[Towertalk] 'Toes' of a tower concrete base

[K7LXC@aol.com]

In a message dated 6/28/02 8:18:34 AM Pacific Daylight Time, wa3gin@erols.com 
writes:

> My guess is sales of towers were dropping as the cost of concrete went up...
> at
>  todays cost the concrete and digging the hole cost more than the tower!  
> Then ad
>  the cost of a climbing belt and gin pole and the little 50ft self 
supporting
>  tower becomes a couple thousand dollar project.

    And your point is...?

    This stuff has never been free.

    What does tower sales have to do with concrete cost? What tower sales? To 
what market? 

    A backhoe is relatively cheap for what it does. Besides the excavation, 
for a decent sized hole you also use the backhoe to pick up the couple 
hundred pound rebar cage and drop it in the hole. A $200-400 charge is worth 
every penny. 

    A safety belt (what? no fall arrest harness?) is part of the cost of 
being a tower owner. You can buy a new one with positioning lanyard for $75. 
Big deal.

    I thought I'd won the lottery when I bought my first tower for $150. It 
was a Rohn HBX in sorry shape. By the time I got done with tower, concrete, 
antenna, rotator, and cables - my $150 tower was now in the $1100 range. And 
this was 25 years ago. 
    
Cheers,
Steve      K7LXC
TOWER TECH - 
Professional tower services for commercial and amateur