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392
Member
Username: 392
Post Number: 93
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, December 07, 2011 - 10:55 pm: | 
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It looks like I have lucked into a 100 foot rohn tower, and have the help I need to take it down and install it at my cabin, remote, no neighbors, all woods!!
Now, I want to operate on 10, 11, 6, 2 and 440, but thats easy because antennas are small.
My question to the experts is, any advice on how to arrange these antennas on one tower is GREATLY appreciated.
I was thinking put my 3 element flat with my GP on top, the very top. This covers 11 and 10. Got my maco 103 flat sided at 100 ft and my ABS1000 GP at about 105 feet! Is that awesome or what!
Now for UHF, I assume I will need to go below, and offset but with a GP I was wondering how it would interact with the tower? SWRs? Direction?
Please chime in , any ideas are appreciated, as always! I would like to know what you guys would do, and I do have a budget for other antennas, if there are better options!
TV antenna and internet will need to be at 50 ft to get above the trees.
Thanks to all, 392/CEF0213 |
Press_man
Intermediate Member
Username: Press_man
Post Number: 306
Registered: 5-2008
| | Posted on Monday, December 12, 2011 - 9:12 am: |
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Howdy Tim,
Cool deal, 100ft, man that can be a nice tower. You'll have all kind of room to side arm antennas.
I had similar choices to make with my last set up. I have a 50 ft Aluma crank up and wanted to run as much on one tower as possible. I used a 12' stacking boom and mounted a V-Quad (Delta loop) for 10 & 11m on the (looking from the back)left side of the boom in the Vert&Horz position, at the center of the boom I mounted a 10 element loop 440 beam then on the far right on the boom I mounted a 13 element yagi for 2 meter, four ft down from the rotor was a Horz loop for 6m.
I put my discone on a mast more than a wave length away from the tower and almost never used it. Of course this was my way of useing what I had, point is there's going to be a trade off somewhere. The next set up may be different.
73
Pressman/KC4ZWM
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392
Member
Username: 392
Post Number: 94
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Monday, December 12, 2011 - 5:19 pm: |
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Ok Press Man, that is interesting and I suppose you had to balance everything perfectly, but very intersting set up on a stacking boom. How does it hold up in the wind? We have strong storms here and 80 - 90 mph winds are common in the spring.
That would work good for me if I could stack my 3 element yagi (vertical) for 10 and 11, and on the other side, a 6,2,440 yagi, and perhaps groundplane in the center. Not sure if the GP would effect the yagis or not?? Something to research. Excellent, thanks!! 392
Thank you for the ideas!! 392 |
Press_man
Intermediate Member
Username: Press_man
Post Number: 307
Registered: 5-2008
| | Posted on Monday, December 12, 2011 - 7:30 pm: |
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Hi again Tim!
The set up held up real good. I used a thrust bearing in a cage and the rotor was an AR 40 so I would still drop the tower in 50 plus mph storms. The balance point was toward the Delta. It all worked good till I took it down.
We have friends in Ft. Worth that we visited in July 1995, we got a taste of the lightning and flash storms you have there. We got there just after a bad hail storm. We went to Six Flags while there with temps hitting 114.
73
Pressman/KC4ZWM
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Tech833
Moderator
Username: Tech833
Post Number: 2082
Registered: 8-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, December 13, 2011 - 12:46 pm: |
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392,
The answer to your question really involves what bands are most important to you.
The high frequency stuff (2m, 440) is most affected by the trees, so getting those up above the trees is paramount.
Directional antennas (beams) that will be on a rotor obviously need to go at the top. That takes care of that. Mount the low band stuff below the high band stuff when stacking beams.
Verticals can be side mounted. Spacing is not as critical as some think, although side mounting does distort the omni pattern. There's a great paper on it with illustrations of pattern vs. spacing here- http://www.rfiantennas.com/downloads/tips/Phasing%20Side%20Mounted%20Dipoles.pdf
Your radio 'Mythbuster' since 1998
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392
Member
Username: 392
Post Number: 97
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Friday, December 16, 2011 - 11:43 pm: |
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OK my first 70 feet arrived today, got another 30 coming next week, with the mast on top and the base, should be up at 110 feet! I am motivated! |
Press_man
Intermediate Member
Username: Press_man
Post Number: 317
Registered: 5-2008
| | Posted on Monday, December 19, 2011 - 7:53 am: |
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392,
Have you thought of finding a top piece for a rotor mount with a built in thrust bearing?
You could have two towers, one for an omni mount and one for beam mount.
2 @ 50' each. One would be 60' with the mast.
A 40' with 10' mast and a 60'.
A 30' with 10' mast and a 70'.
My friend you have all kind of combinations or just the 100 ft with a 10 ft mast.
73
Pressman/KC4ZWM
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392
Intermediate Member
Username: 392
Post Number: 100
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Monday, December 19, 2011 - 9:08 pm: |
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Pressman, here is the deal. I have plenty of space, wooded but could easily support 2 or 3 towers.
The land is in a river botton, so as you approach my place you go downhill about 100 feet below the average elevation.
So the negatave is I am in this 4 mile wide river bottom about 100 feet below the norm, so I believe, could be wrong of course, but for local talk I need to be well above the trees and up as high as possible to get out of the low area...
My main bands are 11, 10 and 2 meters. I still enjoy rag chewing with the local at night on 11 and 2, so "getting out" of that bottom is a factor. I know for skip in the daytime it's not such a big deal...... and the 2 tower setup would be awesome! Great suggestion and yes it would be awesome if I were not so low.
392 |
Press_man
Intermediate Member
Username: Press_man
Post Number: 319
Registered: 5-2008
| | Posted on Tuesday, December 20, 2011 - 8:48 am: |
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Yeah, sounds like you really need the elevation. River bottom huh, man here in my part of Florida, you'd have to bring the property elevation, with a slope, 3 ft above the closest road or not buy it. The county also has passed a new one. Now, if your lot is X amount of square ft and it varies from commercial to residential, you must have a retention pond for rain run off.
From the way it sounds the 100 ft tower will just get you out of the hole. How much of that 4 miles of land is yours?
Best wishes and be safe !
Pressman/KC4ZWM
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392
Intermediate Member
Username: 392
Post Number: 101
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, December 21, 2011 - 5:21 pm: |
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i have 40 acres, nearest neighbor, one mile!
I think I will stack 2 103's, then extend the center mast about another 6 feet and put my 6/2/440 and another foot or so my abs1600. that should cover all my bands, one rotor turning all antennas and the ground plane is up there included! The UFH and GP will be in between the 2, 3 element beams....
Will that work???? Thanks all, 392 |
Press_man
Intermediate Member
Username: Press_man
Post Number: 322
Registered: 5-2008
| | Posted on Thursday, December 22, 2011 - 4:06 pm: |
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Now that's the answer to congestion. Wish I had that distance between me and my neighbors. One has an airboat that he revs up on the weekend, right under our bedroom window. He also has an old Harley with NO mufflers and straight shotgun tipped pipes that comes blap, blap, blap at 3AM after an evening of drinking.
Set up sounds like a plan.
Cheers and have a good and safe holiday.
73
Pressman/KC4ZWM
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392
Intermediate Member
Username: 392
Post Number: 164
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, April 01, 2012 - 10:51 pm: |
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well finally got her up! 103 feet ftom the tip to the ground, not including the mast. No antennas up yet but that will come soon enough. Tried to post pics but the ole 50kb limit is blocking them. Anyway, finally got it up and looks impressive I must say! 392 |
Press_man
Intermediate Member
Username: Press_man
Post Number: 468
Registered: 5-2008
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 04, 2012 - 12:02 pm: |
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392,
Good job getting all 103' in the air. Have ya had a chance to work on the house too?
Seems like every time I try to get anything done on the station, the wife finds another project on the house to be done. I had to hire a lawn guy to make sure that gets done. She just finds too many projects. Hmmmmm, maybe it's a conspirousy.
73
Pressman/KC4ZWM
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392
Intermediate Member
Username: 392
Post Number: 166
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, April 10, 2012 - 9:11 am: |
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We are remodeling as we speak. I have not decided where the shack will go, therefore I have not bought the coax yet! Got a 103 foot tower, but no shack, but it's all on the works. Got the internet antenna up there, it works real well! Beams are assembled but lying on the roof of my metal building. |
Press_man
Intermediate Member
Username: Press_man
Post Number: 472
Registered: 5-2008
| | Posted on Saturday, April 14, 2012 - 6:29 pm: |
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Cool deal, you'll be in the house before you know it. Do you have room to build a room? A 12X12 with dedicated electrical and wall unit AC+Heat.
Anyway that,s close to what I'm doing. A shared media room for the family.
The room's 12X22 it has 6 outlets that are tied to the LR with 14 gauge, they'll only get lamps. I'm going to run conduit under the window ledge and attach boxes pointing out with metal face plates with 12 gauge and I want higher than 15 amp sockets if I can get them.
73
Sorry it took awhile to get back to you.
Pressman/KC4ZWM
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