---
title: "Birdcage"
description: Satellite dish control for amateur radio tracking
template: splash
hero:
  tagline: Repurposing motorized satellite TV dishes for amateur radio satellite tracking
  image:
    file: ../../assets/carryout-g2.jpg
    alt: Winegard Carryout G2 satellite dish — the white dome radome that inspired the project name
  actions:
    - text: Get Started
      link: /getting-started/
      icon: right-arrow
    - text: Console Commands
      link: /reference/console-commands/
      variant: minimal
---

import { Card, CardGrid, LinkCard, Aside } from '@astrojs/starlight/components';

<Aside type="tip" title="Standing on the shoulders of saveitforparts">
This project builds directly on the open-source work of **Gabe Emerson (KL1FI)** and his
[saveitforparts](https://www.youtube.com/@saveitforparts) YouTube channel. Gabe documented
five different Winegard dish variants, wrote Python control scripts for each, and shared
everything on GitHub. Without his work, none of this would exist.
[Read the full story &rarr;](/journal/origins/)
</Aside>

## Why "Birdcage"?

The Carryout G2's white dome radome does look like a birdcage -- and in ham radio, satellites are called "birds." A birdcage catches birds from the sky.

It's also a nod to [saveitforparts](https://www.youtube.com/@saveitforparts). Gabe saves discarded RV satellite dishes "for parts." We took the parts and built a birdcage from them.

## What is this?

Winegard makes motorized satellite TV dishes -- the Trav'ler, Carryout, and their variants -- designed to automatically find DirecTV and DISH Network satellites from an RV rooftop. They have stepper motors for azimuth and elevation, firmware consoles accessible over RS-485 or RS-422, and enough mechanical range to track objects across most of the sky.

Birdcage repurposes that hardware for **amateur radio satellite tracking**: pointing a dish at LEO and GEO satellites using orbital prediction software like Gpredict, controlled via the Hamlib `rotctld` protocol.

Along the way, we've reverse-engineered the firmware console of the Carryout G2 (all 12 submenus, 100+ commands), mapped the K60 MCU's GPIO pins live over serial, built a BLE-to-RS422 wireless bridge, and discovered a built-in radio telescope mode.

## Where to start

<CardGrid>
  <Card title="Getting Started" icon="rocket">
    What hardware you need, how to connect, and your first satellite track.
    [Start here &rarr;](/getting-started/)
  </Card>
  <Card title="Guides" icon="open-book">
    Task-oriented guides: wiring, calibration, search disabling, firmware probing, BLE bridge build.
    [Browse guides &rarr;](/guides/wiring/)
  </Card>
  <Card title="Reference" icon="document">
    Complete firmware command inventory, NVS settings, GPIO pin maps, hardware specs.
    [See reference &rarr;](/reference/firmware-variants/)
  </Card>
  <Card title="Understanding" icon="puzzle">
    Software architecture, hardware platform internals, reverse-engineering methodology.
    [Deep dives &rarr;](/understanding/architecture/)
  </Card>
</CardGrid>

## Supported hardware

Five Winegard dish variants are documented, with varying levels of testing:

| Variant | Connection | Status |
|---------|-----------|--------|
| Trav'ler (HAL 0.0.00) | RS-485 / RJ-25 | Supported (Gabe's original) |
| Trav'ler (HAL 2.05) | RS-485 / RJ-25 | Supported (Gabe's original) |
| Trav'ler Pro | USB A-to-A | Partially supported |
| Carryout (2003) | RS-485 / RJ-25 | Supported (different protocol) |
| Carryout G2 | RS-422 / RJ-12 | **Fully reverse-engineered** |

The Carryout G2 has the most complete documentation — over 100 firmware commands mapped across 12 submenus, NVS settings dumped, GPIO pins identified, and motor control characterized.

<LinkCard title="Firmware Variant Comparison" href="/reference/firmware-variants/" description="Detailed comparison table of all five variants: baud rates, motor commands, position formats, and protocol differences." />

## Project journal

This isn't just a reference manual. The [project journal](/journal/) captures the story of how we got here — the debugging sessions, the discoveries, the moments where a `?` in the right submenu revealed a whole new capability. It's a living section that grows as the project evolves.

<LinkCard title="Read the journal" href="/journal/" description="Discovery stories, debugging sessions, and the ongoing narrative of this project." />