6 foot mesh to 6 foot solid

[easily confused]

Folks, just wondering if anyone here has ever taken a 6' mesh dish and, using fiberglass, converted it to a solid dish. I have a 6 footer, in excellent condition, to pick up and I don't need it as a BUD as I have a few 8 and 10 footers to pick up. I was considering trying to make it a solid and using it for Ku. Should get a stronger reception then my current 39" dish. Any opinions?

[Costactc]

It would definitely be an improvement from your 39" EC. You'd probably have to mod the polar mount or is it the same for both. Are all components attached on the solid?

[Terryl]

Just adding fiberglass won’t make it any better for "Ku" band, you have to add reflective surface to it, and that would be a metalized film or paint, some aluminum paint has enough aluminum in it to be used for this, they use a special paint for fiberglass dishes, it has a high concentration of aluminum in it to reflect the RF signal better.

If you do add the metalized aluminum paint be sure to paint over it with flat white paint or you will have a fried LNB the next time the sun gets behind the satellite. (this happens twice a year)

If the dish is a newer one it is more than likely setup for “Ku” band use already, some of the really old “C” band dishes are not shaped right for “Ku” band frequencies, (“Ku” band is much higher in frequency so it’s wave length is much shorter) some dishes are bent to reflect at a certain RF frequency and will not work too good at other frequencies, newer dishes were redesigned to handle both “C” and “Ku” bands at the same time.

[easily confused]

It would definitely be an improvement from your 39" EC. You'd probably have to mod the polar mount or is it the same for both. Are all components attached on the solid?

The dish is complete and still on a pole. It is another case of people saying that when all of the channels disappeared from the big dishes, they went to a sub with bev. Don't think I was quite clear enough in my previous post. I was talking about covering the mesh with fiberglass to create a 6' Ku band dish from a 6' mesh dish, and painting it.

[easily confused]

Just adding fiberglass won’t make it any better for "Ku" band, you have to add reflective surface to it, and that would be a metalized film or paint, some aluminum paint has enough aluminum in it to be used for this, they use a special paint for fiberglass dishes, it has a high concentration of aluminum in it to reflect the RF signal better.

If you do add the metalized aluminum paint be sure to paint over it with flat white paint or you will have a fried LNB the next time the sun gets behind the satellite. (this happens twice a year)

If the dish is a newer one it is more than likely setup for “Ku” band use already, some of the really old “C” band dishes are not shaped right for “Ku” band frequencies, (“Ku” band is much higher in frequency so it’s wave length is much shorter) some dishes are bent to reflect at a certain RF frequency and will not work too good at other frequencies, newer dishes were redesigned to handle both “C” and “Ku” bands at the same time.

Thanks Terry. I would have messed that up as I was planning on white paint only. Thanks for pointing out the aluminum paint. Haven't decided if I will do this or not but it is a thought. Advantage is that I will hopefully get stronger signal. Disadvantage would be that I would need an actuator and would therefore scan fewer sats. As it is now, on a good day, I can scan 15W to 123W with my 39" and motor. No 15W or 30W west now as the trees are in the way but, if I feel so inclined, the chain saw could rectify that problem quite effectively

[Terryl]

What is the spacing on the mesh? 1/2", 1/4" or smaller, if it's a small space (.125" or smaller) between the holes in the mesh then it is already setup for "Ku" band.

[Terryl]

Here is somemore info on this:

6 foot solid “Ku” band gain = 45.5 dBi
6 foot mesh “Ku” band gain = 43.3 dBi

So if you do the math your only going to gain 2.2 dB, you won’t notice the difference between the two.

[Costactc]

Why don't you set both up EC? Sounds like alot of hassle for minimal gain. Spot on and precise as usual Terry.

[easily confused]

What is the spacing on the mesh? 1/2", 1/4" or smaller, if it's a small space (.125" or smaller) between the holes in the mesh then it is already setup for "Ku" band.

Not sure of the spacing but I will stop and measure the next time I go by

[easily confused]

Why don't you set both up EC? Sounds like alot of hassle for minimal gain. Spot on and precise as usual Terry.

Might do that. After I posted, a while ago, I went hunting with the 39" and found 30W almost immediately. Only getting 35% Q but the Mexico/France world cup game was a clear as a bell.

[Bowhunters]

I've read in the past that an actual solid metal dish will refect approx. 20% more signal on KU than a mesh dish of the same shape and size, i'd agree with others on here that fiberglassing and using metal paint on a mesh dish probably won't be much of an improvement.

So if you can come across a solid aluminum dish on the cheap then go for it and the tip on painting the final coat with a non shine or drab paint is spot on as a metalic or mirror reflection can indeed cook an LNB.

[Terryl]

20% is right on, as 20% in the RF world equals 2 dB, so if you have 100 mV of an RF signal on a solid dish then you will only have 80 mV of Rf on a mesh dish, if they are the same size and the same shape.

Example:
100 millivolts = -7 dBm, 80 mV = -9 dBm

[fifties]

There was a real good reason that manufacturers started producing mesh, instead of solid dishes, and it's called the wind factor.

Unless you are in a reasonably windless area all year long, the mesh is really the only way to go.

If you can stick a pencil through the mesh holes, it most likely isn't meant for KU band. If not, you are good to go. Get a good low noise LNBF and you should be fat.

[easily confused]

I've read in the past that an actual solid metal dish will refect approx. 20% more signal on KU than a mesh dish of the same shape and size, i'd agree with others on here that fiberglassing and using metal paint on a mesh dish probably won't be much of an improvement.

So if you can come across a solid aluminum dish on the cheap then go for it and the tip on painting the final coat with a non shine or drab paint is spot on as a metalic or mirror reflection can indeed cook an LNB.

I did find a 10' aluminum with a number of bends in it that I will attempt to straighten out when time permits. I just thought that coating the mesh dish would be a quick way to set up a bigger Ku dish but starting to sound like any gain I get would be minimal, at best. All in all, I can't complain at my 39" as I can scan from 30W to 125W. My biggest problem is the receiver that I am using. Won't hold some sats so every time I want to see, or blind scan 30W, I have to manually go and find it, then scan

[easily confused]

There was a real good reason that manufacturers started producing mesh, instead of solid dishes, and it's called the wind factor.

Unless you are in a reasonably windless area all year long, the mesh is really the only way to go.

If you can stick a pencil through the mesh holes, it most likely isn't meant for KU band. If not, you are good to go. Get a good low noise LNBF and you should be fat.

I just measured the holes in the 7 1/2 Super Ten and they measure 3mm across or for those of you in the US or old enough to remember the good old days, in Canada, the holes are 3/16" across

[Costactc]

I did find a 10' aluminum with a number of bends in it that I will attempt to straighten out when time permits. I just thought that coating the mesh dish would be a quick way to set up a bigger Ku dish but starting to sound like any gain I get would be minimal, at best. All in all, I can't complain at my 39" as I can scan from 30W to 125W. My biggest problem is the receiver that I am using. Won't hold some sats so every time I want to see, or blind scan 30W, I have to manually go and find it, then scan

No biggie EC, all part of the hobby. Sat names change so frequently that I have to change many sat names every time I redo an entire scan.

[easily confused]

No biggie EC, all part of the hobby. Sat names change so frequently that I have to change many sat names every time I redo an entire scan.

Yea, I know. I have a similar issue on the BUD with my cs8000. If I tell it to go to either 65W or 118.8W, the V-Box II sends the BUD all the way east. Not sure why this happens but I just avoid those two sats for now. These small issues will, someday, give me an excuse to "need" to buy another receiver or a new positioner :tehe:

[Costactc]

I have a couple of stb I don't think I'll ever use again but they're not the greatest for fta. My vs pro and my sv 4000 are just collecting dust, if you want to try them out just give me a call, you must still have my phone number.

[TurboPirate]

I have a couple of stb I don't think I'll ever use again but they're not the greatest for fta. My vs pro and my sv 4000 are just collecting dust, if you want to try them out just give me a call, you must still have my phone number.

I send you PM costa........................

[easily confused]

I have a couple of stb I don't think I'll ever use again but they're not the greatest for fta. My vs pro and my sv 4000 are just collecting dust, if you want to try them out just give me a call, you must still have my phone number.

I just may be in touch, Costa. I will need to get another BUD or two up, which I am hoping to accomplish within the next few weeks. I want one for everything from 61.5 eastward and one for going west. My 7 1/2 foot currently gets everything from 61.5W to 135W but the actuator stops at 61.5. Also need to get one set up just for scanning as my wife doesn't seem to appreciate my scanning while she is trying to watch a program :Idontgetit:

[risk]

Also need to get one set up just for scanning as my wife doesn't seem to appreciate my scanning while she is trying to watch a program :Idontgetit:

EC i know what you mean, i dont get it either so i got the boss lady a 6 footer so she can be happy on 119 lol and i can play with my BUD. . .just need to get it setup now

[easily confused]

EC i know what you mean, i dont get it either so i got the boss lady a 6 footer so she can be happy on 119 lol and i can play with my BUD. . .just need to get it setup now

I believe that I may take the 6 foot mesh that I am getting and set it up for the boss as long as it gets enough of the sats for her. I will need 103, 89. 87 at a minimum which should be easy enough. May need a new stb though, as she likes to watch some of the stuff on ION east HD such as Criminal Minds and NCIS which is not a problem currently because we have the cs8000 which does HD as well as DVBS-2 and AC3. If that works out I can set up the 10's and an 8 foot to play with