Topband: Rule of thumb - Vertical mast/antenna guying geometry?

[g4puq at aol.com]

Summer is here and I plan to erect a Spiderbeam 18m vertical mast to support the upright section of my 160m Inv-L.



I have put the mast together and easily walked it into the upright position. It looked quite impressive, propped up and towering above the tree that usually supports my antenna.



The top 3-4m seem quite "whippy" and I intend to use only the first 15m of the mast. I have a few of questions I'd like to ask both specific to to the Spiderbeam mast and in general.



Has anyone installed a permanent Spiderbeam pole for 160m ? - I would really appreciate any info gained by your experience and useful construction tips. 



Is there a rule of thumb to determine the height, number and angle of guying lines required to secure a mast. It will probably be a bit of a squeeze for me to fit the mast on the preferred plot, and anticipate a degree of QRM from my wife regarding guy lines! Can my tree be used to provide guying points for the mast - not sure if this this is good practice. How rigid should the guying make the mast - its quite windy here.


look forward to hearing from you 



73 Peter G4PUQ

 



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