What’s New?
The latest news and developments at Carlson Roof Towers
October 9, 2025
“Free the Antenna!”
“I really like your towers, but my HOA would never let me put one on my roof.” Some version of this lament is the most common obstacle we hear from would-be roof tower buyers. HOA restrictions are a well-known and much-discussed source of frustration in the amateur radio world.
And there’s some very hopeful news! There’s now an exciting and promising initiative afoot that could change this picture dramatically.
ARRL, The National Association for Amateur Radio, has launched a campaign to help pass The Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act in Congress (H.R. 1094 and S. 459) which, if enacted, would greatly restrict any HOA’s right to prevent amateur radio operators from putting up an antenna on their property, whether mounted on a roof or the ground.
This page on our site has more information on this campaign. And if you want to jump right in and add your name to the effort, ARRL has created a very simple and effective way to express your support for this Act to your Congressional representatives.
September 12, 2025
Tower Overview and Assembly Guide from DX
Earlier this year, our distributor DX Engineering produced this YouTube video on our towers. This 5-minute on Carlson Roof Towers by Michael Murphy also gives an excellent quick tutorial on assembling a 45HD tower. Thanks DX and Micheal!
New Name and Company
Note that Michael uses “Carlson Communications” as our company name in this video. That was the company Jim Carlson operated under when he started making roof towers in early 2024.
In 2025 we switched to a new name for the tower-making venture: Carlson Roof Towers. And this summer we made it official by incorporating as a completely new company: Carlson Roof Towers Inc.
We will soon make a formal announcement about this changeover to our new corporation.
August 18, 2025
DX Engineering Introduces Carlson Drive-On Mast Mounts!
The new Carlson Drive-On Mast-Mounts – DOMM for short – make your POTA (Parks On The Air) activities easier and more fun by securing your portable mast quickly and securely.
The DOMM works by simply parking a vehicle’s wheel over the Base Plate, and then using the Pipe Stand to attach a telescoping mast. Standard and Heavy-Duty models support mast diameters from 1.3 to 3.1 inches. All DOMM components and packages are currently available through DX Engineering.
This video by Michael Murphy at DX shows you what it’s all about:
June 18, 2025
Hamvention video by James Cribbs!
James is the creator of Ham Radio Prep, one the most popular and highest-rated online classes to prepare people to pass the FCC test and receive a ham radio operator license. James also has a popular YouTube channel.
In this YouTube video James interviewed CRT marketing director Ron Jones. Thanks, James!
June 18, 2025
Our New Facebook page!
We just launched a Carlson Roof Towers Facebook page! Check it out!
May 14, 2025
Satellite Ground Stations!
We are currently working on a new project to become your central source for satellite ground station equipment – built on the perfect foundation for an amateur radio satellite ground station: a strong, versatile Carlson Roof Tower.
For starters, this document lists all the hardware you’ll need to build a fully operational, high-quality satellite ground station. We are working on creating a plug-and-play package with all these products. Stay tuned!
A big thanks to Rob Theiss (W5ITR) – “The Digital Rancher” on YouTube – for his advice and support in helping us get this project launched.
Rob is creating a series on his YouTube channel documenting his satellite ground station build on his Texas ranch. Here’s his first video, where he assembles a 6-foot Carlson Roof Tower:
As Rob explains in the video, he will install the Carlson Roof Tower on ground!
In our booth at the Dayton Hamvention, on Saturday, May 17, Rob is giving a presentation on making satellite contacts. We’ll post a video of Rob’s session here after the show.
We’ll create a section of our website dedicated this exciting project in the weeks ahead, which will include posting all of Rob’s videos in this series.
And speaking of YouTube videos…
At the Orlando HamCation this February, Jason Johnston (KC5HWB) – producer of the YouTube channel Ham Radio 2.0 – interviewed CRT marketing director Ron Jones:
A big thanks to Jason for conducting this interview and posting it on his very popular YouTube channel!
Check back often!
We’ll update “What’s New?” regularly with the latest buzz on what’s happening at Carlson Roof Towers! Oh, and be sure to sign up for our mailing list to receive our periodic newsletters.
Thanks for reading!