It was a slow ride up to Great Falls, VA–lugging the Rohn 55G & the Heliax & assorted pieces/parts for WA2BCK’s install. But everything proceeded according to plan, as we stacked 40 feet of the tower by hand, then assembled the remaining six sticks for lifting into place with the crane. Then it was time check the antennas (OptiBeam 40/30 & 4L SteppIR) for proper assembly & so forth. And then measure & prep the Heliax. Thursday AM found the crane easing down the sloping backyard, into position, & we had the tower placed in a few minutes. Then we struggled from guy post to guy post (one anchor is 15 feet below the tower base!) to get them properly tensioned & the tower plumb. Then W2GD went up & I rigged the antennas
for hoisting into place. The small size of the yard made the lift particularly difficult, as well as the interference from the guys. Several spectators & helpers were available, so work progressed smoothly. It was actually harder getting the SteppIR slid in & under the 40/30 Yagi than anything else, as it meant the crane’s boom was literally only a couple inches from the topmost guy. Since that’s Polygon Rod, we were apprehensive, of course. But all went well, then began the tedious cable dressing down the tower. Yesterday, I finished weather-proofing all the connections. Tom tested everything late last night & all works very well. While he was enjoying his new antennas, I was struggling to get out of the Washington DC corridor–what with the holiday & weekend traffic, a most unpleasant experience.
Met two clients today at the Shelby Hamfest to discuss their project needs.
Off to K9CT’s out in IL on Monday, to finish his installation. Then wrap up at KC9QQ’s on the return leg of the trip.
stay tuned….
