Towertalk
[Top] [All Lists]

Re: [TowerTalk] Single Line Tram System - Ideas Please

To: towertalk@contesting.com, k0wa@swbell.net
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Single Line Tram System - Ideas Please
From: K7LXC@aol.com
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 2006 10:26:53 EDT
List-post: <mailto:towertalk@contesting.com>
 
In a message dated 10/18/2006 12:51:57 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time,  
towertalk-request@contesting.com writes:

>  I have built a single line tram to lower my TH6DXX from  60 feet and raise 
a new Force-12 C3E/D.  The tram consists of a 4 foot  length of 1 1/2 inch 
PVC pipe.  Across one end I attached a 3 foot piece  angle iron using a muffler 
clamp at a right angel to the pipe.  Also, I  used some angle iron (it is the 
stuff you use to install garage doors) from  the from the tips of the 3 foot 
piece to the back of the PVC Pipe.  The  PVC pipe acts as a tiller...while the 
cross piece of angle iron acts as a seat  to the boom of the antenna.

>   The troubling part  of this is the single line.  I've seen double line 
tram systems but I  just don't have the room to do that.  City lot stuff.  So, 
using a  single tram the issue is that the antenna could roll if it out of  
balance.  Obviously, balance is very important here.

>  What I did is used a piece of rope connected under the cross  arm tha 
carries the boom up and hung some wieght below the tram to keep it  balanced.  
The 
more weight ...the more stable it should be ... but that  comes at a cost.  
The weight is fixed on the rope to keep the whole tram  in balance....but that 
doesn't mean I can sloppily put the boom on the tram  without taking into 
account balancing the antenna.

>  The whole mess has to go up to the tower and will travel less  than 150 
feet.


"Mess" is one way to look at it. Let me clarify  a couple of things on this 
topic. A TRAM system is one in which the load is  suspended below a single 
tramline. A TROLLEY system uses 2 wires (or tracks  like a trolley car) where 
the 
load rides on top of the wire/tracks.  

The tram system is so simple and only uses one  cable for antenna 
installation where the trolley system is a big PITA to rig,  very difficult to 
keep the 
antenna balanced plus adds a bunch of additional  friction to the load on its 
way up that I can't see any reason to use it.  

Cheers,
Steve     K7LXC
TOWER TECH -
Professional tower services for hams




 
_______________________________________________



_______________________________________________
TowerTalk mailing list
TowerTalk@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk

<Prev in Thread] Current Thread [Next in Thread>