Starlink

[jk96]

The installation instructions say that the dish articulates automatically to seek the best alignment. It isn't clear if this is a one time event during setup or does it realign itself every so often?

If so, the moving parts could become a maintenance issue as they wear over time. Another possible failure point perhaps?

Mine is currently sitting on the ground until mount arrives. If you turn it after about a minute or two it will realign automatically.

 

[LouNY]

Mine will change just a bit day to day occasionally.
It is on an eave mount.

 

[Wakey]

The mount I mentioned above is also a slightly loose fit for the Starlink dish post. I put a wrap of friction tape on it before clamping the two pieces together.

Dang.. it's like 70 bucks for both parts if my memory serves me correct. I may buy some calipers and take up Little Bill's offer.

 

[bdhsfz6]

Dang.. it's like 70 bucks for both parts if my memory serves me correct. I may buy some calipers and take up Little Bill's offer.

Yeah, it's not cheap but it's stainless steel and a good bit stronger than the OEM mount. My only suitable location is near the peak of the roof. I'm on a mountain top and we frequently get high winds so I'm willing to pay a bit more for the extra strength.

Part of the expense is due to the fact that you have to buy 2 clamps. I don't need both and you're welcome to the spare but it wouldn't save much with the the cost of shipping.

Before I found those clamps, I was going to cut a slot in the end of the mount tube and use a $2 muffler clamp. I'm sure that would work fine although a bit crude looking.

 

[ponytug]

@bdhsfz6 FWIW: I am near the top of 1000' rise, with winds, so I tried to get the dish out of the way of the wind as much as possible. That is why I went for a middle of the building, north facing, under eave mount that leaves Dishy with 15-20' of roof behind, above, and around it. We get hundred mile an hour gusts on occasion and it just didn't seem prudent to stick Dishy up any higher than it had to be. I'd rather not be trying to replace a dish, ever.

Just a thought.

All the best,

Peter

 

[LittleBill21]

@Wakey

appears they make one

https://www.reddit.com/r/Starlink/comments/kfbnt4

https://libredd.it/r/Starlink/comments/omsnqx/finally_dishy_is_mounted_on_the_roof_direct_tv/

 

[bdhsfz6]

@bdhsfz6 FWIW: I am near the top of 1000' rise, with winds, so I tried to get the dish out of the way of the wind as much as possible. That is why I went for a middle of the building, north facing, under eave mount that leaves Dishy with 15-20' of roof behind, above, and around it. We get hundred mile an hour gusts on occasion and it just didn't seem prudent to stick Dishy up any higher than it had to be. I'd rather not be trying to replace a dish, ever.

Just a thought.

All the best,

Peter

A good idea if it's possible.

Unfortunately, my roof has a straight ridge with a fairly shallow pitch. There isn't any way to mount it out of the wind.

 

[ponytug]

@bdhsfz6 I hear you. Gotta try to make lemonade with what you have...

 

[Gale Hawkins]

How SpaceX's Starlink is changing how the world communicates

They must have figured out over the last month how to prevent their signal from being jammed by others. Enabling internet for places without connectivity is huge for mankind. We got fiber to the house about a decade ago in the middle of nowhere thankfully.

 

[bdhsfz6]

Well Dishy finally arrived, a full week after the estimated delivery date. Unfortunately, the roof mount, ethernet adapter and extended cable are now backordered until 4/25.

The roof is the only spot I can place the dish and I only want to make one trip up there. Since the mount is backordered, I got this one from Amazon to use as a permanent solution:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07XM9DMHW?ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details&th=1

I can confirm that it fits the new Gen 2 square dish and allows the cable to be placed inside the tube, just like the OEM mount. It also mounts to the roof with 6 lag screws instead of just 2 for the OEM pivot mount.

I used this clamp to hold the dish & mount together:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B095W21CSM?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details

It appears the 75' cable will work so I can do a permanent installation without the backordered parts. I will test the location before drilling any holes. All I need now is for the weather to clear.

Ok, I installed Dishy temporarily to test the location. So far, it's a major disappointment. Even though the app rates the location at 100% with no obstructions, I'm only getting 51 down and 8 up. That's just slightly more than my existing Verizon 4G LTE wireless internet.

The installation process went smoothly but it took about 10 minutes for the dish to adjust for the best signal. Does anyone know if the speeds will improve after the system has been up for a period of time? If not, the system is going back! I'm not paying $99/mo. for essentially the same service I'm getting now for $50/mo.