Adventures in Dish Hunting 2008

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linuxman

SatelliteGuys Pro
Original poster
Jul 16, 2006
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North West of St. Louis, MO
I started the original thread Adventures in Dish Hunting and what we find to be a thread of what Satellite Guys members actually see with their own eyes and take pictures of as possible prospective dishes for us to use for our own purposes.

It is also to help us all identify the various kinds of dishes out there whether they are C-Band or Ku dishes.

The original thread has gotten very long, and has now gotten off the subject for which it was started.

So I thought I would start a new one for 2008.

EDIT: PS: It is not for posting pictures of dishes being used for bird-baths, gazebos, dishes being used as solar panels, or monstrous photo-shopped pictures found on the internet.

It is for pictures of dishes that are being used, or could be used to watch satellite or TV!!!
 
I started the original thread Adventures in Dish Hunting and what we find to be a thread of what Satellite Guys members actually see with their own eyes and take pictures of as possible prospective dishes for us to use for our own purposes.

It is also to help us all identify the various kinds of dishes out there whether they are C-Band or Ku dishes.

The original thread has gotten very long, and has now gotten off the subject for which it was started.

So I thought I would start a new one for 2008.

US? OFF TOPIC? SAY IT AIN'T SO, JIM!

:)



Iceberg, feel free to delete this...I just HAD to....:eek::D
 
Well, we don't need threads thousands of posts long as you find on AVS Forum.
Even 280-something was a challenge to digest , when I read it all the way through, the other day.

I'm all for keeping it to reasonable thread lengths, and reasonably on-topic, but I do reserve the right to make an occasional silly comment. - :D

We return you now to our previously scheduled dish-pictures, taken by our intrepid members!
 
posting pictures of dishes

Fred,
I sincerely apologized for posting dished on this thread that was not indented to the way that you made it for Fred. Originally I was asking about painting my dish with Rustoleum to protect it for one, and secondly to be able to spot it from the aerial imagery photo’s taken from space. I did an Internet search on Painted Satellite Dishes and those were some that I came up with. Yes some of them were used not as they intended. Again I apologized to you for making the post.

Tom
 
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I sincerely apologized for posting dished on this thread that was not indented to the way that you made it for Fred. Originally I was asking about painting my dish with Rustoleum to protect it for one, and secondly to be able to spot it from the aerial imagery photo’s taken from space. I did an Internet search on Painted Satellite Dishes and those were some that I came up with. Yes some of them were used not as they intended. Again I apologized to you for making the post.
No problem!

Just trying to keep the threads reserved for information that might be needed by someone. :)
 
No problem!

Just trying to keep the threads reserved for information that might be needed by someone. :)

:D

Yeah, like me.

BTW, Does anyone sell NEW 12-16' solid ( or otherwise ) dishes with HH motors anymore... at a none NASA price:rolleyes:
 
You could check with our sponsors at the top of the page, and one of them might be able to get one for you. I personally don't know of any of them that do sell big dishes, at least not that size.

I have no idea on price, but shipping on that size solid dish would be astronomical unless it came in sections.

You could also check with Mike Kohl of Global Communications who also is a member here. I know he still sells some big dishes.
 
...

I have no idea on price, but shipping on that size solid dish would be astronomical unless it came in sections.

...

Thanks for the link.

WOW, No Wonder not many people do C band any more. $6-12K for 12-16 footers:eek:

:eureka: Considering that the cost of steel is less than $500 for a dish, I'd expect maybe $1-2K for a big dish... not $12K. I figure 3 stamping dyes ( all less than 40" across ) would produce a segmented 16 footer, you'd think someone would pick up the slack market wise.

Guess not.
 
really BIG BUDs

I suspect the demand for 12..16 foot dishes is very small.
There are serious dishes out there .... but as I'm sure you've found, they command serious prices.

As for surplus dishes in that size, they do exist.
A buddy got one for around $1000, but he wants to motorize it in both azimuth and elevation, and maybe go 360 degrees.
Why? He's never said.
As a fellow HAM, maybe he wants to track Amateur satellites.

The Prodelin division of General Dynamics makes 3.8 and 4.5 meter dishes.
But if you have to ask the price, you probably can't afford one.
Prodelin

Why do you need one that large?
 
WOW, No Wonder not many people do C band any more.
That's why we have the dish hunting threads. :)

Get out there and find yourself one.

I know where there is a 16' solid in sections, and it can probably be bought real cheap. The problem is taking it down and re-assembling that behemoth. :)
 
Butterfly dish

Someone had to be first to post a silly photo, so here it is.:)

I have been wanting to take this photo for about 5 years. I finally stopped the other day while taking the long way home. It's near Catskill, NY off Route 9W.
 

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Well I thought I would post for you guys my first find for this thread. I didn't find it on my own, I had help. Another story for another thread, but I stopped by an ex installer the other day, and we were talking and he gave me pretty specific directions to two different Birdview Solids and general directions to another Birdview Solid. He got me within two blocks of this one. I have to go over there tomorrow and see if I can get this one, and plan on driving to the second one tomorrow too. :)

The first picture isn't very good, but you can see the logo. The second one is from the side yard and shows the back. The gate was locked and I didn't want to go in with no one at home.

I will try and get better pictures tomorrow.

nhf-solid-bv.jpg nhf-solid-bv-rear.jpg

There is a Unimesh on the other side of the fence in the back neighbors yard. :cool:

I also saw this one across the main street from the subdivision where they were working on a building that is part of the school district. Looks like the support arms are destroyed, but that is a nice non-penetrating mount. :hungry:

solid-metal-across-street.jpg
 
Drove over to where the solid Birdview is today, and still no one home.

I left a nice note in the door. Hopefully they will call. If not, I pay another visit. :)

I got a better picture of the front side from the street two yards away.

nhf-solid-bv-2.jpg

I also got a closer look at the solid I found across the main street across from the sub-division. It is a fiberglass, but has a real nice non-pen mount that I will try and get plus the actuator and co-rotor. Will probably have to haul away the dish to get the mount, but that's not a big deal. :)

solid-fiberglass-across-street.jpg solid-fiberglass-across-street-corotor.jpg
 
I would think with today's satellites that a 12 to 16 footer would really be totally unneccesary.
Unless of course you just want one. I would imagine 10' is tha maximum side of neccesity since most 10' dishes see 1.7 degrees of C-band beamwidth.

A 16' would sure bring it in though. I would hate to even consider aiming one for KU!!
 
I got mine!

After reading some of the threads for dish hunting I thought I would give it a try. I'm not one for leaving notes or knocking on doors so I posted on Craigs list. Within 2 hours I had 2 responses, one for a steep price and one for free. I chose the free one, I just had to take the remains of one that has seen better days. I have 3 photos of it. I don't know much about C band because I've always played with KU as seen in the garage photo. I could not find a name anywhere on the dish other than the LNB. The guy I got it from knows nothing about it, it was there when he moved in. I have a lot of work ahead of me. The only thing that I can see that needs to be fixed is where the LNB sits, it's a little bent. Should I just get a new LNB. I'm only going to line it up on one sat and forget about it and use my Fortec Lifetime Ultra?
 

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Picked up another 1m P* today....I left a note about a month ago with the housesitter....got a call this morning at 8:00...come get it. :)

This one has the pancake LNB on it, first one I have seen like that around here...

Now, what to aim it at...:D
 
The only thing that I can see that needs to be fixed is where the LNB sits, it's a little bent.
All that is bent is the end tabs that hold the scalar ring. Just carefully bend them back into shape and it will be fine.

Nice find!

Looks like a Home Cable dish manufactured by Unimesh. I have one of those in my warehouse.

If it measures a full 7 foot 6 inches, that is probably what it is.
 
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