I agree with both the above. But to add a bit;
If you're just trying to get the sats over the US, then an
actuator is fine, and you don't need a H-H. It's only when you're trying to extend your arc over the Atlantic or Pacific that you might need a H-H.
If you do find a H-H ( which are usually sold as part of the dish mount rather than a separate item ), I would plan on doing a refurb on it, ie good lubrication, and perhaps replace the reed switch, because the H-H mounts are exposed to the elements, and get rusty and/or mouse nests/leaves/wasp nests mixed in with the grease.
If you go with an actuator, the geometry of where the actuator attaches on your dish will significantly affect the arc you can expect to see. I've drawn a few examples (sorry for very poor drawings).
At the left, is what I had with my previous dish, ie the actuator connected pretty far out on the dish, and the connection tab was close to the dish, so if you tried to go too far past it's high point, the actuator would jam against the side of the dish where the arrow points. .... limited arc....
Some people on the internet solved this problem like shown in the middle picture by extending the connection point out away from the dish. ....improved arc...
Also, some dishes have RINGS that support the dish. These rings aren't as far out, plus they give you a connection point out away from the dish a bit. (picture to right) ....improved arc...
Still other dishes (like a 6' dish I have now), don't have the connection point on the dish itself, but on a metal bracket that is close to the center of the dish, however this also had a problem of the actuator jamming against the actual mount.... limited arc....
Ie, if you can't get the whole arc with the specific dish geometry you have, you can often alter the connection points to give you more arc.
A LOT of people have problems with an actuator being able to pull the dish back once you've gone past it's high point. At a minimum, the free play involved will mean that the dish will not hit the same spot when pulling as when pushing, but worst case is that some actuators can fail, and let go, and the dish will flop to the ground. That's never happened to me, but I've gotten to situations with the dish described on the left, when the actuator starts to jam, that the actuator just cannot pull the dish back, and it will actually bend the dish rather than retract it.
But if you are just trying to receive the sats over the US, none of this stuff generally becomes an issue, and an actuator is the way to go, and will be less problems in the long run, and if it ever fails, you just replace it, compared to the situation I'm in now, where my H-H is failing, but it can't be replaced.
Linear Mode
