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Things You Build That Are NOT Bikes
One of the interesting things about VS is the vibe around people who consume things vs people who make things. Obviously this revolves around bike frames and the parts that enable them to become usable bicycles. Reason this is in the OT is I'm interested in finding out what the consumers of V-Salon build that are NOT bicycles. We know there is a lot of talent and diversity that makes up the community of V-Salon.
We've seen the rings Honus builds, the motor cars Sean produces, etc. Lets here from some more folks. Show us what you do and what you build. Hobby or work, doesn't matter.
I've got two things to share:
In my day job I endeavor to build a knowledge of the biological system y'all call a human being such that when that system breaks we can fix it. My "products" are molecular systems for diagnosing, monitoring and treating human disease. I work for one of the world leading pharmaceutical companies and while I won't debate health care policy on this site, trust that the vast majority of people in my industry want nothing more than to see sick patients lead a life free from disease.
But on to the fun stuff. One of my hobbies is Amateur Radio. Or "ham" radio. In order to communicate with other people with radio waves you need a few things: A way to create radio waves and a way to emit those waves into the air. A favored way to achieve the latter is to build large antenna arrays and mount them high in the sky. I happen to get a kick out of doing just that and have spent a good many days building towers and erecting antennas.
Here is a link to a site showing some of the towers I've worked on:
Pictures
The top photos are pictures of my sadly departed friend Don's antenna farm. I had the pleasure of operating with Don for many years and while I didn't build his towers I helped maintain them. The bottom two photos are my towers from the time I spent living in North Carolina.
The large one stood 105 feet and had an additional 15 feet of mast sticking out of it. To get it in the air required many 100s of hours of work clearing trees, digging holes, assembling parts, cutting, drilling and connecting tubing and impedance matches to build the antennas, building phasing lines and switching for the stacked array and a whole mess of other details.
The scanned photos don't do it justice but for reference the trees are 80-100 feet tall.
For hams, that is a stacked 4/4 for 20M at 105/55 feet with a 2 element shorty 40M beam up top at 115 feet. I later added a 5 element 10M yagi at 85 feet between the 20M beams. The tower sections are Rohn 55G and it was guyed at three levels with Phillystrand. The small tower is a mere 50 feet high with a couple small yogis on it for 10 and 15 meters.
The cool thing about Ham Radio is a concept called "Elmering". It has nothing to do with glue... The concept is one of community, apprenticeship and sharing. You don't fall out of bed one day knowing how to build these complex structures or how to work 100, 200, 300 feet in the air safely. You get there by learning from others, starting on the ground working ropes and pulleys, gradually helping to build smaller structures and building up to larger arrays if you have the mettle and strength to work in the sky.
One of the things I liked to do is help others with their antennas. Some folks just can't do tower work because it's physical. Others are afraid of heights. There is a long tradition in Amateur Radio of helping fellow hams get on and stay on the air.
Mentoring and community and passing knowledge and passion are a big deal to me. Lets see what you are passionate about and some of the things you've done with your own two mitts.
-Mark
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Originally Posted by MDEnvEngr
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