Declination is what sets the arc if you are gonna be driving the dish thru the arc. Since for now your gonna be on just one sat its not as important. Also don't adjust the elevation when your away from your true south sat. Let's say your true south is 95 galaxy 3c. Your gonna set that so you get signal there. Then slowly move the dish east toward your 87 degrees sat. Try the ones in between like 91 and 89. If you get to 87 then your good. If not the declination is off. I set mine on the ring on the back of the dish. You will get there I thought the same thing.
Finally!
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Wow...
Ok, I have a new problem but that's nothing you guys can help me with. There's a tree limb that hangs low over the dish. Well, we are having strong winds today and the limb is whipping around and it comes down and touches the dish. Frequently. This is not good..
The only thing I know to do is take the dish back down, throw a rope around the limb, tie it to my John Deere and pull the bleeping thing down. Redneck tree trimming..
Actually there is one over where the BIG dish is going so I'll need to pull that one down too.
Anyway...
So alignment...
I guess the very first thing I need to figure out is where to aim it, on the compass.
I have an iPhone 3GS with GPS and all those motion detectors, was shocked when I used the GPS on it and it showed me almost to the inch where I was standing on my deck, in real time as I moved around.
So I got a compass app and a level app that looks just like those incline levels you guys have shown in other threads.
I can place my iPhone alongside the flat metal parts of the dish mount and use it to aim it precisely at a specific compass direction.
And I'm sure I can do the same for the incline stuff and decline and all that. I hope. Right?
The only thing is, it doesn't have a magnet on the edge so I can't stick it to anything. And I only have one edge to work with, the left side has volume buttons sticking out a little and that would throw it off so I have to use the other edge. And of course I have to take it out of the rubber case and ~hope~ I don't drop it!
So, do I point the mount towards true north? See the picture below, is this what I need to do first?
EDIT: Ooooops!! I think I should have said true SOUTH.....
Then once that part is locked down in place, I guess I need to set the angles, right? I need to watch that video a few times and sit and meditate on it over a few cups of coffee.
This stuff is blowing my mind, just reading some of the terms cause me to have a mental melt down.
So I think what I need to do is stop trying to understand everything all at one time and take it one step at a time, totally ignoring and disregarding the next step as if it doesn't exist and focus on the one step that is at hand. Get it done and then take on the next step and focus only on it.
Trying to eat the whole pie in one bite is just too much for me..
This stuff is waaaaay harder than those little ku dishes. Those things (the non motorized ones) are EASY compared to this! This stuff is frickin complicated!
So I guess right now I will worry about aiming the mount at some place on the compass.
For today I have stopped work. One of my neighbors, sits on his back porch smoking and watching me work. That makes me a bit uncomfortable so I will wait until tomorrow when he goes to work to get back out there. So today is a day to read threads, watch videos and think about tomorrow. I was hoping to get out there today and do something but, oh well...
Ok, I have a new problem but that's nothing you guys can help me with. There's a tree limb that hangs low over the dish. Well, we are having strong winds today and the limb is whipping around and it comes down and touches the dish. Frequently. This is not good..
The only thing I know to do is take the dish back down, throw a rope around the limb, tie it to my John Deere and pull the bleeping thing down. Redneck tree trimming..
Actually there is one over where the BIG dish is going so I'll need to pull that one down too.
Anyway...
So alignment...
I guess the very first thing I need to figure out is where to aim it, on the compass.
I have an iPhone 3GS with GPS and all those motion detectors, was shocked when I used the GPS on it and it showed me almost to the inch where I was standing on my deck, in real time as I moved around.
So I got a compass app and a level app that looks just like those incline levels you guys have shown in other threads.
I can place my iPhone alongside the flat metal parts of the dish mount and use it to aim it precisely at a specific compass direction.
And I'm sure I can do the same for the incline stuff and decline and all that. I hope. Right?
The only thing is, it doesn't have a magnet on the edge so I can't stick it to anything. And I only have one edge to work with, the left side has volume buttons sticking out a little and that would throw it off so I have to use the other edge. And of course I have to take it out of the rubber case and ~hope~ I don't drop it!
So, do I point the mount towards true north? See the picture below, is this what I need to do first?
EDIT: Ooooops!! I think I should have said true SOUTH.....
Then once that part is locked down in place, I guess I need to set the angles, right? I need to watch that video a few times and sit and meditate on it over a few cups of coffee.
This stuff is blowing my mind, just reading some of the terms cause me to have a mental melt down.
So I think what I need to do is stop trying to understand everything all at one time and take it one step at a time, totally ignoring and disregarding the next step as if it doesn't exist and focus on the one step that is at hand. Get it done and then take on the next step and focus only on it.
Trying to eat the whole pie in one bite is just too much for me..
This stuff is waaaaay harder than those little ku dishes. Those things (the non motorized ones) are EASY compared to this! This stuff is frickin complicated!
So I guess right now I will worry about aiming the mount at some place on the compass.
For today I have stopped work. One of my neighbors, sits on his back porch smoking and watching me work. That makes me a bit uncomfortable so I will wait until tomorrow when he goes to work to get back out there. So today is a day to read threads, watch videos and think about tomorrow. I was hoping to get out there today and do something but, oh well...
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No, I don't really have a little tv set. I have a coolsat 6000 that I bought a year or two back but I don't use it, I got it when I was having big troubles with the pc tuner, I got it to help me find ku satellites. I don't know if it will do C-band.
I saw you guys talking about a little handheld thing on ebay that is being sold as a "meter" but you say it's really just a miniature tuner and tv in a hand held device. I think that if it will do C-band then it would be a good investment. I could put it on the birddog meter, the birddog has a line in and a line out so that you can place it in the middle between the dish and a tuner. I think with the two of those and a squealy meter, I could do ok and save myself a lot of frustration. I can't really afford that little handheld thing right now though so it will have to wait till next month.
the CS6000 will do C-Band just fine. Pretty much all receivers out there can do both C & KU Band
Ok, this is just impossible.......
I am reasonably certain that I have put some of the parts on upside down now.
There is NO WAY for that motor arm to have a straight path.
You bolt the motor to pieces of angle iron. Because of the way the motor clamp is, you can not bolt it into the angle of the angle iron on the pole mount piece, it has to be bolted to the outside of the angle because the clamp is so large. Even attempting to use the spacer that came with it is not enough to clear the angle.
And the same thing with the end of the arm on the back of the dish. The knot on the end that the bolt goes through, will not fit inside the angle iron on the back of the dish..
BUT, the way the angle iron on the dish is, it's lined up dead center of the dish. If I take it all apart and flip it, it will no longer be centered and the dish will be offset from center of the main mount pivot part.
The spacers are of no use. I have no idea why they are there.
This whole thing is a joke.
I'm thinking that my best best is to just totally forget the motor completely on this dish, have my dad make up a part to bolt in place of the motor so that the dish is simply a fixed position like the little ku dishes. Then aim it at 87 and LEAVE IT ALONE.
I can worry about the BIG dish and it's motor then in a few weeks when my dad finishes making repairs to it. It needs some welding done on the ring mount thing.
This little dish is already rusted up pretty good, paint is peeling off and it's bent up just from me trying to assemble it. It won't be here by the time hurricane season is over. After we get a good storm through I'll take the remains down and toss it to the curb and write it off then get on craiglist and try to find a replacement someone doesn't want anymore.
I'm so freaking p
:ed off that someone stole that 8' dish I was going to have brought here. I could CHOKE those men that left it out to be stolen rather than delivered it like they were supposed to do or at least put it inside the fence where it would have stood a chance. 
:rant:
I wasted my money on this one..
Oh well..
So yeah, I think trying to put all this work into a dish that won't be here long anyway is fruitless. I'll just get my dad to make a bracket to bolt up where the motor would go and call it good.
I'll save this motor for the dish that will inevitably replace this one in the near future.
I am reasonably certain that I have put some of the parts on upside down now.
There is NO WAY for that motor arm to have a straight path.
You bolt the motor to pieces of angle iron. Because of the way the motor clamp is, you can not bolt it into the angle of the angle iron on the pole mount piece, it has to be bolted to the outside of the angle because the clamp is so large. Even attempting to use the spacer that came with it is not enough to clear the angle.
And the same thing with the end of the arm on the back of the dish. The knot on the end that the bolt goes through, will not fit inside the angle iron on the back of the dish..
BUT, the way the angle iron on the dish is, it's lined up dead center of the dish. If I take it all apart and flip it, it will no longer be centered and the dish will be offset from center of the main mount pivot part.
The spacers are of no use. I have no idea why they are there.
This whole thing is a joke.
I'm thinking that my best best is to just totally forget the motor completely on this dish, have my dad make up a part to bolt in place of the motor so that the dish is simply a fixed position like the little ku dishes. Then aim it at 87 and LEAVE IT ALONE.
I can worry about the BIG dish and it's motor then in a few weeks when my dad finishes making repairs to it. It needs some welding done on the ring mount thing.
This little dish is already rusted up pretty good, paint is peeling off and it's bent up just from me trying to assemble it. It won't be here by the time hurricane season is over. After we get a good storm through I'll take the remains down and toss it to the curb and write it off then get on craiglist and try to find a replacement someone doesn't want anymore.
I'm so freaking p
:ed off that someone stole that 8' dish I was going to have brought here. I could CHOKE those men that left it out to be stolen rather than delivered it like they were supposed to do or at least put it inside the fence where it would have stood a chance. :rant:I wasted my money on this one..
Oh well..
So yeah, I think trying to put all this work into a dish that won't be here long anyway is fruitless. I'll just get my dad to make a bracket to bolt up where the motor would go and call it good.
I'll save this motor for the dish that will inevitably replace this one in the near future.
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Have your beau look at it!!!
Maybe he can help you figure things out.
I have no beau...
Oh well..
(I meant the hole digger.)
Just trying to help cheer you up!
Maybe that hole digger and your dad could take a gander at it and help you out!
(I meant the hole digger.)
Just trying to help cheer you up!
Maybe that hole digger and your dad could take a gander at it and help you out!
Ah..
Well, the dude that dug the holes and stuff, he knows nothing at all about satellites. Zero... He was asking me questions about it while I was supervising. He's also my best friend's BF.. He's taken..
My dad.. Hmmm... I don't trust him too much. My dad also knows nothing about satellites and he's famous for rigging things up in ways that look pretty suspect to me.
(need a girl facepalm )I think he is a founding member of the Red Green Duct (I got it now) tape club.
He was an engineer in a refinery so he thinks he is supreme know it all about everything. Sure, he is good at making things in his garage on a machine but that's where he does his best work. It's his retirement hobby. He does repairs around here from time to time for me and I just stand there and bite my lip because I can clearly see that things aren't right but he is of course, supreme know it all.
I think it will be far easier to just have him look at it as it is with the rope on it. Line it up so that it is pointed perfectly straight and square with the mount head, get measurements and have him make some metal bars to bolt it up so it can't move. Aim it at AMC 3 and enjoy the heck out of the awesome channels on that satellite.
The biggest dish, that's a different story. I for sure want to get the motor working on that one! But I'll worry about that when I get there.
My bad.
I thought that the dude would of been able to help.
No bad..
I wish he would have been able to help..
This thing has me pretty frustrated and befuddled..
No bad..
I wish he would have been able to help..
This thing has me pretty frustrated and befuddled..
You MUST have some neighbors with a C-band dish. Go ask them if you can look it over, and take some pictures on how it's assembled. That's what I did on my second c-band dish, which was an 11 foot square fiberglas dish, that used to belong to a motel. It was given to me completely disassembled, and I had to figure out how to put it together. Luckily for me, a guy 10 miles away had EXACTLY the same dish. I went over, knocked on the door, and asked. I then took some pics, and was all set. I would have had major issues figuring it out on my own, but I'm all for shortcuts! It's much easier than you are making out, your brain is just fighting you. If you keep trying to "figure it out", but mull the wrong info over and over in your brain, you will LOSE the battle! CHEAT! You can only figure it out in your brain, once you have the proper info to "input".
This is somebodies video, but 1/2 to 3/4 way through, it actually gives you some good views of what you need to do. YouTube - 8' C Band Antenna Dish Refurbishment
Ok, I'm going to post this here, because I can't pm you. You need to clean out some of them.
Buy this book. It'll answer all your questions. It's one of the ones I had back then B.T.I. (BeforeTheInternet) It's VERY good to set your brain straight. Old book, for an old system install!:
Home Satellite TV Installation and Troubleshooting Manu | eBay
Or, maybe you can still find a copy at your library.
Here, I just found a cheaper one. If you decide to buy it, email them and ask if it's truly the 5 edition, dated 1995, that's the one you'd want.
Home Satellite TV Installation and Troubleshooting Manual by Frank Baylin (Used, New, Out-of-Print) - Alibris
Don't let this be you, because you don't think you can figure it out:
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Ooops... My mailbox runneth over...
Fixed..
Thank you for the info, I will look it over in the morning over coffee..
I backed off awhile and then took another re-think at this.
I have an idea that I'm going to try tomorrow, one more try at it to see if I can get that stupid motor on there.
I also realized that I need to tighten all the bolts up, they are all super loose and the whole mess is all flopping around. We are having some fierce winds and they are gonna destroy the thing loose like it is.
I found out that I can't put my iPhone up to the metal, I guess it has a real compass in it. I thought it was electronic but the metal totally messed the compass up. I think what I will do is clamp a looooong stick to the mount to move the iPhone several feet away from the metal then hold the phone to the stick.
It appears I have to point the mount towards true south. Do that first. Then start tightening up loose bolts. Then set the tilt. There's two tilts to set. I don't understand them but I'll figure it out somehow from the videos. I frickin HATE math.. And I double hate geometry!
Once I get the tilts set then I will see if I can get the motor mounted. That's going to be another thing that's gonna make me crazy.
And then there's the lnb. OMG.... There seems to be this focal depth thing to figure out. Then I have to figure out which way to rotate it..
Man! Why is this stuff so complicated?????
Oh, and no, I have not seen ANYONE with a big satellite dish around here. Not one. I do look as I drive around, since I lost that stash of dishes last year to stupidity, I have had it in mind that if I could spot one somewhere I would go ring their bell and see if they want to get rid of it. I have no idea how I would take it down or cart it away but I guess I would run it past my dad for suggestions. But no, I haven't seen a big satellite dish in anyone's yard for years.
Except last year, when my late friend and I saw an enormous 16 foot dish out in the country. I'll bet you could talk to Mars on that thing!
I could tell from the position it was pointed that it was not in use but jeez, that thing would take a crane and an 18 wheeler to move it then it would take a dump truck full of cement and a bulldozer to dig a hole for it. A pole would probably cost a thousand dollars for that thing!
Just getting that thing taken down, moved and re-planted here, would cost several thousand dollars.
As cool as it would be to have it, it's insane to even consider such a task..
Fixed..
Thank you for the info, I will look it over in the morning over coffee..
I backed off awhile and then took another re-think at this.
I have an idea that I'm going to try tomorrow, one more try at it to see if I can get that stupid motor on there.
I also realized that I need to tighten all the bolts up, they are all super loose and the whole mess is all flopping around. We are having some fierce winds and they are gonna destroy the thing loose like it is.
I found out that I can't put my iPhone up to the metal, I guess it has a real compass in it. I thought it was electronic but the metal totally messed the compass up. I think what I will do is clamp a looooong stick to the mount to move the iPhone several feet away from the metal then hold the phone to the stick.
It appears I have to point the mount towards true south. Do that first. Then start tightening up loose bolts. Then set the tilt. There's two tilts to set. I don't understand them but I'll figure it out somehow from the videos. I frickin HATE math.. And I double hate geometry!
Once I get the tilts set then I will see if I can get the motor mounted. That's going to be another thing that's gonna make me crazy.
And then there's the lnb. OMG.... There seems to be this focal depth thing to figure out. Then I have to figure out which way to rotate it..
Man! Why is this stuff so complicated?????
Oh, and no, I have not seen ANYONE with a big satellite dish around here. Not one. I do look as I drive around, since I lost that stash of dishes last year to stupidity, I have had it in mind that if I could spot one somewhere I would go ring their bell and see if they want to get rid of it. I have no idea how I would take it down or cart it away but I guess I would run it past my dad for suggestions. But no, I haven't seen a big satellite dish in anyone's yard for years.
Except last year, when my late friend and I saw an enormous 16 foot dish out in the country. I'll bet you could talk to Mars on that thing!
I could tell from the position it was pointed that it was not in use but jeez, that thing would take a crane and an 18 wheeler to move it then it would take a dump truck full of cement and a bulldozer to dig a hole for it. A pole would probably cost a thousand dollars for that thing!
Just getting that thing taken down, moved and re-planted here, would cost several thousand dollars.
As cool as it would be to have it, it's insane to even consider such a task..
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Dee get the dishpointer app for your iphone.I used it and it gives you picture of the arc u just can't get to close to metal. As far as the dish I have the same setup look at my posts. It takes two spacers and a longer 1 7/8 bolt. Also the pivot bolt that come with it is too loose it was the real long bolt with the nylon nut on top. It makes it real sloopy. First just get it lined up with true south. Get your motor on and it doesn't have to be perfect. Ill post a pic of mine later. Just do that lol. It took me wayyyy longer as I did the same as you. Try to do to many things at once and second guessing myself changing stuff.
I too had problems with the paint chipping and peeling on the Dish. I lightly sanded those spots and sprayed a few coats of Rustoleum Primer. Then I painted the whole dish. As for the back,where most of the paint problems were at, I sprayed ( 3 cans) of Rubberized Undercoating over the whole thing.
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Dee, a few things come to mind.
First, you are looking for TRUE south, not MAGNETIC south. Go back to dishpointer or where ever you found the original direction to aim your KU band dishes, true south is true south for KU as well as C Band. OR, if you have a clear sky tonight, go out and find the NORTH Star, place something on the ground pointing AT the North Star using the pole as the base to aim from, then the next day, point the dish in the opposite direction, THAT will be TRUE SOUTH, no other way to think about that one, and no compass needed.
Second, skew on your dish is NOT going to be a problem once you have it lined up for your true south. Just as with the KU dishes, as the dish moves, so will the skew, it'll be automatic, so there's one less thing to worry about.
Third, which would be cheaper, replace your iPhone when you drop it when trying to measure angles on your dish, or paying about $10 for the mag mount meter you watched on the video you posted about yesterday? You may want to rethink that one.
Fourth, stop thinking so damn negative. We have ALL tried to get you to stop doing that to yourself. Once you have that dish up and working there is NO LAW that says the darn thing will come down in the first big wind. And on the one chance that it DOES come down in that or the tenth storm coming, look at the experiance you will have gained. You are already thinking about replacing this dish, I wish I were that rich, but at least you HAVE this dish, work with it, learn on this one, the BIG dish will be a heck of a lot easier once you get your feet wet learning on this one.
Fifth, it's not too late to cut some of that pole off and lower this thing closer to the ground. If as you say it is that difficult to think of this dish blowing away, it's going to have less wind resistance closer to the ground, and MUCH easier to work on at a lower elevation.
Just a few random thoughts.
Photto
First, you are looking for TRUE south, not MAGNETIC south. Go back to dishpointer or where ever you found the original direction to aim your KU band dishes, true south is true south for KU as well as C Band. OR, if you have a clear sky tonight, go out and find the NORTH Star, place something on the ground pointing AT the North Star using the pole as the base to aim from, then the next day, point the dish in the opposite direction, THAT will be TRUE SOUTH, no other way to think about that one, and no compass needed.
Second, skew on your dish is NOT going to be a problem once you have it lined up for your true south. Just as with the KU dishes, as the dish moves, so will the skew, it'll be automatic, so there's one less thing to worry about.
Third, which would be cheaper, replace your iPhone when you drop it when trying to measure angles on your dish, or paying about $10 for the mag mount meter you watched on the video you posted about yesterday? You may want to rethink that one.
Fourth, stop thinking so damn negative. We have ALL tried to get you to stop doing that to yourself. Once you have that dish up and working there is NO LAW that says the darn thing will come down in the first big wind. And on the one chance that it DOES come down in that or the tenth storm coming, look at the experiance you will have gained. You are already thinking about replacing this dish, I wish I were that rich, but at least you HAVE this dish, work with it, learn on this one, the BIG dish will be a heck of a lot easier once you get your feet wet learning on this one.
Fifth, it's not too late to cut some of that pole off and lower this thing closer to the ground. If as you say it is that difficult to think of this dish blowing away, it's going to have less wind resistance closer to the ground, and MUCH easier to work on at a lower elevation.
Just a few random thoughts.
Photto
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