up, but now I'm having second
> thoughts. I always worndered what you did if it got hung up and you could
> not get it down. Now it seems that I have three choices - pay some one else
> to climb the tower (I'll be darned if I'm going to ask another ham to climb
> a tower that I wont't), or get something like one of the Heights fold overs
> or put up one of the HAZER towers that Glen Martin Engineering sells. Two
> local hams have the Heights fold over towers (with TH6/7's on top) and I
> have worked on one 25 G Hazer. I'm thinking about his M1870A 70 foot model
> with something like a Force 12 5BA or C4XL. YOUR COMMENTS PLEASE!
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Ralph:
I considered the Hazer a couple of years ago, but the 70 footer
requires two sets of guys - and you have to climb the thing anyway to undo
them (this is true) before lowering the trolley. Kind of obviates the whole
idea, to me.
Also, I think that caution is in order here, with ANY tower. It's
almost like driving a car. Sure, there are quite a few horror stories of
rather ghastly things that have occurred to many people while driving, but
that doesn't mean you will drive as they do. Good common sense and lots of
careful thinking will minimize the mishaps you might otherwise incur with
a crankup.
It's just plain foolish to climb one while it's extended. Might as
well climb your roof when it's covered with ice! And climbing an extended
crankup in the middle of the night is, well, you get the picture.
Crankups are safe towers. You don't have to climb up in the air
(intrinsically less safe that being on the ground), and you can work at
your own pace, with a much greater comfort level. I almost always work on my
crankup with a friend for the second set of eyes; we think about what we
are planning, and approach it thoughtfully - always.
As far as what to do if it gets jammed: hire a local professional
tower person with strong experience. Let him do the job with learned
skills. The price you'll pay is VERY small when the job is safely completed.
73 de Jeff WA2SYN
wa2syn@li.net
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