[Antennas] Rotatable Dipole questions

[Philip Atchley]

Hello,
In October and November the KO6BB antenna farm is going to receive some 
serious renovation, in two phases.  The first phase involves replacing 
the Hustler 6BTV vertical with a Butternut HF-2V vertical for 75,40 & 
30M and is pretty much "settled" in the installation design phase.

The second phase in October involves dropping the mast that holds the 
Alpha Delta DX-B sloper (never very satisfactory here) and  the half 
sized G5RV Inverted Vee and installing a rotatable dipole and rotator 
for 20, 15 & 10M on that mast.  It is anticipated that the height will 
only be about 20-22 feet above my sheet metal roof, a definite 
compromise, but I think it will still be an overall improvement in the 
station! And it's about as much "aluminum" as I can put up in this 
mobile home park without raising too many eyebrows ;-)  No towers etc 
allowed.

1.  The chosen antenna for this task is the Cushcraft D3 Rotatable 
dipole for 20, 15 & 10 Meters.  It's overall length is approximately 25 
feet, making the turning radius about 12.5 feet.  We occasionally 
receive moderate winds and gusts here, but NO icing.  It will be ground 
mounted against the house wall on a push-up pole and will be guyed at 
the rotator with Dacron rope, with the antenna just a few inches above 
the rotator.

2.  I plan on using an Alliance U-110 heavy duty TV rotator that I've 
cleaned and lubricated, and which appears to be in excellent shape (I 
have two of them).  Examination of the gears showed little/no wear and 
I've seen some very large TV antennas mounted on these critters (seemed 
to be the rotator of choice in this area).  The rotator doesn't have a 
brake, but it is worm drive to the large mast gear and I don't think the 
mast is going to "turn" it any.  Buying a new rotator is OUT of the 
budget for this project. I WILL need to replace the rubber boot and mast 
clamps though!

Questions.

1.  Is the Cushcraft D3 (20,15 & 10M) a good choice in rotatable dipoles 
  from a performance/longevity standpoint?

2.  Is this rotator likely to hold up in this type of service?  Yes, the 
basic antenna is 25 feet long, but there aren't any other elements to 
"catch the wind".  Outside of having to buy a new rubber boot and clamps 
the rotators were free (the advantage of working part time in a TV shop).

73 de Phil  KO6BB