Something else about the 12 footers...there's a good chance that they are on az/el mounts, and would be a lot of work to adapt to motorize to track the arc.
Need more advanced FTA knowledge/advice
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elentex: We have picked up several 10 foot mesh dishes in good shape down around the Booneville area. I would think there would be some down in your area, maybe over toward Mena or toward Hot Springs. This is the time of year to take a drive around the area while the leaves are still off the trees. The ones that we got were free. Good hunting.
It's 92 inches. Including some photos of it front and back, as well as one of the two bigger dishes. I couldn't find a brand name. Also have a photo of the SuperJack II+HQ that came on my first dish. I don't know it's function or if it can be used. If the 92 inch dish will do most of what the others will do, I might take the path of least resistance.
The 12's are AZ/EL mounts,not moveable,you set them for one sat and leave them there.For your purposes the 7.5' should work reasonably well,it won't get everything but it will get a lot.It's on a polar mount so you can put an actuator on it.Also looks like it has an ortho feed on it :up.I'd like to grab the orthos off the 12's.
The large one with the ribs on the back looks like a Channel Master. Nice!
I'd be tempted to forget about the 8 footer and go for the big boys
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I'd be tempted to forget about the 8 footer and go for the big boys
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Yea, but who needs a fixed dish that size?The large one with the ribs on the back looks like a Channel Master. Nice!
I'd be tempted to forget about the 8 footer and go for the big boys
The mount is a major component.
If the OP can find & graft on a suitable mount, that'd be another story.
I just don't want to set him up for failure with too big a mission.
Finding -another- dish with all the right stuff is often the better choice.
Just gotta go look for it. :up
Best to learn how to walk before running.
Might be worthwhile to disassemble and store if possible. Experience gained with the smaller dish may turn into a polar mount project on one of the 12's in the future.(?) Those OMT feeds are definitely worth retrieving. (At least get them)
Thanks for the feedback. You guys are way ahead of me, so I'm not sure about all the terms. I've been working with Ku band systems, setting them up for people on G19 for a long time. I have one of my 36" dishes pointed at G19 and another at AMC-6 for the NBC feeds. I've tried to help a friend set up a motor on his 36" dish, but we haven't gotten it quite right yet. Currently, it's pointed at G19 and he's not using the motor. I would like to have more viewing options. I record the evening news so I can watch it at my convenience, and we enjoy seeing things on the NBC feeds that you wouldn't see on network TV, like when they're setting up for the news or some remote program. It was nice to get the Olympics, too. We don't pay for TV anymore. Among other things, I would like to be able to get the World Series on C-band, if that's possible. Anyway, I can see saving one of those big dishes to use on down the road and setting up the smaller dish with a motor. I'm guessing that ortho and OMT feeds are the C-band equivalent to the Ku band LNB. Correct me if I'm wrong. I'm hearing that I should collect both of the ones that are on the big dishes. I'm not sure about "actuator" and "linear actuator" and the relationship they have to the motor control box (V-box). As for finding a 10 ft. mesh dish. . . I see unused mesh dishes all over the place--I've been scoping them out for a long time, but to my untrained eye they all look the same--like the one on the hill that's 7.5-8 ft. If I decide to go that route, I guess I'll just have to start knocking on a lot of doors to find out what size they are. But they all look the same to me. Thanks again for your help.
Ortho mode feed,is a feedhorn with 2 LNB's,one for vertical polarity and one for horizontal.Unlike a polarotor feed that uses a small motor to rotate a probe to change polarity.LNBF's are the feedhorn and lnb's combined in a single unit and polarity is switched electricly,same as your ku lnbf's,C band are just larger.
Linear actuator or just actuator is the retractable arm with motor that moves the dish,the V Box would control the actuator.In your pictures that Superjack is an actuator.
Hope that clears up some of your questions.
Linear actuator or just actuator is the retractable arm with motor that moves the dish,the V Box would control the actuator.In your pictures that Superjack is an actuator.
Hope that clears up some of your questions.
Take, and post, pictures. Someone here knows what they are. May not be one person knowing them all, but collectively don't think there's many unknown dishes.
OMT *Orthomode Tranducer" or 'Ortho" feed uses 2 LNB's. One for each polarity. Requires a multiswitch to use with an FTA STB. (Set Top Box=Receiver) Dandy as they are the most efficient at getting the signal into the coax and down to the receiver.
LNBF is a unitized feed horn and LNB. Utilizes LNB voltage to select polarity (13v for vertical, 18v for Horizontal)
The multiswitch will select the proper LNB the same way, LNB voltage.
There are also Ku OMT's as there are C band. Same for LNBF's C and Ku are available.
OMT *Orthomode Tranducer" or 'Ortho" feed uses 2 LNB's. One for each polarity. Requires a multiswitch to use with an FTA STB. (Set Top Box=Receiver) Dandy as they are the most efficient at getting the signal into the coax and down to the receiver.
LNBF is a unitized feed horn and LNB. Utilizes LNB voltage to select polarity (13v for vertical, 18v for Horizontal)
The multiswitch will select the proper LNB the same way, LNB voltage.
There are also Ku OMT's as there are C band. Same for LNBF's C and Ku are available.
The superjack is the actuator. You put a v box in the coax between the receiver and LNB(F) or switches. The receiver 'talks' to the v box using diseqc commands. The v box then will then send 24-36v to the actuator (on separate wiring) to move the dish. Course, you have to program the v box where to stop.
same song, second verse:
Oh, wait I think we already covered one of those.
Bring us some pix!
We have people here who can often estimate dish size, identify desirable motors, and things like ortho feeds.Show us pictures:
- distant shot front & back
- pix of the mount, both sides
- pix of motor to see condition
- pix of scalar/feedhorn/LNB from various angles
The more we know, the better advice you get.
Oh, wait I think we already covered one of those.
Bring us some pix!
That 8ft. mesh BUD looks just like my 6ft. Perfect 10 brand. It is an excellent dish! Which I had an 8 footer but my HOA would throw a fit. I'm getting away with the 6 footer and I'm not gonna push it by changing it. I finally just finished setting up my KU motorized and C-band dishes after 10 years of being half finished, and I find myself on the C-band side much more than KU! IMHO there's better programing on C-band.
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