motorized FC90CM install

[jp498]

I am setting up a 90cm dish to learn more about satellite and get some FTA channels. I haven't setup a sat dish for about 10 years (an old 1.2m dish set up to get a usenet newsfeed stream!), but I setup microwave antennas for radio links regularly at work. After it's working to my satisfaction, I will have someone install it on the roof for slightly more sky and to please my wife who doesn't want it on the deck.

I bought a Sadoun kit containing: MKit-2 FTA-Choice Set, Fortec 90cm dish, Quad Fsk4uv, dg280 motor. Now I am waiting for a receiver to show up in a few days.

Should I waterproof the coax connections in some way? With our radio gear at work, we rubber tape for water protection, then scotch88 tape for uv protection every outdoor connection. I put a smudge of grease on the F jacks outside here till I get cabling done.

I took the metal sleeve out of the dish mount pivot and put it in the motor's arm. Didn't see that in any instructions but it seems to make good sense for keeping the dish aligned with the motor.

It was also much easier to install the dish mount to the motor arm, then attach the dish, then to manhandle the dish while aligning it to the arm. Aiming was done before dish installation.

The LNB holder isn't very tight. Should I put a shim in it to keep it tightly in place? The screws that came with it aren't that great. There is some play forward and backwards; should the LNB be centered in it?

There are 4 outputs on the LNB; I presume these go to the diseqc box that will come with the receiver, and this goes to the motor, and the motor goes to the receiver.

The motor's pipe mount bracket is very square. I sighted south along this before installing the dish. Is this a good method for initial aim? I used a mapping program to find a landmark exactly south of my location, and aimed for that.

temporary install awaiting wiring:
http://www.f64.nu/photo/tmp/sat/_DSC0154.jpg

Closeup of angle adjustment:
http://www.f64.nu/photo/tmp/sat/_DSC0149.jpg

This is set for about 28 deg on the bottom, as that is what is said to adjust it for in the back of the motor's instruction booklet.

When my receiver arrives, I'll go through the actual reception based alignment process.

Any errors observed so far that I should be aware of?

[rainman]

the lnbf should be slid in the bracket as far from the dish as possible if it has play then yes you should shim it to tighten it up also I would slide the motor mount up on the pole some so the tri pod legs don't interfeir with the movement of the dish also don't be surprise if you have to change the dish angle by as much as 5 degrees up or down as the mounts have been known to be off some.

[pmb1010]

Originally Posted by jp498

There are 4 outputs on the LNB; I presume these go to the diseqc box that will come with the receiver, and this goes to the motor, and the motor goes to the receiver.

With the FSKU-4v the 4 outputs are for 4 separate receivers. The kit you bought only has 1 receiver.
You will only use 1 of these linear ports for 1 receiver. There's no need for a diseqc switch in this setup. I don't think your kit will come with one anyway.

[jp498]

Thanks for the tips and LNB output info. I must have forgotten about the LNB choice since I'd received that a few weeks ago.

[pmb1010]

Satellite Look Angles Satellite Heading Calculator Azimuth Elevation Skew Tilt LNBF Latitude and Longitude values

based on the page above, you'll need to point your "south" to magnetically corrected heading, probably about +15 or so, or about 195 degrees on a compass.

You didn't talk to much about your calculations...