Shopsmith Forums

Here is a little video of a job that is a little to high for me, how about you?

http://edge.liveleak.com/80281E/u/u/ll2 ... tra_params

Ed

Ah yes, to be young again and dumb and full of ^%$!!!! It is all relative!!! I worked in fossil fuel power plants for 20 years. Some up to 20+ stories, all the "floors" are made of open grating, so when yo step out of the elevator, you can see down through it. Takes awhile to get used to it, take people on a tour, fun to watch them hesitate and/or step back into the elevator when the door opens.
Climbing those towers, the sway would be something to get used to for me.

I did some tower work on my first tour of duty in the Air Force but nothing like that. Just watching that video literally made my stomach turn. I guess I have lost ALL of my macho.

The height does not bother me but all the various transitions would kill me.
I can climb a ladder all day but going from the ladder to the roof is killer and even worst is going from the roof to the ladder.

I thought a few times we would have to get the fire dept out to get me down.

And the roof is only 8-10 feet high. I could hang from the edge and drop and survive and in my younger day I could jump the distance. But now I just like to die instead of trying to get back on the ladder.

I watched the video and it did not bother me until he got to a transition. Each one had me at that edge of my seat going oh no!

Good God!!!
My knees got wobbly just watching the video. But then, my knees get wobbly on a 3 step stool.

Loss of machoism=wisdom!!!
Ed, I dont know how old you are, but what are you doing on the roof???!!!! Example, one of the retired Green Bay Packers, Max McGee was on his cleaning out leaves, fell and died from ranch style home. Somethings we should not do as we get older!!! My fear too was getting back on the ladder to get down.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1914208/posts

Back in the day.... I was a member of a tower climbing club. In northern WI the state had constructed fire watch towers well above the tree line and in visual sight of each other. At one time they were maned but air planes replaced the need for someone to have that job.

One of my uncles had that tower job for a while, of course it was only a 3 season job and didn't pay well, imagine that! After they "closed" the towers people could still access the tower and climb to the platform just below the locked top building.

So that is what we did. And since there were many of them we would have the opportunity to do so many times. As with all things like this you end up getting bored, finding more interesting at the time things to do and well growing up and not having the time to do them anymore.

They stood there for many years until the state decided it was un-safe and they had to come down.

A couple of summers ago I hiked into one of my favorites, one that my uncle had sat in many years ago. The tower was gone but the concrete that it was mounted on was still in place. The small "fruit cellar" that had been dug into the hill side was still there and it appeared someone had lived in it for a while???? Anyway it was interesting to see the area now, much more grown in and trails unused gone back to forest.

Of course they seem high but then they were the highest things for miles around. Always placed on hills and if I had to guess maybe 140' or so in the air. Nothing at all like the video.

Ed

I imagine they must be VERY well paid.

Climbing to those heights and then standing on a plate about the size biscuit tin.
Definitely too rich for my tastes.

I have to assume going back down is more challenging like the roof/ladder 'transition'. One MUST look down to descend reliably.

Oh the pull one's self up and over(untethered) has to increase one's pulse rate!!!!

Noticed he was wearing gloves!:D