Mounting a Winegard Pathway X2

[finketim]

I need to mount the above receiver to my TT. I have a couple questions. What type of screws and what length should the screws be for mounting to the rubber roof? I'm a beginner RVer. Also, do the screws need to be sealed after they are put in? Thank you!

[Bill_Satellite]

No matter what else you do, leaving the antenna on the roof is not a good idea. It you make a platform the antenna is going to be VERY high. If you don't build a platform it will be destroyed by water infiltration.

[towpro]

Thanks.

[GoPackGo]

1. The dish has 4 rubber feet on the bottom. You set the feet into holes in the tripod and twist the dish about 2 inches. These holes are elongated and are the type that are larger at one end and smaller at the other end. When the dish is twisted, the feet are trapped under the smaller end so the dish and the tripod are held together and can't move. This works just fine when setting up on the ground.

FYI - I believe the rubber feet can be removed. If you are bound and determined to attach it to some kind of plate, then maybe that would be a starting point. I am one of those that believes it is a much better idea to just leave it on the ground. These things are much larger then a Tailgater.

2. The chain does go thru the square next to the coax attachments. It is a thick plastic material. Can't tell if it is reinforced. It is meant to stop the guy who is walking by and looking for something that is easy to swipe - this is the guy I am trying to stop. It will not stop the guy with a pair of bolt cutters driving by in a truck.

Camping World carries the X2, might have one on display. Amazon also has them.

Tim

[towpro]

Bill.Satellite wrote:
Please don't leave an X2 on your roof unattended. It WILL blow over and roll off the roof if the winds get into the 35+ range. It would only take one good gust and....there you go....
You could mount it to the roof with some screws and washers through the 4 tent stake hole plus maybe 4 more screwed through the same base.

Thanks for the information Bill. So there is holes through the base that were designed for tent stakes. Good info. I see something in the picture but can't really tell. If I manufactured a flat plate, that had 4 studs sticking up, maybe i could set the dish on this plate and the 4 studs could pass through the tent stake holes, and maybe a wing nut on the other side? Or maybe design in a "J" hook, where the bent end goes up and captures this stake hole. Or maybe even bungy cords under this flat plate that hook into the tent stakes holes.
Is there anything that attaches the dish to the tripod?

Next step is to try to see one in person.

GopackGo, roger on the chain. I guess it goes through that square looking handle on the coax end? Is there any substance to that area? I wonder if these will start to show up in pawn shows with that handle cut off, like the Honda Generators :(.

[Bill_Satellite]

Please don't leave an X2 on your roof unattended. It WILL blow over and roll off the roof if the winds get into the 35+ range. It would only take one good gust and....there you go....
You could mount it to the roof with some screws and washers through the 4 tent stake hole plus maybe 4 more screwed through the same base. The issue would be sealing those hole to ensure no leaks. The area where the antenna rotates is NOT sealed but rather designed to drain water away. That means if you do something to seal it to the roof you will be sealing the draining water inside the antenna and pooling on your roof. There is no chance that you will have a happy result with this kind of an installation.

[GoPackGo]

I fulltime and I've been using an X2 every day for a couple years now. There is an attachment point for a security chain. I have 35 ft of chain and it is always locked to my trailer or a tree, etc.

I also have the dedicated tripod for it. The tripod also come with a J-hook that you can attach a gallon of water or a brick to. I have never done that and have never had a problem with wind and I've been in some pretty windy places. The book states it may be affected if wind speed reaches 30-35 mph. That is just the sat antenna - not if it is mounted on the tripod.

You want to get the tripod just to get it up off the ground as the book states the electrical components can be affected if it sits in water greater then 2 inches deep.

* One more thing. I use, and highly recommend, a very good app to show where the east and west arc DISH satellites are located in the sky.

DISHFORMYRV is the name of the app (Iphone only). Cost is $5. It uses the phone's camera to project 2 sets of 3 red balls when you aim at the southern sky. This provides a great starting point if you are in trees, etc.

I have read the above posts and see that some want to mount them on top of their rig. The beauty of these portables is that you can move them to find the best reception. I have seen a few folks that mount Tailgaters to the top of their 5er ladders, but I can count the total number that I have seen in 2 years on one hand. I have never seen an X2 mounted this way - maybe because it is substantially larger ?

Just my .02

Tim

[Us_out_West]

Didn't know you were talking about using a sat dish with a TC.

Good luck and safe travels.

[towpro]

us out west, I did have a manual aim dish on a camper back around 2000. it was nice when it was raining, but having to move the camper to see around that 1 tree is a PITA :).

I have been putting out a dish 500 on a tripod since the 2000 camper. I am good at it, but I have had enough. plus the eastern arc is a little harder to aim than the 110/119 western arc (I can use the Western arc dish 500 on the eastern arc or western arc depending on trees. You can receive 61.5 and 72 if you "split the difference" when aiming).

With the new Truck camper we are trying to be more mobile. Being able to stop for the night on side of road instead of pulling into a campground, etc. Throwing a sat dish out on a tripod in a walmart parking lot / truck stop sort of looks like I am camping there. Throwing it on top of a 12' camper roof give me enough height to see around say a truck parked next to me.

I am sure I will probably buy a tripod made for it, and I guess I could put the whole tripod up on roof if I had to, I was just wondering if there is any kind of mount holes on this device that winegard don't call out in the directions.

than others have suggested that camper movement might be a problem. I know my Truck camper sitting on truck, with jacks down is as stable as my Open range 5th wheel which has 4 point electric jacks, JT arms and load range E tires.

edit:
and with the truck camper, I am pretty sure I can stand in the door, and lift the dish up onto the roof without climbing the ladder.

[greenrvgreen]

I'm a big fan of these portable domes. As said, their portability brings genuine benefits in finding a clear shot of the sky. I've taken my Tailgater out 150ft and I believe the X2 goes at least 25ft.

If there's a concern about theft when you're away, simply toss it back inside. These things take 10 minutes at most to reaquire the birds, and as said, they do it automagically.

If you set it on the roof, it cannot wobble even slightly. So while a removable mountpoint might help eliminate roof wobble, you still have to insure that the RV is absolutely steady, even when you're stomping around inside it.

[towpro]

I am done aiming dishes. I want a X2, and I want to set it on a ladder shelf, with the ability to hold it down for wind. A plus would be a way to lock it to ladder (theft).

[Us_out_West]

towpro wrote:
I think winegard is being to narrow minded on this one.

I don't want my X2 (when I buy one) sitting out on a tri-pod.
I want to be able to set my X2 on roof or ladder rack where it is out of reach, out of way. But I also want to be able to clamp it down (or lock it to ladder rack). Even directions says it can blow over in 35mph winds, and we camp on beach a lot.

Since you did not purchase the X2 yet have you considered putting up a permanent sat antenna on the roof instead horsing around getting a portable up and down on a ladder or roof every time you move?

[Dutch_12078]

towpro wrote:
I think winegard is being to narrow minded on this one.

I don't want my X2 (when I buy one) sitting out on a tri-pod.
I want to be able to set my X2 on roof or ladder rack where it is out of reach, out of way. But I also want to be able to clamp it down (or lock it to ladder rack). Even directions says it can blow over in 35mph winds, and we camp on beach a lot.

There are easy ways to anchor the tripod so it wont tip in stronger winds. Even our much larger tripod mounted triple LNB dish survived 60+ MPH winds with just two dog tie out screws anchoring it. The tripod mount gives you much more aiming flexibility.

[towpro]

I think winegard is being to narrow minded on this one.

I don't want my X2 (when I buy one) sitting out on a tri-pod.
I want to be able to set my X2 on roof or ladder rack where it is out of reach, out of way. But I also want to be able to clamp it down (or lock it to ladder rack). Even directions says it can blow over in 35mph winds, and we camp on beach a lot.

[finketim]

You all are right. Called Winegard. Not designed for roof mounting. It'd be fine if I never took it anywhere, but it's not designed for the wind while driving. Thanks to all.