Hi Jim,
Glad you are having fun with the GS 5.
For the last couple of weeks I have been fighting my old GS. I introduced a problem a couple of weeks ago that took a while to figure out. I decided to update a couple of the IC's and installed a newer "improved" version. Well, the result was less than optimal. In fact, it was the first time I ever had a new IC come with an intermittent problem.
Getting back to the GS and GS 5 and their ability to determine tin can type junk, you are right, you can determine a lot of the tin just by using the disc control. In fact, I was doing that today while testing a different coil.
I was finally having fun with my old GS today (after solving the IC problem) by making a few changes and seeing just what can be done with different shaped coils. I just had to try a 4 to 1 (length to width) ratio coil to see just how sensitive it is. I just built up a couple different sizes and now I need to compare them a little closer.
The more one knows about the GS 5 design in regards to what they can do with it and how to do it, the more obvious the versatility of the machine becomes. Obviously, the GS 5 is far more versatile than an old GS I have even though it has been modified.
Since the ground adjust control is also the disc control, then there are places where adjusting the ground adjust for optimum sensitivity may not allow the disc to work correctly. However, a quick switch of the control and one can test a target. This works well where there is little trash. The key is to determine the adjustment position to determine the flat metal trash. Because of this, I am considering adding a second control and the ability to switch between the two quickly.
On mine, I get a distinct double blip type signal on a piece of old tin can at the proper disc setting. Eric mentioned the GS 5 does the same. I don't get the distinct audio tone change you get, though. That would be a great plus. Gold, will either produce a smooth negative or positive response on mine, depending upon the size of the gold.
As for the general versatility of the machine, the ability to adjust the ground control over a wide range as well as adjust the delay over a fairly wide range allows the operator to "create" a whole lot of different operating machines. Just adjust the controls a little and the machine changes significantly.
As an example, I changed my maximum delay capability to about 25 usec which is about what the GS 5 has. At that setting, I do not need any ground balance adjust where I am testing since the ground signal is gone. So, I can run max sensitivity, no ground adjust and get some very decent depth on reasonably sized test nuggets. The down side is the real small stuff is gone and some basalt still presents a little problem. However, a slight tweek of the ground adjust and the basalt signal is gone.
I can see where I really need to start documenting different combinations that seem to work well together. It is all to easy to stumble into new settings that work well and forget about others that work well also.
Reg
