n00b alert!!!

[Shambler]

I'm on board after getting beaten up at findmall over an interest in remote detection. I don't mean mystical, magical, metal finding or statistical guesses (sorry if that offends anyone). I'm interested in real ways and not necessarily for myself but just because it interests me. What are the pro's using? Anyone working on ground radar powered with a portable/light battery? Wouldn't it be cool if you could detect 1000 sq feet of a park and have something tell you that silver or gold is in the ground in that area? Not necessarily tell you the exact location as there are tools for that, but tell you that it's in the ground there... I know that's thinking small, but its the type of hunting I've done.

I'll get to reading over the next few days and ask some newbie questions.

Thanks for the invite Carl.

[simonbaker]

If you consider the total amount of metal in the ground of a typical park (cans, foil, pulltabs, nails, construction materials, etc.), not to mention the above-ground hardware (wire fences, playground equipment, light fixtures, plumbing, sewer pipes, telephone wires), and if people are present, their personal belongs, it's hard to believe any remote detector could possibly distinguish a few valuables in the huge mess.

I'm am a skeptic about most remote detection I've seen described. But some kind of ground radar would be my first choice if looking in very clean areas for large caches.

Cheers,

-SB

[Shambler]

The military is using some really interesting things to search for mines. They even use radio freqs in the 300K range as well as radar to detect an entire field at once... amongst metal trash and buildings. If you search the web, you can see these images. If you have software to interpret them, you could definitely map all coin sized and shaped (or bullet, or belt buckle, etc) object. I just can't believe we're settling for an area that is 11"X11" as a good detection area. The PI detectors can get 2' or more... what happens when someone figures a way to discriminate?

There's just not much interest in the discussion though.. everyone wants to prove any remote detection is nonsense because they're picturing a calculator with an antenna mounted on a bike hand grip or a maple twig wiggling in someones hand...

[simonbaker]

The military is using some really interesting things to search for mines. They even use radio freqs in the 300K range as well as radar to detect an entire field at once... amongst metal trash and buildings. If you search the web, you can see these images. If you have software to interpret them, you could definitely map all coin sized and shaped (or bullet, or belt buckle, etc) object. I just can't believe we're settling for an area that is 11"X11" as a good detection area. The PI detectors can get 2' or more... what happens when someone figures a way to discriminate?

There's just not much interest in the discussion though.. everyone wants to prove any remote detection is nonsense because they're picturing a calculator with an antenna mounted on a bike hand grip or a maple twig wiggling in someones hand...

It may seem strange, but for many people the enjoyment is the process of hunting with a detector, not the efficiency with which they pull up objects. It is similar to why some people prefer bow hunting to guns -- they enjoy the primitive feeling, using more of their native talents and relying less on technology. It seems contradictory, because we all seem obsessed with pushing technology further and get excited about some new circuit that promises more. But often the most experienced detectorists report they enjoy working with their least sophisticated detector the most - it demands more of themselves rather than letting the technology do all the work and make all the decisions.

I have found that to be true. I enjoy using my ears to try to learn the sounds of good and bad signals and interpret how the motion I make with the detector interacts with targets to produce different sounds. I don't particularly desire a display to look at, I'd rather use my eyes to enjoy the surroundings.

If I could sit at my desk and run a computer program that would take satellite ground radar, locate all the valuable targets, dispatch a robot to dig them up and bring them to me, it would be just another job. If I could get rich doing that, then I'd be interested in pursuing it like any other enterprise. But it wouldn't be much of an outdoors adventure or have the pleasures of the primitive hunt.

I'm not saying it isn't an interesting engineering problem to try to do remote detecting, and you could probably make a successful business if you can devise something. But it will not substitute for hunting with an 11x11 search area, just you and a stick against the wilds!

That's my hot air for today!

Cheers!

-SB