Hello TT:
About a week ago I placed a request on towertalk seeking stainless steel
U-Bolts for mounting antennas on my tower in Aruba. I stated that I
purchased some from DX Engineering http://www.dxengineering.com and I was
concerned about their strength. I received a mixture of feedback on these
clamps, some had excellent results and others did not. I have also had
lengthy email conversations with the owner of DX Engineering and it appears
that he may do more testing of his saddle clamps and possibly make some
improvements in the future as a result of our conversations. I believe that
they are good clamps, however for my piece of mind I chose to buy larger
diameter 3/8" 316 SS U-bolts from McMaster Carr. I would like to use DX
Engineering's (was Harbach) saddles for 2 1/2 and 3" pipe, however DX
Engineering won't sell them to me separately. So my choices are to machine
my own saddles or purchase the kits and throw away the 5/16 U-bolts. If
anyone needs 2 1/2" or 3" 5/16 dia" U-bolts maybe we can work something
out. N9RV and KI7WX suggested the following sources for muffler clamps:
http://www.clampsinc.com http://www.summitracing.com . They both sell SS
clamps and this probably would have also worked well, but muffler clamps are
for pipe sizes, not tubing and do not offer a workload rating. Also one
source has $100 minimum order and one was vague on the clamp dimensions.
The muffler clamps would have been the most economical choice.
73,
John KK9A / P40A
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