My US Tower HDX-555 has the motorized up-down option, but the tilt-over
feature still relied on the standard K1550 winch. I found the standard
winch to require a fair amount of force when tilting the tower up and
even more when lowering it, since in the latter case one has to overcome
the friction of the automatic brake as well. In addition, there was a
loud squeal from the brake as I lowered the tower.
I bought a K2550 online from Croft Trailer Supply for approx. $200 (plus
S&H), and found that it was a perfect fit in place of the K1550.
The K2550's gear ratio is approx. 3x that of the K1550, but this is
offset slightly by the K2550's larger drum diameter. The net result is
that raising or lowering takes almost three times the number of turns
but only about one third of the force compared to the original K1550.
The task is certainly easier, and there was hardly a sound from the brake.
Tip: I replaced the winch with the tower still bolted in the upright
position, which meant that I had a somewhat unwieldy length of cable to
unspool from the old winch and then try to hold tight as I wound it onto
the new one. If I had the job to do again, I would first lower the tower
using the old winch, then swap the winches.
And while the tower was tilted down I took plenty of pictures of the
up-down cabling so that replacement -- if it ever becomes necessary --
should be much simpler. (I have read that US Tower has not been
particularly helpful when others have sought instructions for replacing
thee cable.)
73
Alan NV8A
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