who still sells a 2.4m petal dish?

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I am glad that I purchased a 6' dish from Sadoun 3 months ago. The problem with mount it would not fit my old pipe and was .5 in smaller so I adapted a old scrap polar mount to new dish. i can say if you use a good quality LNB the dish works ok. The new mount is in my scrap metal pile now. Shipping to Calif. was $110 for a $125 dish.
 
Got my answer from a WS International reseller. The 2.4m and the 6' dish are discontinued. So, you can't buy one anywhere under $1k. :sob:
 
That seems to confirm my investigations as well. Dirty shame as there is a market out there for them. FTA C-band isn't going to go away but the existing dishes are getting a lot older and more scarce. Really wish someone would import a shipping container of the Chinese dishes. I'd buy one in a heartbeat.
 
zze110 said:
Got my answer from a WS International reseller. The 2.4m and the 6' dish are discontinued. So, you can't buy one anywhere under $1k. :sob:
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I bought a 6' Fortec with a polar mount from Ricks on Friday. He checked with his supplier and they still have a good number in stock. $299.00 plus $68.00 FedEx ground. Higher than I'd like, but I want to get started in C-band and don't want to wait around looking for a used dish. I need a 6' anyway due to location constraints. I didn't find any other polar mount 6' anywhere on the web. There are a few sources for fixed mount dishes.
 
Quality dishes still are produced in North America and the cost is very reasonable considering the inflation index. Example: A $800 dish purchased in 1980 equals $2267 in 2013 dollars. A $1500 dish price would be adjusted to $4252.

From a distributor's viewpoint, if you have a lot of warehouse space and willing to store a container quantity for several years as they are sold one at a time, then it might make sense to buy from China. Factory quantity pricing doesn't kick in until approximately 300 - 500 pieces. Too many units for most resellers to stock and not a great wholesale distribution product considering typical single piece orders. Resellers don't order quantity on these big ticket items and usually only place an order when they have a customer. Most of us learned the hard way that these dishes take up ALOT of space, sell slow and have very low profit. Deadly combo in this economy!

The way that most C-band dishes were distributed back in the day worked, because they were typically produced within the region or warehoused for the tens of thousands of installs that cost thousands of dollars each. Unfortunately, this market no longer exists. :(

IMO... Friends don't let friends buy Fortec Star dishes. We were the largest North American Fortec Star distributor for many years and we refused to carry their thin gauge dishes. They were only a small step above the $69 special.
 
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SatelliteAV said:
IMO... Friends don't let friends buy Fortec Star dishes. We were the largest North American Fortec Star distributor for many years and we refused to carry their thin gauge dishes. They were only a small step above the $69 special.
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Wonder how a DIY 6 footer would perform compared to a Fortec/WSI. Could be an interesting winter project.

Cheers, K
 
Skywave said:
I bought a 6' Fortec with a polar mount from Ricks on Friday. He checked with his supplier and they still have a good number in stock. $299.00 plus $68.00 FedEx ground. Higher than I'd like, but I want to get started in C-band and don't want to wait around looking for a used dish. I need a 6' anyway due to location constraints. I didn't find any other polar mount 6' anywhere on the web. There are a few sources for fixed mount dishes.
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Let us know what you think about it when you get it. I've been debating pulling the trigger on that one as well as it seems like Rick is about the only one left. OTOH reading what SatAv had to say in the post above does give me pause. I'm willing to spend $300 plus shipping for something that will last a few years. I hadn't stopped to consider however what a dish purchased in the early 1980's would cost us in today's dollars. Taking that into consideration the $1000 or $1100 for a quality dish doesn't seem so far fetched after all.
 
Options

- spend $1000 - $2000 on a nice commercial dish, plus several hundred more on a proper motor
- shop up to 500 miles for a used BUD for $100 - $200, that HAS a motor (spend a few hundred to transport)
- buy an overpriced, undersized 6' dish. Okay for specific birds. Totally wrong for general use! Plus a motor!
.
I think the answer is clear, but for those who insist on another answer, here's one:
- shop for a new BUD in Mexico!
they have high import duties, so they make 'em there!
i'll let you figure out the details.
.
Oh, and if I haven't said it enough, get an 8' or preferably 10' dish while you are at it.
?...and re-read my previous posts in this thread.
 
Arion said:
I'm willing to spend $300 plus shipping for something that will last a few years.
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The Fortec Star dishes would likely last ten+ years if in a kind weather environment, but would not have the longevity of most old school dishes that will likely be around in another 30+ years! :D
 
Anole said:
- spend $1000 - $2000 on a nice commercial dish, plus several hundred more on a proper motor
- shop up to 500 miles for a used BUD for $100 - $200, that HAS a motor (spend a few hundred to transport)
- buy an overpriced, undersized 6' dish. Okay for specific birds. Totally wrong for general use! Plus a motor!
.
I think the answer is clear, but for those who insist on another answer, here's one:
- shop for a new BUD in Mexico!
they have high import duties, so they make 'em there!
i'll let you figure out the details.
.
Oh, and if I haven't said it enough, get an 8' or preferably 10' dish while you are at it.
?...and re-read my previous posts in this thread.
Click to expand...

I appreciate you guys keeping the Craigslist thread going and I'm watching it for reasonably local opportunities to buy something high quality. Between my life and the limitations of my short bed pickup, the logistics of longer distance stuff is a bit beyond me at the moment. 6' fits where I need it to. 8' or 10' will need to go on the other side of the house, and some trees will need to go. Since I'm just starting to play around with C-band it's hard to justify cutting trees to the other decider in the house;)

I'm curious if any of the US dealers have investigated Mexico as a source for dishes. Seems like between NAFTA and the ability to ship by truck it might be possible to negotiate for smaller quantities than the full shipping container from China scenario.
 
I rented a flat bed truck, and moved two dishes in one day.
?The Birdview 20 miles to my south had been prepped and was ready for loading, thanks to a previous visit the week before.
We had it home by noon and had lunch.
.
The perforated dish was 15 miles to the east.
Only prep was several visits for pictures and spraying with PBblaster.
We got the light dish off the motorized mount, but couldn't get the mount off the pole.
So, change of plans: we cut the pole down with motor 9' in the air!
Packed up, drove home , and were having dinner by 8pm.
?.
A small rental trailer would have been cheaper, but I couldn't find one.
A 200 mile (one way) trip would have been acceptable for a single dish.
For a dish up to 500 miles distant, ya might have to spend the night.
(just part of the transportation cost)
Trailer rental is by the day, not mile.
My flat bed was by day plus mileage, so not too attractive for overnight trip.
.
Yes, I had the help of a capable friend, and we took every tool imaginable.
SawZall and hand held grinder with cutoff wheels were the necessary magic that made it all work!
?'
 
Skywave said:
I bought a 6' Fortec with a polar mount from Ricks on Friday. He checked with his supplier and they still have a good number in stock. $299.00 plus $68.00 FedEx ground. Higher than I'd like, but I want to get started in C-band and don't want to wait around looking for a used dish. I need a 6' anyway due to location constraints. I didn't find any other polar mount 6' anywhere on the web. There are a few sources for fixed mount dishes.
Click to expand...

I know it's been a while, and hate to resurrect an old thread, but I am curious what you thought of the dish's build and performance :)
 
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