I thought it was narrow also, I used a stud finder on the outside (vinyl) and it showed every 7", I never thought about the attic, I will go up tonight and have a look.
Thanks for the tip.

With a 7" separation there might be some sort of daughter-board bracing of the main studs going on, but if at all possible I recommend a visual look. Also if it comes down to attaching a brace horizontally for the tower bracket you would be best to have a metal one fabricated (quite inexpensive at a local welding shop) rather than using a wooden one, so that water and rot damage don't cause a terrible event some day in the future.

Went up in the attic and saw that it was 16" spacing. Went back outside and measured from the corner of the house and found studs I need. They must have put in more studs 7" apart to fasten the Vinyl to. Again thanks for the tip.

I was looking with binoculars at my Antennacraft VU-160XR (VHF/FM/UHF) on the roof today and I noticed that both U-Bolts going through the main boom and the support boom are now what I'd call "J-Bolts." They have broken off, in the exact same place, just after they go through the boom on one side. The short mast section about 12" above the rotor has a small jagged hole in it below one mast clamp and one above the lower mast clamp, with one matching hole on the opposite side.

I'm wondering if anyone knows what could have happened to have caused this.

How old are they, and where did they come from? I swear by galvanized muffler clamp u-bolts, personally... they've never let me down. ;)

The U-Bolts and Mast clamps are 20 years old (do have rust) and came from Radio Shack.
The galvanized muffler clamp U-Bolts sound more heavy duty and long-lasting. I think, if I was doing it again, I'd put one U-Bolt in from one side and the other from the opposite side to distribute the torque and wind forces more evenly. The thing is, it doesn't shake much in the wind and it's all as level as the day I put it in; so I know I should do something about it because I might find it all tipped onto the roof in the next year or so.

Been thinking and strategizing on the TILT Tower / Hinged Tower Base idea and I've come up with a simple do it yourself design and build idea I think will work.

The O.D. of my Bracket tower tubes, at the bottom are measured as 1.265 inch. 2.25 inches up from bottom of tubes are the holes for 3/8 bolts to attach the section below.

Take / find / cut 3 short pieces of strong steel tube, with ID just a little larger than 1.265 inch - to slip over bottom tubes of tower.

Drill 3/8 hole in each, in towards center of tube triangle, to attach same as next section would.

Drill another hole furthur down the "over" tube, at different angle, to form "hinge" point, aligned straight through with hole in one other tube adjacent on the triangle.

The hinge will be created by two 3/8 bolts drilled lower down on two of the "over" tubes, and center lines lined up with each other.

Each leg into the ground some good depth, will be made of two pieces of salvaged bedframe angle iron, drilled to take the 3/8 hinge bolt, and aligned parrallel to take the "over" tube between.

Each leg will be a double angle iron, can be kept parrallel and in line, and lined up, and properly separated with the other one beside, with threaded rod and nuts "sandwiching" the angle iron and holding in place - correct separation.

Leg one of the tower hinge, can be separated by the right distance, and kept lined up straight for the hinge, with leg two - by using long threaded rods and sanwiching nuts to adjust and hold in place.

Browsing hardware and do it yourself stores, I find that 1 1/4 inch EMT conduit is approx 1.4 inch ID. Might work. Stength? Would like a little stronger / thicker tube.

Also, some top horizontal tubes of chain link fence are "close" to the right ID. Strong. And nicely galvanized.

( need to find good strong galvanized steel tube, 1.265 inch ID + clearance ... and galvanized)

Third leg of tower bottom mount can be of same design, but will be independent of the other two which form the "HINGE".

( mock up photo, or sketch needed to show the idea ... I think )

I have a somewhat simple setup- a Channel Master 3671 with preamp and rotor about 40 feet above the ground. 20 feet of this is on a mast, with guy wires attached to the house. The 20 foot mast was just installed today so I can't give totally accurate results, but it has helped reception a little.


I'm in Michigan between Ann Arbor and Detroit, and my limit right now is about 60 miles (Lansing, MI stations)- with some pixilation due to large trees blocking my path to the west. I'm hoping to receive the directional Windsor signals when they sign on at the end of the month. Keep an eye on the SW Ontario reception page for results!

Still can't get any VHF-Lo (WLMB Toledo).

Hope the sketch is viewable enough to give the idea.

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/picture.php?albumid=458&pictureid=4319

I know there are 18ga. metal mast poles that have a tapered end to fit into the base of another, but can one combine two with something else, if there isn't a tapered end to work with? I thought about some type of multiple U-Bolt and nest clamp-type connection, holding the poles together, with about at least 12" or so of overlap, where the clamps are. - If there is a better or safer way, I'd like to know. Thanks.

Archerotor,

I can't think of an easy or safe way to combine two masts as you describe.

Tapered end to tapered end mast - as designed - will center, be tight, and should be fairly secure - if held with some sort of fastener.

I think it would be better / safer to get a long, one piece mast - strong and no 2-piece connection point to fail or bend.

( only splitting one of the masts lengthwise with a cut, so it fits tight over the tapered part for some good length, then welding properly in place and straight. But splitting and welding introduces stress points - not such a great idea )

Best to invest / buy a one piece, LONG, good, new, strong, one piece mast for your purpose (if possible). It's worth the investment I think.
( good galvanized steel pole, typical residential masts are around 1.5 inch outside diameter )


Side note:

BUT - You've given me a good idea with my other project above - The tower base hinge point.

You've given me something good to think about - a new idea - with my tower base hinge / hinge point concept.

The "over tubes" at the base slide over with some clearance.

So if I cut a slot down the top of the overtube for a short length, when you tighten the 3/8 bolt to the tower base tube, it will clamp tight. In theory.

And if the over tubes are of thick enough tube - strength concerns with the cut slot should not be an issue.

( I found some scrap tube - industrial chain link fence horizontal top tube - and the I.D. size is pretty close to what I need. Just under 1.4 inch I.D.
The tube walls are about the right thickness - nice and strong enough - but not too thick to work with. Nice and galvanized. Will work good I think )

I've cut three lengths of 24 inch ... approx 8 inches will go over the tower base tubes, and the rest will help increase the tower height by more than another foot above ground level.

This project continues slowly in my free time.

Tapered end to tapered end mast - as designed - will center, be tight, and should be fairly secure - if held with some sort of fastener.That tapering on one end of antenna poles, fence poles, pipes, etc. for fitting into the next one is referred to as a "swaged" end (rhymes with "staged"): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swage (see Pipes and cables section)

BTW are you sure you guys want to re-invent the wheel vis-a-vis tower designs? I'd suggest that you look up the plentiful designs already on the web, many of which have stood the test of time after being professionally engineered or designed by advanced amateur radio enthusiasts. :)

Regarding swaging and fasteners, every commercial antenna tower I've ever worked with had quite a solid tightness when the swaged top ends of one section was inserted into the standard bottom ends of the next highest section. At the factory an aligned hole was made in both the swaged and unswaged ends for a tempered steel high strength bolt to be inserted and fastened with lock washers and a nut. If the tower is of galvanized steel the fasteners must be galvanized too (typically hot dipped galvanization).

Stampeder,

I was also thinking about "SWAGED" fits.

I was not sure if Archerotor was actually talking about "swaged" ends.
( like the way common residential bracket tower sections connect together ).

He spoke of putting together two MAST sections with a "tapered" joint.

I though maybe he was talking about the single pole at the top of the tower (the "mast") where the antenna usually bolts on. i.e. the MAST tube.

Personally I've never seen a MAST tube that fits in two pieces, one into the other with a real "TAPERED" fit. Never seen that in residential stuff. Usually it's just one length of galvanized light tube. Inch and a half dia.

( I still don't think it's a good idea to have a 2 piece "MAST" at the top of the tower.)


... and YA ... I do want to re-invent some things about tower design.
Maybe not the sections themselves, but stuff like a hinged base? Sure. Why not make a do it yourself design from commonly available stuff?

That's the fun and the challenge.

Figure out how to make a simple / home-manufacturable - do it yourself design from commonly available (scroungeable) material and fasteners.

Because I am actually going to build it - and install it - myself.

All in time.

I do think the mast I used had a swaged end for combining another 10 foot section. A guy I know had suggested that a chain link fence company could swage the end of the pipe for me. In my post, #1650, I had said "tapered" and now thinking about it that would suggest it decreased in diameter in stages, which was not the case. Thanks for the good comments.

Hello all,

Apologies if this has been covered, but a search came up empty.

I'm currently using a 4221HD mounted to the side of the house with an eave/wall mount and a 6' long 1" aluminum pole that I picked up at HD. It's a very stable setup, but I need a bit more length in order to stack a second 4221. Ideally I would just swap out the 6' mast with an 8'-10' one. I'm not concerned about weight/stability since it's holding up well to date.

However, I am having a challenge hunting down aluminum poles in Toronto. Save and Replay doesn't have anything listed on their website and the big box stores only sell 6' lengths. Obviously want to avoid joining poles if possible.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated - thanks!

I'm pretty sure HD has 10' ones in the chain link fence section. They're the poles used to run horizontally across the top of the fence.

I'm pretty sure HD has 10' ones in the chain link fence section. They're the poles used to run horizontally across the top of the fence.
Thanks for the tip, but aren't those steel, not aluminum? Steel would be too heavy for the mount.

There are different diameter and strength "top rail" pieces, depending if it's light residential or heavy duty commercial. It might not be too heavy. It'd probably be a lot cheaper than what The Source is currently charging, $39.99, for a 10' steel mast. A chain link installer might have what you need.

However, I am having a challenge hunting down aluminum poles in Toronto. Save and Replay doesn't have anything listed on their website and the big box stores only sell 6' lengths. Obviously want to avoid joining poles if possible.

I got my mast from Metal Supermarkets (they have a few locations in the GTA). It's 1.5" OD aluminum with 1/8" wall thickness. Very stout stuff. It will be more expensive than something like fence railing but it's lighter and won't rust.

If I recall the 8' piece I bought was around $50.

A 6 ft long piece of 1.5 inch diameter, residential / light duty GALVANIZED STEEL fence post - from Home Depot or Rona for only around $10 is providing great service at the top of a residential tv tower at the house in Kingston.

Should be able to find similar material in longer lengths - no problem.

8ft or 10 ft. Maybe even 12 ft.

I've also thought about using EMT - Electro Mechanical Tubing. Electrical Conduit. That can be found at pretty affordable prices.

More heavy duty fence tubing - STEEL and GALVANIZED - should also work great. Very strong - but heavier.

I'm thinking of installing a longer mast tube - more than 6 ft - say 10 or 12 ft at the top of the tower for a couple reasons:

- more height
- more vertical space for more antennas off top mast.
- more length available to be able to cantiliver the mast a little furthur down into the bracket tower. That gives more leverage, stability and strength for the mast tube higher up. (thinking of dropping the rotor mount plate/ tube clamp down one more RUNG in the bracket tower.)

But if I go for a long mast tube ... looking for something with more strength. Thicker walls. ( Industrial chain link fence tubing? Heavier walls - and probably can be purchased in 12 foot lengths )

But getting a 12 ft heavy tube installed at the top of the tower - might be a challenge. Hence why I wanna be able bring the tower down with a hinge mount.

Oh ya - let go INDUSTRIAL .