Project Fibo

[Llew]

I first saw light in the 40's, so Ive seen eight decades - any advance on that?

 

[sonnetpete]

I first saw light in the 40's, so Ive seen eight decades - any advance on that?

Not from me and apologies to CJ for doing what I do best and dragging this thread completely off course......

 

[Vipersan]

Well you don't look any older than me and I'm 56!

Not far behaind you Gordon ..at 54 ...
The grey matter refuses to acknowlege my increasingly aching bones ...not helped by the MS of course ..
But a child still lives in my skull ...and I know I don't look my age ..
..sadly the frame holding it up is less than effective these days.

 

[Zorch]

Hi Captain Jack et al,

If they're of any use to you... here's my original Fibo instruction manual and my SCT Highway brochure...

Best Wishes,
Zorch

 

[RimaNTSS]

So:

1) Fibo - Twiggy.. or maybe just Twig? Sounds more male.
2) Penta 85 - ? Van Pelt
3) 1.2m Channel Master - ?
4) 1m Channel Master - ?

Interesting nicknames. How would you name dish I have got another day? 'O'-red

 

[sonnetpete]

It's not a 66.6 centimetre by any chance?

 

[Ghostleader]

Wits aw this talk about age? My dad got me into satellite t.v. with the introduction of BSB system, My dads current system I set up for him, hes in his 60's and he's carting about with a Spiderbox 7000 HD and 80cm dish on hotbird with a offset LNB on 28E, only 2500 channels for him to go through, but he does well creating his on FAV lists etc, he just gets a pee'd off when a group of channel move transponder and fluff up his list until he restructures it. Now he wants me to order a Linux box, a Vu+ Solo so that he can just update the channel list with the latest when required, and he likes the internet radio plugins, such as the Shoutcast app I have on my Vu+ Solo.

 

[Ghostleader]

It's not a 66.6 centimetre by any chance?

Lol, nice!

 

[Captain Jack]

Welp, it fits!

 

[Lazarus]

Welp indeed - it certainly looks man enough for the job.

 

[Captain Jack]

Annoying. Went to my local steelworks place (2 of them) to try and get a 3" pole and none of them had it. They had a 3" pipe of internal diameter but not outside one... The 2.5" ID pipe was a little on the small side (72mm) so I give up on this. Will just use my rings I bought to make a 2" pipe into 3". Will fit it as close as I can to the top K bracket so there will be virtually no play in it.

 

[Huevos]

The LNB needs to be replaced as there's an old Grundig-type one on there - of a C120 variant. Any recommended models out there that would match the performance of a Black Ultra?

CJ, you don't need a C120 LNB, and in my opinion there aren't any that can perform anywhere near as good as the Black Ultra. Just undo the grub screw and take the flange out completely. Then cut the feedhorn off the Black Ultra. Cut off everything except the central ring of the scalar. Once you have done that and sanded it down so it is smooth it is a perfect in the Fibo feedhorn.

Mine (picture attached) doesn't use the outer case of the LNB.

View attachment 43930


What I found was the central concentric ring of the Black Ultra feedhorn is almost the same size as the flange adaptor, so I just cut off all the outer rings of the feedhorn and just left the central one. I sanded it a little bit by hand until it was exactly the same size as the flange adaptor. Then I pushed it up the Fibo feedhorn until it was in contact with the step inside the feedhorn and tightened up the grub screw. Obviously there is no o-ring to keep the rain out so I sealed between the Fibo feedhorn and the LNB with self amalgamating tape.

The following is a link to pictures that have done the same thing but a bit of a tidier job using the original case.

Pictures here.

 

[Captain Jack]

Very interesting. Thanks Huevos - more tinkering is always good

 

[Vipersan]

Indeed ..The cut down black ultra fitted to a matched feed is imo the way to go ..
As you know I recently hacked one to bits and fitted an invacom feed for a PF ..with great success...and even retained the outer casing ...(always beneficial in this UK weather)..
I find the ubiquitous dremel is the best tool I have ever owned for such jobs..
small scale sanding and cutting discs being available in all shapes n sizes ..
..and yes it came into its own when cutting and trimming the fibreglass wings for Christina...where many clean precise cuts were important..
Much better than a hacksaw
;)

 

[Captain Jack]

Guys, if I hack the Black Ultra to fit to the feedhorn, does that mean I wouldn't be able to adjust the skew or focal point for the best signal?

 

[Vipersan]

..not quite sure why this would be a problem ..as far as adjusting the focal point CJ ..since the feed you are joining to would be already at the optimum focal point ..
obviously if the feed itself is anchored rigidly then you wont be able to rotate the whole assembly when the the cut n shut is done ...and as such you'd have to be accurate when setting the lnb position and joining it to the feed ..ie vertical at true south ..on a motorised or fixed dish ..
If however the feed is simply clamped at the focus and is free to rotate when when the clamp is slackened off ..then there would be no problems tweaking the skew..
rgds
VS

 

[Captain Jack]

What would be the best screw/bolt/plug to use to attach the TK brackets to the wall? I currently have holes there from a previous installation when I had my 1.2m Gibby up on a motor - this was done with standard nylon sleeves.

Will I still be OK with these - in addition to the extra K bracket - or should I invest in something more heavy duty?

 

[Vipersan]

The nylon rawl screws may be ok CJ ..but anything over 80cm fixed ..I prefer to used shield anchor bolts ..
Much more meaty and solid imo ...and for such a weighty and special dish ...thats what I'd use..
Wouldn't want to run the risk of it falling to its demise in a heavy wind.
When in doubt ..always err on the side of overkill is my motto.
rgds
VS

 

[Captain Jack]

Indeed. Time to order some anchor bolts then!

The Black Ultra is on the way for its demise/hacking.

 

[Captain Jack]

The work has started - currently interrupted by torrential rain. Slight change of plans - the dish will now be going on the flat concrete outbuilding roof. This is due to the fact that my dad wants to re-render the house wall in the near future... and he has tomato plants sprawling up it!

The positive aspect is that I'll be able to use my previous 76mm pole stand I used for my Channel Master and the set up should be easier as it's basically working at "ground level" on the flat roof. That dish and polar mount is heavy... wouldn't want to carry it up the ladder (VS - be very careful with your Gibby if you are to mount it on the wall).

The bad bit is that my arc range will be limited to between 37.5W (possibly a partial illumination from 45W) to around 36E with partial illumination to around 53E due to various trees. Annoying but... better than nothing.

Will put work in progress pics up soon.