When to "guy" and when it is not needed

[blindfire]

Anyone have a good rule of thumb on when you should use a guy rope and when it isn't necessary?

I'm looking for a telescoping mast system that will get my 2m and hamstick dipole up to a decent height without needing to guy the mast.

I was looking at getting one of these.
http://www.mgs4u.com/fiberglass-push-up-mast.htm#telescoping

 

[MaverickNH]

I usually guy after my mast bends in half. Sure sign I needed to...


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[Finalygotabeltfed]

The necessity of guy ropes/wires is dictated by the integrity of the mast/tower being used and the wind loading of the antenna/s placed on it.

Heavily laden towers of the Rohn 25 size (12 inch triangular) should be guyed at 25/30 foot intervals with the guys tied out at the same point.

A single mast's guying would depend on the integrity of the mast material and its flexibility. If its going to be a wet noodle in the wind with an antenna on it, it should be guyed mid point and top to prevent it from buckling in the center in a strong wind.

In the military, we used the RC-292 ground plane antenna system and it could be guyed in three places using slip on guy plates in between the mast sections. Most of the time we used two sets of guy ropes at full height as the antenna was not in bad wind and not a permanent installation.