Jon,
If presented with your choice, you're right--put them both up (hi hi).
The size of the base on the crank-up is very large. I have two or three
friends with self supporting towers in their garage because they bought them
without understanding the size of the hole it takes to support the tower
properly. Check the design material before you buy -- cement around these
parts is about $100 to $120 / yd. If you plan to move any time soon, the
slab stays and actually detracts from the value of your property. LBB (let
the builder beware).
I have a Rohn 25 tiltover. The guys are a beautiful thing in the eyes of
most hams, neighbors and XYLs and Realtors will disagree (there is no
accounting for taste hi hi). The 25 tower will be guyed and the crank-up
will not. Make sure the XYL knows what to expect if you go with the 25 (I
speak from experience).
How do you feel about climbing? If you think the crank-up is going to solve
alot of problems, think again. I don't know what the collapsed height is on
your project but if it is 20', you can still effectively kill yourself when
working on antennas. At 32 ft/sec^2, you will be moving at a pretty good
clip from 22' or so. To some extent, working on short towers vs high towers
is like moving your family 5 miles or 20 miles. It's still alot of work and
the same steps and safety procedures are involved in the process. Belts and
helmets are still very much in order.
I've been struggling with the issue of self supporting vs guyed towers since
I bought my first tower--a free standing 60'. It sat in my garage for about
2 years. I just sold it this spring--it never got used. Now it is sitting
in that guy's garage and will probably never get used due to issues
illustrated above.
Good luck. "Youse puts up yours moneys and youse take whats you gets..."
There is fallout either way.
Ford-N0FP
ford@cmgate.com
List Sponsored by AN Wireless: AN Wireless handles Rohn tower systems,
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