8'Fortec

[Guest]

I've been using a commercial 6' DH solid for ku band for over 4 1/2 years with less then adequate results. I've seen people posting better signal quality while using a 39" dish. From the start I had to modify the lnb bracket holder and the tread on 2 of the 3 arms snapped off. I have changed about 10 feeds in an attempt at improving signal quality but to no avail. Finally, I spent 3 hours the other day skewing and tweaking and finally have decided to give up on this dish. My sat bud in Montreal just happens to have an 8' fortec brand new in the box and I bought it today. I'll take a truck home with me next week and hopefully have it installed by next weekend with the help of my ever sat knowledgable neighbour. This dish has 2 coax coming into my basement and I've decided to slap on a ku/c band lnbf and will post results in comparison to my DH dish.

I will post my signal quality on my azbox on all ku sats on my band as is; manhattan and openbox signal quality meters are a bit suspect and unreliable. Keep in mind that the signal quality on an azbox receiver is usually about 10% less then most fta receivers. Can't wait to see the results. Here's a picture of the dish:


1543

[ViP3R]

Nice Costa, looking forward to see the results with this..

[Guest]

I can't wait to finally get a dish which is going to show me the signal quality that it should. Just as a comparison I'm going to document my signal quality on all ku sats and would like to hear from others as to what sq they are getting.

[ViP3R]

No problem Costa, once your setup I'd be happy to post my signal Q from my 39" dish to compare.

[easily confused]

No problem Costa, once your setup I'd be happy to post my signal Q from my 39" dish to compare.

Same here for the sats that we both get

[Guest]

And down she came:


1595159615971598

[ViP3R]

Now, what are you going to do with it ?

[Guest]

I'm going to give it to my satguy where I'm picking up the 8' fortec, lower the cost some what.

[ViP3R]

Good stuff.. Nice that you have the existing pole to mount the new one. should be a pretty easy setup..what kind of motor are you using with it ?

[Guest]

My neighbour helped in the refurbishing of a VonWeise actuator, it'll take the place of the venture I was using.

[ViP3R]

My neighbour helped in the refurbishing of a VonWeise actuator, it'll take the place of the venture I was using.

Nothing but the best...This should be interesting...that is a huge dish for just KU...What model LNB are you going to be using..

[Guest]

Actually I'm planning to use it for c band also, I only have ku in the basement. I'm thinking about a bsc621-2d lnbf for universal on the Atlantic sats but not a priority.

[ViP3R]

Actually I'm planning to use it for c band also, I only have ku in the basement. I'm thinking about a bsc621-2d lnbf for universal on the Atlantic sats but not a priority.

Nice, that's the LNB I'm using on the 7.5...works well for C-Band, but can't get the damn thing to work at all for KU...

[Guest]

That's the problem with mesh dishes, shouldn't have an issue with a solid.

[ViP3R]

Is there an LNB you know of that will perform with a mesh for C-KU ?

[Guest]

My neighbour is using an lnbf that is about 20 years old and he's picking up about 99% signal quality on all ku sats on his 10' bud. He purchased the dmx741 lnbf and his ku signal quality went down big time. I'll have to ask him what he's using.

[Guest]

I managed to scan my sats before removing the 6' solid and noting my signal quality on 1 tp from each sat. Considering it's a 6' solid, my signal quality should be 99% on all sats but an azbox receiver will show lower signal quality:

Telstar 12-15w 11712 58%
Hispasat 1c/d/e-30w 11884 66%
Amazonas 2-61w 11734 94%
Amc 6-72w 12055 84%
Horizons 2- 74w 12060 98%
Amc 9- 83w 11735 70%
Amc 16-85w 11784 46%
Ses 2-87w 11716 100%
Galaxy 28-89w 11955 85%
Galaxy 17- 91w 11950 58%
Galaxy 25- 93.1w 11920 53%
Galaxy 3- 95w 11780 86%
Galaxy 19-97w 11789 70%
Galaxy 16-99w 11809 40%
Ses 1-101w 12060 44%
Amc 1-103w 11946 59%
Amc 15-105w 11856 49%


That's as far as I went. It'll be interesting to see the results with the 8' solid.

[Guest]

I got bad news on Monday when my sat dude said that the 8' wouldn't be dropped off until next Wednesday. I don't trust mother nature as real cold temps should start soon so I scrambled, with the help of my neighbour, to install his old 6' startrack mesh dish- reason why I haven't been on too much lately. We're still making the final adjustments and I'll post the results and keep the 8' fortec for next Spring. I have a bsc621-2 slapped on the 6' dish and my refurbished VonWeise jack.

[ViP3R]

Bummer Costa, was looking forward to seeing how the 8ft performed.

[Guest]

Something to look forward to in the Spring, just wanted to make sure I wasn't left high and dry on my basement setup and ku band.

[Guest]

Just an update on how the 6' mesh install went. I'm receiving about 10% less signal quality on the ku side which is normal in comparison to a solid dish. Most c band sats scan in but only the strong tp have enough signal quality to watch the channels and of course no s2. I have a bsc621-2 universal lnbf as my feed but I'm not too happy with it. I'm going to swap it out with my neighbours wsi 741 c/ku lnbf and see if I can improve signal quality. Im trying to hunt down a geosat ck1 lnbf as I've always had more success with their lnbfs. My new arc is 30-129w as I put the actuator on the right side(only up to 101w on the left side). The 8' solid is arriving on Wednesday but I'll leave that install for Spring with a new pole and more of a seperation from my 10' bud.

[Guest]

Another update on the 6' mesh install. I tried my neighbour's wsi741 but it turned out to be even worse then the bsc621 so I slapped that one back on. After a couple of hours, changing my elevation on my south sat at 74w and my east at 30w and my west at 125w- we achieved success. My ku side is even stronger then on the 6' solid and I'm scanning in about 80% of all c band tp as well. I ordered the new ESX741 c/ku lnbf but it hasn't reached market yet- 1 to 2 months. My 8' solid will be arriving tomorrow and will be my Spring project- new pole and all.
Now that I've basically saved all sat positions and know the dish is doing well, I'm going to reset my limits on the positioner and start doing some intense scanning to see what c band sats I can get on the Atlantic side. I will also be posting the signal quality comparison to my previous post on the azbox.

[Guest]

Just got the 8' Fortec Star solid delivered today. Man oh man is it heavy, it'll take at least 3 or 4 of us to get it on the pole. Too late this year, Spring project with a new pole.


1983

[Guest]

With the help of my neighbour we got the polar mount all setup, just need mother nature to warm things up for new install. Also considering my pole isn't plumb I'll be installing a new pole:


2643

[Guest]

Got a bit bored this afternoon so I decided to start digging. I'm at 2' at the moment and enough for today. I'm going to rent some kind of post digging tool tomorrow and finish this one off. First 2' are always the easiest, I hope I don't hit any big rocks the next 2' down.

[easily confused]

Good to hear you got it started, bud. Hopefully the rest of the digging goes well.

[ViP3R]

Got a bit bored this afternoon so I decided to start digging. I'm at 2' at the moment and enough for today. I'm going to rent some kind of post digging tool tomorrow and finish this one off. First 2' are always the easiest, I hope I don't hit any big rocks the next 2' down.

Just rent a cheap clam digger for a few hours, they work great..if you rent the motorized auger and hit a rock you will go for a ride.....lol

Don't work to hard bro....

[easily confused]

Never thought to mention, Costa, I own a 12", 3 point hitch post hole auger if you have access to a tractor that can handle it.

[Guest]

Just rent a cheap clam digger for a few hours, they work great..if you rent the motorized auger and hit a rock you will go for a ride.....lol

Don't work to hard bro....


THanks, what do you mean by a clam digger?




Never thought to mention, Costa, I own a 12", 3 point hitch post hole auger if you have access to a tractor that can handle it.

Thanks for the offer bud but I have fencing all around my house that doesn't allow for access of anything wider then 3'.

[Guest]

Finally got it done, I'm really tired right now. I hit a couple of big rocks at about 2 1/2' which took some time to remove. Relief after 3' when I think I hit some crushed stone and some of the builders original stone. I would have gone to 4 1/2' but my pole digger was only 4'. I'm at about 3' 10" which will do fine. Picking up the concrete on Monday and the pole on Wednesday- should have this puppy installed and scanning by the first week of April.

3136

[Guest]

I picked up the pole today, I decided to go with a 10' instead of 12' this time so I can access the feed easier. I can change up to 5 feeds a year on each dish depending on what new ones are out there. Cement is going to be poured tomorrow, just leveling today:


3149

[cpr43]

Congrats Costa
Sorry this is probably off the main post but I just bring home a 10' channel master someone gave me for free. I have everything except the 4 round tube LNBs supporters that came from the outer ring to the conical/LNB. Do you think you can measure those for me when you get a chance??? I'm planning to build them using 1/2" dia. electrical tubes. Will really appreciated my friend, Regards,

[Guest]

No problem Carlos, just so happens that I have a set in my basement from a Channel Master as well- 66 1/2" in length and 1" thick.

[cpr43]

Thanks so much!!!

[ViP3R]

Nice job Costa...The hard work is almost done.. the digging is not fun..at least we have somewhat of an early spring and the frost is gone.. Once I get some time I still need to adjust my C-Band install from last year, and the KU I just moved last week. hope we get some some nice weather soon.

[cpr43]

Hey Costa
The 66 1/2 include the 2 bends on each end for the screw??
Sorry, want to make sure before I cut the tubes
Thanks

[Guest]

Hey Costa
The 66 1/2 include the 2 bends on each end for the screw??
Sorry, want to make sure before I cut the tubes
Thanks


Yes Carlos, it includes both ends.

[Guest]

With the help of my good bud lexmark, we poured the cement and it's as plumb as it will ever be. I made sure to not pour any cement in the pole itself. I'll let it sit for about a week and when we get a decent day the 8' solid is going up:


315131523153

[cpr43]

Again my friend Thanks a lot!!

[ViP3R]

With the help of my good bud lexmark, we poured the cement and it's as plumb as it will ever be. I made sure to not pour any cement in the pole itself. I'll let it sit for about a week and when we get a decent day the 8' solid is going up:


315131523153

Nice.. your lucky! you don't have any dog shit on your lawn..lol

looks good bro...

[Guest]

And down she came:


3177

[Guest]

And up she went:


3178317931803181


With the excellent help of my good bud lexmark we managed to get this beast up today. There are still hours of tinkering involved before I can say that it's spot on but we did manage to scan in several tp on Galaxy 17 at 91w.

[ViP3R]

Nice Costa!

[easily confused]

Nicely done!!

[Guest]

After countless hours with my good bud lexmark we got the dish finely tuned. 2 defective lnbf had us puzzled for a couple of days. I'm just waiting for my new lnbf to show up before I start saving my sat positions in positioner memory. My arc is from 15-123w.

[Guest]

Update on the 8' solid, 27 sat positions stored with another 10 tougher ones scattered across the arc coming later. I'm still waiting on my new lnbf before I attempt to stabalise my feed. I'm going to also slap my prime focus ku lnb on as well to see if it improves signal quality.

[Guest]

I finally had some time yesterday to play around with my new dish. My good bud lexmark drilled a couple of more holes in a scalar ring and I slapped on my invacom twh-031 twin universal ku lnb to see if I could improve things on ku band, already using my bud for c band. I managed to max it out and all ku sats on my arc scan in with high signal quality. When I get a chance, I'm going to compare the results of this dish to my previous 6' solid.


3202

[Guest]

I managed to scan my sats before removing the 6' solid and noting my signal quality on 1 tp from each sat. Considering it's a 6' solid, my signal quality should be 99% on all sats but an azbox receiver will show lower signal quality:

Telstar 12-15w 11712 58%
Hispasat 1c/d/e-30w 11884 66%
Amazonas 2-61w 11734 94%
Amc 6-72w 12055 84%
Horizons 2- 74w 12060 98%
Amc 9- 83w 11735 70%
Amc 16-85w 11784 46%
Ses 2-87w 11716 100%
Galaxy 28-89w 11955 85%
Galaxy 17- 91w 11950 58%
Galaxy 25- 93.1w 11920 53%
Galaxy 3- 95w 11780 86%
Galaxy 19-97w 11789 70%
Galaxy 16-99w 11809 40%
Ses 1-101w 12060 44%
Amc 1-103w 11946 59%
Amc 15-105w 11856 49%


That's as far as I went. It'll be interesting to see the results with the 8' solid.

I haven't gone as far to document my reults with the new 8' Fortec solid but I eventually will do so. From the numbers that I saw yesyerday evening I would have to say about a 20-25% increase across the board.

[TurboPirate]

3202

Ain't that dish a beauty!!!! soon I'll have mine

[Guest]

Extra fine tuning this weekend will have it complete and should be doing most of the arc at 99% signal quality. Since I had minimal success with universal lnb I'll stick to the invacom twh-031 or the dms jsc322-2.

[TurboPirate]

Extra fine tuning this weekend will have it complete and should be doing most of the arc at 99% signal quality. Since I had minimal success with universal lnb I'll stick to the invacom twh-031 or the dms jsc322-2.
Can't wait to see the photos of the results of this test...............

[Guest]

Not only photos Turbo but also a comparison to see how much better this dish is then to the commercial DH dish I was using before.

[Guest]

Spent the better part of 4 hours doing the final tune to the 8' solid. All sats on my arc, using a pansat 3500 outdoors, now scan in at 99% signal quality with the exception of SatMex 6 which scans in at 87%. I finally decided on the dms jsc322-2 universal lnb since its protective cover will keep the connections protected.

[Guest]

Final pictures of this instalL:


3291329232933294

[sadass]

my wife would so kill me , but damm im tempted....

[Guest]

my wife would so kill me , but damm im tempted....

Just need a bit of room.

[Costactc]

I wasn't happy with the ku band results I was getting with my 8' Fortec solid so I installed a 4' offset dish for ku with much better results. I've decided to use the 8' dish to concentrate on the circular sats on the Atlantic side of the arc. I switched out the invacom lnbf for a dmx 741 lnbf today and got some decent results on the circular sats. Unfortunately, mother nature rained me out so I still need to do a bit of skewing to raise signal quality. I'll also have to adjust the actuator arm so as to get the dish lower to 5w. I haven't scanned in Eutelsat 5w yet but will give it a shot once my dish is at optimum signal quality. I have the arc fully covered from 11w-139w on all linear and circular c band sats.


62096210

[Costactc]

I didn't get a chance to skew the lnbf today but I did adjust the actuator so as to be able to drive further east. Unfortunately, the dish is being blocked by a neighbours house and there will be no way for me to scan in 5w. I did manage to pull in the Russian tp on Express AM44 at 11w. I am now saving all Atlantic satellite positions in my positioners memory from 11-61w. I will probably go onto the American side later on but do not expect the greatest of results with the dilectric plate being inserted.

[Costactc]

I got a chance to fine tune the dish and properly skew the lnbf yesterday. All circular sats from 11w are scanning in and most linear as well and a bit of ku band. On the ku side of this lnbf I'm having an issue as only vertical tp are scanning in, no signal on horizontal. This completes my arc as all sats scan in from 11-127w, all I need to do is adjust the motor for my 10' bud so as to drive it to 139w.