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Recently bought the 18" Powermax PMA18 Actuator Motor for my Sadoun 6 foot dish. It was a really cheap price, but it's really hard to find any 18" actuators out there, so I finally jumped on this one. Finally got to the point where I am planning to install it today. I figured I'd hook it up to the V-box X inside my house first, and see how it works.
So, I remove the back cover to get to the wire connector block. First thing I notice, is that there is a broken-off (due to BAD solder job) wire coming from internal gear box (from the motor). This wire clearly belongs soldered to one of the limit switches. So, I get out my solder gun (for high-power heat) tin the wire and the switch connector, and soldered them back together. While doing so, I notice that the plastic limit switch cams can be lightly touched, and the whole assembly wobbles back and forth several degrees on whatever pins it through to the gear inside the motor case. I'm thinking maybe I can open it all up and tighten up a screw to eliminate this wobble. I make some reference marks, and then open it up, and the back side of the post for the limit cams is simply a very thin light cheap plastic gear. It's already tight, but the post appears to simply sit in a hole between the inside and outside of the plastic plate. There's nothing you can do to fix this... I also notice that ALL the gears are thin cheap, cheap, CHEAP plastic, and that there is almost NO grease in there whatsoever!
I put everything back together, wire it up to the V-box, and hold the tube and ran it back from limit WEST to limit EAST multiple times, and wrote down the absolute limit numbers I get. The limit switches do operate ok, despite that assembly being crap, so that's good. I do notice that it sounds quite noisy while running in and out.
Anyway for now, I'm still going to install it since I'm stuck with it, but I'm scared it'll fail very easily, and perhaps my dish will get damaged. I can't believe for a moment it'll last for long, and certainly won't survive a Michigan winter.
Is there any QUALITY 18" (or 24" if no 18) BUD actuators left out there for new purchase? I'm willing to pay for it, but I want something GOOD like in the "old days".
Hopefully this info will help somebody in their decision to buy a new actuator, as I can't recommend this one under any circumstances.
Thanks!
So, I remove the back cover to get to the wire connector block. First thing I notice, is that there is a broken-off (due to BAD solder job) wire coming from internal gear box (from the motor). This wire clearly belongs soldered to one of the limit switches. So, I get out my solder gun (for high-power heat) tin the wire and the switch connector, and soldered them back together. While doing so, I notice that the plastic limit switch cams can be lightly touched, and the whole assembly wobbles back and forth several degrees on whatever pins it through to the gear inside the motor case. I'm thinking maybe I can open it all up and tighten up a screw to eliminate this wobble. I make some reference marks, and then open it up, and the back side of the post for the limit cams is simply a very thin light cheap plastic gear. It's already tight, but the post appears to simply sit in a hole between the inside and outside of the plastic plate. There's nothing you can do to fix this... I also notice that ALL the gears are thin cheap, cheap, CHEAP plastic, and that there is almost NO grease in there whatsoever!
I put everything back together, wire it up to the V-box, and hold the tube and ran it back from limit WEST to limit EAST multiple times, and wrote down the absolute limit numbers I get. The limit switches do operate ok, despite that assembly being crap, so that's good. I do notice that it sounds quite noisy while running in and out.
Anyway for now, I'm still going to install it since I'm stuck with it, but I'm scared it'll fail very easily, and perhaps my dish will get damaged. I can't believe for a moment it'll last for long, and certainly won't survive a Michigan winter.
Is there any QUALITY 18" (or 24" if no 18) BUD actuators left out there for new purchase? I'm willing to pay for it, but I want something GOOD like in the "old days".
Hopefully this info will help somebody in their decision to buy a new actuator, as I can't recommend this one under any circumstances.
Thanks!
6 Replies
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3335 views
That sucks. I'd hate to spend more money, and find out it's about the same crap quality as the Powermax one. I do have an old Superjack 2 that has a bad motor, but I've been working on the tube with the motor removed, and have that greased and working well. Guess I might be tearing the motor down, and seeing exactly what's wrong with it. Perhaps I can get it all rebuilt and working again and use that. Or maybe I'll get lucky on an Ebay purchase. Nobody in Michigan gives away BUD's compared to other states, so it's unlikely I'll ever find one that way.
It's a shame that nobody seems to build a good 18" actuator for sat dishes anymore. Guess the "China Syndrome" has hit these hard also...
I thought I would come here and find lots of complaints about the update to the dish anywhere mobile app, but am not seeing any. It used to look just like the desktop webpage. Now you can no longer filter by sports channels or movie channels. Plus that they made it look like a big button telephone and you see fewer channels in the screen which requires more scrolling. Yes I realize you can look at sports then select which sport you want to look at, I just liked being able to see all sporting events in the guide with all other channels being filtered out. Am I alone in the wilderness on this?
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25 views
Lifetime Supporter
Schedule drops tomorrow. Mandatory mini camps in June. Hall of Fame game August 6th.
110 Replies
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1605 views
Y
Browns lose a close one with... The Jets. That is a classic Browns loss (granted, any loss is a classic one it seems). 49'ers, Vikings, and Chiefs remain undefeated. The AFC north have a three way tie at 3-2 for second place.
A big win for the Patriots, and they are now 3-2.
Browns lose a close one with... The Jets. That is a classic Browns loss (granted, any loss is a classic one it seems). 49'ers, Vikings, and Chiefs remain undefeated. The AFC north have a three way tie at 3-2 for second place.
Troy Aikman seems to confirm he'll be leaving ESPN
Aikman says he looks forward to "where my next landing spot will be."
www.nbcsports.com
M
Hopefully nowhere near a microphone.Troy Aikman seems to confirm he'll be leaving ESPN
Aikman says he looks forward to "where my next landing spot will be."
Pub Member / Supporter
Lifetime Supporter
I had quit watching this show years ago because I ended up more annoyed than entertained. Well......I'm STILL more annoyed than entertained. I DO find it interesting to see how things work behind the scenes at many businesses. What annoys me is how utterly out of touch CEOs are with the companies they run. At the end of almost every episode the head of the company is amazed at how hard the employees have to work and many times have to work around impossible guidelines set forth from headquarters.
I found this one interesting because the new CEO had big plans for this company, Muscle Maker Grill, and it looked like the stores were all pretty busy. Recent history hasn't been good to this company however. I bet the covid lockdowns were the real killer.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIhZm0qkz0o
I found this one interesting because the new CEO had big plans for this company, Muscle Maker Grill, and it looked like the stores were all pretty busy. Recent history hasn't been good to this company however. I bet the covid lockdowns were the real killer.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIhZm0qkz0o
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2 views
Staff member
HERE TO HELP YOU!
Cutting Edge
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....
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....
68500 Replies
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2670779 views
Pub Member / Supporter
1 Replies
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48 views
For quite a while now, people with a VIP211k have been losing their recordings on their activated external HDDs... even when there's nothing physically wrong with HDD. I believe this is an intentional and underhanded tactic that Dish is pulling in an attempt to force users away from the VIP211k.
They are obviously regretting that they ever let users have a "non-dvr" dvr in the first place. You would think they would be happy charging you a $40 one time fee... and then be happy letting the customer be the one responsible for HDD failures.
Dish clearly hates the 211k bitter-clingers. This recording deletion problem is intentional (IMO), and I think it is just one more tool that they are using. Hopper and a 2-year agreement... that's what they want you to have. Think about that... a 2-year agreement... with a company $30 Billion in debt (that's with a B). What happens when all that debt causes them to drop the channel that may have been your whole reason for having Dish in the first place? Guess who's stuck with a service that no longer suits their needs... for the remainder of the 2-year agreement.
On top of that, they don't want you to install it yourself. I purchased and installed all my equipment myself. That used to be common. Now, they lie to me and tell me that my dish must be updated to use a Hopper. Funny thing is... they don't even know what dish I have because they didn't install it, and I didn't tell them. If you ask what type of dish/LNBs the hopper needs... good luck getting an answer. All they know is that whatever you have needs to be upgraded by an installer.
It is quite apparent to me that they care much more about staying in their box, than they do working with the customer. That's too bad, because it hasn't always been that way. It's like they are totally unaware of the current business environment that they are trying to compete in.
I have been a customer since 2010. I will be cancelling my service before the next period. Yeah, I know, my $1,200 a year won't make a difference to them. It just seems like they have forgotten who needs who, especially when you consider the competition in today's streaming world. But hey, they will have succeed in forcing me off the 211k.
They are obviously regretting that they ever let users have a "non-dvr" dvr in the first place. You would think they would be happy charging you a $40 one time fee... and then be happy letting the customer be the one responsible for HDD failures.
Dish clearly hates the 211k bitter-clingers. This recording deletion problem is intentional (IMO), and I think it is just one more tool that they are using. Hopper and a 2-year agreement... that's what they want you to have. Think about that... a 2-year agreement... with a company $30 Billion in debt (that's with a B). What happens when all that debt causes them to drop the channel that may have been your whole reason for having Dish in the first place? Guess who's stuck with a service that no longer suits their needs... for the remainder of the 2-year agreement.
On top of that, they don't want you to install it yourself. I purchased and installed all my equipment myself. That used to be common. Now, they lie to me and tell me that my dish must be updated to use a Hopper. Funny thing is... they don't even know what dish I have because they didn't install it, and I didn't tell them. If you ask what type of dish/LNBs the hopper needs... good luck getting an answer. All they know is that whatever you have needs to be upgraded by an installer.
It is quite apparent to me that they care much more about staying in their box, than they do working with the customer. That's too bad, because it hasn't always been that way. It's like they are totally unaware of the current business environment that they are trying to compete in.
I have been a customer since 2010. I will be cancelling my service before the next period. Yeah, I know, my $1,200 a year won't make a difference to them. It just seems like they have forgotten who needs who, especially when you consider the competition in today's streaming world. But hey, they will have succeed in forcing me off the 211k.
165 Replies
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7366 views
For some reason, the satelliteguys.us site is loading a lot slower than usual on both Chrome on my Asus laptop and Safari on my iPhone.
I'm also seeing longer appearances of the blue bar at the top and the "3 blue bars" loading symbol.
Is anyone else also having the same problem? Thanks in advance.
I'm also seeing longer appearances of the blue bar at the top and the "3 blue bars" loading symbol.
Is anyone else also having the same problem? Thanks in advance.
529 Replies
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18012 views
Remember folks... just like DNS... its always Foxbat. 
WTF… …What the Foxbat!Remember folks... just like DNS... its always Foxbat.
S
wow what a kick in the balls!!! the wife blames you when things don't work now scott's blaming youWTF… …What the Foxbat!
I know. Here's what Scott has in store for me if I get out of line:wow what a kick in the balls!!! the wife blames you when things don't work now scott's blaming you
S
OMG to freaking funny
Anyone else watch this show? Any guesses as to what was in the box Gibbs gave to Abby that was on her desk? It look liked it was glowing.
I also heard that someone was leaving the show at the end of this season. Any guesses as to who thats going to be?
I also heard that someone was leaving the show at the end of this season. Any guesses as to who thats going to be?
2131 Replies
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214669 views
Tony as the director.
Would you rather have LaRoche ???Tony as the director.
No. Bring in someone new.
Tony is not serious enough for me. Parker is too close to the team and Tim is too young to take over IMO.
TWiT Tech Podcast Network
Time for another AWESOME video from the TWIT Network!
View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/mWtSrS4fvE0
Direct YouTube Link - AI Proofs Humans Can't Understand? Math's Future #shorts
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TWIT Live Feed
View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/mWtSrS4fvE0
Direct YouTube Link - AI Proofs Humans Can't Understand? Math's Future #shorts
TWIT's Website
TWIT Live Feed
0 Replies
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4 views
Staff member
HERE TO HELP YOU!
159 Replies
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3335 views