Thank you very much. I thought that might be the way to do it. That is exactly what I am building for a large corner reflector project. I tried to draw that out like you did horizontaly and it did not come out as nice as yours.Thanks again.

I'm trying to build a 70cm centerfed collinear. The only documents I can find on it show 2 quarter wave shorted stubs. Does anyone know if the stubs are to be made from coax or am I supposed to use the same material as the element.( bending a slightly larger halfwave section perpendicular to the elements) I hope I am explaining my problem clearly.

I know a few building supply yards in the Columbus,Ohio area will mix 1 yard at a time for you. You can rent a small dump trailer that will hold about a yard and a half from the same place. You might look into that as well.

Thank you for the replies. I have made a few contacts on 146.52 in the past few weeks. I will definetly try 146.46 John. I do not currently have a rig for ssb though.

Thanks again.
73
Jim

To get beat up that bad, you must be doing something wrong. Between my brother, sister and myself, I haven’t experienced too many of those injuries nor have they. If you are aware of what you are doing you have little to worry about. Yes, working in the elements is not pleasant. As for being lucrative, that was the most money I have ever made without college education. I've been all over the United States and Bermuda. I have had allot of great views and do not regret one moment that I worked on towers. If I did not start a family I would still be doing it. Everyone has his or her opinion though. I say give it a shot. If you do not like it, find something else. Opportunity is everywhere.

Here is a picture from a tower in Bermuda that my sister and I inspected. We spent 10 days there and had a blast.
http://img367.imageshack.us/img367/1933/bermuda6rs.jpg

73's
KC8JPZ
Jim

Does anyone know of any simplex clubs in the central Ohio area for VHF or UHF? Seems like you have to have a repeater to start a club. Would it be feasible to have a simplex club in a city such as Columbus? Or would the range just be to difficult to achieve something like this? Thanks for any input. Also, if there is anyone located on the West side of Columbus that would want to try and make contact with myself let me know.I also have 6 meter capabilities with my HT. Maybe we can start something here.

Thanks,
KC8JPZ
Jim

Having two siblings that still climb, and myself that had some time in the industry. Finding a tower job is not too difficult. A good resource that may help you the National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE). http://www.natehome.com/ The people there are very helpful and will do anything they can to help you out. If you would like you can email me and I will get you setup with my brother or sister who are well known in the industry and will surely help you any way they can. As mentioned before, fabrication skills are very important in the erection of towers or co-location of cell sites. All the certs you will need will be provided by the tower company you would work for. Most of the certifications are for the clients you would be working for such as the OSHA competent climbers class and other courses provided by different companies in fall protection and high angle rescue. It can definitely be an exciting career if you have the dedication it takes to be on the road. My travels took me through out the States and also to Bermuda, twice. Also be prepared for the lovely trend of working North in the winter and South in the summer. Maybe a Duluth trip in mid February. That’s a pleasant one.

Good Luck,
KC8JPZ
Jim

I guess I was pretty sure the 1 5/8" was going to be over kill. I do have plenty of 7/8" heliax which I have used before. Looks like maybe a trailer ride to Dayton for the big stuff. Unless someone around the area could use any. It could make ya sick to see how much of this stuff I've seen cut down and hauled to scrap in 10' chunks.

Thanks for the input.
KC8JPZ
Jim

As Steve,KAØGKT/7 mentioned. Toprail would work good. I work for a fence manufacturer and thought about this many times. You can buy top rail in 1 3/8" up to 2" with the ends that are swedged so they fit together similar to the legs of a tower. They come in sticks up to 21' and also powder coated or vinyl.Black and green are the most common.

Good Luck,
KC8JPZ
Jim

I have a 5 gallon bucket of connectors,and have the connector tool.  Most are in good shape. Im just working on getting a place that I can utilize this type of equipment. I dont think the apartment complex would go fo the whole idea.

Jim
KC8JPZ

I was just curious to see if anyone has used any of the larger diameter coax such as Andrew Heliax. I often have the opportunity to pickup 1 5/8" from my brother or sister who are both in the tower industry. Most of the time the cable is in good shape except for a bullet hole or two. The wireless companies generally replace the entire line. Would this just be impractical for amateur use?

Jim
KC8JPZ