[WARC] More on KAGE Site Upgrade

[Len Litvan]

Jim N9MFI and I made a trip to the KAGE site Monday afternoon with Gary 
De Jarlis of La Crescent Erection to look at the tower climbing part of 
the project.  Gary was very helpful.

He suggested that we check heliax condition before changing it out.  If 
we want to upgrade for the sake of upgrade, that's one thing.  But if we 
are concerned about aging or condition, he suggested we first check the 
feed line/antenna system with a RF wattmeter (power in/power out) or he 
could test the feed line and antenna separately with an Aritsu Cable & 
Antenna Analyzer ($70 fee to come back for the Aritsu test).  He said 
that heliax should have an almost indefinite life unless water got into 
it or it was physically damaged.

He assessed the heliax length and came up with a figure a little longer 
than Jim and I had estimated--195 to 200 feet total length.  I will 
update the spreadsheet.  With copper prices jumping so much, Gay warned 
us about keeping close track of cost estimates for the project.

He made let us know about some other cost items--hoisting grip, feedline 
grounding kits, feedline ties, etc., and he made some recommendations.  
He told us where we can buy these direct if we wish.

He also made some suggestions about commercial grade antennas and gave 
me a Hutton catalog with commercial equipment.  I haven't had an 
opportunity to examine it yet.

He examined the antenna mount with binoculars.  It looked OK, but at 
that distance, it is hard to tell.  His experience is that commercial 
mounts are generally plated steel and hold up quite well.  Maybe this is 
an area where we send "one of our own" up the tower to examine the 
antenna mount and stabilizer early in the project.

Finally, on the tower work itself (remove old feedline, antenna, 
miscellaneous related items & install new feedline, antenna, grounding 
kits, ties) he quoted a price considerably less than the original $1,000 
estimate provided we would handle the ground crew support--tag lines, 
etc.  He would train the ground crew regarding good practices as 
necessary.  He estimated one day of time and indicated that his price 
would be fixed--any additional time within the discussed scope of the 
project would be absorbed by him.

Jim and I agreed that we should explore the possibility of testing the 
feedline--or feedline and antenna--early on to see if its condition 
warrants replacement of the feedline or are we changing it for the 
upgrade only.

Sincerely & 73,
Len  KC0RSX