new prospector, old detector, sd2100, any advice appriciated

[driftingS13]

Hello, I live in ballan. I have an old sd2100 I got a few years ago from my old housemate, he got it from his dad, its not the v2 its the original v1. Im not really sure what im doing with it, i have this strange kinda interference sorta sound sometimes like every 20-30 seconds, other times it wont do it for like 5 min, and its hard to find good info on how to properly use it so im mostly kinda guessing. i seem to be able to balance it fine then it screams with metal in the ground, but when its doing its interference sound thing its unuseable. Im really not sure what im doing with it tho lol, im wondering if anyone here has had experence with one, perhaps someone who I can meet up with and get some tips and have them use it to see if its just a set up thing or if it needs to get repairs or something. also it would be awesome to have some known targets so i can get an idea of what im listening for and if its possible to tell the difference between a massive chunk of iron bolt and a little nugget of gold lol. I would love to be able to tag along for some prospecting with someone experenced because their is only so much that reading about it can teach you, and im not even sure how to tell if its gold in my pan lol. im kinda trying to figure a lot out, i have some areas i want to target based on a bunch of research i have done but when i get out there i really dont know what im doing and i feel like im just wasting my time trying to work it out without any help. I think changing the balance makes the interference thing better but yeah im thinking its not set up correctly and im not really understanding how its supposed to be set up. Thanks in advance!

 

[user 4485]

Excellent information here & tuning method from post #205:
https://www.prospectingaustralia.co...s-settings-questions.2482/page-11#post-471244

SD series vid:

 

[driftingS13]

Excellent information here from & tuning method from post #205:
https://www.prospectingaustralia.co...s-settings-questions.2482/page-11#post-471244

SD series vid:

Yeah i watched that multiple times, but it doesnt make sence what the machine is doing, and every other video i watch people dont seem to have them running properly, i kinda understand the theory of tuning it but doing it in reality is tough, if someone has experence with an sd2100 that would be ideal. Ill try to take a video today of me working the machine and try to get some audio of what im talking about

 

[Nightjar]

Download the SD - 2100 manual and read it over. One rainy day I sat under cover and varied settings on a buried target. Only ever used the Minelab Mono that came with machine when I bought it new. The machine ran very smooth and found gold, lots of gold. Upgraded when the 4500 came out. Will try and find the settings I saved.

 

[Nightjar]

driftings13, have posted some info just now regarding sd2100 settings. Page 205 and more.

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/threads/minelab-sd2100-tips-settings-questions.2482/post-471244

 

[driftingS13]

driftings13, have posted some info just now regarding sd2100 settings. Page 205 and more.

https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/threads/minelab-sd2100-tips-settings-questions.2482/post-471244

(i typed this out yesterday and must have not hit send, so ill send it now unedited but i have a video update coming in a few min)

Thanks ill give that a try, so far i havent touched the tuning pot, i have been able to get a nice steady quiet tone with no real ground noise, the interference sound im getting tho is kinda like a siren, i went to take it out today to try to get a video but it started raining real hard when i arrived at the bush so i wasnt able to get a video of the noise. yesterday when i had it out i dug out a bolt, using the shotgun pellets as targets is a good idea. i just need to try to find somewhere with less rubbish so i can try to get some clean signals away from camp sites. Im wondering does the machine make a different sound with iron and gold, or is it just the one sound, i think i remember finding some buillets when i first got the machine and i wasnt able to tell the difference between that and all the iron i was finding. but i never remember hearing that siren sound before, like when it starts i can hold the coil dead still, and up in the air and it still goes through the whole same siren sound thing, i really need to try to catch it on vid, im thinking the machine needs some repairs and not so much a set up issue because im not getting like a warbling i can get it balanced really what seems good until it starts with that siren sound. another issue i have is im currently inbetween jobs so i dont have the money to send it off for repairs, and was kinda hopeful i could use the time i have to learn how to use the thing, but i feel like i need someone more experenced to help me a little bit, i think i know what im looking for until i get out into the bush lol! wombat state forest isright here so i have been going out there but havent found really a single spec of gold lol. Im using geovic to try to find sites to target, i found some ore and some other things of interest but no gold haha, but anyway thanks for that info it helps a lot and i will give it a try, i have been using the double d coil because the big mono is a bit beat up and split and i need to pull it apart to clean it and tape it back up before i use it because its got junk inside the case. and with how overgrown all the bush is at the moment with bracken fern with all the rain the last few years its turning almost rainforest thick in a lot of places so the double d is easier to transport and search with. I also have the little orange oval coil too. And yeah anyone in the ballarat or wombat areas heading out and time soon i would love to tag along and get some knowledge, but i also understand people probably dont want a noob slowing them down when out prospecting

 

[driftingS13]

The video file was too big to upload it here so i just put it on youtube so i could share the link here.
Any advice would be appreciated, i hope its just a setup issue and not a electrical issue.

Also i had a slug gun pellet with me so i could do a known target test, and the double d didnt even pick it up, the pellet had been shot at the swinger so the first 1/3 was super flattened out but the rest was still fine looking, i thought that would make a massive target for the detector and it didnt go off. so i think that double d is only picking up ferrous metals lol im going to try the big mono coil again ill pull it out and try to clean the thing out and re tape it before i go using it.

 

[grubstake]

I doubt that any set-up issue could cause such a terrible noise mate, sorry.

The model came out in 1996, so that's plenty long enough for an electrical problem to develop, unfortunately. Hopefully somebody here with experience of the SD2100 can help to identify the problem.

 

[driftingS13]

I doubt that any set-up issue could cause such a terrible noise mate, sorry.

The model came out in 1996, so that's plenty long enough for an electrical problem to develop, unfortunately. Hopefully somebody here with experience of the SD2100 can help to identify the problem.

Yeah it does seem to be getting worse too, and yeah your right shes getting long in the legs these days, as soon as i secure some work ill be sending her in for some love i think. for now im enjoying just being in the bush trying to find old diggings and collecting some ore to sample. I couldnt imagine how tough the old diggers were going through some of these places before any tracks or anything, no gps lol they had balls of steel

 

[user 4485]

Yeah it does seem to be getting worse too, and yeah your right shes getting long in the legs these days, as soon as i secure some work ill be sending her in for some love i think. for now im enjoying just being in the bush trying to find old diggings and collecting some ore to sample. I couldnt imagine how tough the old diggers were going through some of these places before any tracks or anything, no gps lol they had balls of steel

Due to it's age, Minelab no longer service or repair the SD2100.
Best bet would be to contact https://www.detectronicsaustralia.com/repairs

 

[driftingS13]

Due to it's age, Minelab no longer service or repair the SD2100.
Best bet would be to contact https://www.detectronicsaustralia.com/repairs

Thanks! ill check them out. I seen detectormods on youtube in ballarat 30 min from me so I was thinking he might be good for repairs too. But ill check out the one you sent too as they are just over an hour away so also close. Thanks

 

[Lost Adams]

Go with Mic ,mate.
He rebuilt my 2200v2 a few years back and worked miracles on it. It is more sensitive than a 5000.
https://www.detectronicsaustralia.com/repairs
if you can get him to do the mods also it is worth it as he upgrades some chips in it.

 

[Hawkear]

Try the big mono and see if it the symptoms persist or better borrow another DD and try that.
If you are in luck the symptoms may disappear and it may be just a matter of buying a replacement coil. If not, at least you have isolated the problem to a control box issue.
Try your local detector shop as I think most would be only too happy to help you in that regard.

 

[lazypat]

Hello, I live in ballan. I have an old sd2100 I got a few years ago from my old housemate, he got it from his dad, its not the v2 its the original v1. Im not really sure what im doing with it, i have this strange kinda interference sorta sound sometimes like every 20-30 seconds, other times it wont do it for like 5 min, and its hard to find good info on how to properly use it so im mostly kinda guessing. i seem to be able to balance it fine then it screams with metal in the ground, but when its doing its interference sound thing its unuseable. Im really not sure what im doing with it tho lol, im wondering if anyone here has had experence with one, perhaps someone who I can meet up with and get some tips and have them use it to see if its just a set up thing or if it needs to get repairs or something. also it would be awesome to have some known targets so i can get an idea of what im listening for and if its possible to tell the difference between a massive chunk of iron bolt and a little nugget of gold lol. I would love to be able to tag along for some prospecting with someone experenced because their is only so much that reading about it can teach you, and im not even sure how to tell if its gold in my pan lol. im kinda trying to figure a lot out, i have some areas i want to target based on a bunch of research i have done but when i get out there i really dont know what im doing and i feel like im just wasting my time trying to work it out without any help. I think changing the balance makes the interference thing better but yeah im thinking its not set up correctly and im not really understanding how its supposed to be set up. Thanks in advance!

I have sd2000 and moded, to heavey to cart around with motor cycle battery, you need a test patch and a small nugget of gold to set them up, and use a DD coil not annalough, burry the sample nuggets and keep tuning until it works the best, those knobs with the endless turns gets me as i used to think them broken