Plans set for electronic receiver

[signal_line]

Been over a year since I last posted to this thread. A lot of things have changed but many stay the same. My health is on the mend. Not there totally yet, but I am starting to feel better. Been struggling with allergies since the first of the year. Painful joints because of it. Then i had a heart scare--got a bad leaky heart valve. Just what I needed! Bad medicine made things worse all around. Got rid of that but it has been six months healing.

Anyway enough of the pity party stuff. I'm starting to feel better even getting out jogging. And best thing I'm here to say is I really feel like i have made some headway with the Contraption. You might say i think I have discovered some of the secrets. I mean it really appears to be working nearly flawlessly. Oh crap, i shouldn't have said that! So I plan to get it out here soon and see if I am just delusional or if it really is a miracle. Maybe Dell has been communicating with me, I don't know. My biggest issue has been getting false hits and I think I have that one solved, i mean i hope I do. I will know soon.

 

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[signal_line]

Had a few ups and downs with the Contraption, but got all new frequencies now and pleased with the results. The Contraption is different and the frequencies I use probably won't work on other locators. I'm still in disbelief of this whole thing. I am going to try to not make any more changes on this and get the circuit boards designed/built. Just plan to stick with these frequencies. Been trying to develop a more reliable scanning technique and getting some success there.

 

[signal_line]

I slapped this together today. About what i think the general form will look like for the transmitter. Still have to enclose the electronics and of coure replace the rubber bands with brackets.

 

[Rik601]

No they won't I am an Electronics tech with lots of experience building and repairing metal detectors , you need training and experience to actually develop a real detector !!

 

[Rik601]

You actually need a lot of knowledge to come up with a prototype and this is just junk !!

 

[Rik601]

So what planet are you from ??

 

[signal_line]

Yeah, stupid me. After saying I wasn't going to change anything I couldn't help myself and started messing with a different transmitter antenna. I kinda wish it just would have been a failure so i could quit working on it, but it seems to not produce as many false responses. Haven't had much time with it so probably have a long ways to go. If it works it will be worth it. i mean i know it works, just how well it works is what i need to find out.

 

[signal_line]

You actually need a lot of knowledge to come up with a prototype and this is just junk !!

Well, actually you just need to THINK you're smart. LOL Smart people know better than to open up such a can of worms!

Knowledge? I've learned a little bit over the internet. Learned more by one failure after another over the past four years.

yeah, the Contraption is "Out of this world".

 

[signal_line]

Anybody want some self-improvement (notice I said "want"--we ALL need it) there is a free youtube channel "The Softer Side" might find something of use to you to help you feel better about life and maybe remove some negativity. That one's the killer. Sometimes just taking a step back and reflecting on your life can bring about big changes. not going to happen by just wishing.

Me, yeah, I struggle some times. This project about did me in more than once. Trying to do a project like this solo is pretty much insane (Am i ever stubborn!), but this one has become my life work. Quite the paradox here, I still have a hard time believing this thing but another part of me won't let me quit working on it.

 

[signal_line]

The new transmitter antenna design needs more work (puke icon here). Oh well, got a few months before Spring to try out some ideas indoors. Typically i just get small increments of improvement. Kinda like an eye exam--"which one is less blurred?" Well, got the urge to find out.

 

[chub]

The blue box looks like a garden irrigation computer. I thought Id better write something to flesh out your diary style thread.

chub

 

[signal_line]

Yeah, i am learning that cosmetic appearance means more to some people than others. Me, I'm happy with cardboard, rubber bands and duck tape/hay wire. LOL There was little attempt to make this soothing to the eye. I suppose when i get some financial backer they will want to work on that part of it. Most of those hand-held locators have some fancy "Star Wars" case i refer to as "sucker bait". The case cost twenty times more than the electronics inside. LOL

No water irrigation here, only an electronic "shower".

Need to get some more wire and get back to the work bench. Can't rest until I try some new antenna ideas.

 

[signal_line]

No they won't I am an Electronics tech with lots of experience building and repairing metal detectors , you need training and experience to actually develop a real detector !!

I don't have any formal electronics training and my soldering skills are weak. Poor eyesight, shaky hands, poor memory, I'm sure there's something else but I forgot. LOL Yeah, all this has slowed me down to a crawl. Probably somebody with more knowledge could have helped me get this far in less time, but maybe not if we couldn't agree on things, so here i am solo freeflight. And sure, I wish i had somebody who would do everything for me. LOL So i just keep chipping away. This project has taught me some valuable lessons. Things i once thought were not possible i see are within reach. Gotta maintain the optimism and sometimes that is overwhelmingly difficult. When that happens, put it on the shelf and come back later. I'm not some total idiot as some probably think. Actually have decent analytical skills, been a computer programmer in a previous life (1980's). And I've been at this long range locator quest since the late 1970's. Of course I've heard it over and over "you can't do that. It's impossible." No, it's not!

 

[signal_line]

UPDATE: Got new coil built. Only tested indoors. So far I like it but will do some outdoor testing and see how it works at longer distance to see if it is "less blurred". LOL

 

[signal_line]

Didn't get enough time on it yet, but initial results show the new coil has some improvement in signal clarity. I was maybe expecting more, but I then realized the new coil is only about one-third the size. So it's apples vs oranges. But the fact it worked a little better means that a bigger size should show more improvement.

So it's good news. It's easier to build, too. It's going to take a few days testing before I make the final determination.

 

[signal_line]

Built another transmitter coil, this one the same size as the original. Only spent a few minutes with it outdoors. Nothing earth-shaking to report but I plan to work with it for a while and see how it compares.

 

[signal_line]

The verdict is in: without question, the new coil has more power. As I suspected. i was able to somewhat measure the field out in front of the coil by comparing the two coils. It does seem to grab targets better especially the ones out on the edges of the search field. i still plan to do a bunch more testing, but looks good right now.

 

[signal_line]

I tested five different coils and got one standout out of the bunch. At least on my measurements. I feel like I accomplished something here. More testing to know for sure. But good initial results.

 

[signal_line]

I didn't realize it's been so long since I last posted on the project. I was hoping for some cooler weather to do some searching but the cold and snow hit early with about 14" and temps down near zero, but things are trying to warm up into the 50's and good chance the snow will melt.

I've been working on a different receiver antenna. The original ferrite is unavailable and a bit expensive so this latest one avoids these issues. Although I haven't spent much time with it I like the way it is working. Hits the targets out on the sides of the search area better.

 

[signal_line]

I know an electronics engineer and sometime I will see if I can get him interested in this project. At least I think he can give me some good ideas/knowledge.

I've been rushing to get things caught-up before Winter hits so haven't had much time to do any more testing. But I am getting desperate and if I have to go in the snow, so be it.