Tony

8 hours ago, GB_Amateur said:

This issue is likely more extreme in the Beach Hunter model than the dry land versions because of its water tight enclosure preventing convective cooling.  Were the 'big box' models, particularly the Pro which ran out-of-the-box at higher voltage (and current??), a significantly different circuit (and with different heat dissipation solutions)?

I suppose I could wedge the detector inside of my wetsuit and be very happy with the inbuilt heater ?

I’ve never owned other TDI models so can’t make much comment regarding that. So the board was seriously hot even completely exposed to the outside air so I can only imagine with it all sealed up. My electronics is quite basic but the spot behind the 4 big caps was the area of concern. There is no discolouration or noticeable problems on the board in relation to the heat and the detector runs just fine but I weighed up my options and decided to err on the side of safety by throttling back to a 12v setup......with the serious heat and 4 Lithium cells.....well you know where I’m going with this ? 

I opened up my TDIBH the other day for some fiddling around and checking out a few things. I powered up the detector with all of the guts and board opened up and had it hooked up to the 14.8v (4 x 18650 cells) battery pack. I had it going for just a few minutes when I gripped the circuit board as part of my “fiddling” around......well I dropped the board and swore a bit in response the burn I was expecting on my fingers. Well it turns out that on the opposite side of the board behind where the big capacitors sit is some sort of heat sink and I can tell you the heat from this spot was something else. The detector has and runs just perfect but the hotspot really surprised me. 
I decided to hook up the 12v battery pack and let it run for a decent amount of time and it never got past a mild warm on the back of the board. That extra couple of volts is generating some serious extra heat.....bit like on the heat sink area of the CPU chip in your computer.

I honestly don’t know if the detector can handle this extra heat long term but I’m not taking any chances. I’ve moved back to the 3 x 18650 battery pack which I knocked up when I first got the detector. There is a slight loss in depth but surprisingly not too much. I feel the performance of the 11.1v Lithium setup is maybe 1 to 2 inches behind the 14.8v “hot pack”.

You can see in the photos the big caps on the detector and where the heat comes from. The other photo is my 11.1v pack which packs some punch and lasts much longer then the stock NiMH pack.

10 hours ago, ALEXANDRE TARTAR said:

There isn't just one company profile, let's look at the jewelry world.

You can find companies that make a lot of low cost gold rings, but you can also find companies that make high quality and expensive jewelry in weak quantity.

But for all that, the turnover is higher at CARTIER in Paris than in the WALMART jewelry stores.

Here Cartier USD 45 000

 

And there’s probably $40,000 profit on that ring......?

5 hours ago, Ridge Runner said:

No company is in business for their health and all have to make a profit.

 If I make a PI detector do I want to sell one are do I want to sell hundreds. I can’t make a profit even selling one out of a hundred then why bother with a PI .

 If it’s some great detectors out there for under 1500. for land and beach then anything above that in price will be a hard sell.

 You can always find some willing to go for the high dollar ones but again it’s volume of sales that pays the bills.

 Chuck 

A big yes to this ⬆️

I was 13.......the rich kid down the road had a Whites and a Compass detector. I had this piece of junk (Micronta?)......but I loved it. Cost me $19.95 back in the day. A couple of years later I bought the Compass from the rich kid for a great price.....I think mainly due to the fact that I was a solid kid for my age and took care of a couple young punks who liked to beat up the rich kid. A couple of years later I “discovered” beer and girls and it would be another 20 years before those novelties wore off and I rediscovered my real passion of detecting again ?

TVR.......you are spot on when you refer to the AQ as a “niche” detector.
The problem for Fisher is niche detectors don’t pay the bills ?

I haven’t posted in some time but my feelings toward the AQ (assuming it makes production) are very mixed.....

The price is to be expected but certainly at the higher end of what most of us expected. The depth rating is UNACCEPTABLE at this price point. It will certainly be a matter of “when”  the detector leaks and not “if”. A 10 foot rating will not support prolonged submersion !

As I have mentioned before......Fisher needs to bring in a bare bones straight PI model for $2000 maximum......in a rated enclosure for > 100 feet. 
 

Yep.....Minelab GP3500. Spend some time looking for a pristine unit and I finally did. Managed to pick another one up a few months ago and it’s in even better condition......it’s a keeper this time.

1 hour ago, Pombo2000 said:

yes the metal detector works, with some hammer job i think to restore it.

You can send it to me and I’ll “restore it” with my hammer......?

I’m going to hold back what I really want to say because it will probably violate every rule in this great forum. I will say this though....knowingly buying a fake known brand detector only gives the incentive to make more and is another potential nail in the coffin for genuine manufacturers.

I’m glad someone recognised the value of the White’s brand and to let it wither and die on the vine would be unforgivable......Garrett/White’s will be a force to be reckoned with and I’m guessing a lot of consumers will appreciate this loyalty and will be showing their “thanks” via their wallet.

Come on ......It’s the 16th down here.....?

Yep....1998-1999.......building a house, getting married, first child on the way. The “Cuda” was definitely circling but if I had cast out some bait and snagged one then my wife to be would have taken an even bigger chunk out of my azzz ?

Jim,

I wonder if the fish below would snap up an AQ......?

Now that was just plain mean of you Jim ?

I couldn’t get a Barracuda back in 2000 and now can’t get an AQ in 2020

It’s a good thing that my Excalibur has been so good to me ?

Enjoy your AQ.......or should that be AQ’s

Tony

Apologies.....I mistakenly thought the AQ battery was a Lithium chemistry.

That battery needs to be stored well away from anything that could ignite.......outside somewhere safe. Remember the scene in one of the Terminator movies....Arnies battery becomes damaged and very unstable.......

In these photo’s.....you can see Aquaseal over the endcap connection, thread tape for the headphone connection and reinforced headphone cable to spread any flexing load from a sharp angle to a softer angle. My coil has at least 8 coats of Plastic Dip and hasn’t had to be recoated after 3 years....detecting I the water over rocks and reef.

Come on summer !

I ended up using plumbers thread tape for the screw connector as it
perfectly seals (as it would a tap) and then a small amount of Marine Grease over that general area. I’m trying to avoid constant mating and unmating of the headphone 8 pin connector and your very nice endcaps for the Excal. I’ll probably inspect once a month to check on integrity......somewhat overkill as its designed for submersion but as you well know....you can’t over maintain anything in a saltwater environment.

Agree with the Simon......the Quest Wirefree works perfectly with my Whites MX7 and XL Pro.

Thanks Joe.....I’m thinking of making the connection and then coating with Aquaseal or PlastiDip the whole of the outside connector....making it completely sealed from salt and sand as well as only needing to disconnect if required to. Thanks Tony 

I’m sure I read somewhere that all of these common connectors (typically for headphones) such as the 8 pin style have a limited amount of mating cycles. Connector integrity cannot be assured after this. I guess there is a small amount of wear and tear on the male/female metal contact points as well as the plastic/rubber moulding that keeps water out.

Any views on this? 
Thanks

Tony

16 hours ago, deborah195412 said:

Yes, According to what I read. The 11.5 setting was actually a last minute change to 15uS. Because of this last minute change, I'm assuming they knew a problem existed for working submerged in salt water. Out of the water on the wet sand beach, this machine is great.  Working here in Pensacola, in the water, A lot of the modes are not able to be used to the fullest extent with the 12.5 inch coil. I'm looking forward to trying the 8 inch coil when it is available to see how much of a change it makes. I do realize this machine was designed for use in the wet salt sand at waters edge. the capability of the machine is limited when you enter the water with the 12.5 inch coil.

Thanks for this reply......??

Might be easier if everyone dropped the reference to 11.5.......I wasn’t sure if it applied to all released AQ machines......hence the question ?