sizing a dish

[dunnsept]

I am going to put up a Ku dish in the spring. In looking around at what's available, what's the "rule" for sizing them? Is it still "bigger is always better"?

I have the 9footer, plus a 7.5' perfect 10, and now I've been offered 2 more mesh 6 footers (which I'll probably take anyway) but I want to make sure that I can get good signals on the Ku side. I tried to watch G10R last night.. barely able to. most of them were OK, but RTN was not viewable.
My wife also would be thrilled if I could get 127W to get the German channel.

so, where's the cost/benefit cut-off on purchasing a dish? 30", 33", 1.2m?
I will want to motorize it that's for sure. I can put it on the ground, on the roof, doesn't really matter. I'm thinking about on the roof because that would give me a better view of the eastern sky, on the ground will be blocked by the house.

I have plenty of time to plan for this because it won't happen until spring anyway. Not going to go up on the roof any time soon with wind chill around -25F

thanks
Paul...

 

[brentb636]

I'm in Holland, Meechagan , and get by just fine with a 36" dish on a STAB hh-90 motor. I also have a now retired 31" dish with SG2100 motor and a new 1.2m dish with DG380 motor.
The 90cm gets everything from 72W to 127W ( LOS issues to the east) and you could probably get by with a 36" dish just fine. A 36" dish is cheap to ship, compared to larger dishes. I had my 36" on the roof at our previous home, but once we moved to Holland, I put it on a ground pole. Much better for tinkering with.
Bigger IS better, so if you can afford the high shipping charges , get a 1M or 1.2M dish , for that extra edge in gain and protection from rain fade. So far I've found the DG380 motor moves my 1.2m around just fine.

 

[dunnsept]

thanks Brent.
I'm in Mt Pleasant BTW so not too far away.
I will poke around and see what shipping charges are going to run. I'll check with Sadoun since he's just in Ohio, shipping shouldn't be too bad up to Meechigan ;-)

Paul...

 

[Anole]

Generally , the shipping companies go berserk for dishes over about 36", so shipping-wise, they are your best buy.
It's a size thing with them not weight, so you can often get two dishes shipped to you for about the same as one!
Here's a picture showing the shipping boxes for various sizes of dishes, courtesy of Sadoun.

Regardless of claims by some of putting bigger dishes on cheap motors, the 36" size is well matched to small H-H motors.
One meter dishes (39"), or many commercial dishes, will often outperform smaller end-user models, but they are generally heavier.
Once you get to 1.2 meter (4') dishes, weight, motors, and wind become more critical.

I like to suggest 36"
Yea, smaller is okay if you got one for free.
Yes, bigger is okay if you have a special reason (or got it for free).
But, that's just one opinion.

edit: oh, and for your first motor, consider putting it on the ground.
At least for the first season.
Lot easier to tweak in the summer (or winter) if you don't have to go up onto the roof and take a receiver with you!

 

[Mr Tony]

yeah I agree with the above...if you are starting fresh with KU then a 36...but if you can find a 31" or so for free (or dirt cheap) dont turn it down

I use a Winegard 30" dish in Minnesota and havent had any issues with it

 

[dunnsept]

OK.. thanks guys. I'll start checking around to see what I can find. will be a while before I do much anyway.. it was -7 this morning with wind chill of like -20 something.. I like playing with this stuff, but not that much

 

[Cadsulfide]

Dunnsept;

The best size is Free. That being said, more than 6' is overkill and hard to get boresighted for a moveable dish.

 

[dunnsept]

I've been looking around as I drive home.. I've seen quite a few mesh dishes pointing at odd angles.. probably could get those.. but I've only seen one solid dish.. and the way it's pointing could still be in use.. otherwise, I've not seen any bigger dishes laying around that I could go up to the door or anything. and it's really only the shipping that sucks..$75 for a dish, in the big picture is no big deal.. it's the $120 to ship that bites

 

[equant]

How do people find free Ku dishes? I only ever find 6' and up for free.

 

[Anole]

How do people find free Ku dishes? I only ever find 6' and up for free.

Read the Adventures in Dish Hunting 2008 or 2009 thread in the C-band Department.
. . . Commonly called the BUD section of the FTA forum.
Interesting posts with pictures of all sorts of dishes.
The 2009 thread just started, so for a real education, get hold of the 2008 thread, and scroll through it looking for pictures.
It won't take you long to find something interesting to read! :up

 

[equant]

Read the Adventures in Dish Hunting 2008 or 2009 thread in the C-band Department.
. . . Commonly called the BUD section of the FTA forum.

I have been reading it since its inception, and it is a good thread. Only thing is, it's almost all about dishes that are 6' and bigger.

I can find DN and DTV dishes for free. I can find >6' dishes for free. What I can't find are any in between. People on this board suggest that it's possible to find 36" dishes for free. I was just wondering if they had any tips.

 

[Cadsulfide]

Old DTN and Primestar dishes are in the range you are looking for, mostly a rural thing. Try posting an ad in the local paper.