[TowerTalk] Tower Replacement - what would you do?

[K0DAN]

My condolences.

If the base and your concrete foundation is per-spec and in good shape, I'd
take the time & effort to look for a Silent Key's estate and try to find
something in the Tash/TriEx LM family. I would be leery of mixing
manufacturers...not that it couldn't be done, but you will have a white
elephant which could have issues down the road, with which you will be out
on your own. OTOH the TriEx/Tash stuff is relatively common and predictable.
And the models have not changed very much of the years.

Do you have local code/zoning issues? Will your tower need to be permitted?
Are you exposed to any liability issues?

Around '98 my prior tower (a 70' TriEx HW series, up for 15+ years) had a
guy anchor failure (DON'T USE SCREW ANCHORS IN SOIL!), it crashed, and was a
total loss. I replaced it with a 1970's vintage LM470 which I bought from
the estate of an SK in Indiana (I am in Kansas City). I think I paid $1K for
the steel and very little knowledge about what I was really getting, altho
the executors of the estate sent me pictures and were as honest as they
could be. I don't remember the details but I had an LTL freight company ship
the tower, a bought a new tilt-base, tilt-assembly, motor, cables, hardware,
etc., etc., from TriEx, and pretty much spent a year refurbishing the SK's
tower, excavated a new foundation, etc., etc. When all was done, I had
invested a lot of time in phone calls and logistics, my own labor, a
well-digger for the excavation, a full concrete truck, etc., etc.

The nice thing was that the SK's tower was 100% compatible with my new base
and tilt assembly...they bolted together with no issues. No fabrication, no
guessing about engineering specs, etc. Plug and play.

What today would be maybe a $15K installation perhaps cost me $5K. Don't
quote me on that, but it's probably in the ballpark.  It was a LOT of
effort, but the tower is still standing and reliable. Make no mistake, the
tower needs periodic inspection/maintenance, but I am up to that. God
forbid, if I had to replace it again, I might do things differently, but
that is because I am now a bit older, weaker, and lazier.

A friend of mine out east is putting up a NEW Tash 70' self supporter, and
is doing as much of the labor as he can himself, and hiring contractors for
heavy stuff. He should have it completed by the time winter comes around,
and he estimates his final costs will be in the $15K-$20K area (materials +
labor) before he puts antennas and coax on the structure. It is not a
penny-pinching project, but if properly installed and maintained, is
lifetime investment (until you sell your property, haha!).

To your point, if you have a good & reusable base, I would go on the prowl
for any half-decent USED TriEx/Tash LM series tower (plug and play). You
might have a lot of travel & expenses to find the right item and get it to
your QTH, but in the long run you are kind of doing a "component repair".
(Maybe this thread belongs on the Boatanchor reflector?)

GL es 73

Dan
K0DAN

-----Original Message----- 
From: Mickey Baker
Sent: June 18, 2013 10:13
To: towertalk at contesting.com
Subject: [TowerTalk] Tower Replacement - what would you do?

As many of you know, my LM-354HD broke a cable and crashed recently from a
fully extended position. The reason for the crash is that the previous
owner had provided the wrong replacement cable for the tower. I was luck in
that my beam was not on the tower at the time, but the tower is a mess.

I've been looking for a replacement that would fit on the current base -
RCB-70 in a robust base as specified for the LM-470 and the LM-354HD. No
towers in good shape have popped up.

A while back, I reached out to Tashjian and learned that freight from their
factory to my place is about $3,000 - more than half the cost of the
replacement tower itself.

My questions for the group:

1. Has anyone engineered a way to use the Tri-Ex/Tashjian base for another
tower? Aluma tower is relatively close by and, if I could make the current
base work, I would save shipping and have a lighter "temporary
installation" tower that is light enough to easily move.

2. Has anyone worked out a way to save shipping costs from Tashjian? For
example, if two or more people from the same geographical region (or on the
path to Tashjian's facility?) ordered towers, they could hire or take their
own truck and trailer.

I'd appreciate the group's thoughts on the above.
-- 
Mickey Baker, N4MB
Fort Lauderdale, FL
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