[TowerTalk] Erecting tower sections solo

[Donald Chester]

> I seem to recall a thread a long time ago about how Bill, KM9P, 
> put up his towers without any assistance.  But, except for posting where he 
> stated he did so, I cannot find any details about how he did it. 
> In particular, once the tower section is hauled up with the gin pole
> how is the tower section moved up and down as needed to seat it
> on the existing tower?

>Terry N4TZ

> Why take the risk...ANY risk for the sake of this hobby? If you can't find 
> someone to help you pull up a section of ROHN 25, ...wait for a day when you have some help. That
> way when you need to have the NEXT section sent up, there is someone down 
> there to tie it on and you don't have to CLIMB BACK DOWN to do it.  Sure a lot less work when 
> you think about it ... and safer to oot.  -Mike


At age 38 I erected up my 127' base-insulated Rohn 25G tower solo, except for the first section where I needed a couple of people to help hold it vertical while I attached temporary guys to the anchors.  After that, I decided it was safer to do it alone, because the local Hammy Hambone helpers all wanted to be boss - a  sure invitation to disaster, and I couldn't afford to hire a professional crew.

I carefully studied the Rohn book and other publications on tower erection, and talked to a few experienced tower workers before attempting the job.  It was a slow process, working on weekends and occasional days off from work during the week, erecting a section or two up at a time. I had the holes for the concrete dug by late June, and the concrete poured in mid July, hot as hell. I got the first 30' erected by cold weather, when I quit for the winter.  Started back to work the following spring and finished around the 1st of May. Eleven months to complete a job wouldn't have been acceptable for professional work, but since it was for a personal hobby, I had all the time in the world.

I purchased a real Rohn gin pole along with the tower hardware.  At that time, in 1981, it cost a little over $100.  I purchased a spool of of sisal rope, a little over double the final length of the tower. At the time I used an old Signal Corps leather climbing belt and ungodly heavy lanyard, having never heard of a full body harness at the time.  I used an extra lanyard so that whenever I had to cross a guy point, I would secure one lanyard above the guy point before releasing the one below, in order to remain tied off 100%. 

My procedure was to climb the tower, attach the new section, move the gin pole to the top of the new section, climb back down, attach the rope to the next section, pull it up to position, tie the other end of the rope to a rung near the bottom of the  tower, then climb to the top, manhandle the section in place, attach the bolts and then slip the gin pole to top of the new section and repeat the process.  It was slow, and I certainly got plenty of exercise climbing up and down the tower.

I did have one near mishap.  With about 100' of tower erected, I had just pulled the next section to position, tied off the rope, and decided to take a break.  While resting, I glanced over at the tower just in time to see the section falling.  Apparently I had neglected to tie the  rope securely an the knot failed.  I was sure the falling section was going to clip a guy wire and the whole thing would come down, but the only damage was a  chipped strain insulator and a bent tower section leg, so I had to purchase a replacement.  From then on, I was doubly sure to check the know whenever I  tied off a subsequent section. Since the falling section was still attached to the rope and pulled it up through the gin pole and pulley as it fell, that slowed down the descent enough to limit damage.

I never had any problem with fear of heights or climbing towers, but one thing I could never get used to was being on a tower section or two above the top guy point and leaning back on the climbing belt, and feeling the whole tower sway with me.  I  could stand on the ground and look at the thing thinking, sure that tower is engineered to withstand the  stress from my leaning back, but I never could convince myself of that while actually on the tower, so I used a set of temporary guys made of #10 copperweld, moving them up every 10' as each section was added, attaching them on the climb to re-locate the gin pole.  That slowed down the project substantially, and I knew guys made from  #10 wire would offer little protection, but all the temporary guys had to do was to immobilise the  tower while I moved about in the climbing belt and I felt perfectly at ease, which certainly made the work less hazardous.

My only assistance was from my wife who would occasionally put stuff in a bucket which I would haulup using the rope.  Once the tower was erected, I still had to make numerous trips to the top to attach the antenna.

Last spring, at age 72, I climbed the tower several more times to replace the top set of guys, which appeared dangerously rusted.  This time I used up-to-date safety equipment, including a full body harness, lightweight nylon lanyards and fall arrest lanyard.  I was a little slower than at age 38 when erecting the tower, but I still felt perfectly at ease on the tower. I did have an assistant on the ground to help with the work and to call for help in case of a mishap or medical emergency.

Incidentally, after replacing the guy wires I cut the old ones at several of the rustiest points, and found mostly sound metal through every strand; the rust was only a thin layer on the surface.  Those guys would have likely remained intact for years to come, so now I feel guy replacement to be less urgent.  Nevertheless, I have the material on hand and plan to replace the lower sections of guys next spring, so those guys don't become dangerously rusted after I'm too old and decrepit to climb.

Don k4kyv