Looking at a new 1.2m

[skysurfer]

From my experience, the Fortec Star 1.2 is the quality standard the others are always compared to.

with a few modifications. Anole was probably referencing me about the elevation adjustment. I added a screw adjustment for elevation to give me finer control over elevation as I peaked the dish/stab hh120 motor combo onto the sat arc. I also put in guy-wire support for the LNBF support arm because I put a quality invacom LNBF on the dish. If you use those cheap southeast asian imported LNBFs you probably won't need to do that as they are lightweight. I wanted a quality LNBF and the invacom was heavy enough to move the LNB support arm out of the focal point and the guy-wire fix pulls it right back to the focal point. It was awesome watching the S/Q's on my signal meter increase as I turned the turnbuckle and the invacom LNBF moved into the focal cloud. With the few mods, the Fortec Star 1.2m performs awesomely.

 

[brentb636]

with a few modifications. Anole was probably referencing me about the elevation adjustment. I added a screw adjustment for elevation to give me finer control over elevation as I peaked the dish/stab hh120 motor combo onto the sat arc. I also put in guy-wire support for the LNBF support arm because I put a quality invacom LNBF on the dish. If you use those cheap southeast asian imported LNBFs you probably won't need to do that as they are lightweight. I wanted a quality LNBF and the invacom was heavy enough to move the LNB support arm out of the focal point and the guy-wire fix pulls it right back to the focal point. It was awesome watching the S/Q's on my signal meter increase as I turned the turnbuckle and the invacom LNBF moved into the focal cloud. With the few mods, the Fortec Star 1.2m performs awesomely.

I did exactly the same mods to my old Fortec 1.2M . The turnbuckle reference brings back fond memories !

 

[Anole]

Anole was probably referencing me about the elevation adjustment.
I added a screw adjustment for elevation to give me finer control over elevation as I peaked the dish/stab hh120 motor combo onto the sat arc.
I also put in guy-wire support for the LNBF support arm ...
I wanted a quality LNBF and the invacom was heavy enough to move the LNB support arm out of the focal point...
It was awesome watching the S/Q's on my signal meter increase as I turned the turnbuckle and the invacom LNBF moved into the focal cloud.

Ahhhh, turnbuckles on the LNBF, now that does bring back memories! - :up

But, I was thinking more about a discussion with JsatTV and his 1.0m FortecStar.
He had trouble setting fine elevation, and I suggested a bracket & screw modification.
Due to his motor entering the dish from below, I suggested putting the bracket and screw on the top side of the mount.
Well, much to my surprise, he built the darned thing, and apparently it turned out okay!
(links below)


But, there were a lot of creative ideas floating around, guy wires, turn buckles, and of course, light weight brackets to mount the bigger commercial Ku dishes on too-small motors.

I got lucky and was able to find an Andrew 1.2m very close to me. I still have some fine tuning ahead of me, but for the most part, it's ready! I used Ziploc's plans to make the mount. The motor doesn't seem to have any trouble driving the dish from east to west.

Outstanding! - :up
I don't recognize Ziploc (some of those great mod-threads were five years ago)
Do you have some pictures, links, or description of his suggestions?
edit: zoomed in on your picture. Yes, I recall that bracket idea. Think it was one of the first to promote the light weight designs

Also, which motor did you go with?




JsatTV and his trouble with elevation adjustment on Fortec dish:
http://www.satelliteguys.us/free-ai...-fortec-star-dish-elevation-2.html#post889050
http://www.satelliteguys.us/free-ai...-re-fine-tuning-1-meter-fortec-star-dish.html
http://www.satelliteguys.us/free-ai...h-stab-hh-120-motor-tips-lessons-learned.html

 

[Panavision]

I was ecstatic when I was told that I could have the Andrew! I've wanted this brand's dish for years!

I found Ziploc's idea appealing because it drastically cuts down on the weight my SG2100 has to turn. He included some very helpful engineering drawings:

http://www.satelliteguys.us/free-air-fta-discussion/23072-primestar-dish-sg2100.html

Of course, my cuts aren't have as precise as his were! My next step will be getting an Invacom QDF-031 Quad LNB that connects to the Andrew feedhorn. I've read that the Quad outperforms the single.

And eventually, I'd like a beefier motor. My SG2100 is acting strangely-- always forgetting sat positions and routinely driving to my East/West limits! Ideally, I'd have a polar mount with a G-box...