In a message dated 99-07-16 10:00:13 EDT, egwolfjr@earthlink.net writes:
> I have had a HDBX-48 up for about 4 years and I had secured the coax to the
> outside leg of the tower with black tie wraps. Over the past 4 weeks I
have
> had a number of the tie wraps break and fall to the ground.
>
> I wrapped the tower leg with tape to take away the "edge" that the legs
> before putting on the tie wrap. I opted for tie wraps instead of tape.
>
> My question: Is this the "normal" life for tie wraps?
For white tie wraps - a couple of years or less. They are for indoor
applications and are not UV resistant. Many black tie wraps claim UV
resistance and some actually do. But you don't know until a couple of years
later. What I do is to use a tie wrap in critical spots and then tape over
it. That eliminates any UV problems and is your old 'belt-and'suspenders'
approach to reliability.
> Is there a better
> way to secure coax to the tower? Using wire instead, maybe? I don't like
> the tape method but may go back to it.
Ron had a good post on using pieces of wire and it has some advantages
over tape and/or tie wraps. Tape is fine and actually can last for years. The
big tricks when using tape are 1) tear or cut the tape cleanly without
stretching it. And 2), let the tape relax before applying the last couple of
inches. When you put the end on and it's got tension on it, it's guaranteed
to pull off and flag (that's when you've got an end waving in the breeze).
This is about the only tower application where cheap electrical tape is
acceptable. Use only Scotch 33 or 88 for coaxial joints.
Cheers, Steve K7LXC
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