[Towertalk] Crank up tower advice needed

[K7LXC@aol.com]

In a message dated 5/2/02 7:10:56 AM Pacific Daylight Time, 
calzaretta@gohighspeed.com writes:

> I am considering purchasing a US Tower 50 ft crank-up.  I have never put 
>  up a tower before and could use some advice.  Does anyone have an 
>  opinion on US Tower quality, customer service, etc?

    In spite of the fact that they're the 800 pound gorilla, they make a 
great product and bend over backwards to help their customers. 

    Why do you think you need a crank-up? They're more expensive and more 
complicated that other self-supporting or guyed towers. Just curious.

    First thing you need to find out is your local windspeed rating. Go to  
<A HREF="http://www.championradio.com">www.championradio.com</A> and look 
under Tech Notes for your county. 
>  
>  Also, my backyard is not accessible to any vehicles.  Can the tower be 
>  carried by a group of my friends (beer and pizza provided afterwards!)?
>  
    Like they say in engineering circles - it depends. If you've got one that 
weighs several hundred pounds, then it can be hand-carried. If you're more 
ambitious and the tower weighs a bunch more (1k pounds or more), then you 
probably don't have that many friends (that's a joke, son). I've moved a 
1200-pounder with about a dozen people but it's a real grunt. Your 50-footer 
if it's a tubular is manageable by hand. 

    If you get a crank-up, the first trick is to get it off the truck. My 
preferrable method is to have a crane meet me when the truck arrives and he 
gets it off the truck. Then the crane can lift up the tower and lower it into 
position. We're talking about 30-60 minutes here and then the crane is gone. 
It's safe, quick, and relatively cheap ($250-400 depending on size and travel 
time). 

    If a crane is impractical, then you might have to get it to the base 
manually which means horizontally. A small excavator or other piece of 
equipment from your rental yard will be really helpful in moving it. 

    This presupposes that the base is ready to go. When you order the tower, 
have them send you the base fixture or template and bolts right away - then 
you've got plenty of time to get the base installed before the tower arrives. 

>  Are the crank-up towers easy to crank-up and tilt over (with the 
>  optional equipment)?

    Easy? That depends. I'd say that the smallest 20% of all crank-ups can be 
hand cranked. That means that 80% of them can't. That's why US Tower has 
motor drives available for all of them.

    Tilt-over? If you need to bring it in horizontally, then using the 
tilt-over fixture will enable you to get it vertical easily. But IMO they're 
not worth the money because what you're saying is that you'll be tilting the 
tower down to work on the antenna(s). Once they're installed properly (which 
is easily done with the tower vertical), why would you have to work on them 
again? But if you have a compelling reason to use it - knock yourself out. 

    But I guess the basic questions are what do you want do with your 
proposed tower/antenna system and what sort of limitations do you have?

Cheers,
Steve     K7LXC
TOWER TECH -
Professional tower services for commercial and amateurs