Jim in Idaho

Yes, Bob..Mike (karelian) down in Australia has done some great tests. My results are right inline with his. And, I do have the 16v+ battery pack. I bought my first one, but then built another. I've also done the circuit mods...both #1 for sweep speed, and #2 for sensitivity. There is a 3rd also, which I still plan on doing, which also increases the sensitivity. I also added vernier control knobs to mine, on both the ground Balance, and Threshold. That makes it easy to precisely adjust both. Jim

I doubt you'll find many .4 grain nuggets with any TDI. My modified TDI SL is decent on 1 grain-sized nuggets, but a .4 grain would have to be nearly in contact with the coil, I'd imagine. Jim

I've got one of Whites original TM808's, with Cave Mode. But, I'm always looking to improve, like all of us. I have great respect for Steve H., when it comes to detector capability. Jim

Hey Steve...in your humble opinion, is this going to offer significant improvement on the TM808? Jim

Got that right. Same here in Idaho. First prospecting/camping trip planned for early to mid April, though. Jim

That is a nifty find, for sure. If I'd found that, it would have made my day. Jim

Definitely a lock ring of some kind, as Chuck said, but not for a hex nut. Some sort of "specialized" 8-sided nut. Kinda weird. Jim

I dropped my membership 2 years ago. Thought the whole thing was a waste of my time and money, and the outing I went to was a joke. Not at all surprised...only that it lasted this long. Jim

You might watch this video from Jeff Williams. He talks about chrysicolla and skarns, and gold. The stuff he shows looks just like yours. Jim

I'd be crushing some of that reddish material below the blue. Might be a "skarn" and could hold gold. Jim

Some people??? seems, to me, we have a bunch of them. Jim

On my TDI SL, the threshold slowly gets louder as the batteries decline. Have to readjust as I detect. Just food for thought. Jim

I'm really sorry, George. Only a dog person can understand how tough it is to lose a long-term companion. I'll have you and Sammy in my thoughts. Jim

HAHAHAHA....serves you right, Gary. You wouldn't have that problem if you weren't so greedy! Wish that gain mod actually worked that well...LOL Jim

Ya know, Jim, maybe it's our environments. We each live in similar types of country. But another thing I've noticed...we both stay involved in life, and keep busy. Mental attitude is a big part of physical health. Jim

I should have, Simon. A lifetime of hard labor, at high elevation, will tend to do that. Living and recreating at 4500' to 11,000' helps, too....LOL When I go visit the coast, it's like removing 20 years from my age. A year ago in June, I hiked 4 1/2 miles and 1,700 vertical feet in 6 hours..not hurrying. Topped out at 8,500 feet. Felt pretty good for that one. I'm truly blessed. Jim

Strick, you got a lot of years left! I'll be 74 next week, and can still climb a mountain with a pack, digging tool, and detector. And, I start climbing them at 5,000+ feet elevation! Jim

From what I see, that is correct. But, the interesting thing is you can get the two magnetic fields working together (adding), or contrary to each other, depending on how the "fold" was done, if I'm looking at this correctly. IMHO, the 5 x9 FM was nothing special as far as sensitivity goes. Jim

Reg Sniff had me do some tests with my modified SL. He wanted them done in a specific manner, with the coil horizontal, and the target moved vertically toward the coil. He had me have the coil on a 5 gallon bucket above the ground. At the time, I was using a 12DF coil, and getting a consistent 17" on a typical nickel. I was using a 16v battery pack. Jim

Gary's TDI SL, or at least one of them, is heavily modified, similar to mine. Those mods really do make a difference. Jim

I would really like to see that comparison, Gary. Jim

Thanks, Steve. I use a range of coils, but mostly either DF, or Folded Mono, both of which wouldn't be impacted much by this, but I also use a couple of NF coils, both of which are mono. Jim

That's a great piece of info, Steve. I had no idea. Thanks! Perfectly explains my difficulties pinpointing with my SL. Jim

Man, you're nailing it, Gary. Very nice! Right now I'm wishing i was down there...it's 5f here...LOL Jim

Very nice, Gary. Amazing how that bronze held up! Jim