[snyper1982]

Originally Posted by wejones

Then even more reason to be careful. What you should be doing, is first calculate your declination. Most tables will tell you that for your latitude to use a declination of 5.99, however this is a rather crude approximation. You should use 5.30. Then, subtract this declination from the bend angle in the motor shaft. The old SG2100 motors had a 30 deg bend, so 30-5.99=24.01 (pretty much what you're quoting), however the newer SG2100s have a 35 degree bend, which means 35-5.99=29.01. So you have to figure out which motor shaft you have. And again, I'd recommend using 5.3 instead of 5.99 as your declination, but if you do that, you need to use 38.3 for your latitude setting instead of 37.6.

I already did that. Then used that page and it came up with nearly the exact same calculations I did. So I figured what the heck, I will just use it. Anyways, How do you go about calculating the declination, because all I have seen was charts with latitude. Since my lat is pretty close to a half a degree, I added the declination for 37 lat and the declination for 38 lat, and divded that number by 2. I came out with 24.04, the calculator I used came out with 24.03.... I appreciate your help, but I am curious as to where you are getting your numbers, and what makes them better than the other numbers that the calculators give? Dish Elevation: 24.03

Originally Posted by wejones

No,all the back and forth is at the easterly sat. Ie, I'm saying motor to the easterly sat, get a signal quality reading, then make an adjustment by moving the entire mount on the pole, then bump the motor back and forth very small amounts, trying to find the best signal. When you find the best signal quality, compare this reading to what you had originally. If better, adjust more in that direction, if worse, adjust in the other direction, then bump motor back and forth in small steps, and again compare your best reading to your original. It will take a few back and forths, but once you get the best possible signal at the easterly sat, you should be done.
There are some other ways of doing this, but if you start out with the proper declination and motor elevation, and then spend a little more time working on your easterly sat, things will end up taking you much less time in the long run.

So you mean, move the motor+dish setup once I get to the easterly sat, and peak the signal there?

Originally Posted by wejones

Yeah, probably. I think a good level is more accurate than an inclinometer, but I think the inclinometer is easier to use. With these small dishes, you mainly use it on the pole, and on the motor itself, but it won't help much on the dish elevation, since there is no surface that corresponds to the direction the dish is actually looking. With a big dish, you can do all three with the inclinometer.

That is what I figured. I will make sure that the mount is straight, and try to get the motor angle correct using the inclinometer.

Thanks again for your help.