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[TowerTalk] Universal Freestanding Tower

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Subject: [TowerTalk] Universal Freestanding Tower
From: aa4lr@arrl.net (Bill Coleman)
Date: Mon, 11 Feb 2002 16:56:59 -0500
On 2/7/02 9:09 PM, Stephen Vinson at kd4wiw@ipass.net wrote:

>Not having read all the post, and I'm not looking to stir up a cans of
>worms.  But aircraft aluminum is a special alloy that is already hardened and
>stressed.  

Depending on the aircraft, the typical alloys you find are the garden 
variety 6061-T6, 2024-T3, etc. Certainly nothing more exotic than 7075-T6.

6061-T6 is the most common structural aluminum manufactured. Common as 
dirt. You're just as likely to find it in lawn furniture as aircraft.

>Aircraft also must under go annual inspections to look for stress
>cracks and failures.  Proper inspection of aluminum as well as steel towers
>is a constant necessity.

I believe this is my point -- proper ANNUAL inspection could probably 
avoid many tower failures, regardless of material.

If aluminum were subject to extensive hardening and sudden failure -- it 
would be immediately disqualified as an aircraft building material.

Come to think of it -- why don't all those vibrating aluminum ANTENNAS 
work harden and break, eh?



Bill Coleman, AA4LR, PP-ASEL        Mail: aa4lr@arrl.net
Quote: "Not within a thousand years will man ever fly!"
            -- Wilbur Wright, 1901


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