Anyone Using Dish Tailgater? - Montana Owners Club

RKassl · 10-27-2012, 10:06 AM

Would like to talk to folks who are using the Dish Tailgater. We just finished using it for the Spring and Summer.

Particularly interested in signal strength and initial orientation of the unit before you scan.

wingerphil · 10-27-2012, 12:19 PM

We have used one for the last year. Didn't pay too much attention to actual signal strength but as far as orientation I just made sure it had a clear view to the South and let it do its thing.
Usually only took 5-10 minutes or less from set out to watching our shows.

Phil

BB_TX · 10-27-2012, 03:53 PM

We just used one for the first time this year. Like Phil, I just checked for a clear view of the southern sky using the dishformyrv app for the Iphone.
I did check the signal strength a couple times on the setup screen. Seemed to not get as strong signal as the basic tripod dish, but still received TV signals fine, most of the time. In southern Colorado, I could never get it to lock on. Had to break out the tripod. Took some effort even with it, but finally got sats 110 and 119.

grampachet · 10-27-2012, 05:50 PM

First season user here, and had to send receiver back as it died. They were going to charge me $75 for a new one, I called and discussed with them it only lasted two camping trips, which were long weekends. They reversed the charges.
The interesting thing was I had dropped the satellite off the dining slideout and when it would not work I was so unhappy with myself, kick kick. But I went ahead and called DISH and they ran checks and it was that receiver. After receiving a new receiver one it all works like new. That dish/tailgater must be one tough chunk of something. I only tell you this as I thought it was so fragile I was afraid to even bump it. But I do not recommend dropping it like I did.
I think the receiver died because it got too hot, as it was sitting on the DVD player inside the cabinet under the TV. All this to let you know our signal strength is strong, unit is easy to set up (and drop), Dish folks are OK to work with.

RKassl · 10-28-2012, 04:15 AM

Our first Tailgater died in New York in the early summer, Since there was a one year warranty as we passed Bloomington,MN we stopped in at King Controls for service. They said the drive motor failed and replaced it with a factory rebuilt and with the remainder of the original warranty. With the best exposure to the south we never get more than 35% on any of the three satellites. Our friends had some issues with their Tailgater and were told the best way for orientation is to always point the handle to the north. It is an amazing piece of technology, I am curious how long it will last. We had some trouble with a software upgrade in the Spring with some help from King Controls there was a work around.

Have you noticed that when you move from say 129 to 110 you get the "complete signal loss" message? We found also that if you are on say a HD station on 129 and want to go to s SD like the Sirius music channel I will move to the SD version which is 119 and then the movement to the new channel is much faster.

I did purchase the Winnagard mini tripod to keep the Tailgater out of the mud. The foot print of the Tailgater matches the mounting holes for the Tailgater perfectly.

brenkco · 10-28-2012, 04:29 AM

I just recently opted for the Tailgater and so far been very pleased. I have just attached the cable when we parked and by the time I get setup, the tailgater has found the satellites, connected and downloaded the program guide. No issues as far switching from satellite to satellite. I do set the handle north. Good to know about the tripod.

Ken

sreigle · 10-28-2012, 04:31 AM

We got ours last January, after seeing CountryGuy's setup, and have been very pleased with it. We don't have a tripod and I'm not sure why I'd need one. I have set the tailgater on the ground, on a picnic table, and even on the roof of our Montana, where I chain it to the AC unit so it won't blow off (which has never been a problem).

I've not paid much attention to signal strength. I just point it generally south and it finds the satellites. The tech support people told me the internal dish rotates 360 degrees so I guess even if you point it north it will find the satellites. But I guess pointing it south finds them more quickly.

Sometimes I do consult a website when we have obstacles and I want to make sure we have a clear shot at the satellites. There is a website at www.dishpointer.com I use to figure out where the satellites are and whether that tree is going to be a problem. It also lets me point it generally closer to where the satellites are, for a quicker hookup. I think it might help, anyhow.

For those unaware, when you call for tech support or, especially, when you want to call to give them your new "physical location" you don't want to call the regular support number. Most of those people don't know about the tailgater and "rv pay as you go" setup and they want to change your permanent address. Instead, use the number on the tailgater manual. Those folks are dedicated to support rv pay as you go. They will take the new address and beam you the locals for that area. That number is 888.854.9535 . These folks are very helpful and very knowledgeable.

If anyone wonders what the "rv pay as you go" setup is, we pay only for the months we use the satellite. When we get somewhere with really good cable, we just don't pay our bill. That's the method they say to use. Our satellite service goes dormant. When ready to restart, we just call that 888 number and they restart it immediately and our new month starts at that time. Again, the people at that 888 number understand this. The people at the regular dish tech support number sometimes do not. So use the 888 number.

I'm not an expert and I'm not on here very often so if anyone has questions I can help with, just click the email icon above this post and send me an email. I'd be glad to try to answer questions as best I can.

wingerphil · 10-28-2012, 05:41 AM

Steve is right on as far as getting support from Dish. If you happen to get the "regular" support at Dish ask for the "RV Support" right out of the box to avoid any issues or delays.

Phil
ps: thanks for the 888 number Steve, I had lost track of my manual with the number in it.

Dixiedawg · 10-29-2012, 01:16 PM

We've had our tailgater for less than a year and have no complaints. Like others, we just generally point it south and it just works. We did buy a new VIP211K receiver dedicated to the Monty in order to get the east and west coast feeds when we travel south this winter. We like the pay as go feature, and when we head south will put our home receivers in vacation mode. Thanks Steve for the Dish RV tech phone number. All in all, we are very satisfied with the tailgater.

sreigle · 11-25-2012, 11:53 AM

That 888 number is no longer in service. It tells you now to call the regular number. However, the customer service tech told me he was transferring me to the RV Support section. So in the future I will call the regular number and immediately ask them to transfer me. It would be nice if it were an option in the voice menu thing.

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