Whites TDI and the newbies

[Digger Bob]

It has been quite a week for my TDI. Last week I found 3 nuggets all about 1.5 dwt.
Saturday I took out some newbies and loaned them my detector to hunt my "secret spot". Each of them had half a day to use it and neither had ever found a nugget or used a detector before.
With only about 5 minutes of instruction and follow up observation, off they went. By the end of the day I had 2 VERY happy new friends.
The lady found 3 nuggets, the largest of which was 2.5 dwt.
The fellow found only one, but it was a beauty, 3.5 dwt!

There's more to the story, but the pictures speak for them selves.

Digger Bob

 

[fredm]

Wow, Bob...for so many reasons, that is amazing!!!


Fred

 

[tvanwho]

Can you please tell us the settings to use and what to listen for Bob and how hot was the ground? 5 minutes instructions and gold the first time out is mighty impressive. Took me several years to find my first nugget with my Lobo.

-Thanks-Tom

 

[Digger Bob]

Well, the settings are pretty straightforward.

Gain at 12.
Pulse at 10
Ground Balance 9
Threshold 12:00 (roughly)
Frequency 12:00
Conductivity - Low
GB and Power on, of course.

I have been able to use these settings most everywhere I have hunted. In this area the ground is not bad, moderate mineraliztion. In some areas I have to turn the gain down to about 6 to get a smooth threshold. But, the Ground Balance rarely changes,no matter what the ground.

So, for the rookies, I just set the machine to these settings, buried a nugget to show them what to listen for and sent them off. I followed them around for a bit pointing out good signals and bad signals, how to pinpoint and dig, recovery, that sort of thing. That was it. The machine is so easy to operate, anyone can get started with basic instruction. Learning what it all means and all the variations that are possible is another matter. That takes time and experience.

And as far as getting good gold the first time out? Well, beginners luck plays a part of course. But more importantly is to be in the right place at the right time. Shallow gold in a trash free environment is easy, you just dig everything. The gold here was shallow but NOT trash free. There is LOTS of lead and iron mixed in. The Low conductivity knocks out most large iron, but small iron, gold, and lead comes through as a nice Wee-wee sound. We had a pouch full of trash by the end of the day.

That's pretty much it. Except that larger nuggets will fall out with the iron and that's a nuance that comes with patience and practice. Depending on the depth, size, shape, and purity of the gold, that will determine how it sounds. There are techniques for dealing with that but too much to get into with a rookie.

Digger Bob

 

[Bob (OHIO)]

I have to ask that question that no one has asked yet. Is it worth the price they're asking?????? HH Bob

 

[Digger Bob]

In my opinion, yes, it is very much worth it. If you already have one of the big Minelabs, then maybe not. But for the occasional nugget shooter or even the semi serious ones, yes.
It strikes a nice balance between the GMT and the over-priced pulse machines. It's easy to set up and use. It is immune to hot ground, no hot rocks, no interference, lighter, better balanced, waterproof loops, and lots of loops to choose from. You will get more depth than your GMT or MXT, but not quite as much as a GP machine.
I still have and will continue to use my GP 3000 for those occasions that demand it. But I find myself pulling out the TDI more and more to quickly check out an area because I know I will be able to find 90% of the gold that's detectable there.
And although I've never used it for this, the coin hunters are finding out about it. Once the nuances are mastered, they are finding more and deeper coins than any other machine out there. I've heard stunning reports from the beach and relic hunters about their successes.

Digger Bob

 

[Bob (OHIO)]

n/t

 

[tvanwho]

n/t