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skipticum

Last reply Apr 20, 2011 · posted in C-BAND Satellite Discussion

How to covert a polar mounted c dish to a stationary dish (without actuator)?

I have two 7.6' unimesh dishes (donated to me) each with an old rusty actuator. Since I'm only interested in two sats (one dish for each sat), and I doubt if the actuators are still working, I'd like to setup the dishes as stationary dishes. I'd like to either remove the actuators and find an alternative way to prevent the dish from moving freely sideways Or be able to set up the dish(es) as stationary with the actuators attached to keep the dish from moving to the sides. My question is which way is better? And do I have to still account for declination offset for staionary setup with a polar mount designed dish (or ring)? Thanks.

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skipticum

Apr 18, 2011

Thanks Fat Air for the reply.

The problem I have with the actuators is that they're frozen/stack because of rust, and I cannot move the rod in and out of the tube. I do have a 12 v battery, but I have to check if the actuators take 12 or 24 volt. For now, I like the idea of replacing the actuators with a rod (I still have to figure out a way of locking it in). The actuators motors may be still ok, it just the push rods are rusted. One day I'll try to take one of the actuators apart and attempt to refirbush it.

Anole

Apr 18, 2011

You won't hurt the motors with 36 volts (for short bursts).
They're either designed for 36 or for 24 volt operation.
So, 12 volts will just move 'em slowly, if at all.

I'd take one off and gently disassemble it (take pictures so you know how to put it back together).
There's a very good chance you can free it up, and get it working again.

However, the hardware stores have large diameter threaded rod stock in two or three (?) foot lengths.
You could get a piece of that, some nuts and washers, and probably fabricate something to hold your dish in place.

I still vote for working on the motor, though.
In a previous thread, Pendragon described restoring a rusted-up H-H mount that was well beyond its freshness date!
I think an oil-soak was largely responsible for that success.

edit:
Okay, one last thought...
Hardware stores will have aluminum or steel L-bracket material, either drilled or not.
It's one inch by one inch and multiple feet long.
Cheap, easy to work with, etc. Be creative.

cracklincrotch

Apr 19, 2011

I've also heard of somebody that used two turnbuckles to position a dish without a motor, with one on each side of the dish. They're not terribly expensive.

I'd also make the attempt to get the motor going again as well. Even if the threaded rod is all rusted up, a wire brush on a drill, penetrating oil, and possibly a torch will fix that right up. I could barely make out the threads on the first motor I'd gotten with a BUD. 45 minutes later it was moving. I'd used the wire brush to clean off the threads. Around the acme bolt I used the penetrating oil and the torch (to break the rust away with the heat) and got it to move back over the threads I'd already cleaned. Then I did the other end of the threaded rod with the brush as well.

The acutator I'm using now had the permenant magnets break off the motor housing and would stick to the rotor, causing the motor to jamb. I used super glue to glue them back to the motor housing in their original positions. I could see the outline of where they were originally and put them back in the same places.

skipticum

Apr 20, 2011

Well, I removed the cover of one actuator to expose the electronics and the gear box. I was surprised to see that all look in mint condition (I didn't realize that all gears are plastic). One problem though, it appears that the lubicant has dried solid and is acting as glue holding the gears stuck together: is there a recommended product that I can use to loosen up the dried lubricant without damaging the plastic gears or anything else?

It seems that if I can get the gears loose, I may be able to make the actuator work again after removing the rust and add some lubricant.

FaT Air

Apr 20, 2011

To clean it up - I'd disassemble taking pics, marking parts, writing notes, whatever, to reassemble it correctly. I'd use hot soapy water and an old tooth brush. I like to use DAWN. it cuts grease well. For a new lubricant, I've always used an aerosol lithium grease. I use a General Motors product that's safe for use on plastic. It also doesn't get hard in the cold.

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klang

Pub Member / Supporter Lifetime Supporter

Last reply 7 minutes ago · posted in TV Shows

Rockford Files Reboot?

'Rockford Files' Reboot Gets NBC Pilot Order

I grow tired of all the reboots. Most I don't bother with but will depend on the actor chosen.

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osu1991

May 11, 2026

View: https://www.instagram.com/p/DYMwxTdjoXn/?igsh=MXU1czQyZnh0cnM3dA==

Premiere in January on nbc and peacock.

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klang

May 11, 2026

January? OK.

I'm sure I will check it out. Not getting my hopes up but I did enjoy the actor in SEAL Team. Never saw any of his earlier work.

long_time_Dish

May 12, 2026

Yeah, I'll check it out as well, but shan't be holding my breath...It'll be tough to equal James Garner in that role...

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harshness

May 12, 2026

long_time_DNC said:
...It'll be tough to equal James Garner in that role...

I can think of a few actors (including some females) who might fit the bill.

This will all depend on the storyline. I'm not sure how well it will translate. Modern TV hasn't been all that kind to PIs and even less kind to CIs (confidential informants).

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klang

7 minutes ago

Premier is Saturday, Jan 2nd. Moving to Thursday on the 7th.

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osu1991

Pub Member / Supporter

14 minutes ago · posted in Movie Talk

The Man With The Bag (2026) Prime

View: https://youtu.be/PEVkJHLq4rQ?si=Cs2pQAy8FFngT9d1

December 2, 2026

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osu1991

Pub Member / Supporter

17 minutes ago · posted in Movie Talk

Bad Day - Netflix

View: https://youtu.be/zHSYXDLH4io?si=ii_fgehv2a3rOBkA

Dec 11, 2026 Netflix

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MorCowbell

Last reply 47 minutes ago · posted in DISH Network Support Forum

Saved OTA list on Dish can't be appended

I have Dish with Hopper3. I choose to get local channels OTA and had a "guide list" established at my previous home. Having moved a few miles away, I wanted to update the list by appending a couple new stations via a rescan. As many would know, some stations come in with the UHF/VHF antenna aimed in one direction, while others come in better with a different direction.

Unfortunately, when a scan is done (bringing in 25-30 stations for that particular antenna aim), the dialog screen does not present the established guide list; it presents an empty field to the right that the scanned stations may be selected one by one and added to the empty guide. But because of antenna aim, some stations originally saved are missing, and would have to be retrieved with a different antenna aim. But as I explain, if a 2nd scan is done with a different antenna aim, the stations saved from the first scan are lost.

It troubles me that Dish didn't develop software that would allow a user to simply append only 1 or 2 channels to the established list.

Any thought on this? Has anyone experienced this or heard of this from others?

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dishstaller

Tuesday at 9:42 PM

I could very well be wrong....it has been a LOT of years but back when I had a 722K it seemed like when you went back to the scan screen that you could just scan again and it would ADD those channels to the previous list or you could delete the previous results and only add the channels from the new scan.

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n0qcu

Yesterday at 10:41 AM

dishstaller said:
I could very well be wrong....it has been a LOT of years but back when I had a 722K it seemed like when you went back to the scan screen that you could just scan again and it would ADD those channels to the previous list or you could delete the previous results and only add the channels from the new scan.

I am not sure about that but I do know that you could manually add additional channels just by entering the actual RF channel number and the older receivers would add the virtual channels to your list

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dishstaller

Yesterday at 11:11 AM

n0qcu said:
I am not sure about that but I do know that you could manually add additional channels just by entering the actual RF channel number and the older receivers would add the virtual channels to your list

Like I said.....that has been many years ago. Swapped my 722K for a Hopper in 2012.

It does seem like I remember having to delete the existing channels when we did a rescan. Back then our local stations KEPT monkeying around with things and it was non-stop complaints from customers about their channels not coming in. Got so bad that I stopped selling OR installing OTAs....something I had been doing since 1984 so you know it HAD to be pretty bad.

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MorCowbell

Today at 10:06 AM

You made one of my points for me with this comment, Dishstaller:

"... local stations KEPT monkeying around with things and it was non-stop complaints from customers about their channels not coming in ..."

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dennispap

Today at 4:08 PM

dishstaller said:
I could very well be wrong....it has been a LOT of years but back when I had a 722K it seemed like when you went back to the scan screen that you could just scan again and it would ADD those channels to the previous list or you could delete the previous results and only add the channels from the new scan.

I remember that also on my 722.

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dishstaller

49 minutes ago

dennispap said:
I remember that also on my 722.

Thanks.....has been too many years to remember clearly.

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Bobby

47 minutes ago

Keep in mind that the 722 had a built in OTA tuner and the 722K had a plug in module for OTA. The Hoppers and Wallys use an add on USB OTA dongle. I believe they are entirely different.

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Linus Tech Tips

54 minutes ago · posted in Linus Tech Tips

My F-You To Sam Altman

Time for another AWESOME video from Linus Tech Tips!

View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/spXuvLHTIs4

Direct YouTube Link - My F-You To Sam Altman
Linus on Facebook
The LTT Store

0 Replies · 8 views

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TWiT Tech Podcast Network

54 minutes ago · posted in TWiT Tech Podcast Network

watchOS 27.3 Beta - Siri Recap and Live Rewind Coming!

Time for another AWESOME video from the TWIT Network!

View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/MLSSmfls3w4

Direct YouTube Link - watchOS 27.3 Beta - Siri Recap and Live Rewind Coming!
TWIT's Website
TWIT Live Feed

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osu1991

Pub Member / Supporter

Last reply Today at 3:41 PM · posted in TV Shows

Marvel Television’s VisionQuest

View: https://youtu.be/oSVTAUKyrL8?si=pF-pQQAJIiKjSqx6

Oct 14 Disney+

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osu1991

Oct 14, 2026

Finished the 2nd episode tonight. I'm really liking it so far.

Still hate weekly releases though, especially the way Disney and HBO do it waiting until 8pm to premiere it.

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Foxbat

Oct 28, 2026

Apparently I'm not a big enough nerd

since I did not read every Marvel Comic Book ever published. If I had, I might be comparing the comics' version of events compared to what's transpiring in "Visionquest". So, I am enjoying the series a lot, not weighed down by previous expectations, knowing only the Avengers MCU movies and the "Wandavision" / "Agatha All Along" TV series.

I found the Mr Know-it-All channel from his discussion about "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" and he's been gleefully picking these episodes apart, referencing the Marvel comics from the 1939 on. Turns out A.I. has been around since before World War II, at least in the comics. (Robots before that, yes, yes.) This show is going back into the archives.

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Foxbat

Today at 1:32 PM

I'm expecting the finale to basically bring Vision into play for the Doomsday movie next month.

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osu1991

Today at 2:06 PM

annoying they went with single episodes for the last two after releasing two a week for the first 3 weeks

Foxbat

Today at 3:41 PM

osu1991 said:
annoying they went with single episodes for the last two after releasing two a week for the first 3 weeks

I thought they were effectively releasing a longer episode 7 and 8 instead of shorter episodes 7 & 8 this week and 9 & 10 next week. It felt like they were packing more into this episode.

edit: But you're right, the run time of the first three pairs of episodes was 100 minutes on average. Episode 7 clocks in at 65 minutes.

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Scott Greczkowski

Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge

Last reply Today at 3:33 PM · posted in The Chit Chat Club

Song Name Game Part 3!

Sometimes a thread gets so many posts in it that is can cause issues for the server so that why today we introduce The Song Name Game Part 3!

So let the game continue!

The last song was added by Bobby who posted...

One Meat Ball - Andrews Sisters

CONTINUE ON AND HAVE FUN! WELCOME HOME TO SATELLITEGUYS.US!

Here are the original rules for the game as posted by WebbyDude back in 2006. http://www.satelliteguys.us/threads/68645-Song-Name-Game

Just name a song title and the band who performed it. The next person does the same thing, but needs to list a song title or band name which includes a word from the previous entry. Pick songs from any genre.

Example:

Long Live Rock and Roll -- Rainbow

Rainbow in the Dark -- Dio

Another example:

Ride the Lightning -- Metallica

Lightning Strikes -- Ozzy Osbourne

Get it?

An additional note: we all know that song titles, sometimes, use profane words. Because this is a family friendly website it is advised that you clean up that title up a bit. This is accomplished by using something like sh!t instead of the real word. Thanks....

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harshness

Today at 11:36 AM

I Can't Wait - Nu Shooz

gms49ers

Today at 1:11 PM

Shooz - Styx

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dishstaller

Today at 1:54 PM

Too Much Time on My Hands - Styx

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sdfntx

Today at 3:17 PM

Time Has Come Today - The Chambers Brothers

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long_time_Dish

Today at 3:33 PM

No Time - The Guess Who

Reactions: dishstaller, FTA4PA and RaiderPower

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Scott Greczkowski

Staff member HERE TO HELP YOU! Cutting Edge

Last reply Today at 2:51 PM · posted in DIRECTV General Forum

New Gemini Box

The following is from Reddit. -
View: https://www.reddit.com/r/DirectvStream/s/orzHBkmqQW

There appears to be a new DIRECTV Gemini OTT box, the C81KW-650.

The FCC listing is partially available, and a Geekbench entry confirms it uses an Amlogic S905X5, a solid SoC for a set-top box.

I also see 4GB of RAM, and the manufacturer is SEI Robotics.

DIRECTV C81KW OTT Box - Android TV Guide

Ok found a picture of the Box too on Reddit:

View: https://www.reddit.com/r/DirectvStream/comments/1twlex0/comment/opzeqi1/

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Scott Greczkowski

Oct 23, 2026

I know a few people who have gotten one and I am told like most modern streaming boxes this one also has HDR on all the time.

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Tom Speer

Oct 23, 2026

Scott Greczkowski said:
I know a few people who have gotten one and I am told like most modern streaming boxes this one also has HDR on all the time.

I only noticed that as a problem on TVs that handle HDR poorly. They don't have enough peak brightness or enough dimming zones. For instance, TCL makes three lines of TV, sort of like the old Sears model of Good, Better, Best. On my 4 or 5 year end low price model, HDR looked awful (My neighbor likes the TV now). The midrange model from the next model year ithat I have at my Lake home now looks pretty good in HDR all the time. The midrange TCL QM7 model from last year at my other home looks spectacular, as I remember. I haven't seen it for 6 months.

If I had a TV that does HDR poorly, I would configure the Gemini to disable all HDR.

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b4pjoe

Oct 23, 2026

Tom Speer said:
I only noticed that as a problem on TVs that handle HDR poorly. They don't have enough peak brightness or enough dimming zones. For instance, TCL makes three lines of TV, sort of like the old Sears model of Good, Better, Best. On my 4 or 5 year end low price mode, HDR looked awful (My neighbor likes the TV now). The midrannge model from the next model year ithat I have at my Lake home now looks pretty good in HDR all the time. The midrange TCL QM7 model from last year at my other home looks spectacular, as I remember. I haven't seen it for 6 months.

If I had a TV that does HDR poorly, I would configure the Gemini to disble all HDR.

I agree with that. The 2 LGs that we have Gemini's on looks far better with HDR enabled then it does with HDR off.

robjlevin

Oct 24, 2026

Scott Greczkowski said:
I know a few people who have gotten one and I am told like most modern streaming boxes this one also has HDR on all the time.

That would be a deal-breaker for me. The Rokus default to having it on all the time but it's easy enough to change that to native. If the content is HDR it goes on. Otherwise, no.

Redbullsnation

Today at 2:43 PM

I don't mind HDR being on as long as its adaptive. I don't need HDR on non-HDR content

Also, God only knows how much it'll cost to get this per month. 10 bucks a month for 3 TVs in my apartment is not worth it if I can just use my android boxes and appletv to watch

b4pjoe

Today at 2:51 PM

Redbullsnation said:
I don't mind HDR being on as long as its adaptive. I don't need HDR on non-HDR content

Also, God only knows how much it'll cost to get this per month. 10 bucks a month for 3 TVs in my apartment is not worth it if I can just use my android boxes and appletv to watch

It is not adaptive. HDR is either always on or off. No in between. However with my Gemini on satellite everything looks much better with HDR on.