Something goofy going on

[Terryl]

As the title states something goofy is going on with my setup.

My "C" band setup has been working flawlessly.....Till now...

I had problems today with "No signal" on several satellites, Hummm so I went in and looked at the settings, all were normal, so I went and tryed a fine tune of the dish's sat location and found that something has changed, when I did a pan East or West in steps, the dish jumped right over where the satellite should have been, it looks like the step resolution has changed somehow, instead of very fine adjustments (a few fractions at a time) it's like it's jumping several steps at once.
(a few inches at a time)

Could this be a motor sensor fault or the "V" box has gone goofy??????

The actuator is about 25 years old but has worked flawlessly, I hope it's not time for a new one.

[The Cobra]

Did you check and see if the saw went on when you turned on the TV???

[Anubis]

Might be time to consider a new cave Terryl. Sounds like this one has been taken over!
Try another box if you have one to see if it jumps as well. Maybe try lubricating the motor?

[Terryl]

OK, here is what I did.

I fixed the dish at the due South satellite and disconnected the motor, then using a power supply I tested the motor to see if it was sticking or something like that, it ran very smooth (unloaded) so I then removed it and ran it under load with it held down in a vice, it ran very smoothly.

Then reattached it to the dish and ran it East and West with the buttons on the "V" box, it was back to jumping around, so I think I may have a sensor problem, but without spec's on this motor (no label on it) I don't have any idea on the pulse width coming out of it to the "V" box.

My big question is why it worked flawlessly for the past months then all of a sudden start this?

I can't find anything in any menu on the "V" box to set the pulse width to anything that would be a smaller step then what it is now.

[The Cobra]

https://moviewriternyu.files.wordpress.com/2015/07/exorcist-cover.jpg

[Terryl]

Nobody has any incite as to what may be going on with the "V" box?

[Benney]

Only things I can think of is check your connections and try another V box.

[Terryl]

I can't afford another "V" box right now, but was wondering if anyone knows if there are any settings at the box via the menus?

I might have to relocate the receiver to the remote location where the box is at to see if there is some setting with the remote, the box is not located inside the house but in a water tight box out by the dish.

[Terryl]

OK, after a few tests it looks like the actuator is going FUBAR, not the "V" box.

I opened it up and watched the motor turn, it was very jerky, looks to be failing as it sometimes goes smoothly then stops and jumps to a position outside of the original satellite stored position.

I reset everything and tried a few satellites, it has a fun job, it jumped all over the place, I tested it with some 12 volt battery's setup for 24 volts and it still did the jerking around when it moved.

Gave it a lube job and it still does it.

So I guess it's time to save up for a new actuator, too bad as it's a 24" VonWeise and was a good one, it is 20 years old but it worked fine when I put it in.

[Terryl]

OK looks to be the sensor, also the East West limit cam has crumbled to dust.

Anyone know where to find parts for an old VonWeise 24 inch actuator???????

Here are some photos.

25700

25701

[jvvh5897]

I would be tempted to get the top off of a plastic spice bottle and glue a small chunk of plastic onto it to lift the switch. Just take a little file work to smooth the edge and some hot melt glue once you drill a hole in the center of the bottle's lid.

[jvvh5897]

Or maybe just take a rectangle of plastic and warm it up to bending point to get a 90 degree angle then drill a hole in the right spot for the center.
The sensor is likely a Hall effect switch that responds to a magnetic field and it might be common to many devices but hard to say. Can't read the part number from the screen, but you might take the numbers and google a little. Might be a reed switch too.

[Terryl]

Well it's two nylon cams, one stacked on top of the other and set in place by the screw in the center, it's the center that has crumbled and is not allowing me to set the limits.

I don't know if the sensor is bad or has one of the magnets has gone away.

[Benney]

Epoxy the center and re-drill the center.

It looks very similar to the limits on many overhead door drives.
Not for homes but the industrial ones.

You could just epoxy it it right in its position.