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Doesen't get any better... cjc

Hello, I'm new to this site, so bear with me if this question has been beat to death. I have a TDI Beach Hunter and I want to upgrade the battery pack, since the Whites packs are more or less extinct now. I was hoping to use the 3.7 V batteries (X3), but with how many mAh? I want to find one of these as well (see picture). Thank you very much! and happy hunting!

A year full of distractions, so yes I kind of did forget about this project. All parts had been ordered and arrived in good time. Assembly to follow in the next few days... with photographs and a performance test on the modified Pro I still have.. I'll take it steady and do it right, get the soldering tidy and follow the plan..

Hello Everyone! I got a Tdi sl 2018 model and powering the unit with a 18V 5 18650 cells after 5 minutes switched on - the power mosfet and the surrounding surface board become very hot-barely touchable! From what this overheating process depends? thank you All

I came across a french prospecting website where some interesting mods had been done to their White's TDI SLs.... for instance: 1. Removal of resistor R86 within the gain circuit - providing a boost to the gain control. They believe this was to make it stable, for less complaints. Removal of this resistor provided additional gain reserve. They had some good results with their testing. 2. Placing thick o-rings under some of the pot knobs. Helps to add some friction and avoid dials turning themselves accidentally, especially with the above modification. 3. With a single +16V battery pack, there was feedback that depth seemed to increase on the TDI SL. However, this came at a cost of over-driving the 16V rated power capacitors as well as other circuits on the board. Potentially shortening their life, by running them full time. The moderator seems to have been able to add another battery pack in series (6V) with the 12V pack, and use a toggle switch to drive the voltage above 18V temporarily. This "boost mode" was done as a method of improving a faint signal on-the-fly. Just a flick of a switch, double-check that faint signal, and then back off. Ultimately, it seems they were discussing driving the coil with it's own 18V external battery and using the standard 12V battery pack to drive the rest of the board (logic). Basically driving the pulses in the coil without going through the voltage regulator, via a large MOSFET. Unsure if they actually were able to do this mod. Anyways, just thought they were some interesting ideas those french detectorists were messing with.

What is your largest coil for gold jewellery on beaches? What are your settings and why; mineralization of beach and ground balance settings etc? On a beach when you try to ground balance and there is no change of tone through the whole turn of pot', with a TDI SL or BeachHunter, where do you set the GB? Bearing in mind, that received wisdom says that TDI SL/HeadHunter is deeper when in GB on. So far, a Detech 18"x12" Mono is deepest in my South Wales beaches in UK. I'm including the BeachHunter as I know that some have modified them to plug in other search coils.

hello Everyone! i got a sec-hand whites tdi sl with stock 12inch. coil (im using a regulat Batt.Pack with Usb Rechargeable Batterues) and i realized that the Conductivity Switch set in High position doesnt work!!! a friend of mine checked the switch and is working in all the positions! the issue must be after that switch !! but i cant find any electrical scheme online to check what components mest be checked!!! anyone got schemes or a solution 4 this issue?? Thank you

this machine is new have used it for about a month never droped it or abused it , this is what is happeneing when i turn it on ,it starts overloading and moaning but only in the All or high position if i turn to low its a quite as a mouse turn it to all and it starts moaning and will not stop , any ideas?

Hi Everyone. Could you please help me with this problem, I have been looking for a small coil option for my Beachhunter tdi, I have tried to purchase an Oz 7.5” mono single field but can not find one anywhere, does anyone know if and where I could find a similar coil that does not float and is waterproof please, also does anyone know if I could fit my Garrett infinium LS 8” mono and would it work. Thanks in advance.

I have an opportunity to buy an original Whites TDI but am wondering if it would compare to newer machines. I know its an old box version, but really interested in how it would setup and perform next to the newer designs. Anybody with some experience out there??

Does anyone have a copy of a circuit board diagram or a have a circuit board replacement for a TDI Beach Hunter? Does anyone repair Whites detectors? My control box leaked while water hunting in Fort Lauderdale and no longer works. It fried some components but I'm hoping it can be repaired. Thanks David

From the project I and others worked on. George.

Is it please possible for an identification of what these two coils are? I have two Whites TDI Sls. One is a black box, the other is a tan coloured box. I have two coils, one with a TDI label, the other without label. The one without label has a cable 15” longer than one with label. Because of different cable lengths I tried to weigh the coils without the cables. No coil protectors on either. TDI label = 514gms, without label = 449gms. I’m guessing that the one with label is a Dual Field? But, what is the non labelled one? Both coils have the Whites logo to the right of cable entry to housing. No printing on TDI labelled coil cable. On non labelled one, just where cable goes in to housing is printed in white WHITES ELEC. The rest of the word is inside flexible covering possibly? I look forward to youtr thoughts. Regards,Rog

I had an SL a few years back and regretted selling it so I bought another. The detector came with two mono coils. My question is what would be the best coil to run at beach with lots of black sand? Thanks for any and all the help. HH

I know there were a few greats in this field a while back Reg being one of them (RIP). But im looking for any info in the whites TDI mods and mabye some instructions. I have a big box I know a bit about the batery but more information would be appreciated. I really would like the stability mod or any others that you could give me. Thanks

Osc

Today I sold a Whites TDI pro to a customer, we set it up and turned it on with the stock coil and did a few air tests. He heard that Minelab coils would work and other PI series coils. I suggested we try some Detech coils with the following results. The new 14in Mono Spiral wound ran quieter and air tested a little deeper on coins than the stock dual field. The little 6in Detech mono was a surprise as it hard and loud on targets for its size. When the weather gets better we are going to try a variety of the Detech coils and see which are worth having for the TDI, outdoors with more realistic buried targets. I`ll post what we find out.

In the UK there are about half a dozen or so major retailers dealing in new and second hand metal detecting equipment so finding some items here are very difficult or impossible to find. There are no gold fields, so PI defectors are at a minimum and restricted to a few that work on beaches and do not cost the earth; for example the Cscope CS4PI is popular. I have seen 2 original Eric Fosters in use on beaches too; a rare event these days. A few used less expensive Whites PIs occur for sale from time to time on Ebay or Facebook. Previously I have bought new from the USA and have had to put up with and accept massive import duties and VAT on top of carriage costs. Wanting to acquire different coils for the Whites TDI SL I am looking to have help please with suggestions of retail outlets possibly in USA, Australia or less likely Europe. I am sorry, this is already long winded. I have only just joined the site but been a lurker for years and think its a brilliant site and have gained much knowledge from it. So, as I cannot use the classifieds yet, my only option today is to ask for suggestions of shops/stores that may have for sale a coil that will suit detecting on our UK beaches; there is no mineralisation to cause concern. From what I have gleaned, maybe one of these will be an alternative for the standard 12” Dual Field and maybe be a bit better? I do not mind new or second hand as some are I think out of production. They are not in desirability order, but I do not mind comments too in regards a no no or yes yes. Digger 14”x8” Jimmy Scierra by Miner John or Dan Geyer version. Razorback Beach Hog/Longreach. Detech 15”x10” Mono. Nuggeteer 18”x6” Minelab mono series. Jimmy Scierra T-Foot 5.5”x18”. Nugget Finder 14”x9” or 14”x7”. Ground coverage has a part to play as some of my local beaches are 7 to 9 miles long and shallow, so the tide can go out from dunes on a big tide a mile or more. Lots of beaches from top to low are a quarter mile plus on average. Thanks in great anticipation. And I do not mind at all receiving PMs. Thank you and Regards, Roger

It’s so much excitement over the E1500 and so far rightly so of what I’ve seen in the videos that’s been posted. On their site the price posted is 2275.00 AUD but no coils are power supply. Coils we know don’t come cheap and for sure going need maybe two but wanting three. Then let’s not forget the power supply we can’t do without. If you go buy three coil new plus power to run it just how off are you from buying the Axiom? Garrett has the TDI SL and would give it a little of whatever it takes to make it better I’d buy it. If they would come out tomorrow you could buy it because it’s already in the USA. I don’t need a screen to read because I want and will dig every signal. I don’t want one that will detect fly specks. I know everything that would come with it cost me money but when I get it I can walk out the door and start hunting. Garrett I’m sure you could be selling it about the same price White’s was before they closed up . Garrett I hope you read this and I believe you could make money. I know you would make a lot of us old hard shell White’s users happy. Chuck

The passing of a friend unfortunately has led to me taking ownership of a modified Tdi Pro. My machine is mounted on an Anderson shaft and is factory spec. My old mate had his machine modified to smooth out the threshold and to add some sensitivity. The specifics related to the modifications are not known by me, other than that they were conducted by 'Luke'..Oz Digger.. This happened some time ago. So the modified machine is probably not a keeper, I don't want two Tdi Pro machines.. The opportunity to do a comparison cannot and should not be ignored. My intention is to focus on small gold performance, the threshold smoothness, the ability to use gain, basic performance and handling characteristics under different circumstances. The machines will use the same fully charged battery pack, same coil, same targets, same test location and conditions on the same day etc. Trying to minimise external variations. I'll start with the usual useless air test. Later I'll follow up with in ground testing on the actual goldfields in mineralized soil. Test coils will be with a small coil and a large coil. Targets will be gold only. The 1 grain ingot, the half gram gold coin, a half sovereign gold coin. Some real small sub gram nuggets to see how small we can go.. There is a process involved so I'll take my time and do it right. Any specific questions or suggestions, speak now or forever hold you peace.. I'm only doing this once. Once it sold it will be too late to revisit.. All the best.

I bought my TDI SL just as White's was closing. Due to other time commitments I have had only limited time to learn the machine. Reading various posts here and on other forums I realize that there are a lot of techniques that I need to learn, whether for gold, relics or coins. My primary interest is gold, but I occasionally search for relics and coins. I have tried searching this forum for information on techniques and videos but no luck. When I use the search term "TDI SL" I do not find any results. I have found just a few videos on YouTube. Any guidance on search terms, links to training videos here or elsewhere, or links to text on techniques would be greatly appreciated. I realize that I may have missed the obvious, and if that is the case, I apologize in advance. Thanks for the help.

Hi, Having recovered a Whites TDI motherboard (not SL) and having a coil. I would like to reconnect it with potentiometers and switches. Does anyone have photos showing the wiring/colors of the switches and potentiometers on the plate and the values/types of the potentiometers (B100k etc.) and switches? Thanks. David

An often performed modification on the Tdi sl or SPP machines is the inclusion of the Philmore S38 vernier dial. Since I often loan my Tdi Sl machines to family or friends I felt it was kinder to install the vernier dial as the original Whites setup was very frustrating in hot ground. Very fussy to say the least. My technique was to simply set up the dial so it starts a zero and does not confuse inexperienced users. Adjustments start at six all the way up, hot ground is usually around 8 or 8.5 for example. Instead of a permanent installation it is fully reversible and very temporary. So for the beach or less challenging ground I leave the factory set up as is. When prospecting simply pull the White's knob off and install the Philmore vernier dial. Brace it using a very firm foam so it doesn't move etc. The foam is a tight fit and holds the vernier dial in place stopping from rotating. The dial is smooth and covers the required ground balance window encountered in the goldfields. It does not turn the Tdi Sl into a Tdi Pro, but it makes ground balancing quick and easy. The photos tell the story, again it works well and is fully reversible. I only use it when out on the goldfields and then remove it for beach work etc. All the best.

I have bought a cover for my Whites TDI SL and described thus: "Whites TDI SL control box cover PLEASE STATE PREFERRED COLOUR/FABRIC CHOICE WHEN ORDERING Helps protect your detector from damage/rain/mud etc Available in Black Neoprene Camo Neoprene" If I had looked at the pictures (I think there are about 11) more carefully, I would not have wasted my money. The cover is as in pictures, but is certainly not dust proof or waterproof with all the gaps. Oh well, it wasn't a lot of money. I did write to the seller saying the item had failings and suggested improvements, but no response. Anyway, I saw another cover somewhere last night online and saved the images. Am I allowed to post the images here to ask two questions: 1. Do you think it will do the job of waterproofness? 2. If it is good, where can I buy it? Or is there another available or plans available from which to make one? Regards, Rog

I have been doing some testing before selling some PI detectors that I really like. The testing was done on 0.75 gram lead, 0.25 gram lead and 0.1 gram gold targets using two containers of dirt from an area northwest of Phoenix Arizona and from an area south of Breckenridge Colorado. Both samples are very mineralized with both iron and volcanic material. I placed each target one inch below the surface of each dirt sample and used a ruler stuck one inch into the containers to measure coil height above the target in the dirt. Not by any means a totally realistic test, but as close as I can get right now. I was using a TDI Pulse Scan stock 14.4v battery with Reg Sniff mods, a GPX 6000 and an Axiom. Here are the results and a photo of the dirt containers. The Arizona dirt was no problem for all three detectors to ground balance on. The Colorado dirt was another story. The TDI would not ground balance well at all on it, the GPX 6000 was noisy on it, amazingly enough the Axiom Mono coil was very quiet on that dirt and the Axiom DD coil came up with some really odd ground balance numbers on that dirt....15/03 and was a bit unstable. I was able to run the sensitivity on the TDI and the Axiom at around 85% of max before they became unstable. The GPX 6000 became unstable at Manual 7 of 10 so I could only run it at 60% of maximum. It might have been able to have even better results, but there was EMI in the area with power lines about 1/4 mile away.