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Re: [TowerTalk] Rohn AS25G inside a 25G tower

To: towertalk@contesting.com
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Rohn AS25G inside a 25G tower
From: "Joe Subich, W4TV" <lists@subich.com>
Date: Sun, 10 May 2015 09:42:52 -0400
List-post: <towertalk@contesting.com">mailto:towertalk@contesting.com>

The Rohn 25AG2 section has a 2' 9" length of 2.25" OD x 2.06" ID tubing
for a "nose".  The only place the AS25AG accessory shelf will fit is in
the 1' 3 3/4" open space right below the top tube with the "ears up" - unless you decide to cut the diagonals out of one bay down the section
or notch the side of the AS25AG to fit around the diagonal bracing at
the specific install point.

In practice, it's necessary to remove one set of diagonal bracing on
the 25G sections to install/replace a rotator at any place other than
the very top in any case because most rotators are too large to fit
through the bracing or rotate once in place.

73,

   ... Joe, W4TV


On 2015-05-10 8:03 AM, TexasRF--- via TowerTalk wrote:
Bruce, to add another piece to your puzzle: Using a 1.5" mast sounds like
you have a 25AG or 20AG top section that was intended for use with a 1.25"
mast.  These top sections are made with a top tube about 1.7" i.d. and a
reducing  collar welded to the end of the tube to make a 1.25" mast fit. The
25AG and 20AG  tops were made to fit a small rotator for tv use.

Many of these top sections are around that have the collar removed to allow
  use of a 1.66" o.d. water pipe mast.

I have not seen one for ages and don't recall the exact rotator mounting
arrangements. They likely are different from the current 25AG2 design.

73,
Gerald K5GW






In a message dated 5/10/2015 6:24:52 A.M. Central Daylight Time,
bcarling@cfl.rr.com writes:

Thanks  ROger,

Again this is an 8 foo tlong mast going inside a 9 foot top  section, so
therefore the rotor plate
must go somewhere in th emiddle in  the section of 25G and this is not
obviously possible to
do...

Several folks e-mailed me off the list. They too apparently  have never run
across this
problem...

Here is another reminder of  the issue from Bruce Ferratt, facing a similar
situation to mine
with an  AS25G (although I am not needing a thrust bearing) from this group
a few years  ago:

Hello.
If one wants to use a thrust bearing on a Rohn  25G and have a rotor plate
too, the accessory shelf will only fit at the  very top of the 'top
section',... this is where there is no  zig-zag/crossbar in the Rohn
tower,... or down at the very next section  (9-10ft down)  One needs to use
two (2) shelves for this  configuration.  The only way an AS25G plate will
fit about 4-5ft down  in the top section is if you: 1) cut a crossbar
out,...OUCH! and there  goes the integrity of the top section ( I guess you
could re-weld this  back) or, 2) cut the plate down and notch it for the
rotor  install.

I think that using a mast that goes down further inside (10ft  to the next
section) is overkill for my application.  I am mounting a  Tribander with a
stacked vertical for 2m/440. Thanks for your  recommendations!
73
Bruce
K4BOF


On 10 May 2015 at 6:55,  Roger (K8RI) on TT wrote:

It's been awhile, but IIRC I had no  problems installing the shelf made
for the 25G in the 25G.  I  had to shim the 45G shelf in the 45G with
1/8th in X 1" shims, but  nothing on the 25G.  It was a snug fit and took
a little moving  the shelf around to get it in place.  I did install the
shelf  some 5' below the top .  I used the flat plate top on a regular
  tower section as I do in the 45G.

I'd like to find a fold  over, crank up to replace the 100' 45G.

73

  Roger (K8RI)



On 5/9/2015 9:21 PM, Bry  Carling AF4K wrote:
Greetings - This is not a new topic by any  means, but here is my
dilemma:

I have a Rohn 25AG2  top section (I believe) and also a 25ASG rotator
shelf both courtesy  of
Bill K4XS.  I would like to install the shelf plate  inside a 25AG2 (I
think it is) top section that is
9 feet long,  to support my HAM-M rotator. I also have a nice alloy
mast from Bill that is 8  feet
long and 1.5" diameter. I would like to have the mast stick  out a few
feet above the top of the
tower. This seems to not be  easy to accomplish. The rotator shelf will
not go into the tower
  section. There seem to b esome hack solutions that might work, but...
  >
I have read a few horror stories from fellows trying to  install the
HAM-M and rotator plate
inside a 25G mast.  What  is the best approach to this, given that the
plate will not go inside
  > the tower section?

ANY insights would be deeply  appreciated... Here is the history I
found from this list. There
  was discussion about cutting away part of the 25G's horizontal or
diagonal  braces in order to
install these items. That sounds like a bad  idea.  What is the best
solution please? Perhaps I
am  missing something here...

Brian Carling,  AF4K

I am getting ready to install a Ham-4  rotator in a Rohn 25AG3 top
section.
The 25AG3 doesn't have  enough room in the "open" area at the top of
the
section to  accomodate the height of the rotator.  The rotator is too
big to
  >> push down further into the tower and will not rotate inside the tower
  except
where the tower sections join together.
  >From reading later messages on this subject, it appears that your top
is  not
really a 25AG3.  Later, you said you thought it was a  25AG.  In fact,
I am
reading lots of confusing data on this  relector about Rohn tops that
does
not agree with my Rohn  book.  For example, K7LXC says there are 5 Rohn
tops
and I  think there are 6, not counting the short tops.  My book says
there  is
a 25AG, 25AG1, 25AG2, 25AG3, 25AG4, and 25AG5.  All of  them are "pipe
tops"
of one sort or another except the 25AG4  which is a "flat top".

On two of them, the pipe  extends down into the top section far enough
to
probably  interfere with installing a rotator.  These two are the 25AG1
and
  > the 25AG2.  The 25AG1 has a piece of standard 1 1/4" pipe installed
in it
and it is too small to accept a 2 inch OD mast.  The  25AG2 has a 2.25"
OD 14
guage pipe and it WILL accept a 2 inch OD  mast, so I conclude that you
must
have a 25AG1.  But you  also said you were using 1 1/2 inch pipe for a
mast
and have to  shim it.  This is confusing since 1 1/2 pipe will
obviously not
  > fit inside of a 1 1/4 inch pipe which is what the 25AG1 has.  I
believe you
also mentioned you got a second top used real cheap  and it had a large
hole
in it.  So do you have one top or  two and which one is it?

Another thing you said was  that you were using 1 1/2 inch pipe for a
mast.
DON'T.  I  believe that would be water pipe and there has been TONS of
  information about problems with using water pipe for masts, not to
mention
they don't fit without shims into a standard 2 inch  thrust bearing, 2
inch
ID pipe top, or any Ham-M, II, III, IV, or  Tailtwister.  Rohn makes a
10
foot mast (M200H) that will  work for most modest installations.  If
you need
something  stronger or longer than that, talk to K5RC at Productivity
Resources.
  >
It looks like the best place for it is at the top of the  "next to top"
section. The rotator should rotate freely  there, but how do I get it
in or
out without lifting the top  section and the antenna?
I have two Rohn 25 towers with rotators  installed at the top of the
section
just below the top  section.  One of them has a Tailtwister in it and
the
other  has a Ham IV.  They both work just fine and have for 23 years.
To  get
the rotators in the tower, I cut one of the horizontal braces  out of
the
bottom of the top section (and yes, Steve, you DO have  to cut a
horizontal
brace out to get the rotator mounted in this  location.)  I did not
bother to
reinstall the cut brace and  it has not caused me any problems so far.

Other  items worth commenting on are these:

I agree with  Steve, K7LXC, that a Ham M, II, III, or IV can be
squeezed into
a  Rohn 25 just about anywhere without cutting any braces.  I have done
  it.
The only place it won't fit is through the "square" formed by  the
horizontal
braces at the top of one section, the horizontal  braces at the bottom
of the
next section above it and the tower  legs.  I never thought I could get
the
rotator inside the  tower through one of those "triangles" either, but
it
will go if  you do it right.

Another comment I have seen is that  once a Ham IV is inside of Rohn
25, it
will "free fall" down the  inside of it.  Not true.  The "ears" on the
Ham IV
  casting are too large to go past the horizontal braces.  This is why
you
have to cut one horizontal brace out of the top section to  put a Ham
IV at
the top of the second section from the top.   You can get the Ham IV
inside
the tower OK, but you can't slide  it down past the set of horizontal
braces
at the bottom of the  top section.

Yet another comment from Steve is that  the AS25G accessory shelf will
mount
just about anywhere inside a  25G section.  I don't agree with this
statement
since the  AS25G interferes with the diagonal braces which are almost
  everywhere in a 25G section or top.  Of course, you could modify the
AS25G
by cutting away some metal to clear the diagonal braces, or  you could
cut
out another set of diagonal braces so a standard  AS25G will fit, but I
would
not recommend this since it would  weaken the tower considerably.

I have designed a  prototype of a new Rohn 25 rotator shelf which
clears the
  diagonal braces in 25G and would truly allow installation of a Ham IV
just
about anywhere in a 25G section or top without cutting out  any braces
at
all.  Maybe I should consider making a  production run of these shelves
since
it seems to solve a common  problem for which there is currently no easy
solution.
  >
Is there a demand for such a self priced at about  $40?

Stan  w7ni@teleport.com
  >


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--

73

Roger (K8RI)


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