[TowerTalk] aluminum stock and keepers needed

[W0UN -- John Brosnahan <shr@swtexas.net>]

Art--

Not many places stock/sell 1/8 inch aluminum rod.  It is too fragile for 
typical
warehouse handling and there is not much call.  But you can find
aluminum filler rod (TIG welding) in 1/8 fairly easily.  Unfortunately it
typically comes in too short of lengths (36 inches) to make some of the
longer elements at 2M.

Not to mention that 1/8 inch rod is really too fragile for a 2M antenna.
Even 3/16 inch is very marginal.  But if you insist on 1/8 inch aluminum
rod you CAN get it from Ryerson.  Here is the link to the rod page.
They have warehouses all over the country--but whether they will
have it in stock is another issue.

http://www.ryersontull.com/stocklist/RedbookServlet?COM=GetTable&ID=1662

Stainless steel keepers are also very hard to find in small quantities
other than from antenna manufacturers who buy a lot of them.  A
distributor will have a minimum order that may be intimidating.  The
last time I bought some I ended up buying 1000 ea of the 1/4 inch and 1000
ea of the 3/16 inch ones.  And they still didn't really appreciate my
little order all that much.

The following distributor can get them for you.   I don't recall the
minimum order or the prices but I know that if I wanted a relatively
small quantity that I would buy them from Mike Stahl at M-squared,
although I don't think he has 1/8 inch ones.

http://www.prospectfastener.com/home.htm

Prospect fastener doesn't make them easy to find but you can
click on the Rotor Clip icon:  or on this url
http://www.prospectfastener.com/tapered_section_rings.htm

Then click on TX:
http://www.prospectfastener.com/tx-ty.htm

You'll probably want the TY version--in your case TY-12 SS--because
of the slight "coning" of the fingers that helps to get it started.

Other manufacturers besides Rotor Clip include Waldes, I.R.R, and
Anderton.  But SS versions of these are hard to find at local hardware
stores!!!!   ;-)   As you no doubt have discovered.

This should be enough to get you started, but with minimums etc
you are not going to get off all that cheaply.

73--John   W0UN

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