I pulled a "GDMax" yesterday and left my scoop at home. Hal and I drove 45 minutes to the lake before the gaff was discovered. Guess I can join the GDMax Big Boo-Boo club, now. Ah, well - moments of brilliance...
Well, good old Hal had yet another detector, this time trading his Tiger Shark for a Whites Beach Hunter ID. All I can say is that it wasnt a great trade. Okay, thats not all I can say...
I know there are plenty of you who like the BHID, so I'll go easy. But in all, I found it to be less than worthy. Here's how it went astray.
1. Heavy and ill balanced.
Compared to the Tiger Shark...well it does'nt compare.
2. The control box is too bouyant.
Once it submerges, it begins fighting you for control, trying to float up. Too much air trapped inside.
3. The control box is fixed under the cuff.
The only option is hip/chest mounting. Truly, this is not a biggie as I like chest mounting for a water detector. But, I thought that while I was nit-picking, I'd toss this in.
4. The THRESHOLD kept drifting
It was always increasing in amplitude. Every few minutes it needed adjusting back down. I went through the GB exercise numerous times, at a lake beach I know has stable bottom conditions. What's up with that?
5. The pin-point was, well, not.
It was drifty and hard to nail precisely. The signal acted like it was always moving around. Keep in mind I use a Tiger Shark in fresh water, so Im spoiled.
6. The battery cover is suspect.
I didnt monkey with it, but at first glance it is a goofy affair consisting of a clamped strap held captive between two flimsy plastic pins. Others have had problems with it and I confess it didn't instill confidence in me. Again, I use a Tiger Shark, which suffers from no such worries.
7. THE BOUYANT COIL ISSUE
Yep, its true. If you've heard about it, rest assured - the coil floats when under water. It, too, is always fighting you for control like the control box. It reminded me of some lumbering, slow-motion whale, trying to breach back to the surface. Use this thing for long and you can cash-out your gym membership.
To offset this, you have to do silly things like tie a sand-filled sock to the lower rod, or come up with some sort of weight to offset the bouyancy. Hal had his with the required sand filled sock AND a generous wrapping of duct tape in an effort to keep things secure. In all honesty, it looked ridiculous.
To make matters worse, at one point I lifted the coil from the water when a nearby kid spotted the "sock and duct tape" rig - and, oh dear Mercy, began to howl with laughter. He was pointing and shouting something at his mom while he roared. She hollered back at him, something to the effect that he should behave himself and leave that guy alone. Luckily, I had headphones on and couldn't hear all that the little urchin had said.
Now in all fairness, there were some things I liked - A LOT
1. It has an audible THRESHOLD
I'm old school - thresholds should be audible, whining along in the background. The BHID has one in the DISC mode. Goodie!
2. It has Manual GB
This should be an option on nearly all detectors, especially in and around the water where conditions can vary so much.
3. It has iron null
The DISC has an iron null feature. Again, Im old school - iron should null out, or at least you should have the option of selectng this feature. With the BHID, unless it was a corroding engine block, most smallish iron nulled the threshold. I like it.
4. Tone AND visual ID
Hooray! This is nice, nice, nice in the water. It is a boon when hunting to have these features in the water - since you can't see squat for the most part. And surprise...the lights are bright enough to see clearly in bright sunlight.
5. The DISC set up
There is NONE! In the water, you dont need to fiddle with a DISC knob.... you are interested in knowing about everything. On the BHID, switching to DISC enters a pre-programmed arrangement of conductivity blocking, based on:
Low range - iron... red light and low tone/nulling
Midrange - foil, nickles, tabs, gold... yellow light and midtone
High range - coins and silver... Green light and high tone.
With all the good things going for it, I am baffled by Whites seeming disinterest in improving this model. If they only went to a printed, epoxy coil like everyone else has, this sucker would really shine.
Include the chest mount rig when you buy one and we're getting somewhere, boys.
Admittedly, I havent used it for an entire season, done any air testing or any of the other things BHID afficionado's will say I should do. But, I've been detecting for 20 years and have tried beaucoup detectors. Thanks to Hal and his weekly trades, I get to try a lot more these days. Thanks, Hal - what a partner!
But, since I am no novice and have used, owned and employ some of the best gear around, I put more than little stock in first impressions.
White's, I dont hate it - you're really on to something. But are you listening?
Well, good old Hal had yet another detector, this time trading his Tiger Shark for a Whites Beach Hunter ID. All I can say is that it wasnt a great trade. Okay, thats not all I can say...
I know there are plenty of you who like the BHID, so I'll go easy. But in all, I found it to be less than worthy. Here's how it went astray.
1. Heavy and ill balanced.
Compared to the Tiger Shark...well it does'nt compare.
2. The control box is too bouyant.
Once it submerges, it begins fighting you for control, trying to float up. Too much air trapped inside.
3. The control box is fixed under the cuff.
The only option is hip/chest mounting. Truly, this is not a biggie as I like chest mounting for a water detector. But, I thought that while I was nit-picking, I'd toss this in.
4. The THRESHOLD kept drifting
It was always increasing in amplitude. Every few minutes it needed adjusting back down. I went through the GB exercise numerous times, at a lake beach I know has stable bottom conditions. What's up with that?
5. The pin-point was, well, not.
It was drifty and hard to nail precisely. The signal acted like it was always moving around. Keep in mind I use a Tiger Shark in fresh water, so Im spoiled.
6. The battery cover is suspect.
I didnt monkey with it, but at first glance it is a goofy affair consisting of a clamped strap held captive between two flimsy plastic pins. Others have had problems with it and I confess it didn't instill confidence in me. Again, I use a Tiger Shark, which suffers from no such worries.
7. THE BOUYANT COIL ISSUE
Yep, its true. If you've heard about it, rest assured - the coil floats when under water. It, too, is always fighting you for control like the control box. It reminded me of some lumbering, slow-motion whale, trying to breach back to the surface. Use this thing for long and you can cash-out your gym membership.
To offset this, you have to do silly things like tie a sand-filled sock to the lower rod, or come up with some sort of weight to offset the bouyancy. Hal had his with the required sand filled sock AND a generous wrapping of duct tape in an effort to keep things secure. In all honesty, it looked ridiculous.
To make matters worse, at one point I lifted the coil from the water when a nearby kid spotted the "sock and duct tape" rig - and, oh dear Mercy, began to howl with laughter. He was pointing and shouting something at his mom while he roared. She hollered back at him, something to the effect that he should behave himself and leave that guy alone. Luckily, I had headphones on and couldn't hear all that the little urchin had said.
Now in all fairness, there were some things I liked - A LOT
1. It has an audible THRESHOLD
I'm old school - thresholds should be audible, whining along in the background. The BHID has one in the DISC mode. Goodie!
2. It has Manual GB
This should be an option on nearly all detectors, especially in and around the water where conditions can vary so much.
3. It has iron null
The DISC has an iron null feature. Again, Im old school - iron should null out, or at least you should have the option of selectng this feature. With the BHID, unless it was a corroding engine block, most smallish iron nulled the threshold. I like it.
4. Tone AND visual ID
Hooray! This is nice, nice, nice in the water. It is a boon when hunting to have these features in the water - since you can't see squat for the most part. And surprise...the lights are bright enough to see clearly in bright sunlight.
5. The DISC set up
There is NONE! In the water, you dont need to fiddle with a DISC knob.... you are interested in knowing about everything. On the BHID, switching to DISC enters a pre-programmed arrangement of conductivity blocking, based on:
Low range - iron... red light and low tone/nulling
Midrange - foil, nickles, tabs, gold... yellow light and midtone
High range - coins and silver... Green light and high tone.
With all the good things going for it, I am baffled by Whites seeming disinterest in improving this model. If they only went to a printed, epoxy coil like everyone else has, this sucker would really shine.
Include the chest mount rig when you buy one and we're getting somewhere, boys.
Admittedly, I havent used it for an entire season, done any air testing or any of the other things BHID afficionado's will say I should do. But, I've been detecting for 20 years and have tried beaucoup detectors. Thanks to Hal and his weekly trades, I get to try a lot more these days. Thanks, Hal - what a partner!
But, since I am no novice and have used, owned and employ some of the best gear around, I put more than little stock in first impressions.
White's, I dont hate it - you're really on to something. But are you listening?