hi help needed with 1224 supermount setup

[Huevos]

how are you getting the figure 37.8 ?

Wod, if you were inside the planet on the polar axis, somewhere in a direct straight line between the north and south pole, then the motor polar axis would need to be parallel with the geopolar axis for perfect tracking. In that case, for each latitude, you would always be an identical distance from all satellites along the arc. But the reality is we are on the surface of the planet, offset in the arc, and so our southern most satellite is closer to us than those at the ends of the arc so the motor elevation needs to be adjusted accordingly.

motor elevation = (90-(lat-(((lat-43)*(lat-43))/(51.3*51.3))+(0.000556*lat)+0.68))

 

[curly.col]

thanks for all the replies everyone . so if i set the elevation for 37.8 degrees (this is what is stated in the jaeger manual (38.31 + 37.32)/2 = 37.81 degrees ) what do i set the declination to ? the jaeger tables suggest (6.70 + 6.80)/2 = 6.75 degrees but i don think this takes into account the dish offset which is 22.6 degreees for the channel master 1.2m part number 3040646 . or have i got this wrong ? as i said i am not too far away but would like to get it as perfect as possible with the inclinometer . thanks in advance again
kind regards colin

 

[Huevos]

i don think this takes into account the dish offset

No it doesn't... because the manual doesn't know what dish you are going to hang on it.

6.75º is good but forget adjusting the declination with a gauge. Get the motor elevation to the correct angle using a digital angle gauge (like in the picture) if possible. A non digital one will get you within about 1º but you will end up being off at the ends of the arc.

Once the motor elevation is correct set the motor to its central position and facing south. Your southern satellite is 5ºW but you are at 3.23ºW so you need to move the motor 1.78º to the west. 1224 motor is 12 clicks per degree so send it 21 clicks to the west. Now all you have to do is line up on 5ºW by moving the dish up and down and swivelling the motor around the mast. After this declination will be correct and if you got your mast plumb it should track spot on.

 

[curly.col]

No it doesn't... because the manual doesn't know what dish you are going to hang on it.

6.75º is good but forget adjusting the declination with a gauge. Get the motor elevation to the correct angle using a digital angle gauge (like in the picture) if possible. A non digital one will get you within about 1º but you will end up being off at the ends of the arc.

Once the motor elevation is correct set the motor to its central position and facing south. Your southern satellite is 5ºW but you are at 3.23ºW so you need to move the motor 1.78º to the west. 1224 motor is 12 clicks per degree so send it 21 clicks to the west. Now all you have to do is line up on 5ºW by moving the dish up and down and swivelling the motor around the mast. After this declination will be correct and if you got your mast plumb it should track spot on.

brilliant, i have been trying to set it up on the motor plastic cover wth a digital inclinometer with varying degrees of accuracy but will set up now on the steel plate as highlighted in your photo ( i suspected it wasn't quite right as i could pick up 39e hellas or 30 w hispasat but not on the same arc , i had to slew the motor around to get either so i guess the angle was not set accurately enough ?) . also i have been doing the initial setup on 0.8 w thor you do not recommend this satellite any reason for this ? (just curious) .
also is there a method for setting the motor to zero (top of ts elevation) as opposed to just lining up the arrow on the back of the motor ?
i will attempt to set it up again on the week end and will let you know how i get on. many thanks again . regards colin

 

[satelliteman]

Either satellite will do for setting up on if you correctly drive to the calculated position but, 5ºW is a fraction closer to your longitude and a nice strong bird you can't possibly miss

 

[Huevos]

brilliant, i have been trying to set it up on the motor plastic cover wth a digital inclinometer with varying degrees of accuracy but will set up now on the steel plate as highlighted in your photo ( i suspected it wasn't quite right as i could pick up 39e hellas or 30 w hispasat but not on the same arc , i had to slew the motor around to get either so i guess the angle was not set accurately enough ?) . also i have been doing the initial setup on 0.8 w thor you do not recommend this satellite any reason for this ? (just curious) .
also is there a method for setting the motor to zero (top of ts elevation) as opposed to just lining up the arrow on the back of the motor ?
i will attempt to set it up again on the week end and will let you know how i get on. many thanks again . regards colin

First things first, make sure the pole is vertical. Afterwards rest the level east-west on top of the motor and make sure the motor is level. This step confirms the motor is on the pole straight (see picture).

You use 5ºW because it is the closest satellite to your longitude. If you can't hit 30ºW and 39ºE on the same arc you have done something wrong. Probably you didn't move the right number of clicks to the west before lining up on 5ºW. To know if the motor is centred just go by the square plate on the top. Make sure it is parallel with the motor body. It's easy to do by eye. Once you think it is centred go 21 clicks west (clockwise) and then line up on the satellite at 5ºW.

 

[Manikm909]

My SMR-128 motor snapped during (the pivot cast molding point) the gales last night. Its been good for 2 years approx, but the wear and tear killed it. I knew it might have been a little to weak for a 1.2 CM but ran with my luck.

Fortunately, no damage to dish \ except for channel master LNB holder, which i have spares.

I will be replacing with a 1224 which i've had for a year or so.

This thread has been REALLY helpful in helping me to get going with a 1224

 

[SimonE]

Really sorry to hear about your SMR-128 Manikm909. I too have a CM 1.2m on an SMR-1224 H-H mount with a 12" jack for elevation adjustment. Mine is shielded from the worst of the gales and is on my patio at waist height. I guess yours may well be second hand and require a refurb?

 

[Manikm909]

i tested yesteday it works - not skilled to refurb it, or what that entails. inside gearing etc looks nice, maybe i could regrease the cogs...?

 

[moonbase]

i tested yesteday it works - not skilled to refurb it, or what that entails. inside gearing etc looks nice, maybe i could regrease the cogs...?

If the grease on the cogs is not dried up and still looks like it is OK then a refurb might only be cosmetic to the exterior plates?
The original coating on the plates flakes away after a few years and they can get rusty. Also, The original pole clamping V bolts that were shipped with the 1224 have an unusual thread type and can get rusty.
I replaced them with a set of stainless steel U bolts with metric thread for one of the 1224's I use here.

Other than that, as long as the declination offset bolt setup on the top plate is usable and not seized then you are good to go unless you wish to give it a clean up cosmetically.
These things are really easy to setup, especially with a spectrum analyser like your Dr HD500 or a TV connected to a receiver by the dish.

If you are planning to add an elevation actuator into the setup then it might be worth considering installing a Panzer Plate inside the motor casing?
However, for a 1.2m CM dish, I am not sure if it is justified re the wind load and weight of the dish, probably overkill?

 

[Manikm909]

so its all up - aligned on 1w, very strong in the middle of the arc, but on both sides, its low, circa 12db on 28.2e and 30w ....

im never good at this bit, i know it means either going to 1w, and either lowering or raising the motor elevation a tad, then adjusting declination of dish again to peak, and rinse and repeat.

yes, pole is level before someone pipes up.

i dont even know how to raise the elevation on this motor.

 

[Mickha]

Is it the Jaeger SMR 1224 motor?

If so you just move the two nuts, on the long thread, to raise, or lower, the motor, and dish, but I think this seems to easy, so your motor might not be what I'm thinking of.

Can you please post a picture?

 

[Manikm909]

thanks, yes - its a 1224 - i havent spent much time on it at all, busy weekend, i just mounted it, and got on with other stuff (family weekend)
im probably sounding like a div.
i realise theres a double nut elevation contraption on the back, so do i need to losen off top nut, and then do the bottom one, and vice versa depending if im raising or lowering.
i guess it will become obvious once im up the ladder with a spanner. its just the unknown \ ignorance.
also i was hoping for a scale for Latitude on the motor, but didnt see one, probably worn off if there was a sticker.

 

[Mickha]

It's just a matter of trial, and error.
Providing you do the basics, a small adjustment on the motor, either up, or down, then adjust your dish, until you peak the signal, on 1W.

Before doing anything, make a note, or mark, showing where your dish, and motor, are currently set, and a record of signal quality readings, on the satellites, then compare them, after every adjustment.

There was a diagram, somewhere on the site, showing if your dish is too low, or too high, when missing the satellites.

 

[anto@]

it is wrong to put motors on the inclination, while it is correct to put motors on the declination

 

[Manikm909]

It's just a matter of trial, and error.
Providing you do the basics, a small adjustment on the motor, either up, or down, then adjust your dish, until you peak the signal, on 1W.

Before doing anything, make a note, or mark, showing where your dish, and motor, are currently set, and a record of signal quality readings, on the satellites, then compare them, after every adjustment.

There was a diagram, somewhere on the site, showing if your dish is too low, or too high, when missing the satellites.

Should the motor and therefore the dish be set to dead centre, or a few clicks towards 1w before turning the whole assembly on the Pole when aligning on 1w . This might be my problem as the motor was a few cocks off centre (to the right) when I was aligning on 1w

 

[Mickha]

It all depends on your location, and especially your Longitude position.
With USALS it's easier, as you input your Latitude, and Longitude, into your receiver, then send your dish, to a chosen satellite, and the dish moves East, or West, to an accurate position, for setting up.

With the 1224, or other 36v motors, you need to estimate.

If you go to dishpointer.com, and type in your postcode, use an App, GPS, or other method of finding your correct Longitude, you can soon find your Longitudal position. If your Longitude is negative, like - 2.6, that equates to 2.6 degrees West, so before aligning to 0.8W, you need to move the motor about 1.8 degrees East, so that when your dish is aligned to 0.8W, then your motor will be pointing at 2.6 degrees West.
If your Longitude position is poitive, 2.6, then that equates to 2.6 East, so your motor/dish needs to move West about 1.8 degrees, always so that 0, on your motor, is pointing at your Longitudal position.

 

[a33]

With the 1224, or other 36v motors, you need to estimate.

It can all be calculated.
Kent is a too big to give the exact number of rotational degrees to 1W, without further location data of the dish.

@Huevos writes above: 1224 motor is 12 clicks per degree (orbital degree, or rotational degree?).
On the manual first page, from message #15, is handwritten: 23.8 pulsecount/degree.
Don't know which one is right (or neither?).
So to get an exact calculation, you'd also have to know the pulsecount per rotational degree.

Greetz,
A33

 

[moonbase]

@Huevos writes above: 1224 motor is 12 clicks per degree (orbital degree, or rotational degree?).
On the manual first page, from message #15, is handwritten: 23.8 pulsecount/degree.
Don't know which one is right (or neither?).
So to get an exact calculation, you'd also have to know the pulsecount per rotational degree.

Greetz,
A33

A Jaeger 1224 motor with a v-box is approximately 12 clicks per degree.

 

[Captain Jack]

A Jaeger 1224 motor with a v-box is approximately 12 clicks per degree.

Is that on both edges of the pulse or just one (rising or falling)?