Ed,
I just drilled a hole and put a push button on top of the control box and
wired it to control the brake solenoid of the Ham-M. Rotation is still done
with the lever switch, holding the brake control button down with one
finger. Mod takes 10 minutes and no need for the manual as you quickly
figure out how the brake is controlled by looking at the switch wafers.
While at it I made a jumper between the wafers that switch the indicator on
and off enabling continous display of heading.
Total cost = one pusbutton switch (make/brake) @ 25 cents surplus price.
My Ham-M is almost 30 years old and has been holding a 4 el 20/15 mtrs
interlaced monobander (i e 8 full size elements) at 80ft since I bought it.
Brilliant rotator.
The key to success; do not over tighten the mast clamps, let the mast slip
a little in very strong winds. It is easier to correct the beam heading
than having to replace the rotor at the top of the tower ever so often.
A PC interface, as someone stated, is an overkill..
73/Peter SM2CEW
www.qsl.net/sm2cew
At 02:01 2001-10-08 , you wrote:
>
>
>Hi.
>
>I just bought a used Ham-M rotator last week. This is the "old
>version" with the brown bakelite control box with the single
>lever switch. I am concerned that there is no brake delay for
>this controller (not even a manual one).
>
>Is there a web site somewhere that details how to build (from
>scratch) and install a brake delay circuit for this rotator?
>Would putting in a brake delay make it unnecessary to add the
>"torsion bar" recommended in the Ham-M rotator manual?
>
>Also, is there a web site anywhere that shows how to construct
>and install a PC interface?
>
>In general, are there any other web sites which detail home-brew
>mods to the Ham-M rotator?
>
>If I were to add a switch into primary of the motor/brake
>transformer, or switches into the motor and/or brake circuits on
>the secondary side, what should be the contact ratings for such
>switches?
>
>Note that I am interested in completely home-brewing my own mods
>to the rotator control; not purchasing a commercially available
>mod.
>
>TNX ES VY 73,
>
>Ed Pugh (VA3PU)
>Ottawa, Ontario
>va3pu@rac.ca
>
>Ed Pugh | A common mistake that people make when trying
>VA3PU | to design something completely foolproof is to
>Ottawa ON | underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools.
>CANADA | - Douglas Noel Adams (1952 - May 11, 2001 :-( )
>
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List Sponsored by AN Wireless: AN Wireless handles Rohn tower systems,
Trylon Titan towers, coax, hardline and more. Also check out our self
supporting towers up to 100 feet for under $1500!! http://www.anwireless.com
-----
FAQ on WWW: http://www.contesting.com/FAQ/towertalk
Submissions: towertalk@contesting.com
Administrative requests: towertalk-REQUEST@contesting.com
Problems: owner-towertalk@contesting.com
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