How do i get a KU dish to point lower?

[iBoston]

I am trying to get 30w and i cannot seem to get a signal. I have got a faint of a signal, that i believe is a ghost signal. I think i need to get the dish lower, but the lnbf arm is hitting the pole and i cannot get it any further down. I could adjust the pole to make it not plumb, but i have never done that before and wonder if that will add a unexpected variable.

It is a 90cm GeoSatPro dish. I was able to get the 120cm dish to point further down because the lnbf arm does not wrap from behind the dish.

Any thoughts?

 

[primestar31]

Flip the reflector upside down, and rebolt it to the mount that way.

Then when you put it on the j-mount or pipe, you can aim it lower. It just makes it interesting because the lnb arm will now be on top...

 

[danristheman]

Just remember when turning a dish upside down add the satellite elevation to offset angle of the dish both of them together. When I had my dish upside down before I added 97w was at 40 degrees then I added offset angle of the dish that was about 20 to 22 degrees. I came up with the number of 60 degrees. I used the j pole upside down and put my dish at zero and used the j pole as my elevation setting.

 

[Titanium]

The GSP90CM J-pole can be installed with the angle at the bottom for height or the angle at the top for horizontal reach. Changing the J-pole may provide the additional arm clearance that you need. The mount can also be inverted for the J-Pole to be top loaded. These options are shown on the assembly sheet.

 

[iBoston]

The GSP90CM J-pole can be installed with the angle at the bottom for height or the angle at the top for horizontal reach. Changing the J-pole may provide the additional arm clearance that you need. The mount can also be inverted for the J-Pole to be top loaded. These options are shown on the assembly sheet.

Yea, i already tried flipping the J pole. Still not low enough. I guess ill flip the dish. Have to wait for the next nice day outside.

 

[Titanium]

The easiest way to get a lower elevation is to simply tilt the J-Pole towards the 30w satellite. The elevation scale will no longer be accurate with the tilted pole, but subtract 24.6 degrees from the dish face angle to determine the actual look angle.

 

[iBoston]

The easiest way to get a lower elevation is to simply tilt the J-Pole towards the 30w satellite. The elevation scale will no longer be accurate with the tilted pole, but subtract 24.6 degrees from the dish face angle to determine the actual look angle.

Does it perfectly need to be tilted towards 30w? If its tilted down at about 20w would that work or would that angle the dish oddly? The mount is on the corner of the storage container and it needs to be attached facing a certain direction to be welded onto the corner steel block.

 

[Titanium]

The pole could be tilted any direction, but be aware that at any other azimuth, the dish will sweep at an angle instead of horizontal and the offset angle follows the vertical axis.

 

[harshness]

More to the point, if you're going to shoot for other orbital slots, you cannot tilt the mast.

Imagine tilting your head forward and turning it side-to-side; you're no longer sweeping the horizon (or in this case, the Clarke Belt).

 

[Titanium]

This is not correct. On a fixed dish, the pole does not need to be plumb to aim at a geostationary satellite. A plumb pole will make aiming easier, but the pole tilt angle can be offset by changes in the mount elevation setting. It is all about geometry...

 

[a33]

harshness is stil right, I guess, because (s)he wrote:

... if you're going to shoot for other orbital slots...

But the difference between a fixed dish and a motorized dish is now again cleared, I guess.

Greetz,
A33

 

[phlatwound]

Yes, a fixed dish doesn't care if you lean the mast, nail it to a tree or hang it from a skyhook...just has to be accurately aimed and the feed skewed properly.

Here's some pics of dishes I have aimed at 30W (12.2 degrees above the horizon at my longitude), fixed and motorized:

 

[harshness]

This is not correct.

As a33 recognized, my statement was indeed correct.

I assume (perhaps incorrectly) that most FTA Ku dishes aren't permanently "glued" to a particular slot.

 

[Titanium]

Sorry Harshness, for iBoston's fixed dish install, the statement is not correct. A pole could be mounted at most any angle and aimed at any azimuth within the range of the elevation bracket.

Guess I better go remove several dozen installs where (for location mounting requirements) the post was not plumb, level or directed at the target satellite! LOL

 

[iBoston]

Rain in forecast until Saturday, so i'll get back with ya on what i decide to do...

 

[harshness]

Sorry Harshness, for iBoston's fixed dish install, the statement is not correct.

Because my statement was conditioned on the dish setup being able to point at different slots, it is accurate.

There's nothing in the OP that leads to the conclusion that the dish is fixed. On the contrary: According to the signature, two of the three GeoSatPro 90 dishes in the TS's farm would appear to have Titanium ASC1 movers under them.

Yes, IFF (if and only if) the dish is fixed on a particular slot, you can tilt the mast but if it is on a motor, not so much. That you know that the TS is talking about a fixed dish versus the other two motor-driven dishes is gives you an advantage but it doesn't invalidate my claim.

 

[Titanium]

Sorry Harshness to continue to contest your claim. Like yourself, I only read iBoston's Post #1, indicating a fixed dish with the LNB support arm hitting the pole. The GSP90CM LNB arm would not be close to striking any pole if it were mounted on a HH motor and setting the declination offset.

Only trying to provide iBoston with accurate information for him to decide how to best install his dish. Am happy to say you are right if that is what you need, but that wouldn't necessarily make it so...

 

[phlatwound]

It was pretty obvious to me that iBoston was talking about a fixed dish because...he was asking about leaning the pole and he knows that is not acceptable with a motorized install.

Also, FYI, Titanium ASC1 movers are not used (ever?) on 90cm offset dishes. They are not even anything that attaches to a dish.

 

[iBoston]

It is a FIXED dish. The Two ASC1's are for my Cbands. I only have one motorized KU and that is NOT what I am working on. 30w will be fixed and locked down for 30w and only 30w.

 

[Titanium]

It is a FIXED dish. The Two ASC1's are for my Cbands. I only have one motorized KU and that is NOT what I am working on. 30w will be fixed and locked down for 30w and only 30w.

Good luck on the aiming! Let us know how it goes.