My traffic-dodging, mid-morning Channel Master 1.0M rescue... OR...

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Tron

SatelliteGuys Master
Original poster
May 6, 2005
6,599
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Metro New Orleans, LA
How to drag a 1.0M Channel Master across six lanes of angry, morning-rush traffic...

Well, I was out running errands (bringing some heavy video equipment to my self-storage room) this morning when I saw it... IT was a 1 meter Channel Master dish laying beside a dumpster next to a retail building which was undergoing renovation. It was across the street (a six-lane street full of drive-time motorists), but I still recognized what it was. I have one of these on G-18, and it performs admirably. "SWEET!", I thought as I returned to my car after placing my items in storage.

After merging across traffic and making a U-turn down the street, I pulled up next to the building (and dish). There were plenty of workers about, so I went to the foreman and asked about the dish. "It's trash, I don't care, take it", was his answer. Almost there! Now, I had to figure out how to get this thing home.

It was NOT going in the car. It MIGHT have fit had it been disassembled, but I had no wrenches or socket set. Additionally, it was still mounted to a rusted out, worthless NPRM frame. What was I going to do? In retrospect, I probably could have asked the workers to borrow a wrench, but I didn't want to push my luck. Then I looked across the street and noticed the building where my storage room is located... :eureka

How hard can it be to drag a 1 meter Channel Master and what was left of a NPRM across six lanes of traffic? Well, all I can say is that I'm still alive :D I did get some funny looks as I hauled the pile into the freight elevator in the storage building and deposited it in my room on the fifth floor...

Once I got it to a safe place, I looked it over. Its in great condition, albeit very cruddy (probably lots of exhaust pollution where it was installed, in a very busy traffic corridor). I can tell it was deployed by Primestar, as I can still barely make out the logo. Also, it has one of those "Dove Bar" LNBs on it, with dual outputs (presumably hardwired for H and V, although I haven't looked carefully). First time I've ever seen one of those animals in person. It'll get replaced with a Dish FSS stacked LNB, just like the one on my other CM.

Tonight, I'm going up there to disassemble it and bring it home. I'll probably get a few more funny looks at that time. It'll either find a parking spot on AMC-21 or AMC-9, although I'm favoring AMC-21 at the moment, due to the HD content. I'm sure a large dish there will also help with adjacent interference from G-18, as well as the LPB DVB-S2 mux. It WILL look funny, with two identical CM 1.0M dishes apparently looking at the same spot in space...
 
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It WILL look funny, with two identical CM 1.0M dishes apparently looking at the same spot in space...
Just tell anyone who asks, "it's for stereo!" - :D

Of course, you might also try, "it's for 3-D vision!" - :eureka

Congrats on the nice dish.
Too bad you didn't post any pictures.
Not of the dish, but of the crazy man running across the street dragging a 1m Primestar on an NPRM! - :rolleyes:
 
How to drag a 1.0M Channel Master across six lanes of angry, morning-rush traffic...

Well, I was out running errands (bringing some heavy video equipment to my self-storage room) this morning when I saw it... IT was a 1 meter Channel Master dish laying beside a dumpster next to a retail building which was undergoing renovation. It was across the street (a six-lane street full of drive-time motorists), but I still recognized what it was. I have one of these on G-18, and it performs admirably. "SWEET!", I thought as I returned to my car after placing my items in storage.

After merging across traffic and making a U-turn down the street, I pulled up next to the building (and dish). There were plenty of workers about, so I went to the foreman and asked about the dish. "It's trash, I don't care, take it", was his answer. Almost there! Now, I had to figure out how to get this thing home.

It was NOT going in the car. It MIGHT have fit had it been disassembled, but I had no wrenches or socket set. Additionally, it was still mounted to a rusted out, worthless NPRM frame. What was I going to do? In retrospect, I probably could have asked the workers to borrow a wrench, but I didn't want to push my luck. Then I looked across the street and noticed the building where my storage room is located... :eureka

How hard can it be to drag a 1 meter Channel Master and what was left of a NPRM across six lanes of traffic? Well, all I can say is that I'm still alive :D I did get some funny looks as I hauled the pile into the freight elevator in the storage building and deposited it in my room on the fifth floor...

Once I got it to a safe place, I looked it over. Its in great condition, albeit very cruddy (probably lots of exhaust pollution where it was installed, in a very busy traffic corridor). I can tell it was deployed by Primestar, as I can still barely make out the logo. Also, it has one of those "Dove Bar" LNBs on it, with dual outputs (presumably hardwired for H and V, although I haven't looked carefully). First time I've ever seen one of those animals in person. It'll get replaced with a Dish FSS stacked LNB, just like the one on my other CM.

Tonight, I'm going up there to disassemble it and bring it home. I'll probably get a few more funny looks at that time. It'll either find a parking spot on AMC-21 or AMC-9, although I'm favoring AMC-21 at the moment, due to the HD content. I'm sure a large dish there will also help with adjacent interference from G-18, as well as the LPB DVB-S2 mux. It WILL look funny, with two identical CM 1.0M dishes apparently looking at the same spot in space...

Six lanes of traffic..where in the hell WERE you, J? Vets? Or somewhere Downtown? :confused:

Anyway, nice score! Now get off your ass and get that Perfect 10 going! :)
 
Nice find, if you don't want that "Dove Bar" LNB on it, with dual outputs, just send it to me. It will work fine in my 1.1 diseqc system. And, I have an empty spot on one of my 4x4 multi-switches, so it won't be idle.
Congratulations!
 
Anole wants pictures- I want video of that LOL. Wonder if there was one of those traffic-cams anywhere that caught that? Would make a good you-tube movie!
Nice find Tron, now I bet you throw a spare wrench or two in the car.
 
Anole wants pictures- I want video of that LOL.

he could take a buddy with a camera and re-enact it. :D

great story! My Primestar story is quite boring - a 75cm (or whatever the smaller size of the two home-installed primestar dishes is) was sitting in a dumpster behind a gas station. I went under the cover of darkness to take it even though I assumed a dumpster meant things were fine to take it and all went well (no run-in with police, the garbage truck, etc).
 
he could take a buddy with a camera and re-enact it. :D

great story! My Primestar story is quite boring - a 75cm (or whatever the smaller size of the two home-installed primestar dishes is) was sitting in a dumpster behind a gas station. I went under the cover of darkness to take it even though I assumed a dumpster meant things were fine to take it and all went well (no run-in with police, the garbage truck, etc).

You guys are lucky. I keep an eye out for businesses that have shut down or buildings for rent, hoping that there's an unwanted or forgotten dish on the roof.
Some neighborhoods have the cat lady. I want to be the "dish guy." My goal is to have the neighborhood kids believe that I broadcast secret transmissions from my basement.
 
Six lanes of traffic..where in the hell WERE you, J? Vets? Or somewhere Downtown? :confused:

Anyway, nice score! Now get off your ass and get that Perfect 10 going! :)

Causeway Blvd, near Lakeside Mall. Yes, I do need to get my C-Band going, since NASA has set a March 12 launch date. Know where I can get a large Prodelin NPRM? I don't need the dish, but I wouldn't mind it either ;) I may just end up sinking a pole in concrete, although that can be no small task when a BUD is involved (I've helped do that at a friend's house in the past)...

If it was early in the morning someone probably thought "what in the hell is that drunk doing?" :)

I did yell a lot of apologies as I crossed the street. Just glad I'm not roadkill over a 1M CM dish. Now over a 1.8M... ;)

Nice find, if you don't want that "Dove Bar" LNB on it, with dual outputs, just send it to me. It will work fine in my 1.1 diseqc system. And, I have an empty spot on one of my 4x4 multi-switches, so it won't be idle.
Congratulations!

Thanks Voom, I don't think I'll be needing it. I'm trying to move toward bandstacked anyway, and this thing is larger than a QPH-031 :)

Anole wants pictures- I want video of that LOL. Wonder if there was one of those traffic-cams anywhere that caught that? Would make a good you-tube movie!
Nice find Tron, now I bet you throw a spare wrench or two in the car.

No cams aimed where I crossed, but there is a red light camera about 50 feet up the road from there pointed in the opposite direction ;) I did put a socket set in the car, and I'll put a few other tools in there next time there's a good sale at Harbor Freight. Its a good idea to keep tools in a car, not just for dish situations.

he could take a buddy with a camera and re-enact it. :D

True... Only problem is I might not get as lucky with traffic the second time around :eek:

You guys are lucky. I keep an eye out for businesses that have shut down or buildings for rent, hoping that there's an unwanted or forgotten dish on the roof.

Be on the lookout for businesses that are being re-roofed, that's what was happening in this case. Most buildings have a collection of dishes up there, many of which aren't even being used anymore. On my recent trip to NYC, an elevated subway ride across Brooklyn revealed literally HUNDREDS of unused dishes on apartment and business rooftops, probably most of which would be free for the taking by asking around.

Well, the dish is now home. I disassembled it at my storage yesterday... Turns out I'm going to need a whole new set of nut and bolt hardware (no big deal), since the originals were badly rusted. What I really need now, between this dish and the Perfect 10 BUD, is Linuxman's roof :D
 
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Voom, sounds good. Let me make sure this thing even works first, wouldn't want to send you a piece of junk :) That dish has been up there for years, probably since the mid 90s, and probably hasn't even been in use for nearly a decade.

Would that P870 include the wonderful, squeezed oval feedhorn? :D
 
Aren't you the one who rolled a Paraclypse down the road in the middle of the night?

I think you like hazardous duty when it comes to dishes. :D

Seriously, nice find, and like you I would have done whatever it took to get the dish in my possession. :cool:
 
Voom, sounds good. Let me make sure this thing even works first, wouldn't want to send you a piece of junk :) That dish has been up there for years, probably since the mid 90s, and probably hasn't even been in use for nearly a decade.

Would that P870 include the wonderful, squeezed oval feedhorn? :D
OK..... I can wait, and YES it has the squeezed oval feedhorn. Hope you'll send the P* feedhorn with the lnb? But, I'll take it either way.
 
Glad to hear of the rescue, Tron.:) The video could have made America's Funniest Home Videos.:D

I always carry a tool box in whatever I'm driving. You never know what might happen, whether it's a simple repair to avoid a tow, helping someone else in need or rescuing a dish.

Last summer, I rescued a one year old lawn mower by disassembling it. The owner was discarding it because it wouldn't start. It ended up only having some water in the gas tank.
 
Aren't you the one who rolled a Paraclypse down the road in the middle of the night?

I think you like hazardous duty when it comes to dishes. :D

Yep, that was me... ;) Who knows what dangers the next adventure will bring :eek: Stay tuned!

OK..... I can wait, and YES it has the squeezed oval feedhorn. Hope you'll send the P* feedhorn with the lnb? But, I'll take it either way.

I'll need the feedhorn that's on it for mounting my new LNB (the Dish stacked), but if you don't want to part with the squeezed feedhorn, that's ok... I was just thinking of tinkering with close spacing, etc., on other dishes using it. I'll test the LNB soon to verify that it works...
 
I'll need the feedhorn that's on it for mounting my new LNB (the Dish stacked), but if you don't want to part with the squeezed feedhorn, that's ok... I was just thinking of tinkering with close spacing, etc., on other dishes using it. I'll test the LNB soon to verify that it works...
That's fine, I actually have a feedhorn I can use with it, but was hoping for a spare. I'll send the squeezed feedhorn with the P870, when you are ready? Since they seem to have been made for each other, I would hate to separate them. Give me a PM, when you're ready.
 
Thanks Voom, I should be able to test it before the end of the week. If it goes well (which I expect it will), I'll let you know...
 
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