Elevated cable runs

[K7LXC at aol.com]

In a message dated 96-05-03 15:33:34 EDT, you write:

>Scott, elevated cable runs are an open invitation for lightning and other
>problems.Use em if you have to, but be aware of the dangers!
>
Tom --

      Over 90% of commercial cellular, paging, broadcast, communications and
microwave installations all have elevated cable runs.  I'm not sure what you
 mean by your statement about the dangers.

      ANY ungrounded cable represents a voltage potential difference to
ground.  Their being elevated doesn't seem to me to make much difference to
potential lightning damage than any other installation method (underground,
etc.).  What about the "cone of protection" offered by the tower itself?
 That alone should prevent a direct lightning strike to the cables.  If
lightning hits the tower, everything that is at a different voltage potential
can arc including cable to cable, tower to cable, etc. 

    I'm going to cc. the reflector as I don't know who put on the original
post.

73,   Steve    K7LXC

            TOWER TECH -- professional tower supplies and services for
amateurs

>From aa4lr at radio.org (Bill Coleman AA4LR)  Fri May  3 23:01:18 1996
From: aa4lr at radio.org (Bill Coleman AA4LR) (Bill Coleman AA4LR)
Date: Fri, 3 May 1996 18:01:18 -0400
Subject: Re[2]: Burying the mike
Message-ID: <v01540b04adb02c1a2bcd@[206.28.194.40]>

>     Steve,
>
>     Hooray!  At least there is one honest soul out there!
>
>     That advice was given to me 36 years ago by my dad, W3ESU.
>
>     I got two flames by recent upgrades from shack-on-a-belt class who
>     felt you should at least "coast a year" after all that unnatural
>     mental effort....
>
>     Geez!
>
>     CW to me is a simple skill as natural as talking.  After all, any fool
>     can talk into a mike... quite a few do.

I sorta disagree with this sentiment. Don't bury the mike, but don't bury
the key either.

When I got my General back in 1979, I tried HF phone, but found I couldn't
communicate as well with my meager antennas as I could on CW. So I did a
bit of both. By the next year, I upgraded to Extra.

Biggest problem with most folks isn't that they operate phone, but they
fail to find out how much fun CW can be. So strive for some balance.

Oh, and don't forget to try some VHF FM, CW and SSB, as well as RTTY, SSTV,
Packet and other modes. It is a big hobby!


Bill Coleman, AA4LR, AA96LR      Mail: aa4lr at radio.org
Quote: "Not in a thousand years will man ever fly!"
            -- Wilbur Wright, 1901