2020-04-18, 08:45:49
(This post was last modified: 2020-04-18, 08:47:20 by Rob_Walker.)
Since I have all this spare time on my hands from self-isolation, I thought I would share my tower project with you as I go through the various stages. Amateur radio is a new hobby for me and I'm treading on uncharted territory. I'm thankful for the assistance I've received from Tom (VA3TS), Jeremy (VA3JL) and You Tube! Learning by the seat of my pants is what I'd call it!
I have a small lot in Owen Sound close to the river. Because I'm down the bottom of 10th street, I'm expecting city noise and the escarpment to be an issue. To help mitigate this, I have a Wade DMX-40N 40' heavy duty tower that was dropped off last weekend in sections by TDL Canada. The specs call for a 4' x 4' x 4.5' concrete base reinforced with concrete. As soon as the weather clears up, I plan to hand dig this, or at least start it. I have two other volunteers willing to help with the dig so that is a relief.
One of the obstacles I have run into before even starting is concrete. Harold Sutherland Construction was a customer of mine before they were bought out by Walker Aggregates. I had their concrete guy Mike Gowan stop by to see how we were going to get 3 cu. yds. of concrete in my back yard when the space between the houses is just under 10'. We couldn't use a pump because of the utility wires. This left us with the conveyer option. However, the conveyor was short 15' from the hole so we would still have to hand bomb with a wheel barrow.
All that changed. Harold Sutherland Construction redi-mix division is not an essential service unless you had a permit prior to Doug Ford's list of essential services. As a consequence, they can't supply me and are struggling themselves to stay open.
Unless there is a change, my backup plan is to do this with a rented 9 cu. ft. mixer from Sunbelt and 160 bags of concrete from one of the local building suppliers. This is a lot of cement to mix and I'm not a spring chicken anymore. Once again, I'm grateful to have a helper or two that can help and and also practice safe distancing.
I will keep you posted. Today I'm going to go pick up my TGM MQ-36SR quad cubical and Hy-Gain vertical I have stored in someone's barn. At the very least this week, I would like to get these set up on temporary masts and tuned with my Rigexpert AA-220 Zoom, a toy I am really anxious to play with. I was able to get my mast material yesterday from Elma Steel. I got two 12' lengths of 2" galvanized with almost 1/8" wall.
73's to everyone!
I have a small lot in Owen Sound close to the river. Because I'm down the bottom of 10th street, I'm expecting city noise and the escarpment to be an issue. To help mitigate this, I have a Wade DMX-40N 40' heavy duty tower that was dropped off last weekend in sections by TDL Canada. The specs call for a 4' x 4' x 4.5' concrete base reinforced with concrete. As soon as the weather clears up, I plan to hand dig this, or at least start it. I have two other volunteers willing to help with the dig so that is a relief.
One of the obstacles I have run into before even starting is concrete. Harold Sutherland Construction was a customer of mine before they were bought out by Walker Aggregates. I had their concrete guy Mike Gowan stop by to see how we were going to get 3 cu. yds. of concrete in my back yard when the space between the houses is just under 10'. We couldn't use a pump because of the utility wires. This left us with the conveyer option. However, the conveyor was short 15' from the hole so we would still have to hand bomb with a wheel barrow.
All that changed. Harold Sutherland Construction redi-mix division is not an essential service unless you had a permit prior to Doug Ford's list of essential services. As a consequence, they can't supply me and are struggling themselves to stay open.
Unless there is a change, my backup plan is to do this with a rented 9 cu. ft. mixer from Sunbelt and 160 bags of concrete from one of the local building suppliers. This is a lot of cement to mix and I'm not a spring chicken anymore. Once again, I'm grateful to have a helper or two that can help and and also practice safe distancing.
I will keep you posted. Today I'm going to go pick up my TGM MQ-36SR quad cubical and Hy-Gain vertical I have stored in someone's barn. At the very least this week, I would like to get these set up on temporary masts and tuned with my Rigexpert AA-220 Zoom, a toy I am really anxious to play with. I was able to get my mast material yesterday from Elma Steel. I got two 12' lengths of 2" galvanized with almost 1/8" wall.
73's to everyone!