Is bigger better?

[rleehamn]

I've got a Von Weise actuator, can't remember the model right now or the website that says it's a 18". With the arm fully stretch; just the stretch part messures 12".
I remember it said it's a 48 pulse count.

I just pick up a used Von Weise Heavy Duty 24" 48 pulse count actuator. Model V76-5.

My dish is around 8ft. I haven't really measure it for the correct size.

This V76-5 came off of either a 10 or 12 ft dish, same brand dish as well (Unimesh).

Will this work right on my dish? If so will it give me more sats and what would be the right way to change this out?

thanks

[elgemcdlf]

Originally Posted by rleehamn

I've got a Von Weise actuator, can't remember the model right now or the website that says it's a 18". With the arm fully stretch; just the stretch part messures 12".
I remember it said it's a 48 pulse count.

I just pick up a used Von Weise Heavy Duty 24" 48 pulse count actuator. Model V76-5.

My dish is around 8ft. I haven't really measure it for the correct size.

This V76-5 came off of either a 10 or 12 ft dish, same brand dish as well (Unimesh).

Will this work right on my dish?

Yes I am using a 24" actuator on my 8.5' UNIMESH dish now.

Originally Posted by rleehamn

If so will it give me more sats and what would be the right way to change this out?
thanks

Just depends on your ability to view the arc. Will it give you more travel from east to west? The answer is yes. So in theory you should be able to view more sats BUT as an example if you are in CA there really is nothing to the west of you so you are limited by the horizon to the east. Setup properly the 18" would be enough to handle the job.

I would pull the old one and install the new one. Then run the actuator to halfway extended. Center the dish on true south. You will do this by loosening the pinch clamp for the actuator and sliding it in or out depending on which way you need to go. Lock it back down and you are done. You now have an actuator that is centered for travel. If you need more to one side over the other simply move in the actuator in the pinch mount. Now you need to reset all your sats

[wejones]

Originally Posted by rleehamn

I've got a Von Weise actuator, can't remember the model right now or the website that says it's a 18". With the arm fully stretch; just the stretch part messures 12".
I remember it said it's a 48 pulse count.

I just pick up a used Von Weise Heavy Duty 24" 48 pulse count actuator. Model V76-5.

My dish is around 8ft. I haven't really measure it for the correct size.

This V76-5 came off of either a 10 or 12 ft dish, same brand dish as well (Unimesh).

Will this work right on my dish? If so will it give me more sats and what would be the right way to change this out?

thanks

We were just discussing this in another thread. Ie with some dishes, you are limited with respect to what range you can get, regardless of the size of the actuator. With my 6' dish, getting a bigger actuator wouldn't help, unless I modified where it attached. My current 10' dish used an actuator, and although it came with what I think was a 24" actuator (although it was over 30" long), I once bought a replacement smaller actuator for it (which I think was an 18", and it would only go from 135 thru around 93, so I took it back and got another 24", which allowed me to go from 135 thru somewhere around 50. It still had extension room to go further, but jammed against the dish when I tried.
But the other aspect is, that if you run an actuator past due south, they just don't pull as well as they push, and I've heard a LOT of stories about them just letting go, and the dish crashes to the ground. So if the small actuator gets you past due south pushing, it may not be worth the risk going further. Other people here have apparently had good luck doing this, but I would definately recommend watching the actuator function the first time you try taking it much past due south, because it can get in an orientation where it doesn't have mechanical advantage coming back, and can break the actuator.

BTW, I'm a little confused about whether different manufacturers define actuator sizes differently. I have 3 different actuators now, that I've picked up over the years, and the biggest, is about 3' long, but I "THINK" it's a 24", but I'm not positive, but I have two other ones that I think are both 18", but one is bigger than the other, so I'm a bit confused. I suspect some manufacturers may define a 24" by the amount of extension, and other manufacturers may define it by the dimensions of the tube when not extended.. The Sadoun site has a description of dimensions of the actuators they sell, which doesn't seem to quite match the actuators I have.

[William Eng]

I'm wondering what is the difference between the motor setup vs actuator? I assume both move the dish along Clark's belt. I read some people are using the HH180 to move a 6 ft dish, but wouldn't the actuator be a cheaper option?

[rleehamn]

Ok thanks..

My due south bird is G3C. I'm going to try to post my results from the other post, for which positions I got for which bird tonight.

Can I not just run the actua. out to the same distance of the one on the dish, or would that be to much hassle? Or is it just a new ball game of starting half way over?

[wejones]

Originally Posted by rleehamn

Ok thanks..

My due south bird is G3C. I'm going to try to post my results from the other post, for which positions I got for which bird tonight.

Can I not just run the actua. out to the same distance of the one on the dish, or would that be to much hassle? Or is it just a new ball game of starting half way over?

Any time I've replaced actuators, I've usually had to re-program all the sats, although it came close when switching the same size/brand. If you're using the same brand, and they have the same number of counts per inch of extension, perhaps it might not be necessary even if you're changing size, but I'm guessing it won't be that easy. It's always been off for me.

[rainman]

Originally Posted by wejones

Any time I've replaced actuators, I've usually had to re-program all the sats, although it came close when switching the same size/brand. If you're using the same brand, and they have the same number of counts per inch of extension, perhaps it might not be necessary even if you're changing size, but I'm guessing it won't be that easy. It's always been off for me.

same here Bill they have always been off when changing actuators thats the main reason I haven't installed the 24" acutator I got from Sadoun not enough time to get it setup right now.