Frank Starlinkenstein (Starlink 12v project)

[MisterB1959]

i realise many people have already carried out some sort of 12v conversion and flat mount process, but i thought i would bring this you tube series to the fore. Its based on some great work by Oleg Kutkov from the Ukraine who has carried out quite a few repairs to keep their Starlinks working. check out his blogs on line they are really interesting for anyone looking to make changes .

The videos (3 part series) Its a 12v conversion that i have already undertaken (the you tube videos are NOT mine). i like the videos as they show everything, warts and all including mistakes they made and how they would do it differently,

the videos can be found by searching for Offgrid Power Solutions - not sure if you tube links are allowed?


i have already succesfully got the 12v starlink working with a one cable input, i used a standard ethernet cable WITHOUT POE by dedicating four wires from a router for the data and the other four, twisted into two pairs, to supply the power. so its a basic setup, router powered by 12v, the ethernet 'power' wires also supplied by 12v at the same pint as the router. when the ethernet goes into the dishy (i call it FranK Starlinkenstein) the cable splits again into the separate 12v and data feeds.

it reduced the data stream to less than 100mbs, but i can live with that download speed.

Not content with that i am now experimenting with stripping out the original router circuitry and installing inside the new starlink housing. this will allow me just to use a single 12v cable as all the router bits will be inside the housing -

so i suppose i am asking if anyone else has done this. i thought of this project last year, before the mini was introduced and it does have advantages over the mini in that it still allows max data speeds (in my opinion!) i just need to ensure that when i strip out the router board and connect it purely to 12v that it doesnt send 12v through the POE and into the dish - it doesnt need 48v as thats the voltage required due to cable length and driving the motor, snow melt etc. it will then be ...

The Child of Frank Starlinkenstein ...... LOL

i would love to be able to fit an internal rechargeable battery, so it would become truly portable albeit a little bit heavier and it would need to run the starlink for at least four hours before recharge to make it 'useful'


has anyone else had any other ideas re making changes to their starlink?

This the conversion attached to my motorhome (RV) - it's only temporary while I tested it.



One of my earlier projects re the one cable solution

 

[grizzzman]

So you went straight to 12 volts. How long is your CAT cable and what is the AWG in the cable? Is it shielded?. My guess is that it is on the short side due to the CAP you used.
Nice job by the way.

 

[MisterB1959]

Thanks, I used a cat 6 exterior grade ethernet cable for the original mod, but it was quite a short cable. I didn't experiment re cable lengths or size as I realised I could do it better with a single 12v cable and integrated router.

Just to confirm.. I am not a tech guru, I am of the generation that struggles with technology to be honest, but it also makes me question most things and to try to find a simpler solution. I am hoping by sharing what I have done will encourage other, much more technically minded people to take things a bit further ( and show me how I should have done it lol!)

The Child of Frank Starlinkenstein will be hopefully developing this week, so I will post on it's it's progress ...

Re your comment 'nice job', I appreciate your comment but I must point out that Oleg Kutkov is the real power behind my fumbling attempts ....I'm only following in the footsteps of giants ....

 

[grizzzman]

Thanks, I used a cat 6 exterior grade ethernet cable for the original mod, but it was quite a short cable. I didn't experiment re cable lengths or size as I realised I could do it better with a single 12v cable and integrated router.

Just to confirm.. I am not a tech guru, I am of the generation that struggles with technology to be honest, but it also makes me question most things and to try to find a simpler solution. I am hoping by sharing what I have done will encourage other, much more technically minded people to take things a bit further ( and show me how I should have done it lol!)

The Child of Frank Starlinkenstein will be hopefully developing this week, so I will post on it's it's progress ...

Re your comment 'nice job', I appreciate your comment but I must point out that Oleg Kutkov is the real power behind my fumbling attempts ....I'm only following in the footsteps of giants ....

I have followed Oleg for years now, so I knew that. I just lack the balls to hack my StarLink, I have done the "other" 12 volt conversion. My biggest issue is at times I am in the forest camping and with the 30 foot flagpole I still can stream tv and surf with hardly any drop outs so cutting it up would limit where I could use it.