First Time Motor Setup

[smata67]

I am at 22308 (DC area). I have plumbed and straightened the mounting pole, put on the motor, and dish. I believe my 180 deg satellite is Echostar 4 (please confirm this, I am new), but it doesn't look like there is anything on it. AMC5 is at 183, can I use this? Do I zero the motor at this position, or do I set it at 3 degrees offset? To identify the compass position I need to aim at, would it be 190 degrees (180 + mag declination of 10)? Can I use any satellite for initial setup, I have had no problems finding Galaxy 10R, because its elevation is pretty much equal to the dish offset and all I have to do is put a level on it and make it perfectly vertical...

THANKS

[pmb1010]

Your longitude is 77 degrees, so use AMC5 at 79 to line up your stuff.

Procedure:

Set motor to Center (zero setting).
Alighn dish to center line so all is pointing at this 0.

Point the whole thing at 190 degrees (180 plus your 10) using good compass. Get this as good as you can, it will be important.
(see picture 5)
http://www.sadoun.com/Sat/Installati...stallation.htm

Now, put your co-ordinates of 38.7N and 77.06W in the USALS settings of your receiver, pick AMC5 and have the motor move there. It wont move much.

Pick an active transponder on AMC5 11742 V for the Utah Education network is a good one, and move your dish elevation, and the whole dish & motor assembly as a unit side to side until you get best signal. Do not use motor to move dish, and do not adust the motor's bracket settings (should be set to 38.7 and stay there).

Tighten motor to pole mount bolts and dish elevation when you get good signal.

Now use USALS to move to another satellite to the left and right of center. See how well you did.

[smata67]

Great explanation, thanks! I have a few more questions relating to the dish elevation install. I will be using the Fortec 36" and the SG2100. With my mounting post perfectly vertical and the face of the dish perfectly perpendicular to the ground (using 48" level), my bracket reads 31 degrees. It should read 25 deg, which is the offset angle for the dish. I have located G10R which is at 25 deg elevation and my bracket reads 31 deg, so I have confirmed this fact. Now, for the SG2100 in the link you provided, it says to set the elevation of the dish to 30 deg minus declination angle, which from the table is 6 deg (for 39 Lat) for an elevation of 24 deg (my bracket will read 31 deg, but will be pointing at 24 deg). I then turn the thing to 190 deg azimuth (compass reading). What I don't understand is that AMC5 is at 44.9 deg elevation, but the dish is pointing at 24 deg over the horizon plus the 39 deg setting at the motor (it says to set the motor elevation to my lattitude) for a total elevation of 62 deg. When I dial in the 39 deg on the motor, is the mounting pole really at 22 deg (39-17) to correct for this?

[pmb1010]

to be honest, I dont worry about dish elevation numbers.
Everyone seems to report they find the scale to be way off from what they figured it should be.

Really doesn't matter. With USALS, once you find the satellite highest on the arc (in your case AMC5) and get it dialed in, you don't need to worry about elevation anymore...