I've used a PVC pipe around 1.5 or 2" o.d. and ~ 3 feet long, for the
past 11 years. No problems so far but it is braced with dacron from
the insulator end, back up to the mast a few feet above where the PVC
is clamped to the mast. Mine is unprotected from sun but the sun
exposure is less in the Chicago area. Of course when it eventually
fails, it will be in January, hi. If I had it to do over again I
would have used the gray PVC that is supposedly UV resilient, and
taped over it as K9YC suggested. Mine is hung the same way--wire
through dog bone insulator on rope through pulley, pulley attached to
PVC.
I'll bet that an aluminum pipe would work okay since the wire is well
isolated by the insulator, rope, pulley, rope series but use dacron
not wire and a decent insulator.
73
Rob
K5UJ
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