Tailgater satellite--pros and cons in various campgrounds

[MarkieBob]

We camp in various campgrounds in many states. I like the advertisement of the tailgater finding its satellites, but wonder if it would be better just to take a dish along and point it myself. I've never aimed a dish, and probably like most tailgater purchasers, am nervous about learning how to do it, etc.

Please tell me what you think--if you've bought one, would you do it again, or just aim a dish yourself? Thanks.

[Bumpyroad]

dmcgiffin wrote:
We have used the Dish Tailgater for a couple of years now - nothing easier. To prevent theft I attached a steel cable that I purchased at Lowes, comes on a spool and they cut to length. I then bought some U-bolt clamps to make a loop on one end and attached the other end to the Tailgater. I padlock the Tailgater to the Motor Home. Love the Tailgater and never leave home without it 🙂

so with a socket set I can obtain your system?
bumpy

[dmcgiffin]

We have used the Dish Tailgater for a couple of years now - nothing easier. To prevent theft I attached a steel cable that I purchased at Lowes, comes on a spool and they cut to length. I then bought some U-bolt clamps to make a loop on one end and attached the other end to the Tailgater. I padlock the Tailgater to the Motor Home. Love the Tailgater and never leave home without it 🙂

[11B]

I bought mine from the manufacturer as a refurbished unit for 165.00 and couldn't be more pleased with it.

[Hjudge49]

I use a standard direct tv dish and tripod, and setup normally takes me about 5 minutes. I just select the view signal menu, turn up the volume on the tv and listen for the beeps to get right while I admit cost me about $30 on eBay. I sue it even if the in motion dome is working.

[MarkieBob]

Thanks for all the replies. I went to Camping World, and the salesman was, in my opinion, quite open and realistic about it. He sold tailgater and windgard, etc., and said to wait awhile. Tailgater is garbage, and the technology coming out (don't remember the source) on the new satellites is much better than what he sells now.

I hold some credence since he sells all of them but told me "not to buy". I was prepared to buy the tailgater, but didn't--yet..

[Cimriver]

I have carried a tripod and antenna for years for both DirecTV and Dish Network. The manual setup for Direct was always fairly easy and fast. I switched to Dish a couple of years ago using the Hopper Joey configuration. Setup became more difficult with Dish. Hitting all three satellites can be interesting. A couple months ago I purchased the Tailgater and VIP 211 receiver. (Bought the package for $349 on Amazon) At this point I have used it a couple of times. Setup is easy. No worries about finding a good path to the satellites as I carry 200 feet of cable.

I do have some concerns about security that I have not addressed yet. Also I am concerned about the wind or accidently bumping the antenna. The base is small and does not lend itself to stability. Thinking about mounting the antenna to my transit tripod. This would require opening the antenna which voids the warranty. That would get it off the ground and make it very stable.

[Bumpyroad]

I just got a mailer from Direct TV and read the fine print. the $24.99 a month for 12 months with a 24 month agreement does NOT qualify for NFL offer. I have noted in the past during dish/direct discussions that some folks want Direct due to getting NFL. so read the fine print.
bumpy

[johnhicks]

We had a Tailgater for several years which worked fine until it died last November; got a Winegard X2, which also gets eastern arc, and it works great.

Considering the price of these units the X2 with eastern arc is well worth the additional cost. Since November we've been in many CGs that if we could get western arc only we wouldn't have watched tv.

[Bumpyroad]

Lantley wrote:
Great price on a Tailgater

Check here

WOW, a great price.
thanks
bumpy

[Lantley]

Great price on a Tailgater

Check here

[chuckftboy]

MarkieBob wrote:
Hi "chuckftboy". How about theft--any issues there? Do you lock it?

Sorry for the slow responce, I was off line for awhile. I have never had a problem with anyone even touching my Tailgator and there were times when I've had 100 feet of cable on it to get away from the trees. Not saying it will nervr happen and it can be cable locked around somthing if one needs security.

[Bill___Kate]

TechWriter wrote:

MarkieBob wrote:
We camp in various campgrounds in many states. I like the advertisement of the tailgater finding its satellites . . .

You might want to look at Winegard's Pathway X2. It has Eastern & Western Arc sat capability which is handy if you're traveling in the east at all.

We agree - we had a Tailgator, and while it worked as advertised, there is only a small diameter antenna inside, and it is limited to how strong a signal it can pick up. For about $100 more you can get the Pathway X2 which is a much more robust antenna. Yes, it is heavier and takes up a little more storage space, but it has a much larger dish inside and picks up a signal with double the strength of the Tailgator. As mentioned, the Pathway X2 can also receive the eastern satellites which can come in handy if something is blocking the western ones. We will be selling the Tailgator.

[tommy_g]

I have directv without hdtv and a 9 year old receiver. I keep a dish on my b&m and on the rv port. I carry a dish on a tripod in the motor home and 150 feet of coax. My set up takes about 10 to 20 minutes depending on foliage and mountains. I have used this from Fresno to Prince Edward Island without any troubles. For local channels I use the antenna. My total cost was $15 for the tripod on Ebay.

[traindriver]

I have had a tailgater now for over two years. I have used it anywhere from Illinois to arizona, texas, florida, all along the gulf coast. Never had a problem as long as you have a clears southern sky. Change locations, call dish, give new service address and they change local channels. Takes no longer to get up and running than it does to run a scan for high def tv.

[Dale_Traveling]

Past owner of my coach installed a roof mounted dish. Glad they paid for it. Most of the time it's blocked by trees. Started out using a Dish 500 manual aim. Some times I got lucky and had it going in 10-15 minutes. Most of the time much longer. Last year saved up and now have a Windgard Carry Out for those times the roof is blocked. I also have about 200 feet of coax and power cord for those times that a clearing isn't as close as I would like. Primary camp at State and Federal parks so the antenna growing legs is a minor concern but it's easy enough to pick up and bring in when necessary. Also the Carry Out does not require a specific receiver to work as does the Tailgater.

If I had a good southern view at the house I would drop the cable and just use RV antenna and receiver. Guess I'll keep the cable and the trees.