1984-October 15 - The Old CATV Equipment Museum

ALMOSTLegal!
o PresidentReagan'sDISH
o ODing With Odom and Dehnert
T H ET W I C EP E RM O N T HB U S I N E S S
J O U R N A LO F T V R O
Nationwide. . . Echosphere
The EchoBeta9 Antenna
o 9-foot diameter
o B panel construction
o B a k e de p o x yf i n i s h
'i,elr ii'On.r:
n nt h e
, !.. ;)lljS
industry,
l_C) serveyou bettei;
,
"f-n*,-
fi,t,r,ii,;i',,;'l
;
r l 1, . :r r
t
t-;
'./,-
,llt'lji. ,
.-
l J ii ) ( ,
, rri
t i , ,l
,,] :
SATELLITEDICESJ erce3/csD'2/10-84
TOBER15.1984
SMARTER
Dealers
Boardand that reviewgroupshouldapprovecourse
One of the mostpainfulpartsof our industry's outlinesin advanceof any coursesactuallybeing
evolutionhas been the learning-curve-pressure
taughtin opensession.Moreover,I believethatthose
placedon dealers.lt hasbecomeincreasingly
diffi- who havebeenhired to put on thesecoursesshould
cultfor a dealerto staycurrentwiththe changing alsobe requiredto give a 'dry run'of theircoursesto
technology,
thechanging
marketing
andthechang- the samereviewboardin advanceof open-teaching
ing legalstatusof homeTVRO.At everyshow I sessions.Betweenan advancecritiqueof the course
attend,
dozensof dealersstopmeto 'thankCSD'for outlineand a commentaryfrom real-worlddealers,
making
itpossible
forthemto beinthisbusiness.
One this shouldresultin a betterconducted,more finely
dealerfromNewMexicoput it betterthanmostin tunedset of certification
courses.
Nashville
whenhe said:
part
The
second
of
the
CertificationProgram
"Virtually everythingI have really
learned 'problem'is the widely diverse backgroundof the
about equipment,installationproblemsand dealers. There are two reasons to take these
thesatellitesystemlhavelearnedthroughthe courses:
pagesof CSD.You haveprovidedme with a
1) To learn enoughto be a betterdealer,and,
'correspondence
course'ata very reasonable
2) To pass the 'tests'at the endof the coursesso
priceand withoutCSD,I wouldhavefailedin
that you can be awardeda 'certificate.'
businessafterthe first threemonths."
Beingsmarterrequiresno additionalexplanation.
That'sflattery,
of course,andself-serving
whenI Thecertificate
does.In an idealworld, the certificate
repeatit here.Or is it?
would be a proud asset of the dealer(ship);someA full collection
of CSD magazines
has great thingto hangon the wall in the showroomto pointto
value;it represents
thesumof alloftheknowledge
in with some pride.In a rapidlyevolvingdealerdriven
ourfieldandit tracesthestepbystepevolution
of all industrywhere the consumermay be havingprobofourhardware
systems
andsub-systems
fromday- lems separating'qualifieddealers'from those who
one.A dealerarmedwiththeknowledge
contained
in are not qualified,the certificateshouldbe a tangible
CSD is the bestequippeddealerin the business 'asset'of the qualifieddealer(ship).In theory, the
today;if he hasreadand understood
all thosepre- non-qualified
guys would have no certificates and
ciousissuescontain,he is readyto facethe often the consumerswould quicklyfigureout that such a
conflicting
claimsof equipment
suppliers
andover- dealermay also not be qualifiedto sell and install,
night'experts'who
sweepinto(andoutof)ourindus- and maintain,a TVRO.
try likethe dailytides.
But this is not an idealworld and it turnsoutthat
WhenSPACEannounced
a DealerCertificationthe certificateproposedby SPACE is not a 'Certifiprogram,
lwashopeful.
Here,perhaps,
wasan 'edu- cate of Merit'afterall;ratherit is merelya piece of
cational
system'which
wouldbenefitdealers.I was paperthat sayssomebodysat in on sevencourses,
saddened,
however,
whenI attended
a meetingof took seven tests, and receiveda piece of paper.
thenewSPACEDealerBoard(seeCSD/2,Septem- Indirectly,it also says he spentupwardsof $525for
ber15th,pages12to 15)andheardso manynega- that piece of paper.
tive commentsconcerning
the first two 'courses' Our concernis that the dealergets realvaluefor
offeredbythecertification
program
in Nashville.
The his moneyand time spentacquiringthis certificate.
negatives
I heardsuggested
to methatthereshould
bea'coursereviewboard'within
theSPACEDealer
SMARTER
DEALERS/
continueson page22
cooP's
SATELLITE
DIGEST ilff
" -'
/z
CSD/2- Coop s SatettiteDigestis publishedtwiceper monthbyWest IndiesVideo,
Lld.,.aTurks and Caicos Corporationwith corporateoffices locatedat Grace Bay,
Providenciales,
Turks & Caicos lslands,BWl. Sales and subscriptionofficesmaintarnld at Forl Lauderdale,Ft. (p.O. Box 1O0B5B,Ft. Laudardale, Ft. g3gto;
305n71-0505betweeng AM and 4 PM eastern,wekdays). CSO/2is issuedon the
1sthof each monthas the mid-monthcompanionto CSD which has been issuedon
the 1st of each monthsincelhe home TVRO industrybeganin Octoberof 1g79.
CSD/2 is comblned with CSD for ail domestic (U.S.) s;bscriptions and is atso
availableoptionally for CSO readers outside ol the USA. Additionaily,CSD/2 is
providedtrs ot charge as a membership service to all ,Dealer M'emOersot
SPACE,'theinternational
TVRO trade association,
upon request lrom SPACE
dealer members. Subscriptionrates are gZ5 per year (US tunds) within USA (24
issuesannually),985per year (US funds)lor Canadaand Mexico (24 tssues
annually)and S100 per year (US funds) for TVRO deaters outside of the US/
Canada./Mexico.
Allcopiesare sentvia AlRmailtoall worldwidedestinations.
West
IndiesVideo is a 'Pioneer/Deatefmemberof SpACE. CSO/2 is copyright i9g4O
by West IndiesVideo, Ltd.: Robert 8., Susan T., Kevin p. and Ta;ha i. Coooer.
DIGEST
SATELLITE
PAGE 4/CSD-2/10-84
NEW
)
LAUXBCIAS
PRODUCTS/
SERVICES/
A
EVENTS
aQcoo-*,"."*
f:fl
4'Revorution
r
Fq;
l
RECEIVERAction
A R U N T A S A T E L L I T ET E L E C O M M U N I C A T I O NhSa s a n willnow
ll seriesreceivers
nouncedtheirnew Invaderand Interceptor
be soldin New Englandand the Northeastby TelevisionEntertainment Productions (1399 LongmeadowSt., Longmeadow,Ma.
01106; 413/567-5261
; and 2242 JeromeAvenue,Bronx,New York
at the Las
ll was lirst introduced
Interceptor
10453:2121733-1262).
and graphic
Vegasshow in Marchand fealuressync regeneration
screenoverlaysdisplayingsystemstatus.
AUTOMATIONTECHNIQUES,lNC. (1550 N. 105thE Avenue'
reportstheirGLR-868andGLR-869
Tulsa.Ok.741l6:918/836'2584)
The GLR-868is a system
satellitereceiversare now in production.
packagewith 100 degreeor betterLNF (low noisefeed) featuring
automaticpolarityseeking,a downconverter,receiver,modulator,
infraredremotecontroland 125' of cable.The GLR-869receiver
infraredremotecontrol
modulator,
receiver,
includes
downconverter,
ll and
withPolarotor
packageand 125leetof cable.lt is interfaceable
plusnarrowothersimilarsystems.Bothunitsfeature6.8mono-audio
banddirectand wide-bandmatrixstereo.
l-
{
lll
trbs,^.,,",,.,.
do"'
ll
FANON/From 'luxury'to
'affordable'in three steps
plansan April
montAvenue,Tucson,Arizona85714:6021294-1600)
1st move-infor occupancyof a new 90,000squarefoot permanent
willhouse
facilityin Tucson.The newfacility,nowunderconstruction,
of G.l. and morethan 200
the Jerroldand RF SystemsDivision(s)
will callthis homewhen completed.
employees
lNC.(1200EastSkellyDrive,TulLOWRANCEELECTRONICS,
sa, Ok. 74128; 918/437-6881
) has reducedfront-endnoisetempera'XP
of theirlatestsystempackage;the
turewiththe announcement
has
a
LNA
that
with
an
begins
Package.'The sysiem
Perlormance
between60 and 80 degreesand47 dB (nominal)
noisetemperature
'front
polarizing
system.Behindthe
gain,and,a ferrite(motionless)
the System70X
end'are dealerchoicesin manyreceiversincluding
(mono)or System 70S (stereo)units. System 70 packageshave
recentlybeen approvedby Reuters(TR18,F3R) for commercial
installation
applications.
LUXOR NORTH AMERTCANCORPORATION(P.O Box 32'
of a
submission
hascompleted
Bellevue.
Wa. 98009;2061451-4414\
total 12 GHz receiveterminalpackageto a Britishadvisoryboard
which is planningthe selectionof 12 GHz systemsfor the 1987
expectedlaunchof the Unisatsystem.The packageincludeda 90 cm
withan approxidishandfeed,an LNCand set-topdecoder/receiver
mate priceof $450 (US). Inclildedin the systemwill be a C-MAC
systemas requiredby the BritishDBS operators.The
descrambling
12 GHzexpansionis an outgrowthof the Luxor4 GHz technology,
availablein NorthAmericasincethe fall of 1982.
lowa
Street,Burlington,
WINEGARDCOMPANY(3000Kirkwood
to
hasaddedthreenew4 GHzTVROreceivers
52601;319/753-0121)
to dealers.ModelSC-7037Shas
itsline-upof oroductsnowavailable
modelSC-7037is
infraredremotecontrol,built-inantennapositioner;
mid-pricedand includesinfraredremotecontrolwhile model SCAT GLR 868 is 'greater' than ever
7037Eis a'basic'unitminusthebuilt-inactuatoror remotecontrol.All
unitshavescan lunction,polaritytormatswitching,LED bar graph'
ELECTROHOMECANADA (809 WellingtonSt. N, Kitchener, skewcontrol,audiotuning,videoinvertswitchingand a crystalcona microprocessor trolled(channel
theirE-1TVROreceiver;
controladjustsfor cable
Ontario)is nowproducing
An internal
3 or 4) modulator.
controlled
unitwith a I GHz regionblocklF and a built-inprogram- 'losses'betweenthe downconverterand the receiver.List pricing
'S' unit.
'E'
mabledish positioner
system.Automaticpolarity,skew,fine tuning,
unitto $1,235.80for the
variesfrom $776.55for the
audiomode and bandwidthon all24 transpondersfor as manyas 32
satellitelocationsare builtinto the memoryportioncapacity.
FANONCORPORATION(15300San FernandoMissionBlvd.,
d le Mission
H i l l sC
, a . 9 1 3 4 58; 1 8 / 3 6 5 - 2 5 3 1 ) hraesl e a s eadd d i t i o n a
FANSAT500,1500and2500.The2500
tailsfortheirtrioof receivers:
polarity
selection
and
unithas24 position
detenttuningwithautomatic
plusa scantuningmode.Also includedis a
LED channelindication
formatswitch (Westarto Satcom),video fine tuning,pre-setand
AFC
variabletuningaudiosubcarriers,
skew cotrolfor polarization,
on/offswitchandsignalpluscentertuningmeters.The 1500istermed
a'basicreceiver'with
24 channeldetenttuning.The 500 is described
with a'weatherized'
as 'affordable.'
The unitsare singleconversion
downconverler
and a 70 MHz lF. An optionalremotecontrol,the
SRC-1,interfaces
with the 2500 unit and uses infraredtechnology.
WINEGARD'S' model has infrared control to 20 feet
Systems Division (4229S. FrecENERAL INSTRUMENT/RF
SXTELLITE
TELEVISI0iN
$rSTEM9
CALLTOLL.FREE
COMPLET-E
SYSTEMS,ANTENNAS,
RECEIVERS,
LNA'S& ACCCSSORIES
"Nation'sLargest
Satellite
Equipment
Distributor"
o
P.O.BOX33OO TERRE
HAUTE,
INDIANA
47803
PAGE 6/CSD-2/10-84
ANTENNAS/Accessories
(National)A.D.L. ENTERPRISES(3136 ReservoirDrive,Simi
has releaseda newversionof their
Valley,Ca. 93065;805/526-5249)
'hybrid
modefeed'witha measuredpattern(available)
coveringthe
fullfrequency
spectrumfrom3.65to 4.25GHzanda rangeof f/Dratios
witheitherservo
of .3 to .4.The unitis availablein two conligurations,
or DC motordrivefor orobe.
ADL goes for precision
CONTINENTALSATELLITESYSTEMS(11485 S.E. Highway
212, Clackamas,Or. 97015; 503t656-2774\
reportstheir dealer,
SaeveRoyale,Ltd.of Reseda,California
recentlycompleteda CSS
12' antennasysteminstallation
for movie star Julie Andrewsand
hubby-producer
Blake Edwards.ContinentalPresidentDan Berge
'authenticate'
hasalsorecently
takenstepsto
CSSantennas
whichhe
'copied'
'sold genuine
claimsare being
by othersand
as
Continental
antennas.'Tocurb the 'piracy,'Continental
has beguna systemof
stampingthe firm'sname on all partsin the systemto serveas an
identification
to dealersthat the antennasthey are purchasingare
'genuine
products.'
Continental
SATELLITE
DICEST
can be assembledin one hour'stime.Blackand aluminumare color
claims
choices;a five yearwarrantyis standardand the manufacturer
wind survivalto 120 MPH.
(P.O.Box446,Yucaipa,
MULTI-FEED
SYSTEMDISTRIBUTION
Ca.92399;7141795-8939)
has an answerfor those(SMATV)systems
whichare facedwith the 'splitfeed'programmerplansfor Galaxy1
and F3R (and perhapssoon,D4); a'multijeed'systemthat allows
conversionof a standardparabolicantennainto a two or three bird
antennasystem.The systemclaimsto be able to handleup to five
separatefeedsfor antennasin the4.5to 6 metersizerange,covering
a wide varielyof modelsmanufacturedin the past and currentlyby
Microdyne/AFC,
Scientific-Atlanta,
Anixter-Purzan,
M/A-COMProdelin,Andrew,Comtech,Odom and Hughes.Theirsystemretrofitsin
place of the existingsingle-point
feed and allowsthe operatorto
extract satelliteenergy from birds up to 8 degrees off of antenna
boresight.Thereis a trade-offinvolved;birdsoff boresightare somewhat reducedin signalpowerbut not as muchas you mightexpect;
typicalperformance
is 1 dB lossfor birds4 degreesoffboresight
and2
dB for birds8 degreesoff boresight.The retrofitpackageis pricedin
the$1,100to $1,925regiondepending
uponthenumberof feedsto be
mountedwithinthe package.Similarsystemsare availablefor two or
threebird antennasin the 12 to 13 foot region.
PRO BRANDINTERNATIONAL,
lNC. (1629NewberryAvenue,
Columbia,SC 29210; 8031732-0027)
has formallyannouncedtheir
model2-500antennapositionerand actuator.The unit has B1 programmablesatellitelocations,
a 3 digitdisplay,parentallock-outto
viewing,'a physicalkey lock-into restrictviewing
eliminate'forbidden
to a singlesatellite,
a 6 LEDdisplayto conveyto the userthe motion
and actionof the actuator,an 1B inchand 36 volt Hall Eflectsensor
operaledacme screw,a 1,000poundratedloadcapacity,weatherproofingand a one year warranly.The unit is in stock and readyfor
delivery.
L.rrilffi
ASTRO PRO / Room to grow with 81 memory locations
ON THE MALIBUBEACH WtTHoutJutie Andrews
FULTONMANUFACTURTNG
CORPORATTON
(Mitwaukee,
Wi.
4141321-4810)
has announceda pairof buttonhookfeedsupportsfor
TVROapplication.ModelsBH40and BH60havefocaladjustmentsin
thevertical,
sideto sideandtiltingplanesandattachto thebaseof the
dishusingB pre-punched
holes.Unitsare platedand paintedand are
shippedbulk-packed
includingU bolts.
KAUL-TRONICS,lNC. (P.O. Box 637, RichtandCenrer,Wi.
53581; 608/647-8902)
has entereda new meshantenna(NovaMl 20
Mesh)intothemarketplace.
Theanlennais 10 feetin diameter,
hasan
f/D ratioof .28 and weighs t65 pounds.The dish uses (precision)
die-formedextrudedribs and they claimthe UpS shippableproduct
SKY SENTRYANTENNAS(Divisionof Jim Patterson,Enterprises,111 E. Pacific,Salina,Kansas67401:9131827-4682)
has
addedSky6 Satellite
Antennato theirexistingline-upof Sky8 andSky
10antennas.
Thisis a one-piece
handlaidfiberglass
dish(asaretheB
and 10 foot versions)with a polarmountand optionaldome cover
whichcoversthe antennasurfaceto preventweathering
of the antenna electronics.
Systemsare deliveredon a factorytruckto dealers.
BURRINDUSTRIES
(5 Broadway,Suire206,Troy,N.y. 12180;
5181272-0152)
recenllydonateda SKyTRAC12 radarmeshsatellite
anlennato theElectrical,
Computer
andSystemsEngineering
department al RensselaerPolytechnicInstitutein TroV.The 34b pound
antennais beingused for academicand researihpurposes.Burro
Industries
is celebrating
itsfirstbirthdaythismonthandwillannounce
10 and 16 foot meshantennasshortly.
STARFINDER,
lNC.(2960So.WestTemple,SaltLakeCity,Utah
84115;801/467-2793)
is shippingtheir'Starfinder
ll' programmable
(computer)
satellite
dishcontrolsystem.The unitusesan B0B5microprocessor
with parentallockout, 10 year lithiumbatteryfor memory
relention,
a maximumof 80 satellitepositions,
a 4 digitLED display
and a real{imeclock.The unitrespondsto manualas well as timed
instructions
and readsout errorson lhe disolavlo helo usersbetter
NEW PRODUCTS/continues on page 15
Sateltite
Video
Services
The MasterStockingDistributor
with the seruicesyou require,
andthe productsyou demand.
Full ServiceDistributor
FreeMonthlyDealerTrainingSeminars
FreeWeeklyTechnicalSemi-nars
CompetitivePricing
CompleteTechnicalAssistance
PromptShipmentand Delivery
FactoryAuthorizedService
High DemandProductLine
ThreeStockingLocations
o
o
o
o
o
o
M/A Com
o
Prodelin
Omni Spectra .
o
Uniden
o
Wilson
Luxor
Intersat
Conifer
Draco Aimers
Winegard
Callfor lree Catalog& PriceLtst
DealerInquiriesOnly -
The Northeast'sLeadingDistributor
RR#1, Box85-S,Catskill,
NY 12414 (518)678-9581
RFD#2, Harriman
HillRd.,Raymond,
NH o3o77 (603189s-31gz
317 E. Pleasant
ValleyBlvd.,Altoona,PA 16602 (8141942-s0og
DealerlnquiriesOnly
(800)528-DISHNational
(800)242-3860PA only
(800)831-DISHNew York only
PAGE8/CSD-2/10-84
SATELLITE
DICEST
FOCUSON
WASHINGTON/
WEARELEGAL!!!
BARRYGOLDWATER/
appearingat theSPACEOrlanSENATOR
COINCIDENCE
Of Events
the11thof October
theUnitedStatesSenateplaced do conventlonin early Novemberof 1983was clearly overOnThursday
andwiththeir whelmedby his receptionin our industry.Goldwater'ssupport
theirstampof approval
on the homeTVROindustry
for TVBOprovedextremelyimportantin the recentadoptlonot
of Congress
andthe
in gettingthe'blessing
actionthelastroadblock
legislationfor TVRO.
President'
TVROwas legalfor now and for all time
disappeared:
into the future!
won
Themostimportant
aspectof 'thevictory'is thattheindustry
thehomeTVROindustry thelegalrightto exist;thatSection605of the 1934Communications
Operating
on thefastesttrackpossible,
get
it managed
to
ledbythestaffofBrownandFinndidtheimpossible;
Actis nowmodified
so thatfor all timethe industryhasthe rightto
intobothHousesol Congress exist.Thethreatof FCCactionor lawsuitsfor allegedviolations
introduced
important
newlegislation
of
yearandthengetthatlegislation
adoptedin that
duringan election
Section
605isnowgone.Mostobserversteelthatalonels wortha
yearwithoutbenefitof thealmostmandatory
andtimeconelection
200%increasein consumersalesIn the marketplace.
hearings'
whichvirtuallyeveryotherimportant
suming'committee
is thatcommercial
Themostdamaging
aspectof the legislation
A detailed
analysis
of howthisamazlegislation
hasalwaysfollowed.
installations
arenowclearlyoutsideof thelaw(priorto thelegislation
today
is far lessimportant
occurred
ing bit of political
maneuvering
theremayhavebeensomequestion
aboutthis)andtherearesome
thanthatit didhappen.
HereiswhatWEgotandwherewestand,first:
stifffinesandpenalties
for violators.
legal.
homeTVROis completely
1) Underthe new legislation,
The legislationis a compromise.lt wasthe bestthe industry
customer couldgeton suchshortnoticeandso soonaftertheinitiallegislation
Younolonger
must'grin
andbearit'whena potential
'pirates'
asksyouto explainawaystoriesthatTVROusersare
wasintroduced
intoCongress.
Thelegislation
wounditswaythrough
someobscurelaw.
andbreaking
Wlrth (Colorado),
the House,underthe tutorship
of Congressmen
firstbytheHouseandthenbythe
2) Thenewlegislation,
adopted
Tauzin(Louisiana)
and Rose(NorthCarolina)
Gore(Tennessee),
'Section
605'oftheCommunica- becauseof somevery skillfulpoliticalmaneuvering.
Senate,
clearlyspellsoutthat
lt was in the
sothatit isNOTillegaltomanufac- Housewherethecompromises
tionsActot 1934ismodified
startedlifeasan
came.Thelegislation
ture,distribute,
sellor usea homeTVROsystemon private omni-bus
cabletelevision
reformact,designedto give cablenew
premises.
headroom
to 'grow'in theirdealingswithcities.lt got enlargedbe'Goldwater
intoConBill'firstintroduced
Thlsis essentlally
the
signalpiracy.The
causeof other'problem
areas'suchas MDS/STV
'rightofaccess'to
TV
gressthispastMarchandguaranteeing
satellite
for anyoneto
new legislation
clearlymakesit illegal,for example,
'black-box'
for private(non-commercial)
use.Thisis not theGore/Tauzin/Rose manufacture,
dedistribute,
sell,installor useso-called
bill,introduced
at essentially
the sametimewhichwouldhavealso
televicoders/descramblers
for the purposeof receiving
scrambled
guaranteed
individual
hometerminalsthe rightto gain accessto
siontransmissions.
Therearemonetarylinesattachedto vlolatlon
'scrambledpremiumprogramming'
at a 'tair marketprice.'
forcommercial
usewithoutauthorizaof thls newlaw;upto $25,000
we are(ineffect) tionor on an individual
legislation,
Underthetermsof thecompromise
(in-home)
basis,finesbetween$100and
'trading
number
a
605Threat'for
immediate
elimination
oftheSection
$1,000maybe levied.
The
of 'to-be-negotiated'
unknowns
downthe roadsomedistance.
to theverycontroversial
legislation
rodethroughtheHouseattached
Thepeoplewhowillfeeltheworst'ill-effects'
ofthenewlegislation
5' in HR4103.Hereis
arelhoseengaged
cabletelevision
billandwaspassedas'Section
in theblackboxbusiness;
willful,repeated
violalionscanbringpenalties
whatwe got,andwhatwe lost:
to $50,000andjailterms.Individual,
home,
TVROowners
1) Wewon:
arelessthreatened
bythetermsofthelegislation,
even
thelegality
of manufacturing, if theysomehow
A) Language
whichrecognizes
becomeinvolved
in the useof an illegal'blackbox'
decoder/descrambler
installing
and using private(home)TVRO
for a servicesuchas the Fantasy.Ghannel.
distributing,
signals;
There,individual
finesup $1,000arepossible.
terminals
for reception
of anynon-scrambled
locallegenacting
B) A prohibition
Whatlhelegislation
on statesor municipalities
didnotdo,inaddition
to authorizing
commertothenewFeder- cialestablishments
islation
whichmightbedeemed'contrary'
to tune-insatelliteTV receotion
for commercial
use,wasaddressthefollowing
al stature.
twoareasof inierest:
1) Network
feedsarenot coveredby the legislation.
2) Somebody
lost:
The moda barreceivification
signals(example:
A) Commercial
useof satellite
of Section505,authorizing
homeviewersto tune-in
andinfact
wasnotauthorized
any UNscrambled
ingESPNforpublicdisplay)
satellitebroadcasts
theywish,doesNOT
extendto networkfeeds.
thereare stifffinesfor suchan act;
services,
as
2) The law makesprovision
B) The mandatory
or forceduse of scrambled
for programmers
suchas HBOto
proposedin the Housebill introduced
by Congressmen
scramble
iftheywish,butit doesNOTprovide
thatsuchscramtoberevisthrough
thecracks,
bledtransmissions
dropped
mustbe madeavailable
Gore/Tauzin/Rose
to homeTVRO
itedanotherday.
Let'slook at the details.
LEGAL/continueson page17
e/csD-2/10-84
COOP'S SATELLITEDICESJ eece
ODOM+ DEHNERT/
BAREKNUCKLE
FIBERGLASS
-Part 1Fiberglass
antennashavebeenand continueto be a major,force,
in the TVRO marketplace.
Estimatesof the numberof all antennas
sold.(forhomeTVRO)versusthe percentage
of that numberwhich
can be attributedto fiberglassantennadesignshover in the 30_40%
region.Significant
volumeproducers,
such as prodelin,Odom,and
ChannelMasteruse someform of ,solid-dish,
laminatedor iniection
moldedtechnology.
,dialogue'originated
The conceptfor thisparticular
in May of this
year;a visitby Coopwithina tendayspanfirstto RandallOdom'splant
in Arkansas(see CSD for July, .19g4)and to Doug Dehnert'sUSS
facilityin Minnesotarevealedsignificant
parallel,co-urses'for
the two
firms.With equallysignificant
differences.
is a volume producer,withthefirst'automated
production
,. 99of
line' for laminatedfiberglassmicrowaveanlennasin the world.A
brandnew plant completedin mid-yeargives Odom the capacityto
producemorethan3,000 8,i0, 12 (andlarger)footdishespermonth.
USSis nota volumeproducer;theyarecJrrentlyrunnrng
ro as many
as 150 antennasper monlh. Odom has made a commitmentto
moving large quantitiesof merchandiseand he has integratedhis
-design
operationso that every phase of the plant, from initial
to
tinishedantennasand mountsis done,inhouse';in a setof fiveirajor
buildingsspreadthroughoutthe Bisbee (Arkansas)region.Dehnbrt
alsodoesallof thework 'in house'but becauseof the lowerproduction
schedules,he is able to concentratehis operationsin a pair of build_
ings.
RandallOdom beganin the TVRO businessin the fall of 1979,
.
shortlyafter the first industrytrade show (SpTS '79; OklahomaCity,
Augustof 1979).He readilyadmitsthat he beganby usinga spun
metaldishas a 'mold'for hisfirst10footantenna.At thetime;Randall
Odomwasessentially
an'employee'of
H and R Communications
and
ne was responsible
for buildingthe antennasfor H & R.
Doug DehnertbeganplayingwithTVROin 1978,enticedintothe
activity.bya local cable system that had installedan early S/A ten
meterdish and an acquaintance
withthe cablesystemmanager.He
had-abackground
in fiberglass
designand duringthe winterof 1979/
1980, he carefullycreated his first fiberglassantenna patternand
mold;a 12.5footer,two piecedesion.
Both men are 'self-made,'
filledwith what Randallcalls ,qood
commonsense.'Although
bothhavebeenin thisindustryfor virt-ually
as long as there has been an industry,the two had never reallv
becomeacquaintednor had they exchangedmore than pleasantrie3
in those five years of common activity.The CSD/2 tape recoroer
betweenthem,the two plusCoop hid awayduringthe Nashvilleshow
in an Odom motor home on the antenna lot and the conversation
oegan.
ODOM: "l rememberwhen it all started,very clearly.lt was the
15thof Septemberin 1979.I was sittingin RobertColeman'sdriveway
in TravelersRest(SC)in a beafup, old pick-uptruckwonderingwhy I
was there.The date is fixed in my mind becausemy littlebofs tiist
birthdaywas September23rd, and I missedit.,'
CSD: What were you doing at Coleman's?
ODOM:"Well,I hadgottenthistelephone
callearlierin September
and this personasked me if I could build a parabolicdish out ol
fiberglass.
laskedthem'Whatin the hell is a parabolicdish?'.Well,
I was showna set of photographstaken at the first show and while I
wastheretheyweretalkingwithBobertColemanon the telephone.
I
tookthe phoneand I talkedwithRobert.I remembersayingto him ,ls
this deal real;it sounds like a fairy tale to me!,.The entireconcept
of gettingtelevision
outof theskywasmorethanI couldgrasp.Robert
assuredme it was real enoughand at that point he obviouslvknew
moreaboutall of thisthananyoneI had beenableto talkwith.t then
knewI wantedto builda dishbut I didn'tknowhowto startor whereto
gettheinformation
abouttheparabolic
curve.So lgol in my truckand
drove to TravelersRest to meet with Robert.Hei of course,had a
coupleof dishesand I madea moldoff of his dishand tookthe mold
backto Arkansasto see if we couldmake some more dishes."
CSD: Did it work?
ODOM:"lt notonlyworked,it workedbetterthantheantennaJohn
Hastingsand VirgilRichardsonhad broughtback from Oklahoma
City. lt wasn'ta fairy talel"
CSD: So you went into ,production'?
ODOM:"No, not so fast.I couldn'tstandthe idea that we were
else'santennaand I got backwithRobertandhe
.cop.yhS'somebody
furnished
me witha computerprint-out
foi a parabola.
Andthiswas a
one-piecetenjoot antenna.I realizedrightthen that as long as I had
somebody
smartenoughto do the mathpart,I couldhandletheactual
productionmyself."
CSD: Doug, how did you get started?
DEHNERT:I gotstartedupin thenorthcountrya littlebitdifferent.
. .
| 0t0nt Knowallof thisstuflwas goingon: the firstshow,for
example,
was somethingwe heard about monthsafter it took place. I
had an
electrical
contracting
businessthatrdidon weekends.
Therocarcabre
companyhiredme to lrench-in(bury)a bunchof cablefor them.
We
livedout.inthecountryand l.askedthecablesystemmanager
whywe
couldn'thavethesameTV theyhadin town.H'esaidto me;you
don,t
want.cable anyway; the coming thing is going to be
satellite
television.' Naturaily,r, rikeRandail,was-moreihan"a
rittresuspicious
aboutit beinga fairytare.He invitedme to visithis headend
whereI
saw my firstsatellitedish;a giant 10 meterS/A system.Thief
River
Falls(Minnesota)is not notedfor very mrcn er"epiif,it it is
oftenthe
'coldestplace
in the nation'in the weatherrecorddepartment.
Butthe
littlecablesystemin town was the third CATV systemln
the nationto
havea TVRO antenna;they put it in earlyin the fall of 1975.
So by
1978or so,whenI wasintroduced
to it,theywereolJ timersat TVRO.
Thatled me to a force-fedhome-study
coursefor hourseverynight.I
didn'tknowaboutRobertColemanor iay Howardso I hadto work
out
the paraboliccurveinformation
and the moldson my own. Finding
information,
any information,
was verytough.I acfuallygot the formula
for the paraboticcurveout of the nnil
1A"r"t"u. Aidio) Handbookl,,
CSD: What were the side effects of this?
DEHNERT:"Thereference
manuals,suchas the Jasik Antenna
EngineeringHandbook,madeit painfullyclearthatyou had
to have
greatsurfaceaccuracyto realizethetheoretical
gainol theparabola.
I
.nary lound,anengineerat s/A who wourdtarkto me on
the terephone;just findingsomebodywho understood parabolic
a
antenna
was toughfor a guy in thewoodsof northernMinnesota!
Forbetteror
worse,he,liketheJasikbook,stressedsurfaceaccuracyand
structural integrity.So I came into this firmly convinceA thai',r,itit"ry
typ",
high accuracy, specs were not a iuxury but a necessity.'t
tiive
neverregretted
thatfoundation
becauseI thinkit mademeJarmore
criticalof whatwe buildand ship,and, how I form an opinion
when I
inspectthe work done bV others.',
CSD: What about the size; how did you setile on a 12,Sfooter
for your first antenna?
DEHNERT:"By nowwe are in 1979and althoughI hadn,t
discov_
ered CSD yet, I was startingto run into peoplewh6 seemed
to have
some-knowredge
in this areawho wereconvinceda 12 footantenna
shouldwork.Whatreallyintrigued
me wasthatif youpri..o " 15 or 20
roorantenna,it was clearthattheywerein the $10,000priceregion.
I
was beginningto form a plan in my mind;I wantedto build
an-dsell
systems.The electronics
couldbe boughtbut if I was gorngto make
any money sellingsystems,I was going to have to bu-ildthe
antenna(s).I had a backgroundin fibergiasslromArctic Enterprises.
We
PAGE 10/CSD-2/10-84
SATELLITE
DICEST
had usedresintransfermoldingfor the snowmobilefendersand parts
and I understoodthe technologyvery well.As we enteredthe end of
1979 lfelt lcould sell a privatesystemfor say $15'000'installed,
providedI couldbuildthe antennamyself. Butto makethisworklwas
goingto haveto be ableto getgoodpictureswitha dishin the 12to 13
foot region."
CSD: What linally pushed you into the business?
"l
DEHNERT: foundmy firstcopyof CSD latein 1979;in theissue
'deregulated'TVROs;
licenseswereno
was a reportthatthe FCChad
longerrequired.That did it! | was originallyfrom the mountainsol
hiddenbackin the mounldahoand I knewof enoughcommunities
peoplelivingtherethat I was sureI
tainsthereand enoughwell-to-do
could make a livingthis way. My originalaspirationswere quite
I didsuggested
thatlwould haveto
modest;I thinkthefirstprojection
sell 5 systems the first year to make a living!"
CSD: Five a year?
"Absolutely.
I probablywouldhavebeenbetteroffif I
DEHNERT:
had stuckto thatplan!| builta toollor the formand I was planningto
builda smallshop.I startedout in a f riend'sbarnafterwe scrapedthe
ODOM/'l'dmeasureit everyquarterof an inch all the way down to
wallscleanandshoveledoutthe messon thef loor.I quicklyfoundout
thatyoucan'thavecowsin the barnwhileyou arelayingupfiberglass! get it as perfect as I could; hell, I thought it was perfect then!'
the entirewinter.Hell,I
I workedon thatfirsttoolandantennavirtually
comingoutof
wenthomelateat nightwithitchyshortsandfiberglass
sandingthat surfacefor a week . . ."
poresfor months."
DEHNERT:"A week?The whole damn winter!!!"
"Well,
CSD: This was a two piece'12and a half foot?
ODOM:
this was that copy we had . . ."
"1
"We
DEHNERT: didn'thaveroom in his barnto makea full 12 foot
DEHNERT:
didn'thaveanythingto copyto startwith! We built
and still be able lo move it aroundto work on it. So I made a big
a deckon thegroundandthenwe builtribsandslartedoutfromthere.
'shoot'
decisionand electedto buildit in two equalhalf-sections."
We literally
eachrib
wentoutsidetheshopanduseda transitto
"Good
guy
who
in
the
world
God,lthoughtlwas the only
ODOM:
andeachpointon it tryngto get it perfect.Thenwe are out theredoing
thisallsoundsso familiar! a halfol a moldwith a flangeon it, usinga template. . ."
hadthatkindof start-uplifein thisbusiness;
"Hopinglikehellit was halfwhenyou got through. . ."
It's funny now when you look back at it; when we made our first
ODOM:
a
antenna,we weretryingto figureoutsomewayto braceit up.Butthat
DEHNERT:"Well,thatpartcameout prettygood.We workedon
was't our biggestproblem;money was. I sold my first antennato
But
thisthingfor monthsliterally
handcarvingit outof solidfiberglass.
Lindsey Riddledownin New Orleans.I couldn'ttellhim at the time,
you areworkingwitha halfa templateandtherereallyis no way,witha
but the reasonI was willingand anxiousto deliverit was becauseI
half a lemplateunlessyou'vegot it on a fixedpointwhereyou are
neededhis money so I couldbuilda secondantenna!"
pivotingit, to be sure you are in the same placeeach time."
"That'stheway I
DEHNERT:"That'sno joke.Whenwe finallygot wherewe could
ODOM:
startedout,usinga fixedpivotpoint. . ."
DEHNERT:"Wellas smartas I am. I didn'teventhinkaboutthat
buildantennas,I'd load the antennahalf sectionson a trailerand
withthe firstantenna.And we endedup with one area on the surface
coupledwithsomeGardinerreceivers,
olf l'dgo.Ourfirstsalewasto a
whereit justwasn'tcheckingout right.I knewwe hada problemand I
motelin Pinedale,Wyoming.This was a fairlyeasy sale becauseI
had to thinkit out over severaldays. . ."
knewthe guy who ownedthe moteland he was prettymuchpre-sold.
"l
ODOM: laidin the bed so manynightstryingto figurea way to
So off we went with a trailerfilledwith the mountand the two half
makeeverythingexactlylikeit was supposedto be and I finallyfigured
sections.
AboutthreeweekslaterI got thistelephonecallfroma man
'l
outthatif I pivotedit rightin thecenterandspunit aroundthe problem
who said am John Parkerand I saw your antennaat the motelin
would be solved.I sawed the first templateout with a jigsaw.l'd
Pinedale.
I havea ranchout herenearDuboisand lam havingtrouble
keepingpeopleon the ranch.lf we couldget somedecenttelevision, measureit everyquarterof an inchallthe way downto get it as perfect
a s l c o u l dH
. e l l ,l t h o u g h t i t w a s p e r f e c t t h e n.. . a q u a r t e r oaf n i n c h ;
thismightsolvethe problem.Willit work?'I assuredhim it would.He
that had to be perfect!| found out how the mule felt when he was
saidhe was alsotalkingwith Scientific-Atlanta
and he'd get backto
pullingthe sorghummill;afteraboutan hour of goingaroundand
me. I did some checkingand foundout Mr. Parkerowneda huge
around,you wereso dizzyyou couldn'tsee straight.I learnedsomecorporation
that makesvirtuallyall of the hydraulicequipmentfor
thingelsehere;my pole,in thecenter,wasjustnotquitebigenough.lt
virtually
allof the militaryand heavycommercial
aircraftin theworld.I
gavejusta littlebitandwhenyougotoutfivefeetor so f romthecenler
was impressedsinceafterthe first installationwe had lots of interest
that slightgive in the cenler pole made quite a differencein the
butthe pricewas stoppingmostpeople.Systemswerenot cheap in
accuracyof the measurement.
Hell,I had to come backand do it all
thosedays!"
overagainwith a new,stouter,pole."
CSD: So he called back and ordered a system?
"We
DEHNERT:
did the same thing.On our first set of 12 foot
DEHNERT:"Notquite.ButnowthatI knewthathe andtwosisters
toolingwe made about25 antennas.Then I stood back and tried to
ownedallof thestockin a 2.5billiondollarcorporation,
I decidedit was
applywhat I had learnedwith thoseantennas.There is alwaysgoing
timefor us to makeour'secondsale.'I loadedthreefullantennasand
to be SOMEerror,no matterhow perfectyou think it is. So I sat back
mountson a irailer,piledtheequipment
in a suburbanandwe headed
and re-thoughtout the problem.Thosesmallsurfaceerrors,they had
for Dubois,Wyomingeven thoughhe had not called me back. We
to be eliminated.
We used a four inch diameteroole and set it in
endedup knockingon his doorat his 38,000acre'hobbyranch'and
concrete.We put bearinghangerson it and built a big gate and a
whenhe cameto thedoorI said'OK, I'm here.I am going to put one
templateto correctthe maslertool.Then I builta grinderso we could
up and if you like it, we have two more.' He likedit so wellwe ended
grindon the moldand we builtthe moldup and then regroundit back
up puttingfour completesystemson his ranch!And that made us
enoughmoneythatwe couldcomebackto Minnesota
to buildsome
down. I ended up going from a 3.75 meter antennato a 3.8 meter
antennagettinga differentradiusout there after we groundit down.
moretoolingand reallyget going."
We wentthroughurethanefilledurethaneto tryto makethe antennas
CSD: And you became an executive!
s t i f f .. . "
DEHNERT:"Hell no! | dug in the ground,with one of my wife's
"Do you
brothersas a helper,to put in more than 400 antennasmyselfin the
ODOM:
rememberthoseribswe had on the backof our
antennaat the Miamishow (February1980)?They were urethane
"The
firstantennaI builtI was bentoverthat thingmyself
foamcoveredwithglass.We had a 16 footerin Miamibuiltthatwav
PAGE11/CSD-2/10-84
SATELLITE
DICEST
than I could,at StarviewSystems.He saidthey coulddo marketing
and so on far betterthan me. We came homefrom Miamiand I got
behindthem100%andthingsstartedlookingprettygood;betterthan
this country boy had ever seen! And it wentalongfor two yearsthat
way andthenonedaytheysoldoul and leftme holdingthe bag.lwas
flat brokeand two years into an industrythat barelyknew me by my
name."
DEHNERT:"We weren'tjust flat broke,we were totallyupside
down.We owed for all of the damn electronics
thal we deliveredto
ConcertSatellite
Networkcustomers.
We wentto Amplicaandbought
all ol the LNAs,went to Gardinerand boughtthe receivers. . ."
CSD: That was before $100 LNAs and $300 receivers too . . .
DEHNERT:"Longbelore!Thisstuffwasspreadoversevenstates
andtheclubsthatagreedto putin theterminals
hadallmadea $3,000
downpaymentandtheysureweren'tgoingto letyou walkin andtake
'nailed'to'their
it backlThedishwas
roof'and I hadto oavthevendors
I got the equipmentfrom.To make it reallybad. this was the winter
seasonwhereeverything
grindsto a stopbecauseit's40 belowzero
outsidein Minnesota. . ."
"That's
DEHNERT/'l came into this field firmly convincedthat military
ODOM:
kindof likebeingin the hospitalin a beddyingand
type, high accuracy specs were not a luxury but a necessity.'
somebodycomesin and shootsyou . . ."
"Yeh,
'retaliate'you
DEHNERT:
and to
rolloveras you fallout ol
pullthe
plugon yourrespirator!We
and it took32 peopleto turnlhe damnthingover!l'lltellyou,it didn't bedand
weresittingtherelooking
at $223,000in accountspayable,no moneyin the bank,no money
takeme too longto figureoutthaturethanefoamwasn'tthewayto go
comingin, I hada $200,000SBA loanat the bankto bootthatI hadto
becauseyou havetoo muchtransfer;on the frontsideyou couldsee
pay."
lhose ribs showingthrough!"
CSD:You both made it, and perhapswould even admit, now
DEHNERT:"On top of that,radialribson fiberglass
won'tholdit
that it is in the past, that you are better for the experience. Let's
anyway.The key thing,in my mind,on an antennais thatyou haveto
stay away from rectanglesor crosses;anythingthathasloursides talk about the techniquesthat you each use to produce fiberglass antennas.
to it doesn'twork."
ODOM: "Boy, that's the damn truth. Rememberthat souare
DEHNERT:"There are at least two ways to make a fiberglass
thing...?
piece.We pull our toolsout of the masterbv buildinqour mold in
"You
DEHNERT:
can makeit rigidas hell if you can get backto
reverse.Otherwiseyou haveto go throughtwoflopsto iet whereyou
triangles.
That'swhatledto ourhatsection.We'dtriedeverycomDtna- wantto go. Afteryou get the glass'up,'we
let it sit and curefor three
tionof ribsbehindthe antennayou couldpossiblythinkof. My original weeksor so. We program
our toolingnow and use a body-typefiller
antennawhichI had leaningagainstthe tree in my yard,ala Robert and usinga grinderwith
a carbidetool I can finishit down to two or
Coleman,had radialribsand it was urethanefoam.l betwe cut uo 40
threethousandths.Now I have a tool that I can make my production
junk
blocksof that
stickingit on the backof the dishin variousways
toolotfof thatis within10 thousandths
max,thatis curedout enouoh
tryingto figureout a way to makethe dishsturdy.No malterwhatwe
beforewe ever start using it that it is not going to move again. lt si-ts
did, it turnedout flimsyand floppy!"
over in the corner readywhen I need more productiontools."
"And
the priceyou pay! Remember
whathappensro your
ODOM:"Whatdo you use to cul your template?"
. ODOM:
faceandeyeswhenyou arecuttingandsandingurethane?
lt clingsto
DEHNERT:"We laminateplywoodand I havea layoutboardthat
you with staticelectricity
and it will eat you plumbup.
is largeenoughthat I can lay out a full sizedtemplaterighton the
DEHNERT:"That and the liberglassin your shorts!My wife
board. We lay it out on paper from a computer run, lay it on the
would get so damn mad becauselwouldcomehomefromtheshoo
laminate
andthencut it witha jig-sawjust outsidethe line.We usea
and dropmy underwearin withthe reslof the stuffin the dirtyclothes grinderto finishit off
down the line."
basketand the nextthingwe knewshe had fiberglassin her underODOM: "The next time you have one to lay out, let me seno you
wear . . ."
somethingthatwillmakelifealoteasier.We programa machineevery
ODOM:"Nobodycan beginto appreciale
it unlessVouhavehadit
one-sixteenth
of an inch;justgiveme thefocaldistanceyou wantand
happento you. Neldawouldsit there literallvfor hoursevervweek
the size of the dish and when you do it this way you can hold a one
pickingfiberglassout of my clothes.Therewasnt but lwo peopleat
thousandthstoleranceall the way down the template.lt is as perfect
that point;myselfand Nelda'sbrother.That'show Odom Anlennas as you can get."
started.We busted our ass every day, at leastsixteento eighteen
DEHNERT:"We did the samethingby goingto an outfitin Minhoursa day and I guessit was the hardesttime of my life."
neapolis
that had a microprocessor
drivenmill.Thereis no substitute
DEHNERT:"We camecloseto dyingup thereafterwe got going. for acc,lrracy
in the antennabusiness;I learnedthat very early!"
We were makinga twelveand a halffoot antennaand we iinallygot
CSD:Talk to us about the way you see people who'are g6tting
aroundto thedesignwe arestillbuildingnow,in thatsize.That'swhen
into the glass antenna business make mistakes; antennis that
we were contactedby an outfit out of Florida,Concert Satellite
have ihadequatestrength, pieces that don't fit together to form a
Network. Theycameto Minnesotaand 'selectedus' as theirsupplier. proper parabolic
surface, dishes that flop around in the breeze.
We were a littlenervousaboutmoney;we had to have money or we
ldentify the mistakes for us; what are their mistakes since you
'masters'
couldn'tbuildall of theseterminalsthey were ordering.That got a
two are the
in this game.
leasingcompanyinvolvedin the deal.We startedputtinqin insiallaDEHNERT:"Theyare makingthe samemistakeswe madein the
tionsin theseclubs,1Bhadto be donebetweena ChristmisandNew
beginning
. . ."
Years,tryingto get them 'on the air'for the fourthof Januarv.In that
ODOM:"l thinkprobablythe first mistakethey make is that when
short span of time ConcertSatelliteNetworkmanagedto gb upside
theygo to copysomething,
theydon'tselectthe bestquality'original'
down owingus $178,000!l'll tell you ... thatjust ab.outdid us in.',
to copy to start with!"
"Garbage
CSD: Give us a similar story, Randall.
in is garbageout;onlyeverytimeyou do a
"We got
- DEHNERT:
startedat the Miamishow in Februaryol 1980. fiberglass
copy,you are two generationsaway from the originalgar.. ODOM:
You know,it's kind of funny;when you are raisedin a cottonpatchin
bage beforeyou have a product.That's garbagesquaredl"
Arkansas,sometimesyou don'trealizeyour capabilities.
John HasODOM:"l thinkDougwill probablyagreewith me thatthe biggest
tingshad beentellingme how muchbetterthey coulddo everything mistakepeoplemakein the fiberglass
industryis trying to produie a
PAGE 121CSD-2110-84
DEHNERT/'Theyare making the same mistakes we made in the
beginning. . .'
product too quick and heal is the biggestenemythere is to fiberglass. And what they end up doing is destroyingtheir tooling,their
molds and the whole works because they try to go too fast with
everything."
DEHNERT:"They are tryingto pullthe moldstwo orthree timesa
day..."
"They
ODOM:
are trying to turn everythingtoo fasl. lt's not like
buildingsomethingout of metalwhereyou can just stampeverything
again and again and again. With metal, the faster you stick in the
blanks the faster your productionbecomes.You can do that with
fiberglassbut the first thingyou know you have destroyedyour mold
becauseof the heat."
CSD: Does it happen kind of slow, however,so a fellow is not
'aware
that his mold is deterioratingon him? There's not a bunch
of good pieces and suddenlyevery one goes bad on you?"
ODOM: "That'sright;it happensslowlyalthoughit may not be as
slow as you might think."
DEHNERT:"Generally,what I see walkingarounda showantenna lot such as here in Nashvilleis that they have rushedtheirmolds,
theydo a splashfromsomebodyelse'santenna,they makea crooked
moldto startwith and then they make more crookedpiecesout of a
crookedmold.You get your shrinkand then when you makea mirror
imageof the mold for your flip-flopto make a productiontool, every
stagemakesa bad originalpieceevenworse.Theystartrightout with
bad piecesand then they try to pull them too soon,'beforethey are
cured and readyto be pulledsafely."
"And
ODOM:
add to that the shrinkage;that will kill you with
fiberglass."
"Yes,
DEHNERT:
and then when the dish is a multi-pieceyou
have another consideration.Just getting them to mate together
SATELLITE
DICEST
smoothlyis not ALL thereis to it. For example,on our 12-ll2toote(,it
you take the individualhalf sectionsand measurethem,you will find
thateachhalfaloneis not a perlect paraboliccurve, Thereis an arch
in eachhalfsection,on purpose. Whenyoujoin the sectionstogether
you have new slressesin the full structureand you needto allowfor
thatin the originalpieces.That'swhy,for example,on assemblingour
12-l12toolyouhaveto startwith the boltsin the centerand work out.
There is an on-purpose stress in there that has to be 'pulledout'
duringassembly.Whenyou get done,THEN you will have a parabola shape.That'swhy I neverallowedus to builda fourpieceantenna,
for example:I couldneverbuildone that satisfiedme that afterall four
pieceswerejoinedtogetherthat the new stressescreatedby the tull
antennacould balanceor neutralizeeach other so you still had a
parabolawhen you got it all assembled."
"To tell you the truth about it, I can't make a four-piece
ODOM:
antennathatsatisfiesme either.I can'tmakea one-pieceantennathat
satisfiesme!"
CSD: But you have mentioned that because the dealers have
an attitude about how they want to transport and assemble
antennas that Odom Antennas was forced into making a tour
piece.
"No question,
therewas a marketthere and by not buildODOM:
ing a four-pieceten foot,for example,I was missinga big chunkof that
market.So now we do buildone and it is a top seller.I changedmy
attitudea littlebit here; if I had a completelyfree hand, all antennas
wouldbe one-piece.But the markettellsyou what they wantand they
told me they wanteda tour-pieceten loot. So I took a close look at
everyotherfourpieceantennaand figuredout how I coulddo it better;
significantly
better.lt may not be the way lwould buildantennasin an
idealworld,but in the realworld,I am reasonablysatisfiedthatnobody
buildsone withfour piecesthat is as goodand certainlynotany better.
But I still think that using lour piece antennas is a compromise, a
mistake,by the dealers."
"Randall's
DEHNERT:
right. Sooner or later, if you stay in this
you
business,
come to the conclusionthat multiple pieces are a
mistakeand peoplewho insist on using them when they could be
installingthe samesizedish in a singlepiecearetradingperformance
and longterm reliabilityfor easeof transportand easeol installation.I
don't like it; Randalldoesn'tlike it . . ."
"Doug's
right,but neitherof us have figuredout how to
ODOM:
ship a sixteenfoot antennadown a freewaywith 13'6" underpasses
either!"
DEHNERT:"You'd have a 13'6" antennawhen you got
through. . ."
"Well, 13'6" 'this way' and 16 foot that way!"
ODOM:
CSD:Sounds like the'birth' of a new'antennalegend'to us.
"That's
DEHNERT:
how Dave Fedric started the legend; he
couldn'tget those roundsuckersin a trailerso he simplywhackedoff
the cornerswith a skill saw!"
"Sincewe
ODOM:
are otf on squareantennas,maybeone of you
can tell me somethingI havewonderedaboutfor years;if you have a
square dish, why don't you have a square feedhorn?Something
doesn'tmesh here with me."
"All
DEHNERT: of the original,classicfeedswererectangular;just
here'sthe surprise;that type of feedhorn
slightly'out-of-square.'And
has a round pattern, not a rectangular pattern. lt doesn't see
square,it seesround,inspiteof itsshape.The onlyway you can create
a squarepatternis to go to dielectricloadingand you can do that;the
militarydoes it withsomespecialantennas,especiallyfor radarbeam
shaping.But, here'sthe rub, anytimeyou do that, typicallythere is a
lossin the feed system.They get awaywith that in a radarsystem,for
example,becausethey can up the transmitpower or increasethe
antennasizeto getthe rangebackthey are designingfor.We can'tdo
'service,'homeTVRO.We are askingour antennasto be
thatwithour
as small as possible, and at the same time to be as efficient as
possible.Thereis simplyno roomfor givingawayfeed efficiencywith
TVROto createa squarefeed patternfor a squareor rectangularfeed
surface."
CSD: So where does that leave a guy married to a square or
rectangular antenna?"
DEHNERT:"Up to his knees in alligators.lf he underilluminates
I
)
)
13/csD-2/10-84
SATELLITEDlCESJeace
the dishso his feeddoesn'tsee the groundbehindthe dishor at the
cornersand edges,he is givingawaysomeof his antennasurface.lf
he overilluminates
the surface,hisfeedseesgroundnoisewherethe
dish has lost its corners.Fortunatelythat is way out there at the very
edgeof the feed patternand it may be 15 to 20 dB downor so. Butit still
hurts.
"As long as we are
off on things that bug us, let me mention
some more. All of this crap about deep dish antennasand 80%
efficiencyreallygets to me. Hell,the governmentcan'tfind enough
cubic moneyto buildeven one parabolicantennaas a modelthat
achieves80% efficiencyso how can we expect all of these people
runningaroundbuildingantennasin theirgarageto do it for $47?
"The only reasonto
designa deepdishis for mechanical
considerations,
and perhapsif you do it just rightwiththefeed,Tl considerations. But the primaryreason that stands the test of scrutinyis for
mechanicalconsiderations
or dish strength.A perfectexampleof
doingit wrongwas the classicHarrisDelta-Gain
dishwith a Cassegrain feed. They claimedbettergain and lower sidelobes.Horse
feathers;it has worsesidelobes!
The onlythingyou gainwitha deep
dishis strengthby virtuethatthereis morecurveto thedish.lt'sreally
verysimple;whenyou go from a.4flDto a.3f/D,thereis 117omore
materialin the dish!
"Our
7.6 meterfiberglassdish,which incidentally
is the largest
fiberglass
dishin production,
is a .3 f/D becauseI neededthe extra
strength. Not for any of thesedumb 'reasons'you see claimedby
peoplewho apparentlybelievethey have unlockedthe secretto 80"/o
parabolic
efficiency
by locatinga secretchamberin KingTut'stomb!"
"l
ODOM: concurwith Dougtotally.I am amazedwhen people
claim75 or B0% efficiencywith screenmesh dishesthat sit thereon
theirmounlsmovingarounda halfinchor morein thebreeze,shaking
likegiantbowlsof jellyl"
DEHNERT:"Well,thereis moreto the strengthon our 7.6 meter
thanthe .3 f/D sections;to get the dishto be parabolic
in shape,I had
to buildit intothemountbehindthedish.Thiswholethingstartedas an
experiment;
a customerwantedthissizeantennaand we had some
slowtimein theshoplastwinterso I designeda toolfora singlepanel.I
had to use ten panelstor a 7 .6 metersurfaceand that defieseverythingwe had saidabout.multi-section
antennas.LikeI said,it was an
experiment.
We keptscrewingaroundwiththe tooland we pulledsix
or sevensetsof panelsso thatwhenwe weref inallvthere,we hada 25
foot circleat the end. Shrinkageon a25 foot is not insignificant!
"The
nextproblemwasholdingallofthosesuckersup in theairin a
rigidparabolashape.We finallygot therebutat a tremendouscost;my
cost,my dlrectcost,in the presentmountis $15,700.But it works!
We haveabout70 thousandthsRMSaccuracyand it playswell.Nowif
I canget the mountdownto about12 grandto go withthejust overone
tonof fiberglass
in lhatantenna,we'llhavea newproduct.I hopeto be
ableto go out the doorwith a 25 foot antennathat sellsfor $25,000or
;?
rli
ri
tlv
-'i.
IN STOCKIN TAMPA
Paraclipse
16 FootAntenna
12 FootAntenna
12 Foot Dark GreenAntenna
9 Foot Antenna
ActuatorRib MountingBracket
CHAPARRAL
PolarotorI and Polarotorll
Tune FeedPolarotorI for Paraclipse
HOUSTON
TRACKER
SYSTEMS
All Models
-_ =-=-=-r- = = - - =:= :
==:=:
R-5000
sP
R-7000
RECEIVERS
Olympiad
Sky EyeVlll
r
.
1ln *
1
ODOM/ 'The accuracy of Doug's antennas and my antennas
exceedsthat of some of those f irms that get two or three times as
much for their products as we do . . .'
RECETVERS
sky Eye X
KLM SSD
52 dB Gain LNAs
CALL TOLL FREE
FOR PRICES
813t876-7677
TELEX:52-825
1-800-237-2903
1-800-282-7713
PROMAR.INC.
4912 W. LaSalleSt.
Tampa,Fl.33607
PAGE 14/CSD-2/10-84
so and I have 16o{ them back orderedalready!Anybodyelse in that
categoryis over $32,000for an antennaand mount.lt's ratedat 125
MPFIwindload survivaland it's no toy. lt works because we have
enough structure behind the glass panels to support it and each
panel-ismachinedrilledto match the face so when you installthe
panel you literallypull the panel to the mount and force it to
confoim to the paraboliccurve.We startedout planningto makethe
fiberglasshold the curve; Good Lord . . . no way!"
iSD' Address that question, Randall. As you go larger and
larger with a fiberglass antenna, at what point are you really in
trouble when you expect fiberglass to give you parabolic shape
with its own hat ring or other support system?
"l
ODOM: thoughtyou were in trouble beforeyou got to where
Doug'sat! My own experiencewith fiberglasstold me that with what I
knei aboutworkingwiththe stuff,someplacebetweena 16footand a
20 foot you were running into big structuralproblemsto hold the
surfaceaccuracy.But Doug'staken a differentapproach;he's builta
back structureto supportthe fiberglassand he is not expectingthe
fiberglassto hold itselfup. That's important' Take our sixteenfooter
wherewe usea hatringon the backside.The hatringis a solutionbut
it onlyhelpsup to perhapssixteenfeet We have panelsthat go on to
makeit a twenlyfooterbut the furtheryou go with such a systemthe
lessaccuratetfresystemis. lt reallysurprisedme what Dougjust said
about holdingthe toleranceto 70 thousandths. . ."
"lt
surprisedme whenwe got the firstone
DEHNERT: absolutely
operational. . . I got my foot in my mouth at the beginningof this
piojectand oncewe saidwe woulddo it, lfelt we had to makeit work'
The antennawas six to eightmonthslongerto get to a workingstate
thanwe had anticipated.I was readyto quitat one point,severalpoints
actually,but each time I felt that way I'd go back and make some
thatwe werenot'thatfar
and cometo the conclusion
measurements
away'fromhavingan acceptableproduct.So we just kept at it' Since
we arrivedat where we are now, I've gone over and crawledaround
the cable system'sten meter antennaand we have bettersurJace
accuracywith our designthan S/A had with their 1975vintageten
meterdish."
"l
ODOM: don'tliketo bad mouthotherproductsbut it'sthe truth
that thereare some productsout therewhichare highlyoverratedfor
their surfaceaccuracy."
CSD: Are you calling names here?
"Well, not exactly.But probablythe accuracyof Doug's
ODOM:
antennasand my antennasexceedsthat of some of thosefirmswho
"
get twice or three times as much for their productsthan we do '
"l'll
DEHNERT: call a name; I won't pick on theirantennasbecause they build a good product.But I can stand my five meter
antennaup at a cable system alongsideScientific Atlanta's five
meterantennaand I can deliverto the cableheadendl and a halfto 2
dB bettervideosignalto noisethan the S/A five meterantenna.And I
willguaranteethatto anyonewhowantsit in writing.Nowthisobservationl That type ot antenna, any antennain the five meter and up
class,is reiity only as good as the crew that goes out to put it
together.That'struewith S/A,ours,anyone's.The individual pieces
foian S/A are very accurate.Where peoplemake mistakesis in the
assembly;they make it so difficultto do it absolutelycorrectly'and
doingit absolutelycorrectlyis the key here,thatveryfew of themever
go togetherthe way they should.They make it so complicatedthat
iney enO up giving away signal because the crews short-cutthe
assemblyprocess in frustration.Crews in this business,subcontractorsthat sign-onwith S/A lor example,get paid by the job' not
the hour.Thereis no incentiveto do it slow and exactly accordingto
the book."
"l
ODOM: havealwayssaidtherearetwo thingsthatareoverrated
The
deleted)andtheotheris engineers.
in thisworld;oneis (expletive
reason I say that is normallyyou will have some guy owninga
companywho doesn'thave anythingto do with production,whatsoever.He'llhaveaboutfive engineersbetweenhim andwhatis going
on. The owner gives the orders and that order has to go down four
flightsoi siairsbeforeit getsto the guy on the linewho is making$3.75
an hour doingthe actualwork."
"lalwaysfeltthattheguywhosignsthechecksshould
DEHNERT:
be out there on the floor scratchingon the projectas well . . ."
DICES
SATELLITE
'Shrinkageon a 25 footer is not insignificant!'
DEHNERT/
"That'smy point.You end up with 'tolerances'
that drift
ODOM:
betweenthe owner and the worker:most of the problemswith prodor care.The owner
uctscan be tracedto a lackof good understanding
caresalot,the nextguy in linecaresless,the guy afterthat caresless
than that and so on. The more people in the line betweenproduct
conceptand productconception,the greaterthe producttolerances
become."
"l
have not
DEHNERT: wantto makea comment;l, fortunately,
beenburdenedwith a formaleducation."
"ltold LewisLarsenlastnightthatlhavemorerespectfor
ODOM:
himthanmostpeoplein thisworld.Lifeis nothingmore,really,thana
sum total of experiences.Educationis nothingbut a total of experiences.There is one ingredientwhich mosl peopleare not born with
and that is common sense. And common sense is somethingyou
it is a'gift'to you andJou eitherhaveit or
don'tlearn,unlortunately;
you don't.I can sit hereand talkwith Dougand I can see he has a lotof
commonsense.You don'thaveto havea formaleducationto back up
in the world,
commonsense;but it doeshelp.The bestcombination
andit is rare,is an engineerwithcommonsense.LewisLarsenis one
of thoserareindividuals."
"Unfortunately,
that is exactlytrue. I saw it at Arctic
DEHNERT:
They were the largestmanulacturersof snowmobilesin
Enterprises.
the UnitedStates.Theywere alsothe largestcorporatebankruptcyin
the historyof the state of Minnesota!When I first went to work for
Arctic,they broughtme out there because I could make two-cycle
enginesgo fast. Then I started rubbingshoulderswith Mechanical
and Ph.D.typesand I walkedaroundthereforthreeor four
Engineers
yearsfeelingquiteinadequate.
Youfinallyhitthatpointwhenyoufind
out thatyou do havesomethingthattheycan'tteachyou in schooland
whenyou needan engineer,iJyou get yourselfin the rightposition,
go out and hireone.You can buy those suckers;
you cangenerally
they are for sale!"
"The thingthat makesDougand I an exceptionto the rule
ODOM:
is that we are out there rightin the middleol it, seven days a week. I
can tell that Doug is like me, and I checkthe tolerancesmyself, all of
the time.Let'ssay you havea tool makerand he has a question.Doug
can answerhis tooler'squestionsand I can answermy tooler'squestions.Thereis no engineerbetweenus makingdecisionsbasedupon
some textbook.We standat the top oJthe stairsbut we also standat
lhe bottomas well."
"
"l
DEHNERT: stillsweepthe lloor in my oflice. .
'l
"l
ODOM: do too! Anytimesomebodycomesto me and says
can'tdo this,it is too hard,'ljump in the middleof it anddo thejobjust
to showthemthat RandallOdomisn'ta damnbit betterthanthey are.I
neverask someoneto do somethingthat I can't or won't do myself."
Next month in CSD/2, Dehnert and Odom discuss production
capabilitieslor fiberglassantennas,and explorethe mythssurrounding high toleranceliberglassantennasexplainingwhat the dealer
shouldlookout for when evaluatingfiberglassproductsnow available
in the field.
15/csD-2/10-84
SATELLITEDICESJ eace
:::::::::::::::;::::::::
TIME
IS
R UN N I N G
O UT !
O C T OB E R1 8 th / I P M E A STERN.Tune in the gigantic,supercolossalTVRO
industryvideo-extravaganza
of all time . . . TVRO's FIFTHBIRTHDAYPARTY!
Two hours of unmitigatedfun. See the FCC 'approve'home TVROs. See Scientific-Atlantalaunch
'Homesat'G).
SeeTed Turner tell bedroomjokes.SeeTom Snyderaskfor a TVROfor Christmas.See Walter
'Rube
Cronkitedescribe
TVROas
Goldberg.'See
Coop gethitwitha'piein theface'andwitnessthe birthof an
industry.
Your Industry.
TVRO.8 PM eastern,Galaxy1, transponder2landWestar4,transponder
12X.Be
there!
NEW PRODUCTS/continued from page 6
for strengthand the systemcomeswith a SeaveymodelESR 40C
feedfor its .3 f 'D ratio.
understand
the functionsor to assistdealersin troubleshooting.
STEM-TEKSYSTEMS(5324 Appian Way, Taylorsville,
Utah
B4118;801,973-7184\
offersdealersa uniqueservice;the repairof
(new)actuatorjack tubes.Whenan
actuatorarmsand replacemenl
innertubehasbeenbent,it is replacedwitha newtubewhichis three
timesthe thicknessof tubescommonlyfoundin actuators.
Charges
varyfrom$45 per tubefor 18 and24" to $55 for 36" and $60 for 60"
tubes.The firmalsosuppliesreplacement
tubes,for dealerstocking,
to allowdealersto makelieldrepairson theirown withoutunneces'down
sary
time.'
. o x1 3 0 ,K e n m o r e ,
T I G E RM A N U F A C T U R I NCGO M P A N Y( P . O B
Wa. 98028; 206i487-3433\has announcedtheir 'LinacAntenna
Drive'system.
The unitis designedfor useby fullsystemmanufaclurers and is availablewithhalleffect,pot,and opticalsensingoptions.
An optionalsolid state internaldrive circuitis also availablewith
built-inlimit-switch
Theyclaim
controland full solid-state
operation.
theunitis totallywaterproof
anddesignedto preventfreezeup in cold
cImaIe.
U N I V E R S A LB , l N C . ( R o u t e# 4 , S a v a n n a hT, n . 3 8 3 7 2 ;9 0 1 i
925-8323)which manufactureslhe WeatherwallLNA cover has
'Weatherdome'
announced
a
universal
fit weathercover
versionmade
from injectedplasticwith UiV stabilizers
for sunlightresistance.
UNIVERSALELECTRONICS,
lNC. (4555GrovesRd.,Suite3,
Columbus,Oh.43227:614i866-4605)
has begunshippinga new 1
inchwideCOAX-SEALproductwhichis sold in four-packrollsof 12
feet each. The new, largerwidth allowssealingof bulky type 'N,
connectorsand transilionfittingsin 'one swipe'withouthavingto
double-mold
the materialin its narrowerwidthform.
LAUXCOMMUNICATIONS,
lNC.(4460SouthLakeForestDrive,
Suite218,Cincinnati,
Ohio45242:513/733-1500)
has releasedlheir
new'Beta-9'antennasystem,The B-panelsystemis formedon draw
dies and thereis a 3 inch perimelerflangeand closedcornersfor
strengthand safety.The refleclorsurfaceis doublegalvanized
steel
withan electrostatic
powderpaintthalis oven
appliedepoxy/'polyester
bakedat 400degrees.An integrated
mountusesductileironcastings
LAUX Beta 9 resists nasty stuff
U . P . S U P E R I O RS A T E L L I T ED I S H M F G . ( 1 6 5 1 1 7 . 4 R o a d ,
Escanaba,
Mi.49829;906789-1027\
hasacquiredtheassetsof U.p.
SatelliteDish Companyand will continueto marketthe full line ol
screenmeshdishesfrom5.5to 25 feetin diameter.
The newowners
are KenSwanson,Tim Daileyand JerryBartoland the triohas been
involvedin the manufacture
and saleof TVROantennasfor the past
two years.A new production
facilitywas scheduledto be completed
late in Septemberincreasingthe availablespace from 12,500to
PAGE 16/CSD-2/10-84
21.500souarefeet.
NEWS Of Distribution
ECHOSPHERECORP.(1925West DartmouthAvenue,Englehas openedits fourthdistribution
wood.Co. 80110;303/761-4782\
15, Dallas,
businesslocationat 3901 La ReunionParkway/Building
The new 58,000squarefootfacilityhas
f exas75212(2141630-8625).
beendesignedto serveTVROdealersin Mexico,PuertoRico,Oklahourdeliveryof
homa,Arkansas,Louisianaand Texas.Twenty-four
S.W.
shipmentsto mostof thisareais promisedby new Echosphere
managerSteve Schaver.
Plaza,KulpsGALAXY BROADCASTSERVICES(Lamplighter
has announceda new 1.3 meter(4
ville,Pa. 19443;215/368-2800)
'GalaxyReceivingSystem'fordealersand distributors
who are
foot)
in the CBD'DBS'salesarea.The newsystemconsistsof a
interested
proprietaryhigh accuracysinglepiece dish, Az-El mount,built-in
polarizationcontrolledleed, 85 degree LNBC and dual conversion
plusRF modulated
channel
receiverwithbothbasebandaudio-video
for under
3 (or 4) output.The systemis designedto retail,installed,
aidsto
marketing
$.1,500to the end userandGBS providesextensive
the dealer.
lNC., througha new division
NATIONALSTEELCRAFTERS,
namedCraftSatelliteSystems(P.O.Box 58, Gastonia,NC 28052;
704t867-8821)has enteredthe TVRO equipmentdistributionbusinessto go alongwith theirCraftMagnum10 and 12 foot aluminum
meshdishes.Productscarriedincludeitemsfrom Boman,Houston
SatelliteProducts,ChaparralCommunications.
has recentlyconSATELLITE SALES, lNC. (614/431-1517)
SharingSeminarat the Parke
ductedtheirthird DealerInformation
Hotelin Columbus,
Ohio.SSI alsorecentlyopeneda newdistribution
facilityin Columbus.
S A T E L L I T ER E C E P T I O NS Y S T E M S ,l N C . ( 1 4 5 C o l u m b u s
held their secondannual
Road,Athens,Ohio 45701i6141594-2524)
'TechnicalShowcase'at a locationnear DetroitAugust3-5 and reports
some 200 dealers attendeda special dealer certilicationprogram.
fromJaneil,Amplica,Dexcel,KLM and MTI shared
Representatives
in the ten hour marathonsession.The show
teachingresponsibility
reportedlydrew a totalof 300 dealersfrom a severalstatearea.A set
of audio tapes of the certificationsessions backed up by course
manualsarc available:
$39.95oercourseor $125for allfourcourses.
Optionalvideotapesof the same sessionsare also available.
SATELLITETV ANTENNASYSTEMS,LTD. (10 MarketSquare,
Telex8774401has
Staines,Middlesex,England,0784 61234151255;
demonstrated
a 1.2 meter 12 GHz TVRO systemin
successfully
Europewith an estimatedcost of approximately
$1,900 (US).The
systemincludesdish,feed,LNC and the TVRO receiver.
'adSATELLITEVIDEO SERVICES,lNC. has added a new
to
their
well
attended
installation'
no-charge
seminar
vancedtechnical
The newclassis heldon the firstWednesseriesol dealerseminars.
day of each monthand coverssuchthingsas electronicset-up,motor
The class
drive hook-up,receivertweeking,and troubleshooting.
instruction
forthe Unidenmodels3000and1000,
featuresspecialized
IntersatBaby-Q (receivers),as well as Draco and Surveyormotor
drives. For iniormation,contactthe firm at their Catskill,New York
office(518/678-9581
).
SATELLITE
DICEST
Drainwiresare tinnedcopperand thejacketis a patenteddirectburial
polyethylenejacket. Nemal is al 1224ON.W. 14th Avenue, North
Miami.Fl. 33161:305/893-3924.
Rd.,MounlNC. (340 E. Middlefield
NEWTONELECTRONICS,
increasedthe net priceon their
tain View,Ca. 94043; 4151967-1473)
GBS2000test set systemfrom $2,995to $3,495on October1st. The
testssystemgivesthe servicebenchtechnicianor engineercomplete
selectionover 4 GHz and 70 MHz signalswith NTSC color bars and
NTSC sync as well as a selectionof audio subcarrierfrequencies.
Ohio 45772; 614t378'6297)
SHELBURNEFILMS (Reedsville,
'lnstallhas releasedtheirsecondTVRO industryrelatedvideotape;
ing Satellite Antennas.' The videotaperuns approximately30 minutesandtakesthe dealerthroughthe oftencomplexworldof satellite
antennainstallationand alignmentin easyto digestdoses.A particu'
larlyadaptivetechniqueis the use of variousindustrytechnicalperand
sonnelwho explainsegmentsof the typicalantennainstallation,
the importanceof each step. The presentationcomes off well and
($125for VHS or Betall)
whileit may seemlikea healthyinvestment
'8
the tips containedin the segments'couldwell save a dealervaluin a consumerinstallation.
abletime and embarrassment
lNC. (4555GrovesRoad,Suite3,
UNIVERSALELECTRONICS,
Columbus,Ohio 43232:614/866-4605)has releaseda new book
of a
entitled'TuneThe HiddenSignalsOn SatelliteTV'; something
mis-nomersincemostof the hiddensignalsare not relatedto or close
to theTV signalsin the firstplace.The newpublicationwaswrittenand
and usedsomedatafrom CSD research
compiledby Tom Harrington,
thefirstbook
Thisis apparently
workbothpublished
andunpublished.
to detailthe manyvariousnarrowbandaudioand dataservicesfound
telephone
(butnotlimitedto) stereosubcarriers,
including
on satellite,
SCPC,worldnewsservices,teleprinterpressservices,networkradio
multiplexdata services
channels,stock market reports,TeletextcD,
165 pagebookis $16.70
and more.Pricingforthe amplyillustrated
including
shippingand handling.
POTPOURRIOf Dealer Aids
CWY ELECTRONICS(P.O. Box 4519, Lafayette,Ind. 47903;
800/428-7596)nationwideor 800/382-7526Indiana)has announced
a new line of outdoor,securityboxes for the housingof electronics.
witha hingeThe all-welded
box usesaluminized
steelconstruction
less, secure-lidsystem to deter entry by unauthorizedpersonnel.
Multipleentry knockoutsallow the user to selectthe mountingconOptionsincludecam
figurationand cablingexit and entrylocations.
locking,interiorboard backingand a heavy baked enamelfinish.
N E M A L E L E C T R O N I C SI N T E R N A T I O N A L l, N C . h a s
announced'type4'direct burialsatellitecontrolcable.The new product includesRG-6/Usignalcable,2 conductors
of 12 gauge,3 conductorsof 18 gauge,3 conductorsof 20 gaugewith drainwire and
shielding,
and3 conductors
of 22 gaugewithdrainwireandshielding.
HARRINGTONreveals it all . . .
NEWPRODUCTS/
continueson page20
-
COOP'S SATELLfTE
DICESJ encenrcsD-2nl-s4
LEGAL/continuedfrom page I
'fair,
market,price.'
ownersat a
SPACE'sRick Browndoes not feel that the 'compromise'
was
dangerousto TVRO. He pointsout that whilethere is certainlythe
possibilityfor HBO or other premiumprogrammersto scrambleand
then price their services'out ol reach'of individualTVRO (home
'legislative
system)owners,he leels that the
history'of the new law
makesit clearthatit was the intentof Congressto createa mechanism
whichwouldmakesuchservicesavailableto the largestpossibleuser
base at the lowestpossibleprice.As Brown notes:
"With this legislation in place, we are now arguing price, not
legality. I believe this is a very important step and while the
industry may well lind itself in court at some future date trying
to force some premium programmerto deal with us on a'fair
pricebasis,'at leastwe will not be arguing our own legality.lt is
an important cornerstone for TVRO's future."
While Congresswas busy passingHR 4103 in the Houseand
5.66 in the Senate,and muchof the industry'sattentionwas focusing
on news reportsout of Washington,another activitydirectlyrelatingto Washingtonwas shapingup. Out at the IntersatCorporationin
Lake St. Louis, Missouri,a very special11 JootChallenger
TVRO
dishantennawas beingskilllullypaintedfor a ceremonyscheduledfor
1:30 PM (easterntime) October17th on the White House lawn.
President
RonaldReaganis scheduled
to appearin a'lawnceremony'
whichindirectlyamountsto officialPresidential
sanctionfor our industry. Here is how that was shapingup as CSD/2 went lo press:
1) PresidentReagan has been searchingfor a project which
would help Americanyouth become more consciousof the
importanceof scienceand technologyin everydaylives.Educatorshavewarnedus for someyearsthat by failingto expose
childrenbetween10 and 18 to the excitementand wondersot
scienceandtechnology,Americais in dangerof losingitsworld
leadershipin these areas.
2) The program created to overcomethis 'educationalgap' is
called (the) Young Astronaut Program, or YAP for short.A
number of former and present Astronauts,includingGene
Cernan who has businessties with lhe IntersatCorporation,
have participatedin the planninglor this program.
3) Young Astronautswill involvethe establishingof a full-time
NASArelatedprogrammingchannelon RCA F4 (F1R temporarily, at first only).That channelwill carry live coverageof all
futureShuttleflightsplus be programmedwith specialscience
andtechnologycoursesand storiesdesignedto excitechildren
betweenthe ages of 10 and 18.
4) Participatingin the programare such firms as Commodore
Computers,Coca Cola, RCA (et al).Thesefirmsare providing
the initial'seed money' ($250,000each) to get the programmingon 'the bird'and to createthe YAP 'chapteraffiliateclubs'
throughschoolsall over North America.
The concept is thls. NASA,througha privatelyendowed(nongovernmentfunded) corporation,will provide the excitement.The
materialwill be transmittedon F4 and it will be availabletor use by
anyonewitha TVRO.However,ratherthan 'chance'thatTVROsales
willdevelopon theirown to reachthe children,the YAP-Channelwill
promote a special natlonal program designedto put in the ground
20,000TVRO terminals,duringthe f irst 12 months,at schools,youth
centersand churchesall over NorthAmerica.A goal of 110,000such
terminalsby 1992 is plannedby the program.
Each school(et al) will be asked to torm a chapterclub attiliated
withYAP.The childrenwill be enrollingin theirlocalchaptersandthey
will receive,ala the Boy and Girl Scoutingprograms,badges and
certiticatesand studymanualsto helpthem betterfollow,understand
and profitfrom the materialtransmittedvia satellite.The corporate
sponsorswill participatethroughtheir advertisingand promotiondepartments;Commodore,tor example,hopes that each.terminalinstalledwill have a Commodorecomputeras part of the packageand
they plan to ship software to the schoolsthrough the F4 transponder.
Scheduled for the afternoon of October 17th as this is written
(subjectto some possibledelaybecauseof weatheror by Presidential
-{SOHAU}
-t
4e--
PRESIDENTIALDISH/ inside the Lake St. Louis Intersat facllity,
the two halvesof the'Presidential
Dish'are custom-paintedwith
the official insignia of the Young Astronaut Program prior t6
belng alr-liftedto Washington, DC. Proiect coordinator Al Bishop
(upperphoto)came to Intersat lrom NASA himself and has been
heavlly involved in getting the proiect pulled together.
scheduling),PresidentRonaldReaganwill appear on the White
HouseLawnwiththe specially
decorated11footChallenger
antenna
to announcethe detailsof the programto the press and public.
Planscall for plentyof networknews coverageand media exposure.Manyof you will be receivingthis issueof CSD/2on the morning
of October 17th and you are of course encouragedto check the
eveningnewscaststo see if the programcame off on schedule.
THE DISH TESTER
Dish surfaceaccuracyis probably The most important part of a
good picture.Ever wish ybu coul6 check it? Now you can. with a
tool small enough to fit your tool box - The Dish Tester.It will
answerquestionslike:Do I haveto replacethat dish.or can I pull it
true?Are my sparkliescausedby the electronicsor a bad dilh factoriesqet tired of returned electronicsthat work qood. Was the
metaldis6 bent in shipping- the DishTesterwill teiiyou. Did you
assemblethe dish coi'iectl-y?
Has the basewarped the dish?ti/hy
sparkliesin every other diih, they're all the same?Is it TI causrng
sparklies,
or a bad dish?Where d-oI put the clipsor extrabracesto
make that mesh dish more efficient?It didn't hbve sparkliesbefore
thewindstorm,but it doesnow-is the dishbent-the DishTester
will tell you. Am I taking the right dish to the show?Are my mfg.
toleraniesO.K.? Send $20.00-1unyway you want), and we wiil
send you a Dish Testerpostageand tax paid.
Send to: STV Co.. Dent. A
516 W. 33rd'
Havs. Ks. 67601
TheBRFututeploof"
Waranty.
Than
It Protects
MoreValuable
Something
Equipment:
YourReputation.
Wordof mouth advertisingfrom customerscan
makeyou or breakyou. So makesureyou get
compliments-not complaints-with
-A
BR'sexclusive"Futureproof''"
five-yearwarranty.It's the
first opportunityfor TVRO
customersto buv an extended
protectionplanfor their systems at the time of
just like they buy for their
cars..
As a BR SatelliteCommu
nicationdealer,you annpffer
"Futureproof"" coveragefor
a
minimalcost to your customers
(anda profit for you).
Backedby one of the world's
largestinsurancecompanies,BR
Satellitewill guaranteeall electronic
componentsagainstany manufacturer
defectsfor a total of five vears
the first year whichwe coverautomatidV). Contactus to discussall the details
-then "Firtureproof''" your reputation.
Waran$-Still the
OurStandard
Ultlmate,
StlllFree.
Every pieceof equipmentwe sell is
backedby our unconditionalreplacement policyfor a full year.*
It's an irresistiblesalestool. and it
won't cost you or your customers
a cent.
viaUPS
We'llshipa replacement
Blue Label,at our expense,the
samedayyou callus. We ask
onlythat youshipthe defective unit,at your expense,
within 5 daysafter you receivethe replacement.
At BR Satellite.there is
no "turnaround"waiting
time. And only a bare
minimumof your valued
customer'sdowntime.
MoreThan
WeDlstrlbute
Equlpment
FreeAds,
Brochures
andMore!
Our total dealersupport prograrn
canprovideyou with ad art, readyfor you
to run and brochuresto educatecustomers.
ForDealers
Famous
Names.
Only.
MTI
ECIAntennas
NORSAT
LNAs
Chaparral
EarthTerminals
WilsonMicrowave
Systems
USSMaspro
Dexcel
The"Futureploof"*Decal-a Slgn of
Success.
If you'vegot it, flauntit! The "Futureproof"
warranty sticker in your store windowcouldbe your
best salesman.We'll sendbrochuresandin-store
displays,too.
"WeDistribute
Trust."
Arunta
Sat-Tec
Engineering
Seavey
NewtonTestGenerators
SatelIite GroundComoonents
ERILNAJumper
Cables
EarthStationAccessories
Coax-Seal
Toll-freeordeilng.SameDayShlpment.
Every productwe distributeis in stockat all
times. If youcallour toll-freenurnberbefore2 PM,
we'll shipyourorder the sameday.And unlikesome
distributors,we'rehappyto shipC.O.D.
*All prcducts and items discontinuedduring warranty period
not subject to imediate replacement.
(NEW
1-800-421-0148
1-800-832-6660
Y0RK
ONLU
Mon.-Fri.
Free9:30-5:30E.S.T.
CallToll
BRSATELLITE
is the onlydistributor
in this indust
whowill replaceanydefective
WROproductwitha new
a r eplacement
viaUPSBlueLabelat
,
ourexpense,
thesame
WithNotsat's
LNA,YourCustomers
WillSeeLessNoise.
WithOurlYearWarrarty,You'llHearNoNoise
From
Them.
I
I ntroducingthe quietone-theremarkable
NorsatLNA! Norsathascombinedvears
of experiencewith traditionalJapanese
, .,
manufacturing
excellenceto producea I
low noiseamplifierof exceptionalquality. r
Quietquality,for better pictures i
evenon todav'ssmallerdishes.
Degreefor degree,dollar
for dollar,the Norsatis
simplythe quietest,most
efficientLNA evermade.
Uni4ueall GaAsFet
four stagedcsign(no bifolars) with min. 51dbgain.
Total u eatherpro
oftnsprecisionmilledrecessed
topcouer;
contputer-milled aluminumbody.
Groundedinputprobefor
matc'imumprotection aga,in
st
due
to
hghtning
dischargefailures
or highambientRF fields.
I
Triplesealedand
ruggedbmountedWe
"N"
outputconnector
bw VSWRresonatorfor transbarent
irnped"ance
mntchinto thefirsf GaAsFetstage.
powersupplyboardfeaturing
Separate
ultm-stableregulationwith built-inprotection
againstpolarityreaers
al, uoltnge
florctuntion,
andstaticdischarge.
Auailable'in100",90o,85",80",and 75"
noisetemperatures.
"WeDistribute
Ttust."
Dealers Onlv.
,.,
{l
-J- /
I
I
I
;
i
' . -/
It alladdsup
,"
quiet
confidence' - to
theknowledge
thatyour
-.customersaregettingthe
bestLNA performance
J
''"L . ' '
for the price,
w-.ry..{|ta
,Lntsr5
BR Satelliteis
proudto be the
onlydistributor
in theEastern
UnitedStatesfor NorsatLNAs, andoneof onlv
threedistributorsnationwide.
QuantityPricesAuailable.
@
F
gL
f,t.,
nr-lilRSnT
PAGE20/CSD-2/10-84
SATELLITE
DICEST
RADIOSEMICONDUCTOR,
lNC. (LOCOM)(315 BennerPike,
StateCollege,Pa. 16801;8141238-2133)
claimsa breakthrough
in
antennaelectronicswith the introductionof a new combinationLNA
plusblockdownconverter;
the LNBC.By buildingthe
appropriately,
BDC into the LNA housing,line lossesbetweenthe two normallyseparateunits are eliminatedand circuitefficiencyis improved
throughbetter'matching'techniques.The oscillatorlor the blockdownverterportionemploysa GaAs-FEToscillatorwith a dielectric
resonatorand a varietyof lF outputs,compatiblewiththe variousBDC
unitsnow on the market,are available.
Our Model2350 features16 programmable
satellite
locationsplus manualoverrideand is easily
programmedfrom the front panel.Dual adjustableend
limits,molor stall protection,on-offswitch,optional
infraredremotecontrol,125 ft. cable,and the quietest,
smoothrunning24" iack in the industrymake this the
best actuatorsystem availabletoday.
_CALL TOLLFREE-
800-251-0014
BASIC
ISYSTEMSIT
TULSA.OKLAHOMA
The Survey/or'"
Errcrybody is talking about it.
Home Satellite Drive systems
Atrailable from
The Antenna Farm,Apopka, FL3O5/886-6999
National Microtech, Gr enada.MS,8OO/ 647 -6144
satellitevideo services,catskill, NY,518/678-9581
Carofina Sateffite Systems,Wi lmington, NC, 919| 395- 1167
Earth Stationsof Columbia.Columbia,SC,803/254-0535
Startech.salem.VA, 800/221-4656'
67 7- l4l0
NEDCO, Toronto, Canada,4161
lGnt Research Corporation
1900BurdettAve. Troy,New York 12180
518t272-6870
S E L L Y o u r s t o c k i n 2 1 3 c a b l e ;L N B C sa r e h e r e . . .
FINANCIALand Corporate
BIRDVIEWSATELLITECOMMUNICATIONS,
lNC. (P.O. Box
963, Chanute,Kansas66720;3161431-0400)
reportsan increasein
(from$13,300,000
salesto $21,800,000
in 1983)whilenet earnings
bouncedintothe positivecolumnfor thefirsttime ($168,000)
in fiscal
yearI 984.Birdviewhad 950 authorizeddealersat the end of the 1984
fiscalyearand reportsit has invested$1,200,000in toolingfor a new 7
foot 'offsetfed' Spoon '' anlennawhich it is now bringingto market.
Birdviewalso reportsthey are 'positionedto provideKu band DBS
equipmentas well'in the future.
BROOKSSATELLITE,lNC. (201/828-5335)reportsit has completedthe saleof $500,000in privatelyofferedstockat $1 per share.
The new fundingis being utilizedby the firm to launcha national
franchiseddealer program and they forecast the opening of 100
franchiseoutletsover the next l2 month period.
FRANKLINSIGNALCORPORATION
has chanoedits nameto
ATECH effectivewith the first of September.The iirrn op"ru,"" u
divisionin the TVRO field, previouslyknown (beforethe name
change)as SatelliteCommunications
(SATCOM).Firm
Corporation
headquarters
are in Minneapolis,
the TVRO divisionis locatedin
SilverLake,Kansas.
(P.O.Box7213,Ocala,FI.32672',
MfCRODYNE
CORPORATION
9 0 4 / 6 8 7 - 4 6 3 3 )r e p o r t s a 1 9 7 o i n c r e a s e i n s a l e s v o l u m e t o
for the six month periodendingApril 29th with a net
$14,025,000
incomeof $989,000or '17cents per share.Microdynestockis traded
in the over-the-counter
market.
PEOPLE
Danex Microwavereportsthat Dennis Shouldice, formerVP of
marketing,has left the firm with regrets.Shouldiceadviseshe is
establishing
an independent
marketing
andtrans-border
repbusiness
to assistUS suppliersin gainingentryto Canadawiththeirproducts
(contactShouldiceat 604I873-8222\.
R.L.DRAKECompanyreportsthatf irmChairmanPeterW. Drake
has been electedto the Board of Trusteesof WilmingtonCollege,a
private,liberalartsschoolfoundedin 1870.Drakegraduated
f romthe
collegein 1970.
ETHEREUMSCIENTIFICCORP. announcesthat Ms. Lanette
Premeauxhas been appointedas Teleconferencinq
Directorfor the
-
The Innovators
in Satellite
Communications
Sateltite
Video
Services
The Northeast's
Leading
Distributor
FactoryAuthorizedService
FreeDealerTrainingSeminars
ThreeStockingLocations
lllH,Inc.
VideoServices
Inc. Satellite
VideoServices,
Satellite
PA,Inc.
VideoServices
Satellite
]{Y 12414
RR#1, Box85.S,Catskitl.
HillBd.,Raymond,
l{H03077
RFDf2, Hairiman
PA 16602
ValleyBlvd.,Altoona,
317 E.Pleasant
800-528-0lsH
ilY Only
800.831-DISH
| 82
6 03- 8953
PA0nlv
800-242-3860
518.678-9581
814- 942- 5003
P r o d e l i nr M / A C o m r L u x o r o U n i d e n r C o n i f e r r W i n e g a r d r G e n s a t . D r a c o r O m n i S p e c t r a o W i l s o n
$*novative Products
for TvRo,CATVand SMATV.
HighlsolationPowerDividerswith
pDtB.
Built-inDc Blocks...series
2way (PD|B-22-3.95G)
4 way (PDtB-42-3.95ct
FEATURES
. 3.7-4,2
CHz
. Hightsolation,
65dBTyp.
. LowVSWR
& insertionloss
. DCPass-Thru,
one port, up
to 30vDcat 1.oamp,max.
. Ruggedized
Construction
. TypeN Connectors-Female
. Built-inDCBlocks
on
remaining
outputs
. WeatherResistant
Only Merrimacoffers you:
. 30yearsof Militaryand Microwave
expertise
designing
and producing
DownConvertors,
Dividers,
lsolators,
Terminations
and Receivers
o Nswproductsat the forefront
of technology
r Thehighestqualityproductfor the
lowestpossible
cost.
CallMerrimacfor pricing,delivery,literatureand the
nameof your tocalDistributor.
I[#ffimoc
P.O.BOX 986, 41 FAIRFIELD
PLACE,WESTCALDWELL,N.J.07007.0986
USA
201-575-1300o TWX 710-734-4314. CABLE:MERRTMAC
W CALDWELLNJ
firmat theirHoustonfacility.Her dutiesrncludemarketingand schedulingof the firm's transportable
uplinksand transponders(713/
784-2630\.
ATECHannouncesthat William C. Farris has been nameoas
Operations
Managerfor theirSilverLake,KansasTVRO subsidiary.
MICROWAVE
SYSTEMSMARKETING
hasannounced
thatClay
Nappier has been promotedto VP of Sales from NationalSales
Manager.
MSMsellsa lineof LNAsandrecentlybroughtouta receiver
'Discovery.'
called
CALENDARThrough November30th
Attentioneventschairmen:PlaceCSD/2(P.O.Box 100858,Ft.
Lauderdale,
Fl.33310)on yourmailinglistto receiveannouncements
of eventsof interestto TVROdealersworldwide.
Deadlinefor listings
is the 25th of the monthprecedingdatedmonth.
OCT 16-18: JerroldTechnicalSeminarin Columbus,Ohio;contact
LillianRuoff215i674-4800
lor pre-reoislration
details.
OCT 18:
TVRO'SFTFTHBIRTHDAY,specialiwo-hourtelecast
commemorating
FCC de-regulation
of TVRO (the eliminationof mandatoryTVRO licensing),
B PM eastern
simultaneouslyon Galaxy 1, TR21 and Westar 4,
TR12X.Programproducedby CSD and CSD/2 and
supportedby leadingsuppliersto the TVRO industry.
Includesvideotapehighlights'Fifth Birthday Party,'
Nashville,
September3rd.
OCT 19-21: SMATV/Private
CableWorkshop,sponsoredby Burrull
Communications
in Phoenix,Arizona;contact608/8734903 for details.
OCT 22-?-4:SMATVContinuingEducationWorkshopdealingwith
problemsof SMATVand privatecablesysoperational
tems; New Orleans.ContactLarry Hannon 904i2376 10 6 .
OCf 23-24: BLONDER-TONGUE
SMATV/CATV/TVRO
Technical
Seminar,Bloomington,Minnesota.Contact Eugene
Foster6121941-9800.
OCT 25:
SATELLITESHOWTIME(fourth)TVRO industryprogram, two hours rn length,transponderB, F4, B PM
eastern.
OCT 26:
TerrestrialInteferenceSeminarconductedby MicrowaveFilterCompany,EastSyracuse,Ny; contact315i
437-3953.
OCT 30:
SATELLITESHOWTIMETVRO industryprogram(repeat),two hoursin length,transponder
8, F4 at 10 PM
easlern.
NOV'16:
Boardmeeting,TVRO DealerBoard, SpACE,Dallas,
Texas.ContactChuck Hewitt703/549-6990.
NOV 17:
Board meeting, full SPACE Board, Dailas,Texas.
ContactChuck Hewitt 703/549-6990.
NOV 18-20: STTI DallasRegionalIndustry Trade Show; contact
1t800-654-9276
or 405/396-2574.SPACEDeaterCertrficationCoursesplannedas part of program.
SMARTERDEALERS/continued lrom page 3
program'is evolutionary;
The present'start-up
it was
put togetherin some rush as the sun was risingon
Nashville.Dealerswho view this programwith any
interestat all should carefullythink out what they
want from the SPACE certificationprogram;and
make strong suggestionsor recommendations
to
SPACE's Chuck Hewitt (709 Pendleton Street,
Alexandria, Va. 22314; 7O31549-6990).
lf you
shouldhappento put it in writing,I'd appreciatehaving a copy of your suggestionsas well (CSD, P.O.
Box 100858,Ft. Lauderdale,
Fl. 33310).The program,to be viable,needsmore 'inputs.'Pleasedo
yourpartto see thatthey havethe inputsthey need!
DRACO TABORATORIES,
INC.
'1005Woshinoton
Street
Grofton.Wiscbnsin
53024U.S,A,
Phone:4ti4-377-0770
Telex:26886
trNAtrtr
tftl
DISIRIEUIORS:
Dsllo Solellile Corporoilon, Cedorburg, Wt414.375-,t000,
Nof'l SOO.SSB-SSO2,
Wisc.
800-242-240.
Solellife Vldeo Seryices, Polenviile, Ny 5.i8{78-9306.
Von's Tolol Tetsvi.
sion Cenler, Eugen€, OR 503-342-{6,18.
Solco U.S.A.,New phitodetphio, OH, Nqf't 800.362-0619,
Ohio
800.362-678'1.
Unil€d Communicolions Supply, Iompo, FL813-971-1648.
Vid€o [ink, So[ Loke
Cltv. UT 80'l-278-2878
Cox Enlerplis€s,Rockwood, TN 615-354-3471
Glound Conlrol.
Concorde, Ontorio 44ffi9{366.
Sotelllle Syslems Lld., Burnoby, B.C. 604-430-4040.Videosof Conodo LIEE.
Chornev. Quebec 4'l 8-8324621
Morgon Sotellilo Sysf€ms, Flughes Spring, TX 214-639-7517
,Ullllul