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Reviews For: W2GD Antenna & Tower Installation, Repair, Painting

Category: Tower and Antenna Installers

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Review Summary For : W2GD Antenna & Tower Installation, Repair, Painting
Reviews: 118MSRP:
Description:
Description: Plans, installs, maintains, and repairs amateur radio antennas, towers, rotators and related cabling. Also paints rusting towers and performs Insurance Estimates. Nearly 50 years of amateur radio experience. Will provide service anywhere worldwide, with clients in the USA, Carribean, and South America. Member of the CQ Contest "Hall of Fame". Supports towers 20' to over 200', for Big Gun DXers, Contesters, and Little Pistols. Supports all types of antennas and towers. No task too small, no project too large. Reasonable rates. Contact John directly for a consultation and estimate. John Crovelli W2GD/P40W w2gd@hotmail.com 908-391-5611 (c)
Product is in production
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# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
001185
K2PA Rating: 2012-06-13
Excellent tower re-paint job and rotor re-calibration... Time Owned: more than 12 months.
On June 8,2012, at 10:00 AM, John (W2GD) arrived at my QTH on time and ready to work. First he re-calibrated my rotor, which was off by 40-degrees. Then he re-painted my 56-foot Rohn tower, which had last been touched-up 12 years ago. His work was quite thorough, and his careful attention to detail made me feel very secure. John is a great guy, easy to talk to, and very professional. -- Roberto, K2PA
KF3B Rating: 2012-04-20
Consistently great work - often under difficult conditions Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I asked John and Don, K4ZA, to take down an M2 20M6-125 from its 182 ft high location. About 8 feet below it on a K0XG ring was a 15M6-125. Both Don and John were familiar with the station having been here before often.

But neither Don, John or I had expected the work to be performed in 20 mph winds with 35+ mph gusts. Well, the day started off relatively calmly and the boys rigged the 20M6 for tram line removal. About five minutes before the last securing u-bolt was removed, the wind picked up.

We had two other able helpers on the ground so the five of us pressed on. If there had been any even slight error in the rigging, we would have had a mess.

The happy end of the story is that the heavy and long antenna came down in difficult conditions without any problem. (We did utter the occasional curse word, however.)

Then Don and John proceeded in windy conditions to replace the 15M6-125's faulty balun. Not an easy job in any conditions.

They were on the tower for at least six hours. The weather was less than ideal. They got the job done safely and efficiently. Great work guys!

They've been here before often, but not so impressively that I felt obliged to praise them publicly. This time they earned it.
N3JCV Rating: 2012-03-28
What a Great Person Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I contacted John, W2GD, about a year ago to discuss tower/antenna options. John came to do a site visit and the rest is history. We agreed on a Rohn 65' tower and the best place to erect it. John then emailed me very specific instructions for my contractor for the base and guy supports. John then went on to email me very specific details of every item that would need to be ordered. He also gave me several suppliers that I could choose from. The ordering started. As I was receiving the items in, John kept in touch with me to make sure that nothing was missing. John then visited me once again to make sure the bottom tower section and guy anchors were per spec prior to pouring the cement. We also inventoried everything that was ordered to make sure everything was there and correct. Then the big day came. My two sons, John & I worked very hard for three days and got the tower and antennas up. I am now the proud owner of a 65' tower, a Force12 Magnum 240 2 element beam for 40 meters and a Bencher Skyhawk tri-bander beam for 10, 15 & 20 meters. John also constructed a bracket for me to install a wire antenna. Ham radio is very different now. The pile-ups that use to frustrate me are a thing of the past. (the Alpha 9500 helps too) I would recommend John to anyone that is looking to have a tower installed or needs any work done on existing towers or antennas. Thanks again John. You were terrific!
W1RM Rating: 2012-02-07
Solved a long standing problem! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've had SWR issues with my Force 12 C31XR on 15 and 10 meters for some time. After sending John some photos and several emails, he diagnosed the problem as a) guy wires too close to the antenna and b) adjustment of the coils on the beam. The solution was to lower the top set of guys by about 5 feet, replace the metal guys with Phyllistran and adjust the spacing on the coils on 15 and 10. Bingo! The C31XR now behaves itself as it should! Thanks John!!
N2WAV Rating: 2012-01-26
good Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
John is a great guy. I had tried for two months to find someone to repair my antenna.
I found him on eham. He came over soon after I contacted him. I hired him to repair my antenna which he was able to do during the holidays thanks to the mild winter.
I will use him again in the future.
KC2TN Rating: 2011-12-12
Excellent, - Experience at it's BEST! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I contacted John because I knew of his abilities and experience level. I had a big job that I had been waiting to complete since June of 2010. That's when a vicious storm with 100mph straight-line winds ripped through Atco, NJ. This storm created a 100’wide swath of destruction akin to a tornado. Fortunately, while my house was not in the direct path of this storm, I was close enough for it to bend the heavy duty mast on my 80’ Self Supporting tower. This basically put me out of commission for a year and a half while I planned a rebuild project. When I called John he was quick to set up a date and review the overall project. He detailed back to me everything and every detail I needed accomplished, thereby putting my mind at ease that he TOTALLY understood what I needed. I had sent him photos which he reviewed prior to arriving at my location. Once on site he went right to work. I needed a crane to remove the bent mast out of the top of tower. John quickly interfaced with my crane operator and set out a plan to get the old antennas down and the old mast removed. He then coordinated the lifting and placing of the new mast without a hitch. Finally he placed my new 40M beam. John said it would be a full day’s work and he was right on target with his estimate. I would not hesitate one bit to bring John back in the future for additional work. He’s very reasonable and reliable.
WA3MKB Rating: 2011-09-25
Absolutely the best Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I moved to a new QTH over Christmas of 2009. Shortly afterward I decided that I’d like to have 100 feet of Rohn 55 with beams for 40 through 2 meters. I read all the reviews on eham.net. John Crovelli had the most reviews and the highest rating. It was a simple decision.

My first e-mail to John was followed by a quick response with details of what to expect. That was followed by 2 more e-mails and John agreed to do a site visit to talk over the planned project with me. He checked out my property and gave me alternatives that would serve my needs. His expertise was obvious and invaluable.

For the next year, I acquired tower hardware and antennas and got the concrete work done for the tower base and the anchor points. John was just an e-mail or a phone call away when I needed advice or information. He steered me to the right rotator (actually had 2 options), the right guying material (Phillystran) and a list of suppliers so that I could get the lowest cost on what I ordered. John also gave me detailed advice on each step that I could complete myself to keep the cost down and to assure that I would have the best possible installation. We decided that the safest and lowest cost way to install the tower and antennas would be to assemble the tower in two pieces and raise it with a crane. Then we would lift each antenna with the crane. The cost of the crane was offset by the savings in labor that would have been required to raise the tower a section at a time and to tram the antennas to the top.

E-mails followed to assure that everything needed would be here and ready to go. Installation was to be a two-day process. John had come a week early to prepare all guy cables with me. The first day, John and his partner worked with me to assemble the tower sections and install the rotator and mast. We also inspected antennas and assured that they were properly assembled. John’s attention to detail is amazing. Nothing was overlooked. He has unbelievable knowledge of what needs to be done and how to do it.

On day 2, John arrived early with his partner. When the crane arrived, all was ready. We raised the tower in 2 pieces, and then raised a Mosley Pro-96, a 6-Meter 7-element and a 2-meter 12-element antenna. John stayed on the tower about 5 hours to run and install hard line, coax and rotator controls. He then took my camera to the top and shot several photos for me. I hope to have my web site, WA3F.com, up in Oct or Nov of 2011. Check it out for photos of the whole installation and John at work.

How good is he? John installed my tower and antennas as though they were his own. Everything was done correctly the first time. I feel so strongly that he is the one to do all my work that before he left the site, I contracted him to do the first annual tower and antenna inspection.

If you have tower or antenna work to be done, call or e-mail John Crovelli. You’ll be glad you did.
WX2U Rating: 2011-09-17
Remarkable Job !! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I decided way back in February of this year to put up a nice array. Since I no longer climb and I'm not getting younger, I started looking for a local installer. After reading the reviews on John's work, I started corresponding with him. Once I made the agreement that he was the one to make it happen, for the next six months, emails continued so that I was well prepared for his visit. John gave me his materials list. He also gave some great recommendations to think about as we prepared.
As the days got closer, my anxiety increased. In July, the concrete was poured for the guy anchors. In August, the antennas arrived on site.
I gave John the final email that we were good to go and the install was scheduled.
John arrived exactly when he said he was to arrive. On his visit, I expected to learn a lot. Once out of his car, it wasn't five minutes that he started teaching. Once John inspected the project in hand, we went right to work. I worked with him the entire time. We talked about a lot of different things not taking focus off the project.
The 1st day was the stripping of old aluminum and installing new guy wires. The rain came the next day and pushed us to a third day.We were able to put up the 6 meter beam and the rotatable dipole. The biggest thing I learned from John is perfection takes time. So if you are in a hurry to get a tower project completed, think again.
The third and final day was the raising of the TH11-DX. It was very nerve-wracking. But for John, it was just another day at the office.
I now have that array that I've always wanted and I know that everything was correctly done and inspected. John treated my tower as if it was his. If you want a professional job, I would recommend John anytime...
N2SO Rating: 2011-09-08
Fine KIO Hex Beam Roof Tower Installation Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I had decided on a Hex Beam on a roof tower due to yard space considerations, but was very nervous about the the feasibility of the installation as well as how it would look. Through a series of e-mail messages and reviews of photos of the house and roof that I sent, John was able to calm my concerns and suggest how the roof tower could be fastened to the roof. Aside from calming my fears and nervousness, John made suggestions on what parts and supplies I needed on hand. On the day of installation, we even went shopping together at our local Home Depot to get the required roof supports as well as rent the necessary cutting equipment. John always had the odd missing tool, bolt, wire and tape that we needed in his well stocked car trunk. The tower construction and installation went without a hitch. And even though the weather took a turn for the worse as the day progressed, the beam was hauled up and installed without a problem. I am now enjoying working DX with my Hex Beam and YES!, it did survive Hurricane Irene. John is a friendly, intuitive and careful planner and installer. Based on my experience, I would not hesitate to recommend him without qualification.

73, Charles, N2SO
N4ZR Rating: 2011-08-26
A biig day's work very well done Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This is the second time I used John's services, and I could not be more pleased. He spent about 5 hours on the tower, which says something all by itself. A good bit of that time was spent standing on a bolt-on step on the mast above my top tri-bander, repairing the linear loading on my 40-meter yagi. This task required some extraordinary maneuvering to bring the broken loading element within reach. That completed, he came down the tower, replaced the balun on my lower tribander, and then reinstalled the tower end of my low 40-meter dipole. I was ready at that point to stop, but John was determined to complete my full list, which involved re-rigging two lazy-vee dipoles for my 80-meter array. He hung in on the tower for another hour, completed all the work on the two dipoles, and only then came down.

My station today has more antenna capability than has been the case for the last 4 years. John's not cheap, but to me he's worth every penny, for both his skills and his attitude. Now that I'm not climbing so much, it's great to have John available.