A question about depth

[Topo]

Hi

I recently did some tests burying a coin and I see that I can't get a clear diggable signal past the 6 inches, Im currently using the old 9.5 stock coil that first came with the MXT. may be the 6x10DD or a SEF10x12 the answer? I like to hear your opinions


EDIT: I forgot to mention that I'm getting a loud clear signal at 10 inches with the same coin on "air test"

 

[Larry (IL)]

A couple of things wrong with your analysis, one, air tests don't have the ground, the minerals and other targets to complicate the detection of the target and two, a freshly buried coin does not respond the same as a target that has been in the ground for a number of years. A clear digable signal past 6 inches for any detector becomes more the exception than the norm. Deep targets in the ground will often result in an "iffie" signal with the VDI bouncing around and sometimes a signal that some might consider a "trashy" signal. The detector is reacting not only to the target under the coil, but everything else in the ground that the detector is analyzing at the same time. Many deep targets are only a chirp or two in the desired VDI range and some of the really deep targets do not give a VDI at all, just an audio indication that something might be down there that you want to dig.

 

[srf2112]

Hey Topo. I'm no expert but it sounds to me that, barring any equiptment malfunctions, that your machine may not have been set up properly to achieve max depth. Then again, that may be as deep as the machine will go in the situation you were in. Air tests and fresh buried coins are notoriously poor comparisons for real field results. I know that the stock 950 coil will go deep in the right conditions. Let us know what settings ( disc, and sens, ) you were using and what the ground conditions were. Mineralization level ?, trashy?, dry or wet ? Then I'm sure one of the vets can point you in the right direction. Nancy, Larry you want to take this ? Hope you figure it out but don't give up on the MXT.
HH
Scott

 

[srf2112]

Looks like you beat me to it Larry.
HH
Scott

 

[Topo]

A couple of things wrong with your analysis, one, air tests don't have the ground, the minerals and other targets to complicate the detection of the target and two, a freshly buried coin does not respond the same as a target that has been in the ground for a number of years. A clear digable signal past 6 inches for any detector becomes more the exception than the norm. Deep targets in the ground will often result in an "iffie" signal with the VDI bouncing around and sometimes a signal that some might consider a "trashy" signal. The detector is reacting not only to the target under the coil, but everything else in the ground that the detector is analyzing at the same time. Many deep targets are only a chirp or two in the desired VDI range and some of the really deep targets do not give a VDI at all, just an audio indication that something might be down there that you want to dig.

thanks again Larry!

It may be the cause because on this soil was an antique farm and there must be small metal particles. Im currently getting some constant whisper iffy signals that could be deep targets, I think the next time what Im going to do is to drop the sensitivity and to dig some nails. a DD coil or SEF coil and MXT Edge are on my wishlist.

Hey Topo. I'm no expert but it sounds to me that, barring any equiptment malfunctions, that your machine may not have been set up properly to achieve max depth. Then again, that may be as deep as the machine will go in the situation you were in. Air tests and fresh buried coins are notoriously poor comparisons for real field results. I know that the stock 950 coil will go deep in the right conditions. Let us know what settings ( disc, and sens, ) you were using and what the ground conditions were. Mineralization level ?, trashy?, dry or wet ? Then I'm sure one of the vets can point you in the right direction. Nancy, Larry you want to take this ? Hope you figure it out but don't give up on the MXT.
HH
Scott

Hi srf2112, sure!

disc: was bellow 3

Sen: I tried on the present and on +2, on +2 I've got the better response

Soil: was medium wet, it has been raining this days. The local was under a tree

mineralization: I think is medium


As Larry said mineralization and the fact of being a recent buried object can be the cause, I have this machine for a month and Im still learning how to use it.


this forum has been a great help

 

[Larry (IL)]

If you are hunting in a farm area where there are lots of iron objects, a smaller coil like the 5.3 or 4X6 will allow you to get between the targets and isolate the good ones from the trash. The 6X10 would be a good compromise of the 5.3 and the stock 950, but the 5.3 just might be your ticket to better finds.

 

[Topo]

I'll take that in mind

 

[Jeff-TN]

A good signal on a freshly buried coin at 6" is actually pretty good. There is no halo around the coin to interrupt the the transmitted waves either, it hasn't been in the ground long enough. Try this test and it will help you more than anything else I know to learn the machine. Re-bury your coin at let's say 9" for the test. If you still get a broken signal, try 10" and so on until all you can hear is the threshold hum rise and fall as you pass over the coin. Close your eyes and do it. That is what you want to listen for if your looking for older, deeper coins. Dont even look at your screen, because deeper targets will not give an accurate VDI and sometimes none at all. Now in a real real world homesite, there will be a multitude of signals and sounds, and of course the good repeatable tones are a no brainer to dig, but the the rise in threshold with an iffy tone or no tone at all I will dig every time. Some of my best finds have come from just a threshold rise. The MXT is a great machine with great depth, it's just some of those older targets have sunk so deep that no detector can hit on them with good signals all the time nor can they ID them correctly. I have dug alot of bullets that would bounce between hight tone and low tone ( I hunt in relic mode 100% of the time) and the VDI would bounce in the iron range. The bullets were just too deep to give a good signal, but the MXT told me they were there. I know Larry touched on this, I just wanted to expand on it a little. Your on the right track!!! No better way to learn the machine than to get out there and dig,

Good Luck,

Jeff

 

[Topo]

A good signal on a freshly buried coin at 6" is actually pretty good. There is no halo around the coin to interrupt the the transmitted waves either, it hasn't been in the ground long enough. Try this test and it will help you more than anything else I know to learn the machine. Re-bury your coin at let's say 9" for the test. If you still get a broken signal, try 10" and so on until all you can hear is the threshold hum rise and fall as you pass over the coin. Close your eyes and do it. That is what you want to listen for if your looking for older, deeper coins. Dont even look at your screen, because deeper targets will not give an accurate VDI and sometimes none at all. Now in a real real world homesite, there will be a multitude of signals and sounds, and of course the good repeatable tones are a no brainer to dig, but the the rise in threshold with an iffy tone or no tone at all I will dig every time. Some of my best finds have come from just a threshold rise. The MXT is a great machine with great depth, it's just some of those older targets have sunk so deep that no detector can hit on them with good signals all the time nor can they ID them correctly. I have dug alot of bullets that would bounce between hight tone and low tone ( I hunt in relic mode 100% of the time) and the VDI would bounce in the iron range. The bullets were just too deep to give a good signal, but the MXT told me they were there. I know Larry touched on this, I just wanted to expand on it a little. Your on the right track!!! No better way to learn the machine than to get out there and dig,

Good Luck,

Jeff

Wow Jeff, thanks!

Im getting some of those threshold rises, in one ocassion I was under a tree and switched the machine to prospecting and the rise on the threshold became more evident, I have to go back and investigate. I started to dig but the night was coming and I had to go back, I'll bring a shovel with me

 

[Larry (IL)]

Great post Jeff.........