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Re: [TowerTalk] Plumbing a Tower

To: "David Gilbert" <xdavid@cis-broadband.com>,"Dale Martin" <kg5u@hal-pc.org>
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Plumbing a Tower
From: "Marlon K. Schafer (509) 982-2181" <ooe@odessaoffice.com>
Date: Mon, 11 Dec 2006 16:11:11 -0800
List-post: <mailto:towertalk@contesting.com>
Do NOT buy a cheap one.  I have a black and decker.  Decent unit, or so I 
thought.

Can't see the lines in sunlight.

What REALLY sucks though is that it's not really level!  Over 30' it's about 
4" lower on one side than the other.

I really like it, in fact I'm hooked on them.  Gonna have to go find a 
really good one though.  And test it well before buying it.
Marlon
(509) 982-2181                                   Equipment sales
(408) 907-6910 (Vonage)                    Consulting services
42846865 (icq)                                    And I run my own wisp!
64.146.146.12 (net meeting)
www.odessaoffice.com/wireless
www.odessaoffice.com/marlon/cam



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "David Gilbert" <xdavid@cis-broadband.com>
To: "Dale Martin" <kg5u@hal-pc.org>
Cc: <towertalk@contesting.com>
Sent: Tuesday, November 28, 2006 8:54 AM
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Plumbing a Tower


>
> Hi, Dale.
>
> I don't have a tower up yet (planning one for this coming spring), but I
> would definitely vote for the laser.  My wife and I have been building
> our own 4500 sq ft home for the last four years and one of the best
> investments I ever made was a really good self-leveling 5-beam laser.
> There were times I got lazy and tried using a plumb bob instead of
> walking a hundred feet to grab the laser, and every time it was a mistake.
>
> I would either buy an inexpensive laser level and fixture it to point
> vertically from the center of the tower base, or I'd check around to see
> if anyone locally in the construction trades would let you borrow a
> professional one.  My Pacific Laser Systems PLS-5 (a new one sells for
> less than $350 now on eBay) is rated to have an accuracy of 1/8 inch at
> 100 feet ... can't beat that.  It self levels so you just position it
> with the downward beam pointed to the center of the tower base and the
> upward beam will set your target up the tower.
>
> Dave  AB7E
>
>
>
> Dale Martin wrote:
>> I played around on the other day doing some mainteance.  I made up a 
>> little
>> jig out of string to suspend between the three legs of my Rohn 25G.  I
>> looped and loosely tied one string to one leg.  I tied the other end of 
>> the
>> string to the horizontal brace directly across from that leg and halfway
>> between the two other legs.  I did the same for the other two legs and
>> strings.  The point at which the strings all crossed each other is 
>> supposed
>> to be the center of the tower...right?
>>
>> I may have done this all wrong.  I read N4KG/K7LXC's comments about 
>> plumbing
>> a tower.  I just used a deep 1/2" socket as my weight and nylon twine as 
>> the
>> line.  Way too light compared to N4KG's #20 wire and 5 lb. window sash
>> weight.  I haven't yet found a day since hanging the line where the wind 
>> is
>> light enough to even let the string hang anywhere near the center even 
>> 20'
>> down from where it's hung.
>>
>> I also think maybe I should do the plumb thing in stages -- in my case, 
>> my
>> tower is 70' and I have two sets of guys.  Should I plumb from the lower 
>> set
>> of guys to get that portion of the tower plumb, then plumb from the upper
>> set of guys to the lower set?   The plumb line would be shorter and maybe
>> less influenced by any wind.
>>
>> Has anyone tried a laser?  Seems like it would be easy to make up a laser
>> target jig to place through the tower, then, on the ground, use a laser 
>> in
>> the center of the tower and aligned to the vertical.  Anyone done that?
>>
>> Comments?  Suggestions?
>>
>> 73,
>> Dale, kg5u
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>>
>>
>>
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>>
>>
>
> -- 
> save the cheerleader ... save the world
>
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