First Bud 10 foot aluminum

[jamie1969]

[FONT=&quot]I’m not much of a poster kind of guy, but do read everything and I’ve been using 30" dish and motor and I have been reading about C band and found a 10 foot aluminum dish. I went and picked it up today. Forgot the camera at home so had it down and home before pictures.[/FONT]
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Don’t know much about the dish I just wanted a solid dish so I could run ku with a new lnb, I always read that solid dish is better than mesh for ku. The dish was easy for 2 guys to pickup without the mount. Must be heavy aluminum as there is no hail dents and all other mesh dishes around here have dents.[/FONT]
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The old c band Lnb looks like it has a broke plastic cover off but looks like it may still work.
Some info on the blue box would help... polarity switch maybe? im going to order new c/ku lnb soon.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]The guy I got the dish from said he had the old analog receiver for the dish but I don’t have any info on it yet as he was not home when I picked up the dish, but Im sure I could use it to turn dish and piggy back my pansat 3500 to it. Or just get a vbox/gbox if needed.[/FONT]
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[FONT=&quot]Cable needed? have any of you guys used cat5 network cable for some of the lines not the 2 main power wires for motor but the others…trying to keep from buying the $1.00 per foot ribbin cable. Im about 100 feet from tv.

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[FONT=&quot]I will start cleaning the rust off the mount this week.

I’m sure Actuater motor and arm are trash will look for another one...rusted and froze up

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[FONT=&quot]I will be getting the dish post sometime this week, guy with hay forks on back of truck said he could pull it for me ...lazy I know but hey he said he has done it before so I will let him. And not sure I can find 4” post around here.[/FONT]
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Anyone have any idle about a name brand on the dish? Looks like it has a weld though middle were it was 2 peace and put to gather and ground smooth[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Ok I’ve added some pictures I always like seeing when I read everyones stories so here they are[/FONT]
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[Anole]

The mount looks somewhat like the one in this thread by Linuxman.
http://www.satelliteguys.us/c-band-...d-spun-aluminum-8-5-footer-maybe-regency.html
Not sure if he ever found out what kind it was.

Congrats on the find! Looks like it'll be a fun dish to fire up! - :up
And thanks for all the pictures.

 

[linuxman]

The mount looks somewhat like the one in this thread by Linuxman.
http://www.satelliteguys.us/c-band-...d-spun-aluminum-8-5-footer-maybe-regency.html
Not sure if he ever found out what kind it was.

Congrats on the find! Looks like it'll be a fun dish to fire up! - :up
And thanks for all the pictures.

That dish is the same as I tried in my thread that Anole is pointing to above.

Mine had tripod support arms, and unknown to me at the time I was using a Low-Count actuator which I have since converted to more counts.

You may have better success if you make sure the button-hook is dead on center, and use a GBox V3000 and an actuator with as many magnets as you can get on it to make the pulses more accurate for setting the dish up.

Good Luck!

We'll be watching your progress.

 

[gabshere]

great find and recovery
you don't have to be a big poster your at the best site for information, and theres a lot here. the box on the mount & the lna go together and are older tech. a newer lnbf swap would let pansat control both ku & c-band systems ( its one way i have one of my setups working just diesqc switched together). or you could add a newer lnb to the current feedhorn and i think the pansat 3500 can control the servo ( the blue box) the broken cover over the blue box is just that a cover.

the actuator ( motor) looks like a von weise and i do have pictures posted here somewhere that shows how to take it apart and then you can clean and grease it. ( link posted)

good luck on the project and post back with questions we are all here to help each other

 

[N6BY]

... Cable needed? have any of you guys used cat5 network cable for some of the lines not the 2 main power wires for motor but the others…trying to keep from buying the $1.00 per foot ribbin cable. Im about 100 feet from tv. ...

I use sprinkler wire. Its 18 gauge, sun resistant, and can be buried in the ground. Its about 35 cents per foot for 7 wire cable.

Newer motors need 4 wires (2 for power and 2 for the position sensor). So if you want to allow for a future motor upgrade, make sure your cable has at least 4 wires.

 

[Cadsulfide]

Jamie;

Great Find! Should be an excellent dish!
Clean & paint the steel bits.
Lube up all the moving parts.
Plant a good post with a clear view of the Clarke Belt.
Swap out the lnb for say a BSC621.
If you can afford it, get a C/Ku ortho mode feedhorn W/lnbs.
Getting the focal point right is critical. Take your time here.
Run your cables.
Get 'er on the post, and Bob's your uncle!
Read Stogies thread on setting up a BSC621, a bit 'O' work, but worth the effort.
Once you get it mounted, you can move it with a car battery at first, worry about tricking it out with a high pulse count sensor/actuator and a Gbox after.

 

[jamie1969]

update Actuator works

thx for a the replies...good info...just an update the motor works with [FONT=&quot]old boat battery [/FONT]so was cleaning it up and the arm screw is stuck. I tried a pipe wrench and the treads started getting bite marks in them so i tried a small vice to hold the treads and it would not hold...so its soaking in wd-40.
The ball joint came free after a little hammer time...and cleaned up nice...so if i can get the screw freed up ill have a working actuator.

Edit : (4 hours later) Its fixed just used the pipe wrench and cleaned up the the treads with a small file after i got it out....cleaned up good and ran it in and out about 5 times to make sure it did not hang and it was all good. put it back on mount and ran it a few more times.

 

[Swamp_Rat]

Try some PB Blaster, can't beat it for freeing up stuck bolts and nuts.

 

[turbosat]

GOod work on the actuator, maybe it'll last awhile. That dish looks like my 5' solid dish, the first dish I bought in the late 80's. It was called the Little Wil system, dish mounted on a round ring that sat on the ground, to point at one satellite. It had that exact same, odd shaped blue plastic cover over the polarity motor as in your picture. I didn't know they made bigger dishes, but that one looks like my 5' from the back, and shape is very similar too. Though mine didn't need to be 'pieced and welded' together. I'll bet it will be a good dish. Wilson Microwave, or Wilson Electronics was the manufacturer of mine.

 

[linuxman]

It had that exact same, odd shaped blue plastic cover over the polarity motor as in your picture.

It is just a cover. I have several of them here in a box brand new. Nobody uses them anymore.

Check out my add in the classifieds for a C/Ku feed-horn with lnbs. You will need a receiver that can control a servo motor to use it.

 

[SatPhreak]

You should lube up the threads on the actuator. Also if you have the tube that mounts to the motor housing put it back on to keep the threads from rusting that much again. Also lube up the bushing on the ball joint.

 

[gabshere]

You should lube up the threads on the actuator. Also if you have the tube that mounts to the motor housing put it back on to keep the threads from rusting that much again. Also lube up the bushing on the ball joint.

to be that bad rusted they either would have to been exposed , or had a bad water leak
there is a 2 inch o'ring that goes at both ends of the tube

 

[jamie1969]

well it sanded and painted looks new to me...lol

Mount was cleaned and painted flat black rustoleum made it look almost new to me anyway . And new bolts, old ones where vary rusty some broke when taking them off.
The actuator came real clean the screw did look bad but a wire grinder worked wonders, it’s all greased and back together and working. And about it having a water leak the black plastic around the motor is all good but the end where the wire go in is open, will try to find a match from another old bud got a list of 10 or so when I was hunting .
Oh and the o-ring was replaced around the shaft at motor end. Old one was bad …didn’t see a grove for a 2ed one at other end, just the black plastic grease ring or whatever it’s called. Already have a BSC621 lnb on the way...haven’t ordered and G-box yet may get it up hitting some birds first and just turn with a battery for now.
Worked on feed arm today, took it off of dish and cleaned and painted. It got dark on me I will take some new after pictures for you guys. Wish I had looked at linuxmans ads first but I got the BSC621 for $49 with shipping.
Oh before I forget that motor has 5 wires the 2 power and a red, white, and blue for sensor? And a bare ground wire. Anyone else seen the 3 wires maybe one is not needed?
Gbox only has 2 sensor hookups.
Ok I’m done for now wife needs some man time…lol

 

[Cadsulfide]

Sounds like a pot for a sensor, take the back cover off and take a peek. An ohm meter will show a changing resistance as the motor moves. You mat ba able to modify this to a reed sensor if there is room inside.

 

[jamie1969]

inside cover

Ok pulled cover off the back and the white wire was not in there so I looked and it was taped up just outside the motor (picture 1). Just ended were the arrow points. Anyway inside it looks like it had a place to be hooked up.(picture2)
well that’s what it looks like inside the cover of a Von Weise Model vo3578ag76.(picture 3)

Ok on to another ?

Do you guys think this mount that takes a 4" post will crank down on a 3 1/2" post and stay plumb? The guy that went to get the old post said it had way too much concrete on the post to get out without a jackhammer.

So I found this old pipe that has some smaller runs down at bottom and would make for dam sure it would not turn and be a heck of an anchor. just not right size.(picture 4) maybe I could cut old post off and slide it over this one and weld them together.

Picture of clean painted mount (picture 5)

 

[gabshere]

Ok pulled cover off the back and the white wire was not in there so I looked and it was taped up just outside the motor (picture 1). Just ended were the arrow points. Anyway inside it looks like it had a place to be hooked up.(picture2)
well that’s what it looks like inside the cover of a Von Weise Model vo3578ag76.(picture 3)

still might need the third wire , i don't know i do know the v-box / g-box only controls a two wire sensor. looks like a POT sensor and it only has 4 counts per revolution. good or bad i don't know. don't know if its enough counts per inch to have accuracy with g-box / v-box , with an old analog receiver it wouldn't matter ( you would just have to setup sat locations on the old analog box)

Do you guys think this mount that takes a 4" post will crank down on a 3 1/2" post and stay plumb? The guy that went to get the old post said it had way too much concrete on the post to get out without a jackhammer.

So I found this old pipe that has some smaller runs down at bottom and would make for dam sure it would not turn and be a heck of an anchor. just not right size.(picture 4) maybe I could cut old post off and slide it over this one and weld them together.

i have a dish mounted on a 3 1/2 inch pipe and it makes it difficult to level & tune at times. not saying it won't work , with some trial & effort i'm sure it will. what would make it easier on you is to find a short piece of 4 inch pipe ( probably 1 ft section will do ) and have it welded to the 3 1/2 pipe and make sure its level . this will assure all bolts grab evenly and ensure the mount is flush.


so far everything is looking great , you've done a great cleanup job

 

[jamie1969]

no real declination adjustments

Another thing that bugs me that this mount has no real declination adjustment besides the 2 other bolt holes…like other buds I have seen they have some kind of nut and bolt to adjust the declination. Maybe the original installers had these things dead on with the center bolt hole for this area. But would be nice to be able to tweak it if needed and that don’t look possible now. Maybe Im getting ahead of myself, it’s not even up yet but things like that bug me. Would hate getting it up and not to have it track the Clarke Belt like it should, and then need to take it back down to fabricate some kind of adjuster.

 

[gabshere]

could be possible that this dish declination is set with spacers or washers
depends on what you found when it was recovered. it could also be that the mount was already preset with correct declination.

 

[Anole]

three thoughts:

Mount was cleaned and painted flat black rustoleum made it look almost new to me anyway .
And new bolts, old ones where vary rusty some broke when taking them off.
The actuator came real clean the screw did look bad but a wire grinder worked wonders, it’s all greased and back together and working.

Worked on feed arm today, took it off of dish and cleaned and painted.

That's a beautiful paint job. Did you use a spray can?
I'm studying rust-fixing washes, inhibitors, paints, and procedures right now.
Were there any additional tricks you used?

In the picture with the disconnected wire, I was amused to see how it all worked.
The right-hand switch is operated by a (square) four-lobe cam.
The Common and Normally Open contacts (white and blue on the switch) are what need to be fed to the receiver.
They seem to be connected.
The orange switch wire wouldn't be used, and is not connected to anything.
So, I don't really see a problem.

I looked at several of your pictures, and cannot see declination adjustments either.
Other than the coarse holes you pointed out.
Maybe those were sufficient in the days of wide-spaced C-band birds?
Now days, I suspect you'll just need to choose the proper hole.
Then shim with washers as George suggested.
Either the upper or lower dish attachment points. (to go down or up respectively)
Maybe big fender washers would make that easier?
.

 

[Cadsulfide]

The microswitch sensor should be fine, only ~$2.00 to replace if failed.

Try fence suppliers, industrial electricians, junkyards, and as a last resort a steel wharehouse for a proper post. It is a critical component, no sense ruining all the fine quality work you've done so far on a crappy post. You'll be glad you did.