Gpx4500 Quick trak button query and other noises

I went out on short notice on Xmas eve and had about 2 hours to charge all the gear for the `45.  SP01 , Wireless headphones,transmitter and battery.  
  After about 1/2 an hour , i started getting loud noises through the headphones and 2 things happened.  The Quick trak handle was loose and when it moved , i got the loud noise in my ears . What would cause the noise ? Maybe stretching the wires inside the handle ? Possibly squashing the wires against the stem ?   The other thing was when i had the detector on the ground and i was waving a scoop of dirt over the coil , i got a loud  interference in the headphones the closer i got my head to the coil. I haven`t had that before. The SP01 was about half charged running at about half volume on stereo mode and the transmitter for the headphones was not fully charged. Not sure the battery was at 100 per cent , either . The RX gain was on 9 and the Stab on 7 . Running in Fixed/enhanced / mono on the commander coil. I pulled the pin and came home.
With everything at full charge and the handle screwed up tight , it seems to be ok now.  Can not having full charge in everything to start off with be causing these problems ?  I might add the 2 others i were with had an SDC2300 and a Eureka Gold detecting 70 odd metres from myself.

   Any comments are appreciated . You blokes and ladies  know what you are talking about, I am still learning the machine.

             Thanks.

G'day soldier of fortune

2 hrs charge on a good working GPX Lithium Ion battery pack, including on that of the SP01 Enhancer, should give you well above half hrs use of both detector/signal enhancer time. More like your need to make sure that your wireless head phones/transmitter battery are fully charged.
The transmitter is designed to generate & transmit or send out electromagnetic waves, carrying message's or signals to your wireless headphones, hence getting to close to ones coil via your headphones on, might cause the interference you are hearing through you head set.
It is not so much your tracking button handle becoming loose that causes the odd "boing of a signal" coming through your headphones, as much as the actual coil cable being moved, or pressed on by the now loose tracking button handle. This is why the coil lead on a GPX should be wound tight around ones detector shaft, preventing false signals from occurring when being bumped, from a loosely wound coil cable.
BTW, 50 meters away from any other switched on pulse detector, should be more than far enough to block out all interference between one PI & another. (5 meters for all VLF's)
Anyways, just my thoughts on the issues you are experiencing.

Cheers Kon.  

Thanks , fellas. I have always been able to wave dirt over the coil while wearing the wireless headphones and thought that maybe the battery charge was the problem this time. Can other detectors cause the signal in the headphones to be interrupted ? I was thinking of just going back to the KOSS wired headphones. I will make sure the Quick trak handle is always tight , now. Rookie mistake.

I call it the jimi Hendrix experience,I can get some crazy feed back if I bend over to close to the coil, it can go on for several seconds while I back away.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53JpbrxM7O0



cheers   moredeep

The feedback sounded something like that , except i actually enjoy Jimmy`s feedback.

I found interference like that when to close to the coil can be made to continue for longer if your settings are amped up as well seen it with the 4500 a few times and have done it with the 5000

Where do you carry your pick and does it have a magnet in end of handle?
Have you checked your boots for any signals?
Were you wearing a watch or any neck jewellery?

The pick has a magnet , but was on the ground about 3 or 4 feet from the detector, along with the pinpointer in the off position and my boots are rubber capped safety boots with no metal in them. I don`t wear jewellery or a watch . The only other thing that may have interferred with it is the phone in my pocket .I did have that happen once or twice before and had to turn it off. It could have been the problem this time. I have tightened up the Quicktrak button / handle and fully charged everything. Seems to be ok ,now. I think the loose handle could have been a contributing factor. The settings on the `45 are about what i normally have them on. The 2 blokes detecting near me may have had their setting amped up , too. When the weather cools down and i have a day off , i`ll give it another shot.

soldier of fortune wrote: The only other thing that may have interferred with it is the phone in my pocket .

There's your most likely answer, if your phone reception is dropping in and out. Turn it off or better still leave it with the pinpointer in your vehicle.

Think i will leave the phone off. Thanks, Nightjar.

I still haven`t mastered the art of pinpointing with the `45. There is apparently a sweet spot to the left of the middle on the top of the commander coil which makes it easier to pinpoint. I am still working on it .

SOF,
Pinpointing with your coil requires a little practice.
Reading between the lines you are swinging the 11" Commander.
We used this mono coil on both machines for 10 years, occasionally swapping to a 16" & 20" Nugget finder when searching for new patches.
Firstly, if you don't have a manual for your 4500, download free and read it and read it again, and maybe again.
You will realise the mono coil search alters with depth, the probe forming a cone beneath coil to the max depth.
Spend a little time practising.
Tie a few separate small lead sinkers to lengths of fishing line/string with markings at various depths eg: 50mm, 100mm, 150mm 300mm.
Bury them so the marking is at ground level.

(1) Now approach the known target (we'll use imaginary compass) from the South, until you get a signal, draw a line in the ground East/West and a pencil mark on your coil directly above where the signal was first detected.
You will note the signal detection point will vary on position of coil at the varying depths: ie: It will vary from nose/tip of your coil when approaching target.

(2) Now step back and approach the target from the East and repeat above except this time line in the sand will be North/South.
Where the two line cross should indicate exactly where the target is buried below.

I'm a little confused writing this after so many years past, however can guarantee that this method method works and obviously after you master it you can throw the pencil away and not have to make scratchings in the ground.

Your coil will indicate exactly where the target is below, your coil is a perfect pinpointer.

Good luck and welcome to the wonderful world of gold prospecting.
BTW: My opinion only, the GPX-4500 was the greatest Minelab release following the early SD-2100, another 10 year machine that almost talked to me.
We have now moved on to the SDC-2300 & the GPZ- 7000, however we are very much newbies, especially after only about a month use in 2019 ( thanks to Dave & Veronica keeping us sane getting the new settings right.) and zero detecting in 2020.




Cheers
Peter

Thanks, Nightjar,
Since getting the `45 in 2019 , my problem has been getting out in the field and getting into it. I hit the forests and creeks hard in 2019 with my other detector and sluice ,but 2020 was pretty much a non - event with covid19 altering my life plans and prospecting got put on the backburner. 2021 is the year i make up for it. I have a practice target i buried in one of my paddocks ages ago which i will start seriously honing my skills on pinpointing FROM TOMORROW. I will be honest with you, i prefer to learn a machine without reading the manual. I don`t have the patience to read manuals anymore. I can`t concentrate and take it all in. I micro task at work for 8 hours a day in a fast paced environment and there is too much going on in my head.My brain is in overdrive 24 hours a day ,almost . Just the way it is. A lot of videos have given me a good heads up on settings and techniques ,so i understand how the machine works and what to adjust and when to do it. Just got to perfect it. The plan is for more time with boots on the ground this year. And i appreciate all the advice i get here. It is a great help.

I marked the coil with crosshairs today and had a play . Not really that hard to master the pinpointing , hey ? I think i got it.
35 degrees here ,so too hot to go out detecting.
Please explain the above diagram ,Nightjar. Is this for chaining ?

SOR, You really do need to read a little more?
You don't mark the "crosshairs" before testing.

Once again, if you read the captions, you will realise what the diagram denotes.

Beginning to believe you are taking the P**s.
Goodluck!

? Why taking the piss ? I asked a question . Is this chaining ? Not something we do down this way.

I think my comment on crosshairs was taken the wrong way and out of context. I marked the coil at the tip and on the edge of east and west for guidance .
Seeing as Nightjar has left the discussion ,can someone please explain the diagram he put up without describing what it is conveying ? To me is is describing chaining. And why was it put in this thread ? I DO read and also ask questions ,so i am sorry for always being honest. Not all of us are as well versed in the art of gold detecting or had as much experience as others . You are a good man, Nightjar. I just think you misunderstood my response . Take care.

We are all here to learn form others and share our views and experiences in a kindly manner. I am no keyboard warrior.

Fellas, lets not stray off topic here, over a slight/minor misunderstanding.
The drawing that Nightjar has put up for you to see is quite self explanatory, but for the sake of clearing the air (so to speak)  I'll have a go at explaining to you what that drawing is trying to interpret.
Lets start of with the far left hand side of where one comes in swinging the detector left/to right from (depicted by the black line). The the arrow head at the end of the black line, points to where the first nugget is found (nugget depicted as a red cross).
From the initial find, one then starts swinging their detector in a spiral motion (as in this case clockwise) slowly/carefully broadening the search pattern, till a 2nd, 3 or 4th nugget are discovered. The discovery of several nuggets found within a certain section of ground tend to form a pattern, or line of nugget run (the direction of where the nuggets are most likely shedding/coming from). Once the line of nugget run has been determined, one then starts to chain the area in a parallel search chaining procedure (straight lines, say about a meter apart between each line etc) instead of continuing to chain in a circle, as were first required straight after the first initial nugget discovery/find. One then continues to chain in a parallel manner/chaining procedure towards the direction of nugget flow, till they're satisfied no more nuggets exist with that stretch of chained ground, ending ones nugget run.
Hope this explanation has helped you somewhat soldier of fortune.

Cheers Kon.  

Cross hairs or crossed wires,don't worry to much SOF.
I for one rarely pin point any more,an even scrape or three,if the target is out I use a wide base scoop.
A couple of pass overs is all it takes as it holds a fair bit of dirt.
And to missing stuff in print,I think I'm half dyslexic,I'll miss the occasional word and have to go back over what I have red

cheers  moredeep

Pinpointing ones nugget find after its been taken out of ones hole and now or within ones tossed out dirt, is not a complicated task nor should it be seen as such. I've witnessed more than one detectorist on here, (even on youtube) requiring 10+ handfuls or scoops of dirt, before their nugget find is in their scoop or hand, making it very frustrating (not only to the finder, but the one witnessing/watching the one to many a scoop or handfuls of dirt, before the nugget ends up in their hand or scoop. People should spend a little more time thinking about the accuracy of their pinpointing procedure, before diving in head first not knowing + or - where their nugget might actually be sitting in/on.
The method I use regardless of coil size (& even more important when using large coils), is upon first hearing that signal, (whilst keeping your coil flat on the ground) back away from your signal response, until your signal cannot be heard any more, then slowly bring in your coil swinging it flat on the ground from left to right, until your target can be heard loud and clear once more, giving you a fairly good idea of where the target response might be coming from, then mark it with your foot by a small vertical line or indentation, of where you believe the nugget to be sitting. Now where possible, go round to 180 degrees from your last signal approach & repeat the same procedure, by marking the expected nugget location in the same manner as before, then turn ones coil in the absolute vertical position & slowly scan over the nugget signal response with the blade edge of ones coil (to where your signal response comes in the loudest), repeating the procedure as in the above from 180 degrees, (using the blade of your coil), further & more precisely isolating out the exact position, of where your nugget most likely be be sitting in/on.
Now you should find the nugget within the first 3 handfuls or scoops, not on your tenth or twelfth handful or scoop.    
BTW, some people here might think that this above procedure takes forever, but once understood, it becomes second nature & is one of the fastest & most precise methods of obtaining/isolating ones nugget out, from ones dirt pile.

Cheers Kon.  

All goodSOF , hope Kon has cleared up any misunderstanding. Good luck with your future prospecting. Cheers
Peter

No worries. I had genuinely not come across this method of thoroughly searching for nuggets, so the diagram only made half sense to me ,but is probably second nature to others who have done it for years. `Now i see what it is. An old detecting mate found 6 nuggets in one small area a few years` ago , but didn`t do it this way . If he had , i wonder if he would have found more. Thanks for the tips and explanation. No hard feelings, Nightjar.
Looking at your scoop there , More deep , one thing i see time and again online is people not using a scoop the correct way. To check the dirt for gold in the scoop, you must shake the scoop while holding it with the end of it pointing upwards before waving over the coil ,so as the heavies go to the bottom of it. Hardly anyone does it this way. I use a solid scoop with a sort of cup at the base of it ,but they all do pretty much the same job.
It is all about method ,fellas an we never stop learning.