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[Towertalk] attaching coax to the tower legs

To: <towertalk@contesting.com>
Subject: [Towertalk] attaching coax to the tower legs
From: na9d@speakeasy.net (Jon Ogden)
Date: Tue, 08 Oct 2002 06:41:00 -0500
on 10/7/02 8:24 PM, KB2HUK@aol.com at KB2HUK@aol.com wrote:

> <PRE>In what fashion should coax coming down the tower be attached to the legs
> of 
> the tower , I am using LMR 400 Coaxial cable ?   thanks    John KB2HUK

Are you asking about grounding or just attaching?  For grounding,
I've seen pictures of how people have used PL-259 bullets and Andrew
grounding kits.  For my tower, I decided to use "blitz bugs" or "static
arrestors" as I have heard them called.  These are basically an adapter that
is an SO-239 on one end and a PL-259 on the other.  The body is made out of
metal and there's a screw hole in the body where you put a screw and
terminal lug which is connected to your ground wire which is then connected
to the tower.  There's a picture of one at:

http://www.cablexperts.com/images/pic10.jpg


If you want to know how to run it down the tower and physically attach it, I
just ran the cables as neatly as possible down one of the legs and taped
them to the leg every few feet with good quality electrical tape.  I am
using a Belden equivalent of LMR400 which is RF400 (Picked up a couple
hundred feet at Dayton last year for 25 cents a foot or so!).  K7LXC's
comments about the tape were right on.  I wouldn't worry too much about cold
flow of the foam dielectric.  I've had LMR 400 taped in various
configurations for years on my roof tripods and masts with no problems and
now with a tower, I am doing a similar thing.  I wouldn't use RG-213 unless
I had too.  Loss is too high compared to the LMR400.

73,

Jon
NA9D

-------------------------------------
Jon Ogden
NA9D (ex: KE9NA)

Life Member: ARRL, NRA
Member:  AMSAT, DXCC

http://www.qsl.net/ke9na

"A life lived in fear is a life half lived."


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