Needing help with fta new bee

[Kd8fki]

Hello everyone! I'm new to the fta satellite community currently have a dish that I got from down the road. The dish was a nice set up it was a purchased setup so it was somewhat easy to get aligned at around 200 degrees or maybe 100? Sorry I cannot remember been years since I was able to use dish and even longes since it was set up. The dish is practically useless until the busted lnb is replaced. I assume the reciever still works but not sure. Witch brings me to my next question. I recently (last night) obtained a nice but a bit older Hughes personal earth station from a gas station for their internet. I know even less about this dish lnb reciever and transmitter than I knew about the other one I had. Anyone who has any information on the uses I could get out of this dish I would love to know like could I somehow get internet from it? Can I use it for fta? Or in the radio side could I use for microwave? 2m eme moon bounce anything? Just trying to figure out options I may have.

Thanks 73s kd8fki


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[KE4EST]

Welcome to SatelliteGuys Matthew!!
You will have to give more details about the dish down the road. Size? Material?

As far as the Hughes dish, what is the size on it? I am guessing 4 foot - 6foot??
It will make a great FTA dish. No free internet sorry, but there is plenty of TV/Radio channels.

 

[FaT Air]

You want a 10 ft BUD for EME IIRR. That's all I've seen used on various sites.
Hughes dish. Measure the Height and width. Think they were all at least 6ft wide. To big to make movable easily. Would need a modified polar mount.
Take some pictures, and after a few more posts, upload them.
(PLZ resize them to 800x600. I use Irfanview)

Can I use it for fta? Or in the radio side could I use for microwave?

Ku FTA is microwave.

 

[Kd8fki]

Ok, thanks guys I tried to post pictures to original post but it would not let me upload them I'll see what I can do to get them so everyone can see. I think what I meant by microwave was just radio or something like a internet signal I'll try to post the pics after this post


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[Kd8fki]

Well that didn't work so I'm uploading them to drop box and I'll make a public file and just share the link or try too


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[Kd8fki]

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/9jiy9y7dgo7gvn1/AAB6NHT1WiNbz6kQusxXr8-Ja?dl=0 here is the link to the drop box where the photos are saved


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[KE4EST]

You can't upload photos, until after a few posts. It's a spam prevention thing.
...but you are almost there.

 

[Kd8fki]

Ahh ok gotcha. Well the link I posted above is the pictures to my personal space station


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[gpflepsen]

http://www.satelliteguys.us/xen/threads/identify-this-dish-new-addition-to-the-bunch.361838/


Look at this thread...

 

[danristheman]

Welcome to the site bud nice to have you here.

 

[Kd8fki]

Ok thanks for the info so far. Some of the info is a bit confusing but I'll get there eventually. In the other post things were complicated but that's just due to terminology. I'll manage around. So what in the brass nuts and bolt of things can I do with this thing with
Limited knowledge just as a start up?

 

[Cham]

It's a fun hobby we have here, you are a bit ahead of some being a ham so you know how RF works...
Find a spot with a clear view of the southern sky where the satellites are, pick one, aim the dish, and see if you can pick up anything. Not sure if the original LNB and feedhorn work, looking at your pictures the T/R unit looks like it has seen better days. Maybe for simplicity try using a basic Ku LNBF like this one (http://www.nc-electronics.com/mk1pll.html) and install it in the same position on the arm as the original feedhorn focal point using spacers and a holder (or what ever you have kicking around). I didn't see you mention a receiver for FTA, you might need one of those too . Good RG6 cable and F-connectors tie everything together. There is a list of satellites and active transponders at the top of the FTA section (link).

On the ham radio side, dishes that size are often used for 10GHz. Some use a commercially made 10GHz feedhorn (the one you have might work) or fabricate their own, then use a transverter to convert the 10GHz to 2m or HF. You can build a transverter from a kit or purchase one, Down East Microwave has kits and pre-built models.Then find another ham to talk to (nlrs.org) is a good place to start.

There is a wealth of information on the forum along with many who are more than willing to help you along the way here. Have fun!

-ve4gls

 

[Kd8fki]

Thanks Cham for the info. Yes the ham helps me in one aspect but along with that and the adhd I have doesn't help in others. Example: I know I could hook this dish to a rotor and an attenuator or two to get it a bit more flexibility and I know I could hook a remote camera and make some marks on dish on a full moon night so I could make sure I'm aligned with moon by using the shadow on dish with the camera and I could use a 2 axis joystick to make dish move any way I wish... See the adhd working here lol.... Anyway I could make it work or I could replace the lnb with new bracket and place 2-3 bipolar directional 2m antennas pointing at dish and reflected of to moon..... Or even using a sdr to listen??? Not sure I could use the lnb with a sdr but what the heck... Or could I hook an old school cable box on it and see what happens..... Like I said it helps me but hurts me cause I think outside the box a lot and think of what else I can do. I do have a fta box I wanna say it originally came out of a church where they watched a lot of religious programming. I contacted the
Company and they told me where to aim it and I looked the elevation for that dish and my location. When I got ole girl dialed in it was mostly religious programming lots of forgin stuff home shopping for Arabic prayer rugs.. How it's made in French. Oh and the
Best is the French fashion shows. Yeah setting in back yard with a dish mounted into a bucket of concrete and a 19 inch tv at 3 am sippin on a beer watching lets just call those fashion shows "porn" cause they leave very little to the imagination.... Anyway that's a proud Mercian hillbilly moment rite dar... Haha so anyway yes I have one is it good yes it's the best available on the market... It was free haha but really it's basic no frills other than the games on it like snake... Anyway I know I hit a lot here and bounced around but no moons were found at this hour. I'd really
Like to know more about what I can do with this lnb find a manual or some specs on it. I hate not knowing anything about it. Like it looks
Like there is 3 connectors one looks like a n connector and the other two are catv plugs one is caped off... Why?? And the second catv is plugged into the reciever lnb.


Other things I want to know about it is can I take the lnb apart? It looks like grass is in the feed horn behind the choke. Can I take it apart to clean that crap up? Why is the horns choke smushed flat? Can I buy new covers for the end of the horn? Simple things I don't know is that since they have degree scales on them how do I align the dish to the degree wheels? The dish a/b axis is tilted should it stay there for fta? Could I find scatter
Signals and listen in or did they mostly go away when the AT&T sites were decommissioned after the Cold War? Anyway I got too much on here now but idk I'd like to figure something soil to do with it. On one
More thing. I thought about cleaning it up replacing hardware and putting a coat of black oil paint on the parts that didn't move what will be the best method of cleaning the dish and should I paint it or leave it alone?

 

[Titanium]

Welcome to SatelliteGuys!

A quick suggestion. The feedhorn/scalar provided with that dish should be used with a voltage switched LNB instead of replacing with a LNBF. The feedhorn on a LNBF would not appropriately illuminate the reflector elongated rectangle shape and would have very poor performance.

Would recommend a LNB such as the Inverto Black pro. This LNB will mount up to the mounting holes on the back of the OEM feedhorn/scalar.

Make a template of the existing feedhorn position, height and angle. Remove the buc and other unnecessary transmit support hardware. Fashion a lightweight support for the OEM feedhorn/scalar to position at the exact position.

Should provide good performance on most KU satellites, but will be undersized for weaker transponders.

What brand/model receiver? Likely it is a DVBS and will receive SD services. Good for the channels on 97w, but most other satellites, the services are transitioning to DVBS2.

Good luck!

 

[Kd8fki]

Oh wow that was a mouthful there titanium so you are saying I should trash this lnb for a lnbf or use this lnb? I'll look up the invertro black. The reciever I'll have to get out of storage to see. Also on the base where the degree wheel is would I align 0 degrees with true north or magnetic north or none of the above?


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[KE4EST]

The setup on the end of the dish is a LNB and Feedhorn combo that comes apart. Not to be confused with an all in one LNBF.
Remove the LNB and keep the same feedhorn so that it will match the dish.

 

[KE4EST]

Also on the base where the degree wheel is would I align 0 degrees with true north or magnetic north or none of the above?

Is this the photo you are referring to?

 

[KE4EST]

Look at this photo I marked up.
Like Titanium said 97W is a good start. Go to dishpointer.com and enter your address and then choose 97W.
It will tell you the skew, elevation that is photo above, etc.

 

[Titanium]

Here is a mock-up of the Inverto on your existing feedhorn/scalar monted on a sliding support bracket that slides fore/aft on two bolts to optimize focal length then secure.

 

[Kd8fki]

Is this the photo you are referring to?

No this one is for elevation this is the one Im referring to perhaps it may be calls the turret?

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