mn90403

Minelab has come through with a new screen chassis! As it turns out they sent more back to me than I sent to them. I had removed the upper portion of the shaft and sent them the handle and screen only. They sent back to me an intact handle and upper shaft. That is simple. If you are ever asked to send in the screen chassis you can do it without ever removing a screw. They include the upper shaft clamp and housing that fits to the battery pack portion. When I started it up I have a nice screen without lines! This screen also seems to have more pixels/higher density but I could be wrong. It tried to start and then a big red circle came on that said something like Update Not Installed. I had updated the lower portion so now I'm thinking I have two versions and it won't work. I copied the file to the Zed and it updated normally. Everything good to go. Now I want to get out and use it tonight somewhere ... Thanks Minelab! Mitchel

Phoenix, klunk distracted me ... That is a really good buy. It is a keeper. Mitchel

Good ol' klunk ... always near the front of the line when it comes to freebees and such ... and he gets them with his charm and whit! Hell, why wait for a PM klunk ... just post up your mailing address (and patch locations) so that we all know where to look for you. It is the least you could do if someone is thinking about giving you something for your birthday. Mitchel PS ... It may take us a while to find you with all the patches you are going to tell us about. Who knows which one you'll be on. I might get lost. I'll see you on Thursday!

Well done sir Lunk. That is interesting ground you were hunting. Mitchel

Principedeleon, I think Fred said most of what I could have said but I will add that Fred said that partly based upon the different types of ground that we must hunt to find gold. Your choices in the Dominican Republic (if that is where you mostly hunt) would be much more limited than our deserts, mountains and plateaus. We end up with an array of ironstones and hot rocks that the Zed handles better than our previous choices. Fred has also detected in Australia before he got his 7000 so his humble opinion has been tainted with that experience as well. All of us hope you find lots of nuggets no matter what detector you use and would be interested in learning more about the challenges where you detect. Mitchel

I think the reference to headphones 'back in the day' was based upon the audio provided with the metal detector which was just a built in speaker. There were not many external speakers sold with the units. JP's booster and some others like Doc's allowed many to go 'headphone-less' and still hear the subtle signals because the speakers were closer to the ears. The same can be said for the new wireless speakers like the WM10 and WM12 which can be mounted on a harness or a cap very close to the ears. I like the description of fringe area detection because it describes the phenomenon (repeatable) which is the reaction of a partial response of a coil/detector combo. The most confusing part will be to make a distinction between this and 'peripheral area detection' which is an instruction we are given to find gold that is still left. Sometimes we would call that searching the fringe areas! (Look around the fringes of the patch for more gold.) Mitchel

Been there done that!

I got my first metal detector in 1986. It was a White's Coin Master 6000 DI Pro. I bought it because I live near the beach and a friend of mine had a friend who was selling them. I didn't know much about detectors and I used it on the beach in the dry sand only for about 3 years before life happened and I put it away. I didn't get another detector until 2010 and it was a ML 5000. Now that I had it I had to start learning about the desert and more about metal detectors. One of the first things that I 'noticed' about a detector is that you don't have to be directly over a target to hear it. You get a sense for a target by coming close. You get a bigger sense for an aluminum can than you do a quarter for instance. I've searched and searched over the years for a way to describe this near to target sense which is much greater in the 5000 (PI) and the 7000 (ZVT) than with the Coin Master (VLF). Today I was reading an email from Kellyco who is the company that services most Minelabs in the United States. They also sell most other detectors and give advice to their customers. The email that I received led me to a reprint of an article: How Metal Detectors Work Reprinted with permission from Modern Metal Detectors. The full article is here: https://www.kellycodetectors.com/catalog/how-metal-detectors-work#more In that article it uses the term Fringe Area Detection and that gave definition to what I had been trying to describe for years. I had tried to say a coil is like a Nerf ball with many targets off the search area and you are drawn to a target like a moth to a flame. As it turns out this is just 'fringe area detection' which lets us push our detectors to much greater finds. I think you will see how many times we have discussed this part of metal detecting without using this term. The fringe area on my 7000 is larger than the illustration shown. Here is what the article says about fringe area detection: Fringe Area Detection Fringe area detection is a phenomenon of detection, the understanding of which will result in your being able to discover metal targets to the maximum depth capability of any instrument. The detection pattern for a coin may extend, say, one foot below the search coil. The detection pattern for a small jar of coins may extend, perhaps, two feet below the search coil as illustrated in the drawing on the facing page. Within the area of the detection pattern, an unmistakable detector signal is produced. This illustration shows the location and approximate proportional size of the fringe detection area in which faint target signals from around the outer edges of a normal detection pattern can be heard. What about outside the detection pattern? Does detection take place? Yes, but the signals are too weak to be discerned by the operator except in the fringe area around the outer edges of the detection pattern as shown in the drawing above. A good set of headphones is a must, if you desire to hear fringe area signals. The next more important thing, is training in the art of discerning the faint whispers of sound that occur in the fringe area. Skill in fringe area detection can be developed with practice, training, concentration and faith in your ability. Develop fringe area detection ability to a fine art and you are on your way to some great discoveries that many detector operators will miss. The ability to hear fringe area signals results in greatly improved metal detection efficiency and success. Mitchel

At the present rate of $5550 AUD that equals about $4400! Air is pretty cheap now so this may be a bargain compared to previous years. Mitchel

He sells out very early and ... it is too late for this year and next ... maybe the following year?

I don't need more depth! I actually don't need lighter weight either. I need new places to detect.

Another fish ... or another story ... more fake news!!

Fantastic! I'm headed up to Sierra County next week. You know, other than a few flakes from the river and a 15 grammer in the river that I used my 3030 to find, I've never found gold on the old mining sites or been on a patch up there. Good shooting. Mitchel

Swamp, That can't be me. I'm never on the beach in the daytime. I just got off ... found two cell phones and $1.60. Mitchel

New screen chassis is on its way! To be delivered on Monday.

Screen is now in Minelab hands!

My suggestion would be to take pictures of all the gold you have found, keep what you really must have and sell the rest and get any detector you want without regard to budget. You probably have many patches and areas that are begging you to go back with your favorite, all time best detector. I just think that those detectors are above your budget right now if you stop at $2000 unless you get a great deal on a working machine that someone else does not want. Mitchel

Ouch! All those bloody lessons we must learn in life. Some of us just get finished with them sooner rather than later. Be careful out there Paul. Somehow I don't think any shoe would make a difference with those picks.

That link is not working.

Fred, Don't be afraid of your detector. It is not your computer ... or at least not totally like it. Here is an old bit about early computers that could have given you that trepidation: For all of us who feel only the deepest love and affection for the way computers have enhanced our lives, read on. At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated, 'If Ford had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon.' In response to Bill's comments, Ford issued a press release stating: If Ford had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics (and I just love this part): 1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash.........Twice a day. 2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car. 3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason. You would have to pull to the side of the road, close all of the windows, shut off the car, restart it, and reopen the windows before you could continue. For some reason you would simply accept this. 4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart, in which case you would have to reinstall the engine. 5. Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads. 6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single 'This Car Has Performed An Illegal Operation' warning light. 7. The airbag system would ask 'Are you sure?' before deploying. 8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle, turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna. 9. Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car. 10. You'd have to press the 'Start' button to turn the engine off. PS - I 'd like to add that when all else fails, you could call 'customer service' in some foreign country and be instructed in some foreign language how to fix your car yourself!!!!

Fred, Exactly! They pick it up and send it back. Better than I had thought last week. By the way, the modular design of the 7000 means it is 'not so delicate' and rather simple. This last software update mentioned that both portions must be connected in order to upgrade. This means the screen which is in the screen chassis that has the USB connection and the other portion (I think the part Paul misplaced) which holds the battery. As you know from your 3030 and your 7000 there are two connectors which plug into that bottom portion. One is for the coil and the other is for the screen board. There are no screws on the 3030 but there are screws which allow you to remove the upper portion of the shaft on the 7000. This should make it simple to fix something that goes wrong physically on the 7000 now that they have extra modules and units. When you are ready Klunker give Tracy Johnson a call. Mitchel

Minelab sent an RMA number and also a UPS pickup shipping label. It should be there by Friday and back to me sometime next week.

Enjoy your target hunting sessions as you learn your detector. Gold will be one of those targets and if you are in the right place you will find lots of gold targets and fewer bullets. When starting out don't over do it. You might want to stop after a couple of hours and take a break. Make sure you go back to that house where they were picking up gold after the rain! Mitchel

I have read the Minelab email again and think I have done right. They want the screen chassis to be sent to them. This includes the handle, the cord and the screen which has a board behind it. It is also the place where the cable is plugged in to upgrade and transfer data. If this is ok it will be off to them tomorrow 2 day delivery insured. What is the value of the screen chassis? Mitchel

Fred, I have removed the screen with the cord and handle from the shaft. That is a sealed unit. It was easy to remove because the only screws (hex head) loosened were clamp screws which makes the handle tight to the shaft. I will call them and make sure this is the portion that they want. Mitchel