Channel Master Type 755 (75 cm) Offset Prime Focus

This is an old Primestar antenna. I got it for free a few years ago, when I found it laying face up in a drainage ditch, still attached to the pole it was originally mounted to, alongside a country road. This model of antenna is similar to the one above, but with an elliptical reflector and matching feedhorn. It's still being made by Skyware.

It was in rough shape when I found it, but still serviceable, and gives you an idea of how very well built these things are. It was completely covered in mud and bugs, a thin layer of algae and general filth, and the mount was pretty rusty. I started out by pressure washing the whole thing, which unfortunately washed off the Primestar logo, but I do have a template in case I ever want to paint it back on. I intended to give it a coat of paint to make it look nice and last longer, so I scrubbed everything with hot TSP and a wire brush. The paint that I used is Rustoleum Universal paint in flat black, which is supposed to adhere well to plastic, even without a primer coat.

The reflector came out looking great. I stripped the elevation bracket and feed arm and repainted those in gloss gray. The original hardware was toast, since I broke most of the bolts off trying to get them out. I ended up just buying all new hardware. All of the bolts are just standard parts you can find at any hardware store, except for the elevation thing, which can be made from a hex nut and a steel spacer if you have a welder.

Once I got everything back together it looked great. Surprisingly, the original LNB that came with it, an NJR single polarity model from circa 1993, still works, and has a better signal to noise ratio than a lot of modern parts. I used this antenna for receiving the PBS channels from AMC 21 for a while, but now I'm using it for Dish Network reception for Echostar XVI at 61°W. The LNB I'm using with it is a CalAmp dual output DBS LNBF. The round feedhorn on the LNBF wasn't ideally matched to the elliptical reflector, so I used a table saw to cut off the stock feedhorn and replaced it with a standard UG flange, held on with JB Weld epoxy. You could also use a Dish Network "DBS STACKED LNB" without having to modify it, although you'll have to insert a dielectric plate in the feedhorn's throat.

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