[TowerTalk] mast weight on the rotor or thrust bearing?

[K8RI on TowerTalk]

<snip>>>  If the answer is to put the weight on the rotor,  then it seems to 
me that
> I'll have to do the final adjustment of the  bearing screws after 
> installing
> the 40-2CD, not when I install the mast. In  other words, after installing
> the antenna, I'll have to loosen the bearing  screws so that the extra 
> weight
> of the antenna is transferred to the rotor.  Is that right?
>
>
> If you've already got the weight of the  mast alone on the rotator, that's
> probably enough. But I don't think anything  you do will cause a fatal 
> problem.
>

It depends on the distance between the thrust bearing and the rotator.
IF the mast is fastened firmly in the rotator and clamped in a thrust 
bearing and the mast is long enough AND the coefficent of expansion of the 
tower and the mast are different enough, they can not only remove the load 
from the rotator, but actually pull against the top of the rotator.

I'm not saying that would happen in this case, but it is something that 
needs to be taken into consideration.

Roger Halstead (K8RI and ARRL 40 year Life Member)
N833R - World's oldest Debonair CD-2
www.rogerhalstead.com
>
> Cheers,
> Steve    K7LXC
> TOWER TECH
>
>
> _______________________________________________
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> TowerTalk mailing list
> TowerTalk at contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
>