Whites SPP Adding Conductivity switch

[OzzieAu]

Yes, the On-Off-On toggle switch is correct as stated.
Here is a pic of my SPP with the Cond. switch mounted up front with a fabricated aluminium guard for protection.

 

[karelian65]

Looking at the photos we can see two Tdi Sl machines, the new one in light tan has the Tdi Sl motherboard, the other machine has the SPP motherboard. The SPP has ALL the switches connected on the board as on the Tdi SL. The SPP does not permit conductivity, frequency and it is set to 10 on pulse delay. Everyting is wired but it works exactley as a SPP, no real surprises. Just by connecting the switches does not turn an SPP into a Tdi Sl. NOT on these machines that I have used and tested.
Not done with the SPP yet, need to play some more and explore the option of turning it back into a Tdi Sl with the original Tdi Sl mother board. Cannot see a pathway for turning the SPP into a Tdi Sl, White's did more than remove dials and switches.
Should make the disclaimer that the early SPP may have used a different board from later production units, there were changes made that went beyond the 'hickup' changes White's made. So I am referring only to the SPP board fitted to my machine, others may differ.

So XLOOK in MY experience it is a 'crock', so now you know.
All the best.

 

[XLOOX]

Looking at the photos we can see two Tdi Sl machines, the new one in light tan has the Tdi Sl motherboard, the other machine has the SPP motherboard. The SPP has ALL the switches connected on the board as on the Tdi SL. The SPP does not permit conductivity, frequency and it is set to 10 on pulse delay. Everyting is wired but it works exactley as a SPP, no real surprises. Just by connecting the switches does not turn an SPP into a Tdi Sl. NOT on these machines that I have used and tested.
Not done with the SPP yet, need to play some more and explore the option of turning it back into a Tdi Sl with the original Tdi Sl mother board. Cannot see a pathway for turning the SPP into a Tdi Sl, White's did more than remove dials and switches.

So XLOOK in my experience it is a 'crock', so now you know.
All the best.

Thanks karelian !

when i am back home i will look up my old Reg Sniff notes and see what he said about the conductivity addition, whether he gave specifics or just that it could just be done in principle.

 

[XLOOX]

Yes, the On-Off-On toggle switch is correct as stated.
Here is a pic of my SPP with the Cond. switch mounted up front with a fabricated aluminium guard for protection.
View attachment 12348

Did you do that mod yourself? If so what was needed?

 

[OzzieAu]

Did you do that mod yourself? If so what was needed?

Yes, I did it myself with the switch and and wired plug as you showed in your previous post. They were supplied to me by ‘Luke’ , a Whites guru who new the Tdi’s very well. He has long since disappeared from the forum. From memory he told me to bridge the terminals at C42 ( I think) on the circuit board . The conductivity function definitely works on my SPP.

 

[user 4485]

https://www.prospectingaustralia.co...ng-conductivity-switch.7635/page-2#post-94821

 

[OzzieAu]

https://www.prospectingaustralia.co...ng-conductivity-switch.7635/page-2#post-94821

Wow, that’s what I call digging deep Mat.... well done !

 

[XLOOX]

a

Yes, I did it myself with the switch and and wired plug as you showed in your previous post. They were supplied to me by ‘Luke’ , a Whites guru who new the Tdi’s very well. He has long since disappeared from the forum. From memory he told me to bridge the terminals at C42 ( I think) on the circuit board . The conductivity function definitely works on my SPP.

excellent!
Looks like it might really require just a switch.

Again from my poor memory the C42 mod ( shorting the terminals across Capacitor 42 by dragging solder or just wrapping a single copper strand on the component side of the board) is a seperate mod to the conductivity switch and helps detection of smaller bits gold.

 

[karelian65]

After reading this thread I decided to see why my 'SPP' conductivity didn't work. So I opened her up and disconnected and reconnected the plug from the board. I had failed to make a good connection when I replaced the Tdi Sl board with the SPP board. Humble pie on my part and poor workmanship. I've checked all the plugs and everything is now well seated. Long story short, conductivity switch works whilst pulse delay and frequency are as is. Glad I opened her up and double checked, again it was my poor workmanship. Apologies to all and the error was mine. At least I now have an SPP with conductivity switch working..

 

[Rog in Wales UK]

These two items have arrived as used by another member earlier in this thread>
https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/wire...hId=4e79db66-9a28-4959-8098-2f2745b69776&gb=shttps://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/crim...hId=5e68f2dd-eb5b-4b48-9e85-049b15c9c994&gb=sI was thinking about this waterprrof switch as my mod is on a BeachHunter and not an SPP: https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/togg...hId=53d43f3d-c603-4df2-bb7a-8411b6167886&gb=s as it is totally waterproof and doesn't need a waterproof boot but it was a long wait as out of stock, so this is my second choice: https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/togg...hId=1dbc0455-95a9-4308-b261-909afa75f475&gb=s and is slightly longer in the actuator but that may be handy when wearing winter gloves, again no need for a boot cover.
I am useless at soldering, so the three wires will be soldered onto the pot by someone else.
I am wondering about how to fix the pot??? Do I just drill a hole to take the threads through hole and with a bit of waterproof stuff like aquasure or similar smeared top and bottom and nut tightened up or some other method? Is a Hexseal needed? I did read somewhere that a 'tap' was used to create a threaded hole, but with such thin plastic that cant even be possible so surely its just a case of drilling a hole with a drill bit fit for plastic and acrylic?

 

[OzzieAu]

I think you just need to find a suitable spot on the top or front of the housing that will accommodate the switch internally and drill a hole the same size as the shaft of the switch. Then silicone seal between the housing and washers and tighten up.
There is a toggle switch mounted on the front of the Beach Hunter 300 ID. On the TDI Beach Hunter this spot looks to be blanked off. This could be a logical spot to place your switch.

 

[Rog in Wales UK]

Well thanks so much for that. Sometimes we don't see the wood for the trees. I had taken the box off the handle mount the other day, but still I had not noticed the location you have indicated. Lo and behold, on the BeachHunter has the same location I would guess for such a purpose.
The switch arrived today and it is better than expected. I hate the location of the knobs and switches on all the TDIs as they get moved by winter clothing; but this switch will not suffer from accidental contact with clothing.
To move the switch to a different position, the upper part of the actuater has to be physically lifted, then moved to different position. When released, it is locked into that position, just like some gear shift knobs in cars have to be moved from forward gear into reverse. There will be no accidental shifting from say Low to High with this switch.
The switch, wires and connector are in a shop in town being assembled. I cannot be trusted with hot implements!!!
Now the hole (6mm), may be a challenge. I have looked into drilling through acrylics, plexi etc and as yet, I have not decided on a method.

 

[XLOOX]

Well thanks so much for that. Sometimes we don't see the wood for the trees. I had taken the box off the handle mount the other day, but still I had not noticed the location you have indicated. Lo and behold, on the BeachHunter has the same location I would guess for such a purpose.
The switch arrived today and it is better than expected. I hate the location of the knobs and switches on all the TDIs as they get moved by winter clothing; but this switch will not suffer from accidental contact with clothing.
To move the switch to a different position, the upper part of the actuater has to be physically lifted, then moved to different position. When released, it is locked into that position, just like some gear shift knobs in cars have to be moved from forward gear into reverse. There will be no accidental shifting from say Low to High with this switch.
The switch, wires and connector are in a shop in town being assembled. I cannot be trusted with hot implements!!!
Now the hole (6mm), may be a challenge. I have looked into drilling through acrylics, plexi etc and as yet, I have not decided on a method.

normal twist bit & battery drill on a lowish speed should be fine.

Since you will cry if you crack the case whilst drilling I suggest you practice drilling with a piece of scrap perspex & use the drill & bit you intend to use on the real deal. after a few holes you will find out how much speed & pressure you need ( not much of either) .

Also importantly you can also ensure that the bit is the right size for the switch barrel- you dont want to find out the hole is slightly too small when drilling the case and then try & enlarge it with a slightly bigger bit as that is the best way to crack the case as the bit tip grabs the hole.

 

[Rog in Wales UK]

Great advice, thank you. I have already done some practices and am awaiting a different drill bit to also experiment with.
I collected the assembled switch to wires to connector today and discussed with the technician swapping out the threshold and ground balance pots to 10 turn ones in near future.
Is anyone able to tell me please what tool is used to loosen the screw in the side of the knobs for its removal?

 

[woomera]

Great advice, thank you. I have already done some practices and am awaiting a different drill bit to also experiment with.

Brad point drill bit​

 

[bicter]

Great advice, thank you. I have already done some practices and am awaiting a different drill bit to also experiment with.
I collected the assembled switch to wires to connector today and discussed with the technician swapping out the threshold and ground balance pots to 10 turn ones in near future.
Is anyone able to tell me please what tool is used to loosen the screw in the side of the knobs for its removal?

Rog, It will either be a flat slot or a small allan key if there is a small hole in the side of the knob otherwise, if its a collet knob, remove the cap (yellow in above pics) and then loosen the screw or nut that is exposed.
It may also be a push on type of knob that is easily removed by firmly pulling on it.

 

[XLOOX]

Great advice, thank you. I have already done some practices and am awaiting a different drill bit to also experiment with.
I collected the assembled switch to wires to connector today and discussed with the technician swapping out the threshold and ground balance pots to 10 turn ones in near future.
Is anyone able to tell me please what tool is used to loosen the screw in the side of the knobs for its removal?

prob a flat head jewellers screw driver, if not then a very small allen key.

You should see a nice improvement in setting threshold with the 10 turn pot. The 10 turn pot for GB is a big improvement for mineralised ground like Oz but not sure it will help in UK. Cant hurt and only a few more minutes work since the case is already open.

 

[XLOOX]

Yes, I did it myself with the switch and and wired plug as you showed in your previous post. They were supplied to me by ‘Luke’ , a Whites guru who new the Tdi’s very well. He has long since disappeared from the forum. From memory he told me to bridge the terminals at C42 ( I think) on the circuit board . The conductivity function definitely works on my SPP.

I couldnt find any reference to C42 in my notes. I did find a reference to C56 being shorted....

"
To give the TDI SL model all the performance of the TDI Pro, and maybe even better, you want three mods:

First mod is the 16v battery pack. Those are no longer being sold, so you have to make your own, or find somebody to make you one. This mod alone will give you 1.5” depth increase across the board. Maximum safe voltage for the SL is 16V. The Capacitors used to hold the voltage to the FET are rated at 16V. A 4 cell li ion battery rated at 14.8v actually charges to 16.8v when fully charged. So, technically, fully charging a 4 cell Li Ion battery exceeds the voltage limit by 0.8v . Fortunately, most caps have a safety margin that should allow the use or 4 Li Ion cells, and in operation the voltage drops quickly to 15V~.

Second mod is to remove capacitors C20 and C21, which are .47ufd, and replace with .22ufd caps. What that does is increase the allowable sweep speed on small targets like earrings & tiny nuggets. As sold the SL requires a fairly specific slow sweep speed to see the smallest targets, especially when used with bigger coils. Sweep too fast, and you simply won't detect them at all. Sweep too slowly and they are also quieter. Sweep at the correct speed and the target jumps out at you. The filtering is part of why the SL has such smooth threshold. By changing those caps, you get slightly more variance in the threshold, but a much larger usable range of sweep speeds without losing the sensitivity to small targets. You can just learn the best sweep speed for your coil or modify the filters to allow for bigger range & much faster swing speed . On SL reduce value of C20 and C21 from 0.47uf to 0.22uf. Remember to use a quality cap rated at 50v such as a panasonic or rubicon stacked metal film polyester type & match caps to 1%. Note that on the non Pro big box TDI the part numbers are C59 and C60.

The third mod is to remove capacitor C56 to help with small target detection. Also removing diodes D20, and D21, and installing a jumper across two of the three terminals on D21's location on the board. These last mods also increase the sensitivity. For the squeamish just removing C56 by shorting across the terminals, and leaving the diodes in, will help.

Reg Sniff

According to Howard at Whites, they changed the sweep speed caps on all SL's made after 2015. But, the Special Edition that a friend in Florida bought 2017 had the same .47ufd caps as the original TDI SL. So, no change in sweep speed. The second mod that Reg Sniff recommended...the removal of diodes D20 and D21, and a jumper across two of D21's three connections, and the removal of C56, was done on his Special Edition, however

Jim In Idaho"

 

[Rog in Wales UK]

The technician soldered the cable to the toggle switch for conductivity and added the connector. I made a hole in a different position than previously mentioned due to space and mounted it. It works great and a plus, if accidently knocked by winter clothing, its stays put due to the mechanism.

The same technician has also added this https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/355088556139 into my BeachHunter to replace the original Threshold pot'.

But there is no threshold sound whatsoever even when it is turned up to the max' and with Volume turned up. Have we used the wrong pot? Is it wired correctly? Could it be a dead pot'?

I wont contact the tecnician until I have some opinions as I know nothing about these things.

Hope someone can help.
Regards,
Rog
PS. The tool to unscrew the screw in side of knob was none of the previously mentioned. I will return to technician at some point and take a picture of it.

 

[Rog in Wales UK]

The technician soldered the cable to the toggle switch for conductivity and added the connector. I made a hole in a different position than previously mentioned due to space and mounted it. It works great and a plus, if accidently knocked by winter clothing, its stays put due to the mechanism.

The same technician has also added this https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/355088556139 into my BeachHunter to replace the original Threshold pot'.

But there is no threshold sound whatsoever even when it is turned up to the max' and with Volume turned up. Have we used the wrong pot? Is it wired correctly? Could it be a dead pot'?

I wont contact the tecnician until I have some opinions as I know nothing about these things.

Hope someone can help.
Regards,
Rog
PS. The tool to unscrew the screw in side of knob was none of the previously mentioned. I will return to technician at some point and take a picture of it.

Issue solved. Thanks to Geotech's advice on another forum, the black and grey wires were swapped around and all works well now and most definitely a considerable improvement.
Regards,
Rog