2m dish is it worth it?.

[butchyboy]

hi all i know where there is a aluminium 2m prime focus with polarmount and ground stand etc,but im not really interested as i think it would not be much of a upgrade on the mabo 1.8m offset dish i have and also i have my cm 1.8m but is not currently set up as i have the mabo 1.8m here motorised on ku and i even say there would not be much better signal to be got by erecting the cm 1.8m.

so i think it would probaly be best to wait for the cm 2.4m to come up for sale.

 

[moonbase]

A 2.0m dish will give you just under 1dB more signal level than a 1.8m dish.
If you are on the edge of a lock with the 1.8m dish the 2.0m dish will get you over the line.

If you were thinking of keeping the mabo 1.8m dish up after you get the CM 2.4m why not have the 2.0m and 2.4m up rather than the 1.8m and the 2.4m.
The other thing to consider is the make of the 2.0m dish, if it is a high quality make it could give more boost over your mabo.

 

[butchyboy]

A 2.0m dish will give you just under 1dB more signal level than a 1.8m dish.
If you are on the edge of a lock with the 1.8m dish the 2.0m dish will get you over the line.

If you were thinking of keeping the mabo 1.8m dish up after you get the CM 2.4m why not have the 2.0m and 2.4m up rather than the 1.8m and the 2.4m.
The other thing to consider is the make of the 2.0m dish, if it is a high quality make it could give more boost over your mabo.

i asked the seller what make was the 2.0m but he was unsure,so i have asked for pictures etc and as soon as i get them i will upload to here and you or some one else might be able to tell what make the dish is.

if i was to have the 2.0m and 2.4m up,then which would one would you use for ku and c band

 

[pavon12]

2.4m or 3.0m up must haven

 

[moonbase]

i asked the seller what make was the 2.0m but he was unsure,so i have asked for pictures etc and as soon as i get them i will upload to here and you or some one else might be able to tell what make the dish is.

if i was to have the 2.0m and 2.4m up,then which would one would you use for ku and c band

Personally, I would use the 2.0m on Ku-Band and the 2.4m on C-Band.
C-Band for some satellites on a 2.0m can be borderline depending on location.

 

[dray1]

Dont forget , general offset dish has much better reception vs prime focus . So from 1.80 offset to 2.00 prime focus you will not see any difference .

 

[butchyboy]

Dont forget , general offset dish has much better reception vs prime focus . So from 1.80 offset to 2.00 prime focus you will not see any difference .

And I would be of the thinking a channel master 1.8m is as good if not a wee bit better than a 2m prime focus dish

 

[RimaNTSS]

So from 1.80 offset to 2.00 prime focus you will not see any difference .

I am sorry, I disagree. If on the same size offset and PFA dishes proper feeds are used then performance will be the same. Shadowing effect from the feed on PFA can be neglected. So, I think that upgrade from 1.8m offset to 2m PFA will give considerable improvement of performance.
So, @butchyboy , go step by step in your development, I mean 1.8m then 2m, then 2.4m and so on.

 

[moonbase]

And I would be of the thinking a channel master 1.8m is as good if not a wee bit better than a 2m prime focus dish

No way is a CM 1.8m as good as a decent brand 2.0m prime focus dish.
I got a 2.0m prime focus dish 'ere that kicks the bitch outta a 1.8m CM

 

[butchyboy]

ok guys just received pictures of the 2.0M prime focus dish,the seller has no idea what make it is or who manufactured it,maybe you guys could help on that.cheers

 

[moonbase]

It is not a Precision Antennas/Elite Antennas dish based on the absence of the rear tubular mounting ring with the three boss heads.
The mounting plate and polar mount have a vaguely similar design to those for a 1.5m IRTE dish I had here. However, I am not sure if IRTE made a 2.0m dish.
Someone will probably pop along with a confirmed identification for it.

Apart from a bit of algae and general dirt it looks in decent shape apart from what looks to be a slight ripple to the right of cente on the face.
I would not be put off by the appearance, the dirt will clean off and you can always give it a respray if needed (dont use that custard paint you covered the LNB with).

If the seller is within reasonable travelling distance it would be worth a visit to check it out. If all is OK and you can negotiate on the wad it looks to be a decent dish.

The mount is galvanised and looks decent strength..
If you can squeeze the seller and get it for less than a deuce you cant really go wrong, provided you are willing to clean it up and give it a bit of attention.

 

[barney115]

That dish is exactly same as my 2 meter prime focus dish .
only major difference is that dish has original LNB Holder intact mines does not .
I'll put your minds at ease that dish is a Fortec Star dish i know this because even the matching polar mount is exactly the same as mine in every detail except for the top and bottom of the polar mount the seller did a D.I.Y job of his own on the mount.... but still i agree with @moonbase ...you'll likely have to drop a deuce for dish,Arm and Mount but well worth it , without arm you might lower him to 1½ since you'll be needing a C120 LNB that he do'nt got looking at the pics and if he cant deliver and you can/will you have him pretty much by the Ghoulies

He'll say he might hold onto it but in truth he'll just want a solid offer and see the colour of your wallet and its cold hard and €€€ cash ,lol's
i know i would'nt part with mine for anything less than 1½ since you wont see another dish like that in as damn fine shape probably Ever .
The attention to the small details on that dish is to be admired i can tell it was not abused and if he is asking for a deuce i'd respect his offer and it will clean up really well there 'aint nothing there that will not clean up with elbow grease and TLC .
it's a once in a lifetime type deal do'nt blow it Butchyboy i would not part with mine very easily at all

 

[barney115]

it looks in decent shape apart from what looks to be a slight ripple to the right of center on the face.

yes a small slight dent and hairline crack very well spotted for sure .
but still i'd fancy a bit of buffering with a sander would easily sort that out likely will need bit of sanding when painting it anyhow .
Something else i just noticed in the very center of the dish there is missing the original little black plastic plug
nothing serious at all it as it can easily be made up even with a 3D Printer nowadays .

 

[butchyboy]

I've never heard of 2 metre prime focus made by fortec star,have googled as well and nothing coming up

 

[moonbase]

Go for it butchy, as @barney115 says, you might not see another one for a long time and any slight imperfections can be sorted out.
You probably have the 2.4m CM at the back of your mind but this 2.0m wan is too good an opportunity to miss if you can negotiate a fair price.
Get them both, the 2.0m and the 2.4m, you can never have too many decent size dishes.

If you buy it and decide to sand it before a respray there is an interface pad you can put on an orbital sander between the sander and the sanding disc.
The interface pad is sponge and allows the sander to follow the curve of the dish which prevents cutting too deep into the original finish.
The interface pads are only the price of a pack of crisps or a bowl of rice from hardware stores.

 

[barney115]

I've never heard of 2 metre prime focus made by fortec star,have googled as well and nothing coming up

The reason for that is very,very simple ,
Production stopped at least 10+ years ago in actual fact its likely even more ,
i registered here on SU in 2007 which was only a year before i got my 2 meter Fortec star dish [ 2008 ]
am confident that production had already long since stopped when i did finally get my 2 meter Fortec star dish
am certain sure Maplins sold the 1.8 meter and 2.4m petal fiberglass prime focus dishes but had to order them from UK , this was after production ended of 2 meter Fortec Star prime focus solid steel dishes i do'nt think Maplin sold very many which is why not any mention exists anymore and petal fiberglass was so much easier to ship and deliver flat packed is the main reason .

That 2 meter Fortec Star prime focus dish 100% is exact same as mine i have no doubt in my mind whatsoever
i know it is hard for you to believe it but honestly it is the truth the Fortec Logo was still on mine when i got it but it has since worn off after i sanded and painted the dish .

 

[barney115]

Also looking again at those pics it does for sure appear your seller has a Feedhorn of some sort in that holder
just cannot see it very well from the pics but i bet its there ... perhaps it is Invacom Adjustable feed horn ADF-120 ??
...but do Buy the Inverto C120 Quad LNB and Scaler rings for the Invacom Adjustable feed horn feedhorn when you do buy the dish ,the scaler rings made so very much difference for me and you dont loose signal in rain on weak feed signals .

 

[barney115]

Also i'd recycle that trash Actuator arm and stick a 36" heavy Superjack on it i am sure you got one of those not that long ago ?
ive had my 36" arm working about 3 years now which is just fantastic only replaced the Reed switch once in that time which is very inexpensive and well worth doing to have it moving away without issues .
once again awesome thread topic love that you decided to open this thread really useful and informative for everyone

 

[butchyboy]

cheers all for the input and im glad you guys like the thread

just wondering would the handiest way to remove the old paint be to use nitromors paint stripper in stead of sanding the paint off.

 

[moonbase]

cheers all for the input and im glad you guys like the thread

just wondering would the handiest way to remove the old paint be to use nitromors paint stripper in stead of sanding the paint off.

@butchyboy

Personally, I would not use nitromors, I would give the dish a clean with a jet wash first, not on full power though. Follow that up with a hand clean using kitchen cream cleaner on a medium pan scouring pad. That should shift all of the dirt and algea and any loose paint from the original finish.

You might not need to sand it after the initial two stage clean outlined above, there is no need to completely remove the original finish.
You only want the surface cleaned and prepared to accept a coat of primer or a coat of "all in one" primer and topcoat. An all in one polyurethane paint or car paint are both decent options, provided they are not metallic finish products.