Modified White's Classic II

[Mike95inNJ]

Well I went ahead and did the GB and threshold pots mod tonight. I have to say I did struggle with removing the old pots from the PCB. After that it was pretty much smooth sailing. I did take a glue gun and blobbed some over the soldered connections on the board to help with stability. I took it out to the driveway and did the power balancing over the asphalt. Thanks Monte . Afterwards I put a couple coins and my wedding ring on the grass in the backyard to try some air testing. It most definitely seems to have more depth in air tests. Especially in all metal mode. I was surprised how much better it picks up in disc mode as well. I guess I'll have to wait until the weekend to put it through it's rigors. I still have to get a couple of knobs for it.No biggie. Thanks Scott for your help with this,and thanks to Monte for your superb write up on the power balancing. Please do not attempt to do this if you do not have any experience with this kind of stuff. Here's a series of photos of it.
Happy Hunting, Mike in NJ

[EDDE]

its just me but since you had it all apart
y not weatherproof/waterproof the board and outer shell(inside and base) for crappy weather hunting
and dump the speaker ,just curious

[Mike95inNJ]

its just me but since you had it all apart
y not weatherproof/waterproof the board and outer shell(inside and base) for crappy weather hunting
and dump the speaker ,just curious

The plastic bag in crappy weather hunting has served me well for 10 yrs with this unit. Why dump the speaker? Any benefit from it?
Mike in NJ

[EDDE]

its just me but since you had it all apart
y not weatherproof/waterproof the board and outer shell(inside and base) for crappy weather hunting
and dump the speaker ,just curious

The plastic bag in crappy weather hunting has served me well for 10 yrs with this unit. Why dump the speaker? Any benefit from it?
Mike in NJ

not sure about the speaker ?your the guy moding thought youd have a better idea y to dump it then me

[Mike95inNJ]

its just me but since you had it all apart
y not weatherproof/waterproof the board and outer shell(inside and base) for crappy weather hunting
and dump the speaker ,just curious

The plastic bag in crappy weather hunting has served me well for 10 yrs with this unit. Why dump the speaker? Any benefit from it?
Mike in NJ

not sure about the speaker ?your the guy moding thought youd have a better idea y to dump it then me

I see no reason why to get rid of it.
Mike

[Ricardo_NY1]

Hey Mike,
Good to hear the Modification has went along smooth. Congrats. Did you take figures for your air tests before the mod to compare later? Nothing beats a do it yourself project........and the money saved. If you need any data about the 250, just let me know. I'll be dishing out the 250 review this Saturday. Hope we can get a before and after air test depth report on your mod. I've never used that detector, but this kind of thing is interesting.

[Mike95inNJ]

Hey Mike,
Good to hear the Modification has went along smooth. Congrats. Did you take figures for your air tests before the mod to compare later? Nothing beats a do it yourself project........and the money saved. If you need any data about the 250, just let me know. I'll be dishing out the 250 review this Saturday. Hope we can get a before and after air test depth report on your mod. I've never used that detector, but this kind of thing is interesting.

Ricardo I'd say about 1.5" more in air test when ground balanced over asphalt. In all metal it seems to be better as well. I hoping the ground isn't frozen tomorrow to go try it out a bit. I added a couple of old knobs from an amp. Here's the finished project.
Mike in NJ

[Ricardo_NY1]

1.5" is significant........I see a good chance of you finding new stuff in places you already went over......it's not going to be as cold tomorrow......high 40's? What's the depth for a quarter or dime on an air test after the mod?

[Mike95inNJ]

Ricardo a quarter is just a blip at 9 1/8" and a dime around 8" or so in airtests in my house. The headphones I've had for years are crappy but they're better than nothing. I just bought a cheap pair of treasure wise headphones with the separate volume controls on ebay for $16.95 plus $4.95 for shipping. I'll get the good headphones when I can afford to upgrade to a newer detector. I did'nt expect a quantum leap in changes with this Classic II when I did the mod,just the availability of being able to tweak it when needed. I'm one of those dig it all kinda guys. I pretty much dig everything except iron,and sometimes I dig that as well when searching a particular site. I did notice that when ground balanced it does very well in air tests in all metal. The way I look at it is digging it all gets alot junk outta the way to go back over again. In the past it has paid off with some nice finds. These air tests I just did was almost full sensitivity with barely any disc. After my endodontist appointment at 9:00 am I'm going to a local field to give it a go looking for just deep barely audible signals. Have'nt got much there lately. Might be a good place to test. I have seen other detectorists there in the past.Unfortunately I had to cash in my November's clad to have money to get through the work week. Wanted to put it towards a pinpointer. I wound up with $80.41 for the month. The coin machine only spit out three saltwater zinc pennies. Not too shabby. I'll keep you up to date.
Happy Hunting,
Mike in NJ

[kd8hf]

I've got a Classic ID. Is this modification for that unit as well ad if so, how can I get documentation on how to do the ID too?

Thanks, Gary

[Ricardo_NY1]

Based on those figures Mike, I'd say you're there if not ahead as far as the 250 goes, so why even bother. I'd say that Classic is now a reincarnation and needs to be taken out to find some more $! Happy hunting Mike.

[Mike95inNJ]

Based on those figures Mike, I'd say you're there if not ahead as far as the 250 goes, so why even bother. I'd say that Classic is now a reincarnation and needs to be taken out to find some more $! Happy hunting Mike.

I'm still thinking about getting the ACE 250 anyway. Maybe I'll get some bucks for Christmas. I tried the Classic II in wetsand today and it did pretty good. How's that ACE coming along for you?
Mike in NJ

[kd8hf]

Mike in NJ,

Would your method of upgrading the Classic II work for the Classic ID as well?

I was wondering because if it will then I may want to try it too, by the way, where can
I get the data to complete this installation?

Thanks in advance,

Gary

[Ricardo_NY1]

Hey Mike,
The ACE is coming along well. I've got the "X'ing" figured out, which to me was important, and now I'm just trying to get familiar with it. Right now my biggest challenge is figuring out how to eliminate all the bottle caps without accidentally blocking out good targets. The 250 likes caps, yet there is one notch that will eliminate most of them.........I have to now actually go out there and plant some pennies and more importantly, dimes to see how the detector reacts. I also like to place caps in the vicinity when I perform these tests. I think one of my biggest problems lately has been the lack of a proper digging tool. It's not the same digging a 4 inch hole and a 7 inch hole with a hand trowel.....I went out to home depot and got this 3" shovel thing. It was as long as a broom, but I cut it down to about 36 inches total. I've been passing up deeper targets with my sore wrist, but with this thing, I'm just waiting to dig a hole.

[Mike95inNJ]

Mike in NJ,

Would your method of upgrading the Classic II work for the Classic ID as well?

I was wondering because if it will then I may want to try it too, by the way, where can
I get the data to complete this installation?

Thanks in advance,

Gary

Hi Gary. First off this is not my mod. I got some info from other members here and gave it a go. I have alittle knowledge (not much) of electronics. I suggest if this is something you might want done to your detector you go to
http://www.surfscanner.com/Surfscan3/IDXPhotos.html
I've heard nothing but good things about Mr Bill's mods. Check it out.

Ricardo, I've found the Lesche digger to be the best (for me and I'm sure others). I've used mine for 10 years. I'm somewhat of a speed digger with it. I'm a righty but use it in my left hand because my detector is always velcroed to my right arm. Rarely do I take out my right arm unless it's one of those tough plugs to cut. Look into it,you might like it. After awhile I put a new edge on the blade side and use a small round file to redo the serrated side. I don't use it for cutting roots anymore. I got a small jab saw from home depot for $10. Works great.
Mike in NJ

[kd8hf]

Thanks Mike,

I'll doer.

Gary

[khouse]

the gb and threshold can be added to all the classic models including the id and idx.

[Mike95inNJ]

the gb and threshold can be added to all the classic models including the id and idx.

Yes they can.
Mike in NJ

[U.K. Brian]

kd8hf unless you have all the equipment you need and the skills why not just pay the $80 for your machine and get Mr.Bill to do all the mods including the boost that adds a couple of inches on its own ?
Its satisfying to do the work yourself if you can but care is needed. I modified a Treasure Baron and re-did the job three times before I realised I had bought a duff component.

[Mike95inNJ]

kd8hf unless you have all the equipment you need and the skills why not just pay the $80 for your machine and get Mr.Bill to do all the mods including the boost that adds a couple of inches on its own ?
Its satisfying to do the work yourself if you can but care is needed. I modified a Treasure Baron and re-did the job three times before I realised I had bought a duff component.

Yes, definitely don't try this unless you have some experience with this kind of stuff. You don't want to destroy your detector.
Mike in NJ