[TowerTalk] Tower mast..

[K8RI on TowerTalk]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jim Lux" <jimlux at earthlink.net>
To: "JC Smith" <jc-smith at comcast.net>; "'Merlin-7 KI4ILB'" 
<merlin-7 at sc.rr.com>; <TOWERTALK at contesting.com>
Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 11:47 PM
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Tower mast..


> At 05:15 PM 9/18/2006, JC Smith wrote:
>>Hi Joe,
>>
>>If you really want to run a mast all the way to the bottom of the tower 
>>I'd
>>go find a used thrust bearing (the kind that's designed to support both
>>axial and radial loads) at the junkyard for it to set on and use a rotor
>>shelf, which you can use later when you get a real rotor, to secure it to
>>the bottom of the tower.  That steel ball sounds a little hokey to me.
>>You'll need to design some sort of decent brake to keep it from wrapping 
>>up
>>your coax.  Why not just buy a decent rotor?  Can't add too much to the 
>>cost
>>of the project when you figure in all that extended mast stuff.
>
> Old car rear axle and differential takes a pretty good thrust load.

You can go to NAPA and purchase new 32009X wheel bearings for about $32.
These appear to be widely used and a pair are actually used in the PST-61. 
No wonder it's rated to hold over 2600# <:-))

> Welding to the brake drum is a bit of a challenge, but usually, you
> can modify a pipe flange or similar by drilling it for the lug nut 
> pattern.

And as we were talking earlier...that old axel is splined on one end.

Roger Halstead (K8RI and ARRL 40 year Life Member)
N833R - World's oldest Debonair CD-2
www.rogerhalstead.com