on my 25 t/o i use a boat winch. it has a lever to set for up or down lock.
it works like a ratchet socket wrench. it only goes in 1 direction and locks
out the other.
when i'm lowering the tower i have a 'backup'. i put a 3/4'' rope parallel
to the winch cable. tied to the swing boom end ,looped 1 time around a tower
leg. the rope holder stands 90 deg.s off the tower so they are clear if
something goes wrong.as i'm turning the winch the helper lets out rope. if
winch cable slipped or broke the rope allows the tower to be held while
are made. in the 10 times or so my tower has been lowered i've never had a
problem.i always use the backup rope. better safe....
also, since the cable stays coiled up in all wx i sprayed the cable with
metalic paint and use grease or vasoline rubbed on the coil as a rust
since you can't see the condx. of the cable until it rolls out you need to
try to prevent rust. some people put a plastic freezer veg. container over
the cable coil to keep water out
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