Nashville Burnout, Final Connection to the main Antenna Part 2 of 2

In this video Garrett and Clay are joining the final piece of rigid coaxial feed line to the antenna. This action lead to the radio station being able to finally get back onto the main antenna after five weeks.

[@timmack2415]

I worked with RF most of my life. But not at 1100 feet! I'm glad the tower held the weight of your balls! Stay safe out there, brother!

[@devherrick5775]

Been climbing for 6 months now and I’ve watched your videos since I was in training. Doing a thousand foot tower such as this one is my goal. Thank you for giving out reliable information about safety and even some tips and tricks of the trade.

[@norwegiantowerclimber5103]

Love your work! Cheers from Norway 🇳🇴

[@jhettish]

Thanks for the comment. I truly appreciate it.

[@bartman0023]

Great video I remember my days on television station in Monterrey thanks for share

[@jhettish]

In my mind the best thing was Garrett forgetting the "O-ring" then suddenly remembering it. I always try to have a sort of "theme" or story line in my videos. The bad news, at least for me, is that both Garrett and Clay have left my company for what they (I) hope is greener pastures. Still, I'm hoping they hate their new jobs. :-) John

[@gordbaker896]

Neat. Thanks for not having music.

[@sjtom57]

When I first started watching these vids I felt rather squeamish, but the more I watch the more I feel at home up there. Really enjoy your vids.

[@jhettish]

I think "feeling at home" is really a sign of losing the basic fear of simply being high off the ground. I'm guessing your not looking for a new career and that may be a good thing. I think the "feeling at home" is very good but "complacent" isn't. Please read on. Complacency between two very experienced corporate jet pilots caused them to leave the elevator control locked in the "gust" position after a short fuel stop. When they got back in the plane to take off they followed their familiar routine, which included ignoring checklists. The cockpit recording brought that fact out. They taxied and took to the departure runway and began their takeoff run. However the airplane only gained a couple of feet of elevation. They tried to abort the takeoff, the plane set back on the concrete but it was going too fast to stop. Eventually it rolled off the end of the runway, down a slope, ended up in a ditch and caught fire. Everyone, pilots and passengers, died in the fire. The pilots had multi-thousands of flight time but they had gotten complacent. Complacency in an airplane can easily lead to a tragedy. Complacency working on high steel can easily do the same thing. I feel at home on a tower but I've not gotten complacent in 44 years, at least yet. There's often a "yet" if one is not aware. John

[@Fireship1]

A delicate dance of teamwork and coordination. This did not look easy in the least. Hard enough to line up all those sections, then you have to get all that hardware bolted into place. It's a wonder someone hasn't made a clamp that connects the sections with less hardware. Like a "victraulic" clamp used in fire suppression and sprinkler piping. Your team did a great job John. I bet the station was finally glad to resume broadcasting in full power.

[@jhettish]

I actually had a caption saying there was an easier way to do the bolting but I deleted it. I figured the job was done and there was no need to get into it at that moment. I'll be talking to the guys soon enough. I sometimes use the vice-grips that look a lot like Ice Tongs. It's called a "Locking C-Clamp". Better yet though is a 4 or 6 inch length of 3/8" threaded rod and two nuts each. We have plenty threaded rod at our shop. Two short lengths of 3/8 threaded rod and extra nuts would be a good way to secure the flanges through their last bit of movement. Later the threaded rod would be removed and proper bolts left in their place. John

[@glennpaull903]

Hard work and dangerous/John / thanks for sharing

[@sintheticgaming]

Great video! I honestly know nothing about this kind of stuff, and stumbled across the video! Really neat stuff!

[@jhettish]

I'm glad you "stumbled". There are 112 public videos on this channel as of April 2017. I hope to be able to upload many more before I leave this planet. I'm 72 and haven't climbed anything since yesterday 4/12/2017 at 3pm. I'm sure something else will come up soon. John

[@sintheticgaming]

John Hettish that is amazing!!! I bet it never gets old climbing those towers! It looks like one heck of an adrenaline rush!

[@jhettish]

It's probably an adrenaline rush for a new guy but not for us, unless something is wrong. When things go west that's when adrenaline gets generated and that's not pleasant. We sometimes do nighttime climbs. In fact there's one video of the 112 that shows us doing night work. Climbing a tower at midnight (the only time TV stations turn off their transmitter) without much sleep and working all day before climbing causes problems sleeping when I finally get home at 6 or 7am. I fall asleep immediately, wake up two hours later and can't get back to sleep. What we do is not for sport. we're not looking for any type of rush. We're interested in doing the job safely and without anything that will cause adrenaline to take over. John

[@jhettish]

I should have also let you know that I do appreciate the comment. John

[@mayormc]

wow, this video gives me the willies.

[@Swaggerlot]

Willies? I'm cacking myself!

[@plateet]

Awesome job!

[@jhettish]

The entire segment of Clay and Garrett installing that piece took about 34 minutes in real time. Neither of those two guys had ever climbed towers before I hired them. I trained Clay very thoroughly and Clay has been training Garrett. Now Garrett is experienced enough to train someone else. They're two amazing guys on a tower and I'm quite proud of both of them. John

[@daviddavidson1372]

Man stop looking down. Lol. I hate heights. But I love these videos cause I dont understand how anyone could do that kind of work. Great videos. Stay safe.

[@petewood2350]

During these types of jobs, I like my feet firmly on the ground.

[@Senna-xi1gr]

Bloody hell. Well done 👍🇬🇧

[@craigroberts6439]

Great video. Would be great if you included a couple of shots of the whole tower.

[@isettech]

Having done that in the past, you learn to fasten the o ring to the flange with a twist tie so it isn't forgotten. It stays with the flange and can't be forgotten.

[@jhettish]

You have to admit though it make for a funny end to the video, maybe even some suspense. :-)

[@user-dr4fh2nu7b]

Hello. Send you greetings from the Russian climbers, we watch your channel with a lot of interest and we wish you all the best.

[@jhettish]

(Google Translation) братья поздравления Это хорошо, чтобы знать, что вы смотрите. Было бы хорошо, чтобы увидеть некоторые ваши работы. Я хотел бы подписаться. It's good to know you're watching. It would be good to see some of your work. I would subscribe. John

[@Okanagan48]

At least he remembered the O ring! 5 weeks!! Maybe you might interest them in a standby antenna.

[@johnteague136]

That is a gorgeous view, I think I'll let you sweat the small stuff from up there and I'm just going to stick to lock picking and CNC programming of Amada turret punching machines. Stay well! And hang in there! 😎🙂🤓🇺🇸👍

[@jhettish]

Did it look like Garrett might have handled that a bit differently? At least he finally remembered the o-ring. :-)

[@SuperBorg1]

Good to have nice anchor points for fall protection.

[@SoftPorridge]

amazing bravery

[@ernestosalinas8231]

Job well done Mr. Hettish. Almost forgot the "O" ring. Would've been a disaster.

[@jhettish]

He would have had to climb back up the tower, disassemble his work, put the O-ring where he should have put it in the first place. Then........ he would have had to climb back down. That's the scariest scenario in tower work. John

[@lewiemcneely9143]

All I can say bis you got a FINE crew! I know you got to have faith in your equipment but I'd be scared to death of a rope off the ground. But I'm diesel powered and not airborne! No flight wings for this boy! Thanks John and Lads! Fine job but missed the singing!

[@jhettish]

Thanks for the comment. I'll have to say I'm very proud of them but they might read it here on KZbin. :-) John

[@ronniezzzz]

got a safety harness on but still too high for me

[@rickj1983]

Nice job.

[@jhettish]

Clay and Garrett did a really good job. Unfortunately Clay has taken another job so we don't have him to climb any more. Secondly I got hurt pretty badly last June and I'm not back up to speed though I'm way ahead of the predictions of when I'd walk again. The medical people and my wife thought I'd be walking by February. I've been walking for the last seven weeks and driving as well so I'm way ahead of that curve. I have a video ready for upload but I have had nothing but computer problems for at least two months now. I have a lot of "raw-video" but until I get the computer problems taken care of I cannot upload new videos. Before I uploaded this video I was watching the raw footage lying in bed with my laptop propped up on my knees. When it looked like Garrett was going to forget the "O-Ring" it was sort of a white knuckle time for me until I saw him suddenly remember. I was on the ground that day. Finishing off the connection was the last step after replacing 400 feet of 4" rigid coax. Lightning was really tough on that system.

[@rakaiser7331]

How did they get that big piece of pipe up to the top of the tower?

[@gekkedirkie]

job well done

[@jhettish]

Thanks for the comment.

[@royamberg9177]

job well done. almost forgot a critical part the o ring. but luckily cought it before to late

[@jhettish]

As I just told someone else their part in installing that piece took about 34 minutes. Much of the video was edited for time but nothing else. As I was watching the raw video I was experiencing the stress and noticed that he might be forgetting the O-Ring. True to his character he saw it. Clay told me this morning that when Garrett said "I need to come back down" he thought "Oh No". Clay was getting tired but the Petzl grab had the load so there was nothing to worry about.

[@royamberg9177]

There's nothing easy about what the what was taking place there was good team work to make it go smoothly as it did. We did a bunch of blade change out on some wind turbines. The blade slides on the end of a shaft with a bolt through it we used a captains winch to lower and pull it up. Everyone has to cooperate to make happen smoothly. To use man power to lift heavy items up a tower is not easy job well done.

[@jhettish]

I'm surprised that you can use a capstan and rope on a wind turbine blade. The blades I've seen are very large and about 30 feet long. I worked with strobe lights on three wind turbines near Kingston Tennessee a bunch of years ago. There were only three in place then. I looked at the "Buffalo Mountain" web site a few years ago and the three had become twenty-one. I always figured the blade change would require a crane. John

[@royamberg9177]

We use a sock made out of heavy canvas material with a d ring on it to hook rope to. It works slick but everyone has to do there job correctly I call this team work.

[@user-uw1wq9rj8g]

How many miles does this antenna can cover?

[@davecc0000]

Great videos. Love to watch. I do electrical repair of machinery (not RF at all) at ground-level. Did you upload the repair "150 ft above" on this job? It would be nice to know the link and see that. Thanks!

[@jhettish]

This video shows the final connection to the antenna. Unfortunately there was some interesting work at the junction of the pole and the main structure that I would have liked to have got some good video but somehow that didn't happen. About an hour after the guys made the connection shown in this video the transmitter was back on the main antenna and at full power. For a month it had been on an antenna about three hundred feet lower and running half power. John

[@larryzimic4493]

Question: So you replaced the top section of the hard line. With a rigid line like the one replaced, how do you connect a middle piece like that? Is the bottom section able to slide up and down so that you can make room for the bullet?

[@jhettish]

You can see in the photo of the top of the replaced rigid place that the little short piece has been re-cut toward the top of the 23 foot section. This came from a really careful measurement from the "matching section" of the ERI Rototiller to the Elbow complex below. One of the elbows had been a 6" and allowed the elbow to touch the top plate when the mast would move in high winds. We replaced the short elbow with a 12" elbow creating around 3.5" of clearance from the top plate of the tower to the vulnerable part of the new elbow. The tolerance was pretty tight but not perfect. Once in place the guys used a "Come-Along" to move the entire 750 foot run of coax down about an inch and a half. There are two fixed rigid hangers at the top of most rigid runs. Below the two fixed hangers everything else is supported by spring hangers to allow the rigid coax to move when heat and cold causes expansion and contraction. Once the assembly was down about an inch and a half, the upper the elbow could be moved into place under the flange of the 23 foot piece then tension was released from the 750 foot run............slowly. The fittings went together quite nicely, the fixed hangers were secured again and we were done.

[@jqzIII]

Larry Zimic Great question. ;)

[@jhettish]

Well, it isn't real easy but you have to know how the rigid line is installed. At the top there are two rigid hangers that do not flex Below that it's suspended by springs, which you may see in some of the other videos concerning this burnout. When removing something from the middle We attach a come-along to the line, either a the location of the piece to be replaced and below that piece. If the piece is close to the top we'll open the rigid hangers (the rest of the line is still in spring hangers) and we'll attach the come-along above the section to be replaced. All we have to do is get the line moving about three or four inches and that gives us room to remove a piece and replace it. When replaced we release (slowly) the tension on the come-along and put everything back together. Next reply, "Why Springs"

[@jhettish]

"Why Springs". The rigid line is made of copper and is susceptible to the forces of heating and cooling. It will shrink a bit when cold and expand a bit when hot. The springs allow the rigid line to move rather than crack. The ability to move and flex normally is extremely important when the vertical run of rigid is long, like seen in 1000 or 1500 foot tall towers. I'm pretty sure one of my "burnout" videos shows the come-along in use. If I can remember which one I'll post a link. John

[@jqzIII]

Thanks for the info John. I never knew about those Roto antennas till I saw your video yesterday. I like to stay on the ground. lol Be safe up there guys. Thanks again.

[@Akoszka83]

Great work, great video! Your uploads is good for entertainment and education too. I recommend, try a progress capture pulley, if you can afford that. A big help at hoisting.

[@jhettish]

Actually Garrett could have done that with the rigging available. Both he, Clay and I have already talked about that. That could have been much less painful for the both of them. You've seen what I was when I was watching the raw video before editing and uploading. John

[@Akoszka83]

Sorry, I watched without audio.. :)

[@jhettish]

I don't think the audio would have helped much. They were struggling and the audio confirms that but the way they had the tower rigged could have been much better thought out. Since I wasn't on the pole with them there was no way for me to know what they had done until I watched the raw video. Even through I said they could have done better for themselves with the rigging material we had available they didn't have that material at 750 feet (236 meters). What Garrett, Clay and I have talked about since then was how they could have rigged the tower with the equipment they had with them. If they had been required to make two or more of a lift like that it would have been a real problem. Fortunately they only had that one lift to make. John

[@Paulrm68]

There is no way .... The wind is ridiculous... If my palms where clammy after watching this on the ground, then being up there with wet hands and no grip I can't imagine anything more scary.

[@nreitcheck]

Did you build up that short section John, and why did you add it to the top instead of the bottom of that section? I also wander why you stack the sections from bottom up instead of top down. Is it due to gravity helping the bullets push in?

[@jhettish]

Actually a local engineer cuts rigid line and either solders or welds factory replacement flanges to the line. The smaller section had been cut a long time ago just to bridge the gap between the 20 foot long piece and the 4" to 3" reducer. That put the lowest elbow within 1/16" of touching the top part of the structure. I replaced the lower elbow with a longer one in order to fix that problem. When I did that the vertical piece going up the mast had to be reduced by about 3.5". The flange installed on the short cut-piece was not designed for welding but for soldering. The local guy who does the cutting and replacing just wanted to make sure there would be no air leaks around his work. I hope that answers the questions. John

[@jhettish]

Top down makes sense but usually it's done from the bottom up especially from original installations, starting from scratch. In this case the burnout started at the top. The guys pulled the first elbow out and found the teflon spacer was toast. So they pulled the elbow and the first section inside the tower out and sent it to the ground. Then they saw the next was bad so they removed that one and kept removing until they got 20 sections down and finally found clean coax. If you started replacing coax from the top down it might be hard to get a lower section into the run. Stripping it all down to the clean part then building back up from there seemed the best choice. John

[@andrewplayfair3075]

Balls of steel

[@UNcommonSenseAUS]

how many times did they tell him not to forget tho O-ring *BEFORE* it was too late ?

[@lorenwilson8128]

Perhaps a winch instead of pulling and pushing it up? Something like what is used on a sailing ship where the rope wraps around the drum several times and you can turn the crank to get it to exactly the height you want. Make the crack attach to the mast, so it's stable.

[@truckingwithalex4785]

Do you have any tips for someone who is going into this industry. I'm not afraid of heights, but more worried bout falling. I know safety is a massive priority in these companies. But any tips

[@jhettish]

It all depends on your status. If you're free to travel 320 days or more per year and were brought up in a place where there were severe winters (ND, MT, SD, ME) then tower companies would be interested in talking with you. The best companies to work for would be those specializing in broadcast and tall towers. Secondly, the companies hiring cell antenna and line installers are usually looking for workers due to a high turnover or a sudden decision on the part of mobile phone providers (ATT, Verizon, Etc) to modify their systems. However having said that the best advice I can give would be to first watch the video "Cell Tower Deaths" and see if you get anything from that. The cell industry would not be my first choice and I'm fortunate not having to work in that part of the business. On the "About" page are several sources of web sites with hiring pages. In my opinion it's a mistake to pay for your own safety training. Let the company do that. The safety training I'm referring to is only good for learning the rules, a few things about equipment and rescue techniques. For about $1000 per student you get a card. The companies need this because the companies they do work for often require these "cards" as proof the climber has been trained. In reality most training is on the job and comes with experience. Tower workers do this summer, spring, fall and winter. It's not an Adrenalin (thrill) sport. It's a job with a special skill. Climbing and not falling off the tower is not the main skill. The skill comes from knowing what to do when you get to the spot where the work is to be done. John

[@guntherultraboltnovacrunch5248]

0-rings. The bane of mankind. RIP Challenger.

[@jaa93997]

1.- Clever use of the ascender 😉 gonna steal that one for meself if you dont mind 2.- How confident are you using that little peg for handling / hoisting the load? why not choke the stick itself? 3.- Very Nice job indeed 😀

[@jhettish]

1. He could have got more mechanical advantage with the ascender by using the ascender itself to pull the rope rather than holding the ascender to keep it steady while pulling the rope with his left hand. Even better, the fall-line could have been wrapped around a lower step bolt as a brake while using the ascender on the up-stroke. Hard to explain, easier to show. 2. The step bolts are of reasonable strength that they should easily be able to handle 100 pounds and that's a little more than that load weighed. Still, you are correct in that choking the pole would add greater strength and be a better backup. 3. And thank you very much.

[@MrGenericmember1234]

So what are those at 16:07 ? When you look down it looked like a ladder but now I assume its some sort of antenna...thingy? lol

[@jhettish]

Those are the radiating bays of the antenna. There are six total. John

[@Miata822]

I think it's an interesting decision that all the bolts on the tower are installed from the bottom with nuts on top. I would have guessed it was the other way around. Is this done just for ease of installation?

[@jaymeese7714]

it seems less likely you will drop the nut as you can see it.

[@Miata822]

@@jaymeese7714 Probably so. But dropping one of those bolts from that height could really do some damage.

[@AmericanExplorer]

I read a comment on another video from a tower climber the reason they install them like that is so if one comes loose and falls to the ground, it'll be much more noticeable than a nut would be to anyone coming to the site.

[@Miata822]

@@AmericanExplorer That make a lot of sense. Thanks for posting.

[@wyattearp190]

Garret and Clay...I guess Butch is out there somewhere!

[@dennisqwertyuiop]

Great work,,, is the coax pressurized with nitrogen ? thankyou for another great video

[@jhettish]

In this case it's pressurized with dry air. Bottles of nitrogen are a real nuisance to replace if necessary. With the bigger coax, 3" and up, there are usually leaks that tend to deplete the Nitrogen bottles. I have one customer that has a "nitrogen generator". No bottles for them. John

[@dennisqwertyuiop]

I seen the air pumps with dehydrators also, your right the nitrogen is too costly and more work

[@57BlueStar]

You guys have BIG HAIRY BALLS! If you ever fell, you would have time enough to sing the national anthem! :) Holy crap!

[@guntherultraboltnovacrunch5248]

I sure hope they pay you boys a lot of money, cause you deserve it.

[@matto8129]

wonder what these guys do for excitement. Rollercoasters must seem pretty tame.

[@milkywayexplorer942]

Installed safe at home these guys make me sick. Did you have to 1 2 3 from the ground level ?

[@MBdrummer3288]

At that height, that cable would weigh thousands of pounds! I would think so anyway! These guys are truly unbelievable people.

[@steelem422]

Do you guys climb in the rain?

[@jhettish]

Here's a video that might answer that question. kzbin.info/www/bejne/pX6TeYmLiq2fmaM

[@bigdnelyria]

What they need to do which I would think make it a little bit easier is use a longer rope and dolly system with a hydraulic or electric winch on the ground to assist them in hoisting the coax up.

[@AriGoneOfficial]

i love watching this shit when im barred the fuck out lol it chills me out idk why

[@jhettish]

Glad you like it.

[@GuaranteedEtern]

I know some people might find it boring but I'd love a decent video after a job like this

[@jhettish]

Thanks for the comment. I've always tried to have an Objective, Subject, in my videos. They were also only made to show the "work" we do on the towers and not to encourage thrill seekers. Tower work is something one does when the situation requires it regardless of most types of weather. it's difficult. It's not for excitment-It's an interesting way to make a living, especially if the worker has the gift of curiosity. Without curiousity how far would anyone go in an occupation. If it's just for the money they don't last long. John

[@k4sbb829]

are those antennas horizontally polarized and always a great job getting it done safely

[@1RadioShowHost]

Those look like Circularly Polarized antennas. www.eriinc.com/Catalog/Antennas/FM-Antennas.aspx

[@jhettish]

They're a combination of horizontal and vertical polarization. It's called circular polarization and allows both horizontal and vertical receiving antennas compatibility with the radiated signal.

[@k4sbb829]

John Hettish thanks for the info

[@k4sbb829]

1RadioShowHost @DocDeStiller thank you for the info

[@jhettish]

Glad to have been helpful. John (I won't comment on the duplicate comment ) :-)

[@dilldowschwagginz2674]

I would definitely not like to have to pull something up a tower like that. Something just feels dangerous about that but I know John knows what hes doing.

[@whodat90]

Why do you put the bolts up from the bottom instead of down from the top?

[@bullyboy3429]

Yeah weather shield them top down always

[@lt4324]

was thinking the same thing, I've always bolted "Head up/ Nut down"

[@Brian-1948]

It's easier to drop the washer over the thread and then start the nut when you are only using one hand.

[@lt4324]

@@Brian-1948 I guess for some it may be easier, but personally I have never had that issue when I use only one hand. But everyone is different, and I get your point.

[@AmericanExplorer]

Another tower climber on another video said it was more likely to be repaired if a bolt was laying on the ground rather than a nut. A bolt is more noticeable.

[@donwright3427]

I am getting a little dizzy watching this

[@CoraFaye]

No way. You could NOT pay me enough to do that.

[@morejelloplease]

don't trust that green strap at the top, i would have put that metal clasp on the foot peg as safety. if that strap breaks it looks like that piece would fall right thru the roof below.

[@jhettish]

Not a bad idea. However the green strap is rated for 3000 pounds breaking strength. The section being hauled into place weighted a little under 100 pounds, about a 3 to 1 de-rating of the strap. Thanks for the comment.

[@jhettish]

I just realized I said it was de-rated "3 to 1" when in fact it's "30 to 1". Bad math on my part. :-) I believe 30:1 is a pretty good safety margin. John

[@TheDamageinc81]

Anxiety part deux ... second Xanax ate (giggle)

[@billybelk1831]

Showing his math skills as he shows off for the girls

[@keithcope8113]

You know i like watching yalls videos but dang when he looks down below him i swearbit makes my butt pucker lol

[@jhettish]

Actually it probably doesn't phase him at all, or is it "faze"? Regardless I have the same reaction when watching a movie and one of the actors steps to the side of a building and looks down. I also get a similar reaction watching someone else (real person, real life) doing similar things. It doesn't bother me at all to look over the edge of a cliff but watching someone else look over the same cliff will bother me. I believe that it's mainly a matter of becoming acclimated to ones normal surroundings makes all the difference. By the way, my crew from fifteen years ago were identical triplets. The family name was Cope. I still have contact with those guys occasionally. Look at some of my earliest videos and you'll see them in action, so to speak. The very early videos are somewhat primitive versus what I'm doing with cameras and editing software today. John

[@fw1421]

No way you could get me up that high! I’m about to puke just watching this video 😳😳🙀🙀🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮

[@vinnycarrocia7511]

WLAC?

[@JohnSmith-hj3tn]

Ooooo ring..😵😵

[@johnratcliffe6438]

I wouldn't mind having my Diamond X6000 up that high.

[@kennethnugent8255]

no, nope, uh uh, hell to the no, I don't think so, and no

[@bigchew3149]

i have ben around radios & Towers most of my life an even done some of my own tower work but nothing above 30-50 feet at best myself ! But i have saw guys i work with up at 110ft & 144ft standing at the tip top Un Harnessed looking Down & Singing and holding on with just a leg ..You have Ballz of IRON Cuz my fat ass aint goin to do it that's for sure..lol. after 30-40ft i start trying to grow a feather or two an start trying to cluck a little bit..lmao !

[@doak4886]

Of course you know they aren’t paying you enough.

[@7865ashBEN]

Were in the hell,do you fine these guys with these hugh balls!!!! My stomach was in my throat just watching this,I couldnt imaging ever climbing that tower much less working on something that high up,and the guy is working and talking as if he were on the ground, all i know is these guys should be paided a damm lot of money!!!

[@jhettish]

Hi, You may have heard the phrase, "my training kicked in" when a soldier or cop or fireman is being interviewed on TV. Before hiring anyone I try to determine if they'd be willing to climb. If they are and I hire them it is my intention that they become permanent employees with a minimum of 40 hours a week and overtime when indicated. Then I start training them. We're all calm on a tower and enjoy the challenges of being able to get the job done. Rarely is the job repetitive. We do broadcast work primarily and each job is uniquely different. We're not there to prove how brave we are. We're there to do a rather unique job in a harsh environment. Our aim is to help our customers and to get the job done so we can move on to the next. In other words, the challenge. In the harsh environment "our training and experience" kicks in and we get the job done. John

[@7865ashBEN]

Thank you sir for the job that you do,it is a job that is,to me,scary as hell,I was a cop for years and i do believe i would still go into a shootout way before i would climb that tower,lol

[@jhettish]

In the 90s I taught a bunch of cops how to SCUBA dive. I've worked with cops for many years in the radio business and at one point was one of two divers in the Rutherford County Sheriff's office. I wasn't an employee, I was a volunteer. The other guy was a patrolman and later a detective. We mostly dived for evidence. John

[@robertwick5951]

Nope. Nope. Nope to the nope!

[@ManInTheBigHat]

I drop nuts in my shop. They're hard to find.

[@fillg]

With my butterfingers, I'd have to take a whole handful of extra nuts bolts and o-rings up there so I didn't have to climb down for more.

[@ErikPAPATIE]

Ho no is forget the Ô ring hahaha is very funniest vidéo but is replaced the Ô ring after great fail

[@jhettish]

I thought it was pretty funny also. More important though is the fact the O-Ring was not left out. thanks Erik.

[@johnritcher5751]

And I thought it was dangerous doing cable work years ago. Um not as much. wow

[@jhettish]

Hard to say which is dangerous and which isn't. I don't consider what I do to be dangerous. I've been working the tall steel for quite some time and am never in a hurry. I think the most dangerous thing a tower crewman does is getting out on a public highway, especially the interstate, and driving to the next job site. I also believe the most important piece of safety equipment is a human brain, properly used. That applies to driving also. John

[@tectonicD]

I feel bad for these guys having to manually inch that heavy ass pipe & cable into place while way up there. Shouldn’t they have a motorized winch system to assist?

[@rcr76]

s t o l e n i d e n t i t y got to carry it up though

[@flyinwalenda]

Don't drop the wrench !!

[@MrAsayaga]

Amazing that he's allowed to use tools like that (should be wired to his harness or something in case he drops something)

[@themeparkobserver9820]

If you fall from 100ft or 10,000 feet your dead regardless

[@spankthemonkey3437]

Tommy Salami about 20 seconds

[@mantia39]

Not only do I not understand HOW these guys do this job....but WHY?!

[@jarredjones8476]

We rely on communications now a days, somebody has to do it... Lol

[@michaeljmasseri973]

I like to know is how the f*** did they build that in the first place there's no crane that goes that High

[@ogarnogin5160]

Fred Dibnah

[@Bulletguy07]

Could have been worse........if he had dropped the O ring!

[@johnhorse1835]

Fired..not 100. You trust a Jbolt for your safety? And I assume your a right hand? Get em off the tower.

[@hummyhero1484]

What if u gotta pee 😬

[@knowledgableed9607]

I'm surprised the tools aren't tied to you somehow. What if you drop a wrench? By the time it hits the ground I don't think a hardhat will do much.

[@Pottema]

Fyi you can skip the first 9 min. 😂😃😂😃

[@kennethnugent8255]

this is kinda like docking a shuttle to the space station

[@spankthemonkey3437]

kenneth nugent it's like the tower if bable

[@pomietlo24]

no wonder you have shortS and burn outs...no O RINGS...LOL

[@jhettish]

I often look for a story line before editing, producing and uploading videos to KZbin. Usually the story line is about the work we're doing but in this case Garrett gave me a story line when he forgot to install the O-Ring. Fortunately we did get it installed and there is no gas leak (dry air) in the system now. The failure began in an elbow joint at the base of the top-plate. The elbow only had about 1/4 inch of clearance and the pole the antenna is installed on moves. The elbow showed a lot of denting where it had repeatedly hit the top plate during the movement. We brought this to the owner's attention in 2010 but it took until 2017 to get the problem fixed. When we replaced the elbows I made a change which now allows 3.5" of clearance so that problem is solved now.

[@pomietlo24]

I was just teasing sir,love your videos...stay safe up there ok...I VE ALWAYS HAD A THING FOR RADIO AND HOW ALL WORKS.

[@jhettish]

I knew you were teasing and took no offense but it did remind me of the trouble I have sometimes trying to come up with a theme or story line for a video. A lot of people just dump raw video on KZbin and I don't want to do that. I watched the raw video of of this one in bed on a Saturday morning. As I watched Garrett make up the connection I was afraid we'd have to go back, disassemble it and put the o-ring where it goes. I loved that part when he suddenly realized he had messed up. There, I had my story line. :-)

[@pomietlo24]

SOMETIMES I FEEL SCARED FOR YOU ...LIKE IM THERE WITH YOU...PLEASE BE REALLY CAREFUL ...I GET BAD VIBES ABOUT PEOPLE AND THINGS SO BE SURE YOU HOOK ON AND BE SAFE.I KNOW YOU VE BEEN DOING THIS A LONG TIME BUT BE SAFE...I LOST A GOOD FRIEND 3 YEARS AGO ..HE FELL FROM A REPEATER TOWER...VERY TRAGIC ACCIDENT HE WAS ALWAYS CAREFUL BUT THAT ONE TIME HE WAS NT SO LUCKY.

[@jhettish]

Was you friend in the business or on the tower due to an amateur radio commitment. I've had a ham license for a very long time but ham radio ceased to be a hobby once I got firmly into the two-way radio business. I believe there's a big difference in climbing a tower once a year and climbing more than 100 in a year. We do this almost every day and my guys have families they get to return to every night. Most people in the tower business travel 200 to 300 days a year. If one is strictly in the tower business then travel and living out of a suitcase is mandatory. We do other things when not involved in tower work and are able to focus on Middle Tennessee. I have a lot of customers that I've made the best effort to keep and try to do the best work possible. Most tower guys work in the cell phone industry and that's a real rat race that I've never had to get into. I'm not afraid on a tower. I am aware of where I am and what can happen if I cease to be aware. I stress this practice to my guys and it seems to serve them well also. Awareness and the idea that there's no reason to fall off of a perfectly good tower seems to be the key to personal safety. I appreciate your comments. Tower work is not a macho activity and not a thrill sport. It's a job that requires the utmost of professionalism. John

[@Slaaibak]

Nope

[@hhdeng]

Job Requirement: Life Insurance Premium Death Liability Waiver Balls of steel Bit crazy Adrenaline Junkie Love climbing tall things

[@ipKonfig]

parachute down!

[@bobwreck3775]

You guys have to stop climbing these things

[@1pcmedic]

WOW, I thought the definition of fear was getting caught it stop n go traffic after 2 cups of coffee and a bran muffin.