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You can
write your own review of the Glen Martin Towers.
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FROMABQ
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Rating: 4/5
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Oct 22, 2006 19:54
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Sturdier than expected
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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It's interesting to see the wide variance in reviews here.
I purchased an 18' roof tower that is mounted on my patio roof and supports a 3 element SteppIR beam. Overall, I'm very happy with the final result.
The tower arrives in an amazingly small box, about 2 inches by 8 inches by 8 feet. The box contains LOTS of parts. You have to bolt the whole thing together. This took 3 or 4 hours of work but, actually, it was kind of fun.
When the tower first arrived there were some problems with missing and misdrilled parts but the Glen Martin folks were very responsive in getting the correct parts out to me and fixing the problems.
Before I got it put up I was concerned about overall strength and the effect it would have on my roof. I put it up with blocking and with no guying as described in the instructions and the result was very sturdy -- much sturdier than I thought it would be.
We get very strong winds here and the first time we had a good blow (40 to 50 mph winds) I climbed up on the roof to see how it was holding up. The SteppIR was flapping around quite a bit but the combined roof/tower structure hardly seemed to notice. No sign of flex or strain at all and no creaking in the roof.
It's been up for about 6 months now with no problems despite some pretty hefty storms this summer.
All in all I'm very happy with the result.
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W0LC
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Rating: 1/5
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May 1, 2006 05:58
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Wouldn't buy one again
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I purchased an M1350 direct from GM not long ago. Here are some of my experiences with this company.
1. Tower was left at the shippers dock and I had to rent a truck to go get it. Another fee that I was reimbursed. GM wouldn't stand behind thier shipping even though I paid for it up front.
2. Tower assembly wasn't too bad, although the base plate holes weren't properly drilled or lined up based upon the blue prints.
3. Guying at the top presents a problem if you plan on installing anything other then an HF or 6 meter beam. The guy attachments preclude one from raising a VHF beam without them interfering with the antenna's elements as you crank up the hazer.
4. Tower flexes a bit and twists in the wind. Something I am not comfortable with. I think the sections could be more rigid and sturdy.
5. Walking it up, it definitely bends like a noodle and you can really see it. Makes me wonder about durability and strength.
6. Customer service. I called with some questions and got a sales girl. GIve up on talking to anyone that knows anything. Lousy customer service.
7. Instructions could be better written. They ought to contact an amateur and have them walk through the instructions and make improvements.
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W7IS
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 27, 2005 23:54
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Great Product
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I purchased a 26ft Glen Martin roof tower. It came in 5 boxes sent via UPS. Several of the heavy boxes had broken open but I was missing only one piece part. It comes as a 17.5 ft tower with an add on 8.5ft heavy duty lower section. There is a 2 page assembly manual for the 17.5 ft tower but the 8.5ft add on section had no inventory of parts and no assembly instructions. So I had to spend an extra day talking with Glen Martin and they sent some engineering pictures via email that provided enough help to figure it out. The assembly required modifying the 17.5 ft tower with some internal cross braces and some heavier angle braces in one area. The legs on the 26 ft tower are NOT set up to allow it to be tipped over. So I had to drill new mounting holes in all four feet so it could be tipped over like the 17.5 ft tower can be. The legs are held to the roof with 2 bolts on each leg and the 2nd bolt hole is drilled after you have the it laying on the pitch of the roof. I was able to assemble the 17.5 section with it sitting on two 6ft long tables. The first two sections are surprisingly light weight. If I were the one who designed the 17.5 tower I would have used angle aluminum for all the braces rather than the light weight tubular braces. The 8.5 ft add on section is very heavy duty with aluminum angle metal for all the braces. The four lower side rails are solid 2” angle aluminum ¼” thick. While the upper two tower sections are 1 ½” angle alum 1/8” thick. The tower can only be climbed on one side. If I were to order it again I would have them send climbing ladder steps for all four sides. The heavy steps wouldn’t add that much weight but it would provide for a more sturdy construction. Plus its lots more convenient to be able to climb all four sides while working on the ant. If you were to accidentially step on one of the light tubular braces used on the two upper sections, it would easily bend them. The top of the tower came drilled to allow the high quality Yaesu GS-065 thrust bearing to bolt on. The Yaesu GS-065 thrust bearing is a new design that has 8 heavy bolts to position the mast and a set of four unique retaining plates that prevents the positioning screws from coming in direct contact with the mast. The Yaesu GS-065 is the best designed thrust bearing I’ve ever come across. I didn’t mount the 26ft tower on the roof. I decided to place it on the second story deck instead. The deck is 50ft long which allowed the tower to tip up and I added the quad elements as I was tipping it up. I purchased it with the medium duty 9ft alum mast which added six feet to the tower height. With the large 42” base it seems to be very stable and sturdy. I beefed up the bottom of the deck the same way you would with a roof. I gave them a 5 rating even though I had to spend an extra day making up my own assembly manual for the lower 8.5ft section. It sure solved the tower problem without having to pour concret. And so far I am more than pleased with the result. If you were planning on installing this 26ft tower on the roof, it would normally require a boom truck to lift it onto the roof. I don’t have a web site to post pictures of the finished product with the LB quad but I do have digital pictures taken as I assembled it. To tip it up I placed a 20ft chain around the tower, 9ft from the bottom, and used an 8ft beam to support a chain hoist. Frank W7IS
I wrote up a journal with pictures and detailed describtion of the Glen Martin 26ft roof tower at the following link: I hope it helps others who are thinking about a Glen Martin roof tower. For me, it was the perfect solution for an economical tower. Its a great product but it could stand some improvement as I indicated in the journal.
http://journals.aol.com/w7is/GlenMartin26ftTowerInstall/
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VE2CU
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Rating: 5/5
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Jun 13, 2005 09:12
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Very sturdy indeed
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I totally agree with K6SDW. Mine is the RT-832 8' version and it's been up for the past 5 years. It supports a G-800DXA rotor and a MP-33-N (fairly small footprint) on a 14' pole. We've had some VERY strong winds lately and I went up to check everything. This tower has'nt moved one bit (well anchored though). Still looks & performs as good as new. Better yet, my neighbors tell me it looks nice to the eye, which made me happy. A wonderful product that I would highly recommend.
73's, Michel VE2CU
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K6SDW
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Rating: 5/5
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Jun 13, 2005 06:23
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7 years later....excellent!!!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have no financial interest here.....a divorce is forcing me to move and sell all. Well, I just took down my "antenna farm" including the Glen Martin RT936 roof-mounted tower and I'll be damn the tower is in as good a shape as when I took it out of the shipping boxes 7 years ago!! Not a speck of rust or corrasion and as solid as the day I put it together and bolted it to the roof!!
Just wanted to update my original review = the Glenn Martin RT936 is an excellent product for what it does!
Cheers all....
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AI4BJ
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 9, 2004 13:36
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I'm satisfied
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I ordered a 4.5 foot roof tower from Glen Martin last week and it arrived in a couple of days, well packed. After putting it together it seems very solid and looks like it should last for many years. There were two minor issues:
1) Two lengths of 1/4" bolts were supplied, but this was not reflected in the parts list. I had to figure out for myself that the shorter bolts were to be used on the upper mounting plate.
2) The instruction manual recommends securing the tower directly to the roof rafters if possible, but the hole-to-hole spacing of the mounting brackets is 25" instead of 24".
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W0BKR
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Rating: 1/5
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Feb 2, 2004 11:16
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Need Customer Service and Quality
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I put up the 13 inch 50 foot tower and when I received it, no manual, missing parts, base plate drilled incorrectly and I had to pick it up from the shippers dock. Additional cost.
To cut to the chase. The tower does flex in the wind even when guyed. I recently added a 2 meter horizontal beam. The guy attachments at the tower top ended up bending two of the inner elements on the 2 meter beam. Just isn't enough room to put a 2 meter antenna with close spaced elements on this tower. Will have to side mount which means less coverage and more wind load.
Would I purchase one of these again? No.
Next time I will be getting a crank up tower from US Tower or similar company.
Don't bother calling to talk to anyone "technical". You will get a receptionist and that is about as far as it will go.
I applaud those that had good success with GM towers. I wish my overal experience had been so good!
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AI4U
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Rating: 5/5
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Jul 26, 2003 10:35
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M1350
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I bought this tower (M1350)new from Glen Martin in 1999. Due to a move I sold the tower ( should have kept it )after about a year of use. I wanted to add this review due to some of the bad reviews I have read here. The tower arrived in perfect condition on a skid and partially covered with wooden slats. I dug a 3.5 foot by 3 foot hole and set the concrete base section in and filled with concrete. After letting the concrete cure for a month I was ready to assemble the tower. Assembly of the tower was easy and only took a couple hours. I never had to call Glen Martin for assistance due to the great instruction book / spec sheet. Raising the tower was easy! Me and three buddies wlaked it right up ( two wallking it up and two pulling on the guy wires). The three earth ancors were the toughest part of the job. Depending on the soil in your area it takes some work to get those things into the ground, but nothing a steel bar for leverage can't do. The Hazor tram system is awsome and worked flawlessly for the time I owned it. Setting atop the tower was a huge 4 element 20 meter beam. During large wind stroms the tower would flex some but it is designed to do that. Taking the tower down was as easy as putting it up. All in all, I give Glen Martin an A+ and will be buying another tower from them within 6 months (the M1850).
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VE4MM
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Rating: 4/5
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Jul 8, 2003 21:47
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NO CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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4.5' Roof Tower and thrust bearing:
Quality is quite good but the LAST nut and bolt for the bottom brace got stuck and I couldn't get the nut off. It was a faulty nut, the nylon bushing type. I felt that I shouldn't have to saw the bolt-off and buy a new set a Home Depot, so I e-mailed them stating my problem and I was IGNORED!
They don't give a rats-ass about customer satisfaction.
Since I am in Canada, the tower and bearing and taxes cost me $450.00
Maybe they hate Canadians.
Nice product though.
I did saw off the bolt and buy new hardware at Home Depot.
73
Michael Mark, P.Eng., BSc EE, Life Member ARRL
Losts for a Roof Tower.
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JT1FCR
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Rating: 0/5
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Apr 23, 2003 19:00
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Poor packaging and Bills of materials
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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2 experiences both painful - Incorrect materials and or missing parts - packing inadequate. ordering on the phone should be double checked. QC/QC poor - no complete bills of materials therefore you cant check to see what to see you should have got. Phone Phone Email Email
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