Path to get started..

[Newbie]

Hello people,
I need some advice on how to get started in this line of work..
I'm a fairly fast learner, with surveying background
For a starter, I'm buying a cheap/used RD400 off ebay to play around with..
So:
-What are the fundamentals, dos and donts etc..
-Must read book/s
-Best way to practice/ learn the skill/art.
-How much time/experience needed from newbie to proficients?
-How robust is the equipment used in the industry? I asked because most likely my equipment is coming from the net/ebay, hence no local support.
-Other related things..
thank you for reading and I look forward to all the feebacks/advices that you may have..TIA

[UULC]

This ia a good start. Also check out Amazon.com they have a book for about $25.00.


http://www.schonstedt.com/Pdfs/Manua...oManual_06.pdf

Post often and welcome aboard.

[Mke]

Welcome to the Vine Noob.

-What are the fundamentals, dos and donts etc..

Do's: Find your routine. Locating is all about finding a system that works for you and not straying from that. When you don't go through all the processes, thats when things rear their ugly head and bite you.

Don't's: Don't trust anyones paint, prints, or word for what is in the ground. Go by what you see, and what your equipment shows you. Also, Don't assume everything is built with common sense, most things are not.

-Best way to practice/ learn the skill/art.

Practice by doing. Try anything. Locating is about adapting to what is present in the field. Also, its a little under rated, but make your marks make sense. It should be easy enough for a child to figure out.

-How much time/experience needed from newbie to proficients?

A Noob should loose the nervousness about the 6 month mark. To become proficient at Public locates or Private locates may differ, but from the first introduction to speaking fluent "Locator" you are looking at a few years.

-How robust is the equipment used in the industry? I asked because most likely my equipment is coming from the net/ebay, hence no local support.

The Equipment need is really dependant on what type of locating you are doing. I personally carry 4 different types of equipment, some worth 600bucks, and others worth a few grand. it all depends what is needed.

Hope this helps

Mke

[Newbie]

UULC, thanks for the great pdf..just skimmed through it but I'm sure to read it word for word a little later..
Mike, thanks for the advise,in short, no cutting corners and no short cuts to anythin huh?
Thank you both for the warm welcome, I'm not sure if I have much to contribute except a few more dumb questions..
p.s Is buying a used RD400 for learning is advisable or should I move up the stake and buy something a little more up to date ?

[Mke]

Noob, Short cuts come with time and experience. Once you learn how hour equipment behaves, you will be able to understand how to manage hook ups and frequencies in order to work through most situations.

As for your Practice Equipment. What type of work are you going to be performing? Single utility Locating? Multiple Utility Locating? Private Utility Locating? All these will effect what type of equipment you will benefit from. As for the RD400, I have no experience with it. I've been a Metrotech 810 guy for most of my career so i'm kinda biased with that.

Mke

[Brentlouks]

I would HIGHLY recomend getting some sort of formal training...you have the excavators lives in you hands.

[noOT4me]

I have been locating for 13 years and still prefer the RD400 over any other equipment.

[Newbie]

As for your Practice Equipment. What type of work are you going to be performing? Single utility Locating? Multiple Utility Locating? Private Utility Locating? All these will effect what type of equipment you will benefit from. As for the RD400, I have no experience with it. I've been a Metrotech 810 guy for most of my career so i'm kinda biased with that.
Mke

Thanks Mike, my type of work would be locating multiple utility..
To cut a long story short, I am a surveyor and we normally sub out the locating jobs to others, most times we are getting good rsponse from these guys but some other times, they took perhaps 2-3 days to get to site (which means I had to sit around waiting for them as I am the one mapping all their spray points). I figure I could make myself useful by doing some detecting myself before the pros get to the site. Perhaps I could learn enough along the way to do the job myself and keep all the money..
I realise a decade old 300 bucks RD400 would not detect and do everything, but I'm thinking it would give me some fundamental skills to begin with..(I think)..
Whre I'm from, all the detections guys use Radiodetection..

Good point about formal training, is there an online one?

Noot4me: I'm glad to hear about RD400, most likely I will pick one up from ebay ~400 bucks or so. I noticed there are a few model of RD400 (analog as well as digital one). My application is to detect everything, so which model to avoid?

Thank you for all the feedbacks so far,,great stuff..

[noOT4me]

I would go with the digital receiver which I believe is a PXL2 model and a LCTX transmitter.

[yahoo]

if it seems perfect to you..it's not! it is a fun job and you will have good days and bad days , good weeks and bad weeks , good years and bad years...good luck!

[Isotopes]

if it seems perfect to you..it's not! it is a fun job and you will have good days and bad days , good weeks and bad weeks , good years and bad years...good luck!

Yup. The good days are what keep me going. Few days ago I got over time, knocked out 30 tickets and never had to hook up to phone. Just alot of driving and cake walk secondarys. I came home feeling like I had the best job in the world.