AT Gold Sweep Speed revisited

[MikeLab]

Well, maybe this is the first time I mentioned this here. For deep targets sweep speed is faster for the AT Gold (I assume AT Pro is similar) than some other detectors. It is easy enough to place a test target on the ground (gold ring is preferred). Hold the coil up away from the target about ten inches or near the edge of detection. Sweep slowly then sweep faster and see which way gives the best sound.Very slow speed it won't do much of anything The instruction manual says three feet per second. Watch those Garrett instructional videos at the Garrett website and see how fast they swing . Looks like they are going to miss everything but that's the same speed I got with my testing. It's faster than you might think. Now shallow targets are different, so try that too.

 

[John-Edmonton]

Just as running a magnet over a coil of wire can produce a voltage, increasing the speed of movement will also increase the voltage, or again, an alternator will give out more voltage with increased revolution speed. You brought up an excellent point. You can use this to dramatically increase your hunting skills.

Increasing your sweep speed of the coil over a target will in fact give a stronger reading, and is one way of getting a stronger signal from a deeper target. I use this to my advantage when using the sniper coil. Because it is already a very sensitive coil, especially to smaller targets, I tend to really swing it fast, as much as 2 swings a second. This allows me more coverage in a given time and at the same time gain better sensitivity to deeper targets. Now there are limits to as how fast the electronics can digest this information. Older detectors from the 80's & 90's didn't fair as well on scanning the coil over several targets set up close together, to get some reasonable ID. Today, the coils and electronics allow the user a much faster swing speed.

So....learn your detector well. Establish your maximum swing speed using different size coils and their swing speed capabilities. This can be done by placing targets spaced about 4-5" and swinging your coil back and forth, increasing the speed to where the electronics can't ID the targets properly. The downside of a very fast swing is that the user can get sloppy and miss some areas and possibly damage the coil by physically hitting a rock or tree.

Just something to think about......

 

[MikeLab]

Thanks for the info, John. Yes, on another forum someone said it is just the opposite so I hope everyone will take two minutes and try this one for themself. The slow speed will lose deep targets.

 

[John-Edmonton]

I think the bottom line is learn your detector well, and know how it operates using different coils size/type and types of targets you are searching for. When searching for typical targets, such as coin/ring targets, I swing quite fast to find them. However, when I search for deep targets, I slow down, and when I do get any kind of a pop in my headphones, I start to swing that coil faster over the deep target in different directions, and get a whole bunch of new clues as to what that target might be.

 

[au79]

that's all good unless you're hunting on trashy ground. swinging that fast will only get you as far as pull tabs and nothing in between or underneath. It is true that swatting at a chirp (in barren ground) can give you a better sound but if you want to pick the goodies out from under aluminum SLOW is the word. Swinging fast in trashy ground will give false target ID readings (multiple targets seem to multiply target ID numbers when swinging fast). Just thought I would add some clarity here in case a newbie is reading. Sure, if I'm in the desert and swinging for a long time without target signals then swinging fast will cover much more ground and give better tones on deep targets - when there is one.

happy hunting

 

[Big Boys Hobbies]

It's a gret relic hunter with its speed!