[TowerTalk] Rotor for Long Cable Run

[David Branson KC0LL]

SteppIR makes a high voltage supply for long cable runs. And the cable [is] wound with pairs, they give the ohm-out in the book and it is on line.

For a rotator, I used the Alpha Spid and a Green Heron controller. This is a great Controller, I did some beta testing for them, works great. I could turn the Alpha Spid rotator a mile away if I wanted, with 4 small wires. I really don't like the Alpha Spid all that much, but for a long cable run it would work good. You just raise the DC supply voltage to get it to turn about 1 RPM. The Spid is made "rough" in many ways, and mine would not fit a 2 inch mast, I had to bore it out! But it is also made strong. The mail gear looks like it came out of a truck's rear end! And, after having it up for a while it still works, I guess that is the bottom line.  





David F. Branson

Senior Technician
Action Communications, Inc. 
Tucson, AZ 
520.792.0326
520.792.2709 fax
KC0LL at comcast.net
www.kc0ll.net
www.ActionCommunications.com

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  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Jim Brown 
  To: TOWERTALK at contesting.com 
  Sent: Sunday, May 10, 2009 10:26 PM
  Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Rotor for Long Cable Run


  On Sun, 10 May 2009 20:18:48 -0400, john at kk9a.com wrote:

  >I would be more concerned about whether the SteppIR will work properly 
  >with that long of a run.

  Hi John,

  Thanks. I'm concerned too. FWIW, I am disgusted with the mfrs of all of these 
  products, including SteppIR, for not publishing specifications for what is 
  essentially a simple Ohm's law problem that all of their customers need to 
  solve when doing due diligence. It is a very simple matter to specify the 
  currents involved, the output of the controller, any adjustment that is built 
  into the controller, and the IR drop that can be tolerated. Starting current?  
  Fine. Specify it. 

  I'm told that SteppIR cable is paired, but there's no indication of which 
  conductors are pairs. In fact, if I wanted to order my own #18 rather than use 
  their #22, I wouldn't know that from reading their documentation. BTW -- if 
  their cable is a foil shield with drain wire, that drain wire can couple RF 
  shield current onto the signal pair by a mechanism called Shield-Current-
  Induced Noise. 

  Ohms Law still works. Give us the data on the product so we can use it!   

  73,

  Jim Brown K9YC


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