G'Day Steve - Long post
June 03, 1998 at 13:41:31
In Reply to: Re: http://www.accuratelocators.com/sd2100.htm - long post
posted by Steve on June 03, 1998 at 08:32:09
G'Day Steve,
To answer your questions, as a matter of fact we will be in Cool for a few days, Kal isn't that far, maybe we can get together to share some insights. Cue has been our home base for several years. We worked Mount Magnet, Boogardie, Cuddingwarra, and now we are working a good patch west of Meek. One of our mates is working there now, he's been down there since February.
We always bring a slew of new machines to Oz, it offsets our trip expenses. There will be three of us this year, so we will bring several extra machines, including LST's, and Pulse 8X's. If the LST can handle the hot ground at our claim, it can handle anything Oz throws at it. I'll keep you posted, so far, I like what I've seen, especially the low price. For the price of a SD 2100 (or 2200d) with extra coils, you can buy a Pulse 8X, LST, extra coils for each, and enough Foster's to throw a party so big they'll name a Mount in your honor. I'm glad I don't have to carry just one machine along, that would be a tough choice. I'm more optimistic about the LST than I thought, I have never been a fan of the brown machines, the Lobo being an exception, once you get the rattle out of the pole/stem assembly. Too bad they don't have a MMax LST yet, that might really tip the scales for me. Lighter is better!
How long do you think it will be before gold machines are set up like White's XLT? LCD's, computer docking, WWW, GPS, pager, and cellular phone all rolled into one. Fossickers will be talking about numbers and custom gold programs, the way they do for coins and relics. I personally like the tack Tesoro took in downsizing their machines. Too bad they can't put the SD on a diet, wouldn't it be great if it weighed in under two pounds with a 12" ultra thin, eliptical coil? If HP can build palm size computers that weigh a few ounces, it's possible. Too bad HP doesn't build a metal detector, it would be state of the art.
I got an e-mail from our mate in WA last night, he bought a 16" coil for his SD, and complains how awkward it is, and has null spots in the coils field. Have you tried the big loop yet, if so, what's your take on it? In the conditions you described, I think it would be problematic. I can't use the 11" when things heat up, the machine goes nuts! The 2000 wasn't as noisy, I wonder why?
There is a simple solution for earphone blast, the cans I use are ultra sensitive, high end units, and they can go ultra loud. Bob installed a diode with a copper wound pot that limits the upper volume, without affecting lower volume, or faint signals. The parts cost less than five dollars, I think. It doesn't take a NASA scientist to install a clipping circuit. If you surf the net, I'm sure there must be volumes of information on noise reduction circuits available. If we meet up, try mine, they are pricy but well worth it. I get a charge out of guys spending $3000 for a detector, and whine about spending $100 for headphones, or better yet, the wonderphones assembled using generic parts in a garage workshop. The best is just good enough.
Our mate, near Cue, loves the new MMax Diablo. The first thing he did was replace the aluminum rod assembly with a straight lite weight graphite tube, SD style, shorten the cord, and run it straight along the bottom of the tube to a point near the control unit. The cable is encased in shrink tubing to protect it, and keep it in place. He thinks twisting the cord around the stem and rod causes a loss in RF energy. He even removed the speaker, to reduce weight and magnetism from the field. He has some radical ideas, but he has found one hell of a collection of gold! He's into Ham radio, so maybe he's on to something.
If you are interested, I'll e-mail the changes he made to my V/SAT, it's much lighter, the controls are more convienient, and the balance is superb. You can swing it all day without having an aching forearm and wrist.
Bob was a dyed in the wool A2b fan, he must have a dozen A2b's in various configurations. After we smoked the A2b's so bad last fall, he's starting to come around. Bob will turn 60 this August, he's been a great mate over the years, so when we head back home, I'll be leaving the 2100 behind.
I think a positive attitude is essential to success, you have to believe in your equipment, and your ability. When you hunt with Bob, you can't have any metal on you, not even a ring. After he grids a small patch, he places the tools well away from the detector. Once he gets a good signal, he places a plastic chip on the spot, gets the pick, retrieves the target, tosses the pick back near the tool bucket, and starts all over again, it works for him.
HH
Viper
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