12FT BUD Question

[Babadem]

I'm looking at this 12Ft Dish, thanks to "Toucan-man" for posting the link. See picture below. The owner wouldn't be able to show me the dish until next week, but before, I go to see and evaluate this dish, I will like to know your opinions of the Dish. How good is the dish, and what make and model is. How good is the LNB holder compared to 3 or 4 arm lnb holders. Would a solid dish be better that mesh?

 

[Anole]

There aren't a lot of 12' dishes.
Could that be a Paraclipse?
Stogie5150 has one, so search for his threads.
If that's what ya got, his comments will be helpful.
If not, good luck.

 

[stogie5150]

Yep, pretty sure that's a Paraclipse. There were some knockoffs made, but I don't think any of them had that feed cover. The polar mount was standard, mine has the H to H mount. Doesn't really matter, unless you have clear eastern sky...LOL..

Now, should you get it. Well, its a 12, so that will help. They are very rugged, designed originally for hurricane areas, I have some old STV magazines with paraclipse ads in them, they show islands in the Caribbean with various dishes after a storm, all of them in the ad were destroyed but the Para not only survived but still tracked the arc. Now that was the 1980's I bet they weren't checking Ku, much less S2...LOL..

But yeah, its worth it. my thread has all kinds on info in it, I took mine in two when I got it for transport, wasn't bad at all to do.

Feel free to PM me if ya need anything, I will do my best to answer ASAP.

 

[FaT Air]

Would a solid dish be better that mesh?

On C band, no, they are effectively (electrically) 'closed'. At Ku, If the holes are small enough, they are also 'closed'. The greatest factor is the accuracy of the parabola.
Feed holder. Well that's up to the engineering of the thing. Mine is the same style. Hasn't drooped at all. Solid steel. If it's unstable, besides converting it to multiple legs, some guy wires could be used.
Agree, looks like a Paraclipse Classic. (Nice dish)

 

[toucan-man]

You gain membership in a pretty exclusive club for not much cash. I'd go for it were it near me.

 

[waylew]

Looks like the 12' Pclipse in my back yard.
I have no problems with the button hook,but I did remove and toss the feed cover,it weighs a ton.Plus my C band ortho wouldn't fit inside anyway.
If possible,take down and transport in one piece,otherwise it's a bazillion parts to disassemble/reassemble.Mine came from just down the street,on a 15' pole,I had to take it apart standing on a shed roof to get it down and it was a PITA.
It did work for ku but not the greatest,c band however :up.I now have other solutions for ku.
The only other concern is to hope the original installer got the focal length right,the aluminum button hook has long since "welded" itself to the steel hub,it aint movin.

 

[Anole]

I think Stogies 12'er was a factory 4-leg (or maybe 3).
It has some complicated adjustment to tune for focus.
If you decide to retrofit the dish with legs, I have a very easy design for you.

Of course, keeping it as a Buttonhook would be the least trouble.

 

[Babadem]

Is it true that the buttonhooks sag over time?

 

[Tron]

Looks like the Paraclipse I'm trying to get, except the one I'm looking at is missing mesh panels and has a different feed cover.

 

[FaT Air]

Is it true that the buttonhooks sag over time?

No. not all will bend. All depends on the 'engineering' of it. If the base is not 'beefy' enough, over time it may. Say the base, of the buttonhook, is just bolted to the center of the dish. No real foundation, just the arms, and skin of the dish. VS: mounted on a machined steel or aluminum hub at the center of the dish. Also the material used in the buttonhook. Steel VS aluminum. I'd say the aluminum has a higher chance to be deformed by flexing in the wind, etc.

 

[KE4EST]

Fat air is right it all depnds on the contruction of it. You can add a small chain and turn buckle if it is a problem.

 

[waylew]

The aluminum buttonhook on the Pclipse is pretty beefy and the steel hub is strong so sag really isn't a problem,unless you have a lot of weight hanging off the end.That's why I discarded the long and heavy feed cover,also,back in the day,when you had a huge LNA,down converter and polarotor hanging of the end,sag could be a problem.Wind is more of a problem with the whole dish than it is with the hook,it can get dancing pretty good when things get gusty.

 

[Babadem]

I finally went and saw the Dish and here are pictures of the dish. There seems to be a lot of rust on the non aluminium part of the dish. The 36" Dish mover looks rusted out, I'm not sure if it works, but I maybe wrong. Any advice on how to salvage this dish will be appreciated. There seem to be some dents on the mesh too. See bottom panels on the last picture. It will take some effort to unscrew those rusted bolts and nuts.

 

[Anole]

my suggestions

Break, cut, or grind off any rusty bolts
Then use Stainless replacement bolts.

I recommend Rust Destroyer primer, and Hammerite paint
http://www.satelliteguys.us/threads/166575-AMCI-perf-on-AJAK-motor?p=1764717#post1764717
Apply after using motorized wire wheel to whisk away loose rust.
You don't need shiny metal for these coatings!

Won't be too hard a job if you tackle it a little bit at a time.
The good news is, that all-aluminum dish is already done! :up

 

[FaT Air]

I'm envious.

Did ya hit 'em rusty bolts with penetrating oil? What's the one been recommended now and then, Kroil? May have to bust a few, or more.
Looks to be a bit of rust to clean up and paint. Maybe getting it sandblasted would be an option? There's another recent thread with the salvage of the same dish. Three sets of arms and the dish is on the trailer. (in one piece)
I've seen some pretty ugly actuators, all rusted on the exterior, but still worked fine. Appears to be a few hail dents. Minor. May look at removing the dented panel(s) and massaging them out?

 

[toucan-man]

Envy. The price is right, would be mine if local.

 

[Tron]

Stogie rehabbed his 12 foot Paraclipse from similar conditions. That is definitely the same model Paraclipse I'm watching, but the one I'm interested in is missing mesh.

 

[stogie5150]

Stogie rehabbed his 12 foot Paraclipse from similar conditions. That is definitely the same model Paraclipse I'm watching, but the one I'm interested in is missing mesh.

Yep, dont be afraid of breaking some bolts, you will replace most of them anyway. Now you may not WANT to replace them, but oh yes, you will. LOL I changed ALL my hub bolts, one at a time. Brand new with new washers and all. My hub is Aluminum, so no rust on that, the aluminum hub came with the H to H mount I guess.

I used PB Blaster on my rusted bolts. Go a day or so before if you can, hose em down with PB, bring a little hammer with you, spray the PB, tap on the bolt a bit, then give it another shot of PB, then go on to the next one. It helps, trust me.

The mesh can be hammered flat and re installed, no problem. Look at my thread to see how I did my mesh, I actually removed ALL my mesh. I don't recommend that unless you HAVE to.

 

[Babadem]

Yep, dont be afraid of breaking some bolts, you will replace most of them anyway. Now you may not WANT to replace them, but oh yes, you will. LOL I changed ALL my hub bolts, one at a time. Brand new with new washers and all. My hub is Aluminum, so no rust on that, the aluminum hub came with the H to H mount I guess.

I used PB Blaster on my rusted bolts. Go a day or so before if you can, hose em down with PB, bring a little hammer with you, spray the PB, tap on the bolt a bit, then give it another shot of PB, then go on to the next one. It helps, trust me.

The mesh can be hammered flat and re installed, no problem. Look at my thread to see how I did my mesh, I actually removed ALL my mesh. I don't recommend that unless you HAVE to.

Hey Stogie, and anyone in the know..........how heavy can this get? Do you think I need more than 2 people to bring this down safely? The owner indicated that he has the original manual, that's a plus I suppose?

 

[turbosat]

Heavy! Try balancing a picnic table made out of glass on your shoulders, about the same thing, lol. You can move it, most likely, but you'll be afraid you'll fall with it or drop it without some help.