Big Dish shakes when it moves between satellites

[uh-oh]

Probably a stupid question, but I never noticed before that our Big Dish noticibly vibrates when moving from one satellite to another. It is a very lg white dish - not a mesh.

We have had it for 15 yrs and never noticed this shaking. Should we be concerned, and have someone check out before it breaks?

Thanks!

 

[Greg Mueller]

Try greasing up the axis that the dish pivots on and see if that helps

 

[dfergie]

Check all the mounting Bolts make sure none are about to break also...

 

[voomvoom]

The actuator may need oiling/greasing as well. The arm may be dry and trying to stick. Or maybe over time, the arm has rusted a bit.

Al

 

[uh-oh]

Gosh, thanks! I was afraid something was wrong. I'll go check it now.

 

[uh-oh]

OK, I just hiked up to satellite. All metal behind the dish is rusty. Is there a drawing/diagram of a big dish so I will know what the moving parts are that I need to grease/oil. Thanks

 

[dfergie]

Installation Links
Arrowe
Adjusting Polar Mount page 1
Adjusting Polar Mount page 2
Adjusting Polar Mount page 3
Explanation of Polar Mount
Setting up a Polar Mount
Dish Mounts
Superstar
try these links from the C-Band FAQ's

 

[Greg Mueller]

Do you have an oil can?
If it were me, I'd rotate the dish so that the mover arm is fully extended, then oil the exposed part. Rub oil all over the extended part so it has a nice coating. Most of it should get wiped off by the seals but at least it's better than being dry. Then I'd have someone in the house rotate the dish so it goes to the extreme the other way and watch where it pivots and shoot some oil in there as best you can. Later you can try to get some grease into main axis. But the oil should tell you a lot and certainly make things better. If the arm is rusty where it slides inside itself, you might need to replace it.
Try not to use WD40

Hope this helps

 

[iammike]

Try not to use WD40

I use 10W30 motor oil on my mount.

 

[Diamond Jim]

I use 90 weight gear oil. I found that the holes at the end of the arm were useless when it came to oiling, it just ran out on the ground. I drilled a hole in the arm in two places, one toward the top and the other about 1/2 way down. I take the 922 remote outside with me, fill the holes with oil and run in up and down a few times. This arm has lasted about 15 years, with is about 7 longer then the one I didn't do any maintenance on. I try to do this twice a year, spring and fall.

 

[bryansr]

I use 90 weight gear oil. I found that the holes at the end of the arm were useless when it came to oiling, it just ran out on the ground. I drilled a hole in the arm in two places, one toward the top and the other about 1/2 way down. I take the 922 remote outside with me, fill the holes with oil and run in up and down a few times. This arm has lasted about 15 years, with is about 7 longer then the one I didn't do any maintenance on. I try to do this twice a year, spring and fall.

Jim;
Do you put a screw or a plug in the holes to keep the water out? I think that would be a must esp. in a wet climate.

BryanSR