Had I been able to join, I definitely would NOT be a boatswain's mate.
I have this uncanny ability to take a rope and within 5 seconds of me touching it, it turns into a slithering pile of tangles, kinks and knots.
I was prepping my OCF dipole last night for hanging on Friday. I had purchased 500 feet of 3/16" dacron and was stringing it through the insulators so it would go up faster on the day of the install. I was trying to be slick about it and was going to put zip ties on either side of the insulators so the antenna wouldn't slide up and down the rope. (Found out later, the friction caused by the weight of the ballun and wire pretty much negates the need, but this is my first dipole).
So, one thing leads to another and I have to cut the freakin' rope because when I took the zip ties off...I nicked the rope really bad and it would have broken otherwise.
I managed to salvage the rope and just tied off each end at the ballun. Which in a way...solved the first concern about it sliding up and down the rope.
Well, we'll see how it goes. Wish me luck and listen for me on the HF bands!
I have this uncanny ability to take a rope and within 5 seconds of me touching it, it turns into a slithering pile of tangles, kinks and knots.
I was prepping my OCF dipole last night for hanging on Friday. I had purchased 500 feet of 3/16" dacron and was stringing it through the insulators so it would go up faster on the day of the install. I was trying to be slick about it and was going to put zip ties on either side of the insulators so the antenna wouldn't slide up and down the rope. (Found out later, the friction caused by the weight of the ballun and wire pretty much negates the need, but this is my first dipole).
So, one thing leads to another and I have to cut the freakin' rope because when I took the zip ties off...I nicked the rope really bad and it would have broken otherwise.
I managed to salvage the rope and just tied off each end at the ballun. Which in a way...solved the first concern about it sliding up and down the rope.
Well, we'll see how it goes. Wish me luck and listen for me on the HF bands!
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