[TowerTalk] Help with beam rotation

[K7LXC@aol.com]

In a message dated 99-03-09 15:44:09 EST, rtudor@att.net writes:

<< I have a TH7 at 40 feet in a Ham IV. I am on the top of a hill at 2000 feet
 ASL. I get a lot of high winds. The beam gets off the correct heading in the
 strong winds.
 
 My question - should I pin the mast to the rotator to stop the rotation? I
 am not sure if I would cause a problem to the rotator.  >>

      My suggestion is to NOT pin it. The problem is that those wind forces
will find the next weak link in the system; in this case, either the ring gear
or brake. It's much easier and cheaper to realign the antenna occasionally
than swap/repair rotators. 

      The neck of the T2X has a hole that you can use to pin the mast if you
choose - the Ham IV does not. The Ham IV also uses smaller U-bolts so it
doesn't have the holding power that a T2X does. 

       What can you do? You could try some thin rubber material between the
mast and clamp although I think that some TowerTalkians have found this to be
unsatisfactory. One fix that I think did work was to apply some ScrewGrab
where the metal to metal contact is. ScrewGrab is a marvelous tool - it's got
little diamond-shaped material in suspension. It'll increase friction by 400%
and is VERY usefull for removing stripped screws and nuts. Just put a drop or
two where you need the friction and your problem will be solved. It's five
bucks for a tube from Champion Radio Products - http://www.championradio.com.

Cheers,   Steve   K7LXC
Champion Radio Products

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