New guy, with SD 2100

[downhalo]

Hey all, just looking for some advice..

Yesterday I picked up an SD 2100 for $800... Came with 2 coils 18" mono, 11" DD, 2 batteries, speaker+booster.. All the goodies..

Anyway, the question is, did I waste my money?, or do I have half a chance at pinging some gold?

I've been swinging my Whites GMT GB2 and GB Pro for the last 6 months and have had great success on smaller gold. The largest being a nice 1.77 Gram nugget..
Picked up the PI as the area I hunt is highly mineralized and covered in hot rocks and ironstone, plays havoc with the VLF machines..

Any info would be of great help, recommended coils etc.. I know they're an older machine, but hey they worked back in the day right?

 

[Diggerdude]

That's a good buy for $800. The 11" DD will give you the best results on small stuff. There are plenty of people still getting nuggets with these machines. Take your time getting used to it, and go really slow and low, and you will be picking up nuggets in no time. A mate of mine has recently got one near Ballarat as his first detector and has been picking up nuggets.

Goodluck
DD

 

[Jim.]

Hi mate,

I started with a SD 2000 back in the day (2000 & 2100 a great machine but you have to GB often) then upgraded to a 2200, I skipped the 2100 as I wanted the added benefit of ground tracking to help in our heaviily mineralised ground. Mate $800 for a 2100 is a bargain but I think you will need to get someone who has mastered one to help you get the best out of it.

Hot rocks and ironstone are where the best gold is, don't try for easier ground it sounds like your in the right spot. Stick with your DD, GB often, and keep your swing low and slow

best of luck

Jim & Kerrie

 

[Treadsoftly]

I would agree with the above comment by Jim, stick with the 11 DD, slow and low.

If you already have a spot where you found a 1.7 grammer, try the SD2100. The DD will be much quieter on the mineralised ground. Having said that the SD2100 can be quieter with smaller gold, particularly with the 11 DD coil.
If you are going to use headphones buy a decent set.
I have found that headphones that have a impedance rating above 50 ohms is better. I used a pair of Sennheiser headphones rated at 100 ohms and faint signals from small gold I could hear really clearly. With the stock headphones that came with the SD2100 I could hardly hear the faint signal of a small or deep nugget. And the comfort of the original headphones was terrible (felt like a vice squashing my head).
I have never used external speakers so can't give any advice, most fellas who I have seen that use them, use a booster.

I have used a 11inch mono and a 8 inch mono on my SD2100 found them both excellent to use, where the ground conditions weren't heavily mineralised.

The SD2100 will find you gold, if you find the right place to detect. If you know any areas that the old timers mined by 'surfacing' then I would go there and detect the fringe areas.

enjoy Ts.

 

[Guest]

Great buy - been watching out for a SD2200 & have seen a few SD2100's sell for over $1000. One sold on eBay for $1200 today that had similar amount of extras.

 

[Jon]

G,day Mate. I found plenty of good gold with a 2100 years ago and that was with the 18" mono too. Had to keep an eye on the gb, lifting and lowering the coil now and then and then adjusting it to suit but it was a killer machine using that coil in its day.

 

[kiwi1]

I've had my 2100 since new and found good gold over the years. often thought of upgrading but am now used to the machine. It's still finding gold alongside the 3500's etc.

I am now looking at getting a mod done, but still contemplating. The only thing that bugs me is ant bed but a scrape of the boot or pick tends to sort this out. Just break the surface.

For KeenKen, I'd get out and use the 2100, get used to it and its noises. Mine runs really quiet, when i get a slight change in tone i go back over and over, if it bugs, scrape the surface and recheck. i found 2 small pieces doing this and now am trying to remember other places where this occurred when i hadn't worked it out.

i don't think i'll ever part with mine.
Has anyone else modified their 2100 and if yes, did it improve it???

 

[Jon]

Once saw a modded 2100 that was fantastic. Upped its sens by about 50% on small gold. Overall depth was not increased though on bigger deep stuff. This wasn't a mod by the guy that advertises though. It was done by a guy who used to work for Telstra if I remember right. I have seen some machines that were butchered and made worse by mods though too. Its a chance you take. Better off upgrading in my personal opinion.