Need a confidence boost here......

[suxbux]

I think I'm getting discouraged again as I did many years ago.Don't want to-love detecting! I went to the old school today and did a one or two hour search and came home with trash only. I dug about 10 holes and passed on 20 or 30 questionable signals. As I work long hours, I don't have alot of time to spend digging garbage. I'd be more inclined to stick with this hobby if I found more "good" stuff when I am able to search! I just don't know if it's the places I go or not understanding the machine. I don't question the quality/ability of my detector. I think it's me! How many times have you gone somewhere and only found trash? I do it alot!! That's discouraging-especially with the cost of gas these days!! Many have told me this is a retired man's sport-maybe if I had more time to spend-but I think I'd still tire of digging trash fairly quickly!! Maybe I don't have the patience...or not going to the right places....or the research...could be many things I guess.I try hard,but....?
Today I set my sites and my discrimination high so I could concentrate on the good stuff-at least initially! Looking for coins-piece of cake. New methodology today!! That is ASSUMING there is anything to find!! Lots of "hits" at 90-95 ID. I only dug the smaller stuff that would pinpoint in a small precise area-not the big stuff as I've been burnt on that a few times(pipe-sprinkler heads,cans,etc.)Some holes I never found what was there because they were deeper than my digger was long! I doubt coins are usually that deep anyway. Others were foil-bottlecaps,etc.Some disappeared. I've read the manual so much I nearly have it memorized, but it doesn't seem to help me in the field.
So here's my questions! What is the percentage of trash to good stuff do you guys dig? 50/50 ? 75/25? 90/10? How much TIME do you spend detecting in order to find some good stuff? If I'm going to the wrong places-no detector will find what's not there! Do I move on after a couple of hours of digging just trash? Or do I assume the nut behind the detector is loose?
I love detectors and detecting, but after not finding stuff I quickly tire of digging garbage, and give it up for awhile. Am I the only one who gets discouraged with the trash? I hate to be the only whiner on here....any advice?? Speaking of wine, I think it's almost time for my daily merlot....doctors orders ya know!!! Besides, maybe I'll feel better about not finding the mother lode today! John

 

[jeff@middlesex]

I think part of the problem especially with new machines is relying on the ID meter. You have to remember that the information on the screen is useless unless you use it with the sound of the target. So for an example. Lets say you get a good sounding signal. That would be a signal that sounds the same and does not change tones as you sweep over the target in both directions. To take this a step further to get you started. You should be able to take a step to your left or right, about 45 degrees and sweep over the target and still get the same sound if it is a good one. If the signal changes tone or turns into a one way signal or a signal that only sounds off in one direction it is trash.
Next step, the meter. The meter is one more piece of the puzzle but not the complete answer either. If you swing over the target and it sounds good(as mentioned above) but the ID is jumping all over the place and the VDI numbers will not lock on , it's trash. And of course a good dounding signal with a lock on of the ID meter or VDI numbers will be a good one. Not foolproof of course, but nothing is. Also be sure your not running your sensitivty to high. This will make it very hard to tell trash from treasure and get the ID meter to operate correctly. AND last but not least. Your ground balance has to be done correctly, or everything I just mentioned will go out the window. Just takes practise, but I understand your frustration.
Good luck just keep at it, we have all been down that road.

 

[Bill W.]

John,

ALL of us get frustrated at times. Learning a new machine can amplify the trash you and I dig by ten fold! I've always tried to look at digging trash as a learning experience especially with a new machine. You're not going to truely know what's under the coil unless you dig. If you look back in my post on the T2 I was whining (yes, I said whining... ) about deep pulltabs getting pulled up into the low coin area. I recently got permission on a new site and have used the T2 quite a bit to learn it more. It's private property so I was certain 'easy' coins would be there to help me learn the T2. The coin were there and I have more confidence in my decisions to pass up some hits. At this site before I dug these hits I would guess if it was a good coin hit or an iffy pulltab/coin hit. I've hunted alot of old schools both abandoned (or fields now) and existing schools. Most of those sites have been hit hard. In learning the T2 you might want to look for the easy picking of a clad site just to learn the machine better. Knowing your machine is 90% of the battle. In parks my trash to coins ratio is horrible. On private property it is alot better. Alot of time my trash side of my pouch is fuller than the coins side. I work alot of hours during the week too. The weekends are my only time to hunt so I can really understand your frustration. Depending on the amount of detectorist in your area private property may be your most rewarding type of site. Good luck!

-Bill

 

[suxbux]

Thanks for your input!! All really good advice and appreciated! I HAVE been digging alot of stuff where the signal changes or isn't consistantly repeated....could be a part of the problem! Heck-I'm ready to try it again! I still wonder what those deep,deep targets are that I never reach! Don't we all!!?? HaHa. I AM going to try some new places as soon as I can! I still really like my detector! Just need some more time behind it-and maybe a different job with more time off!! John

 

[pineapple]

John, Both Jeff and Bill gave you some great advice. If you remember the field report I did on the T2 I was really frustrated with several things. The one that I think stuck out the most for me was the rusted bottle caps. Well, now that I have a whole lot more experience with the unit I have mitigated that problem to where I rarely dig one now and can easily distinguish them from a coin. I like to dig the heavily trashed areas only because many will give up on them or find them too hard to work. The T2 does an excellent job in these areas with it's great target separation abilities. It's a slow process when working these areas but it can be done. What Bill stated about working the clad laden areas is good advice since it will give you a feel for how your unit is reacting in the soil there. What Jeff stated too about relying solely on the ID meter should not be overlooked either. I rely on tone first then the meter/VDI. The T2 affords so many tools for you to use to correctly identify what lies beneath your coil. I dubbed it as having the best situational awareness screen of any other machine I have used to date. Jeff is correct too when he said not to run your sensitivity to high. It will all depend on what kind of a place you're working when in trash I rarely take it over 40, though when in an open field around some of the homesteads I am working I can easily crank it up some. The same would apply to the amount of disc I use. If in a open area like I just mentioned I can work with it at 30, but if in a trashy environment I won't go below 55 and will on most occasions work only the top end by setting it at 80.

We all have dug our share of trash and I know how frustrating it can get especially when as the others said you're working with a new unit. The T2 tired my patience for sure and I was ready to whack it up side a tree the first couple of times I took it to the field. This too was after i had ran many, many test in my test bed. I thought I was ready for the field though when I got there it was a whole different story. I worked it for about 4-10hrs a day taking as many notes as I could and tried to duplicate scenarios whereas I would have a feel for what I may encounter the next time out. I average between 20-40hrs per week detecting all contingent upon the weather and whether or not I am in or out of town.

Take your time and go to those easy clad infested areas first to gain some/more confidence with your unit, then work your way towards a little more trash, then the heavy trash. Once you get accustomed to working the heavy trash, the rest is gravy. As you noted research is a big part of it too, I spend almost as much time researching as I do detecting. I'm lucky though since many times when on the road I have nothing to do at nights aside from sit in a motel/hotel room waiting for the next day to roll around, so I take this time to do some research. There is no one set of settings you can use either that will work best for any given area. I have to date got maybe fifteen different set-ups that I use and they all all based on different types of soils and conditions. Keep the faith and don't let it take you down, if you swing it, they will come.

 

[Eddie Currents]

I would try another site. The fact that it's an old school may not mean much if it's been landscaped, tilled or filled in recent years.

My philosophy is that I hunt mainly for enjoyment. If i'm not having fun at a partiular site, I move on.

EC

 

[suxbux]

Thanks for more really good advice! I do think I need more time under my belt and some new areas to search. I have read the manual so many times trying to know what to do for every situation, but after I'm out there I seem to forget about half of it and maybe get frustrated after digging a few bottle caps....I totally agree that I need to go to some sites where I KNOW there are coins to find just to gain some experience and knowledge with that-I'm just not sure of any places like that in my area yet-or at least where I have permission to search!! I guess that's where the research comes in!! I thought sure I would find some coins at the old elementary school I attended as a kid. Maybe we didn't take much money to school back then-or didn't lose it or something. They tore the school down-but the grounds are untouched and the same as they were 40 some years ago when we had silver coins....AND I've never seen anyone using a metal detector there. I thought it would be perfect!Ooops-I think I just dated myself! haha
Another question-last night I was air testing my unit and would get the "overload" signal quite often with quarters and 50 cent pieces. Is that normal with air testing and your units? Thanks again!

 

[Mike Hillis]

Hi John.

You know while I was reading your post I thought back about what Mr Bill had posted a bit back. What he stated was that the deep silver was dropping down into the zinc range and he had dug some nice silver dimes but they were zinc range, not high coin range. Perhaps you walked over some questionable zinc or even square tab range hits that you passed on? IH would have been down into the tab range. Or perhaps you had your disc maxed out at 80 and wouldn't have been able to hear them?

If the school is old, chances are others have been there, so you would need to look for the less obvious. Might go back with a lower disc and just focus on deeper zinc and tab signals and see whats there to see?

Don't give up.

HH

 

[pineapple]

I had the same only when I was waving the coin or target too close to the coil. Try it again starting at three inches from the coil and see what happens. I'll almost bet it disappears (the overload msg) and provides a good readout. When I was doing my air testing I was using all kinds of stuff besides coins. I did the coins first only to see how well they compared to what was in the manual. I then did the test bed, then the unit comparisons and field testing at several locations since we have a wide variety of soil conditions and types around here.

Don't worry about the age thing, if you were in elementary school 40yrs ago that would still make me older than you so you're still a young buck! In regards to the school though I would almost bet my T2 away that there are coins there and they are waiting for you to pluck them up. Try to remember all the places y'all used to play and stuff as well as the paths y'all took going to and from the school. The next chance you get right after a good rain go back out there and try again using the high end settings. Run your disc at 80, and sensitivity at 50. Put her into the 4 tone audio and try using the F1 freq mode. If she is slightly unstable lower the sensitivity and pump the Freq up one. This will eliminate lots of trash for you while keying into most the other coins with the exception of the nickels, zinc pennies and the IH's. The reason I say after the rain is because the targets will be easier to find due to their increased conductivity, as well as it being an easier dig.

Just remember to visualize the school in your head and if you can get ahold of a old postcard or picture of the place that would even be better to get an idea of where you need to be looking. One of the places you may want to consider detecting are boat landings. I have had real good luck at picking up stuff there. Yes you'll have to play the cap game but just remember what I told you previously about the bounce/VDI spread and Fe spikes.

I'll give you another piece of advice that I always tell folks about using any detector especially if they are new to the hobby. If you work one category at a time from a disc perspective you'll come to learn the detector much quicker. In other words start off with your disc at 80 like I mentioned. You get accustomed to all the stuff in the high tone range and will soon notice their peculiarities, then drop down to say 70. This will place you into the zinc (zinc/copper) stuff relative to coins, after you feel comfortable with them move down to around 60...now you're into the screw caps and other trash but you'll still be gaining that audio and TID experience that is much needed. After you're comfortable with that drop down to 50, now you're playing with the big gold rings and jewelry as well as the nickels, once you have that down pat you're ready to drop to the 30 mark,,,this will put you into the smaller gold rings and jewelry, lastly you're ready go to the bottom of the scale and pick up all the other stuff that fell in below the 30 mark...small gold jewelry and other neat items of interest. I know it seems like a lot, but it really isn't and by the time you have a total of 15-20hrs in each category you'll have a good feel for what your unit is telling you. I have taught many folks out there using this technique and I am sure it will work for you too. Just need a lot of discipline to stay with the program. All too often folks want to dive in when they haven't really learned how to swim yet (best analogy I could come up with). Take care and best of luck to ya!

 

[suxbux]

Thanks for your advice AGAIN-really appreciate it! I can't wait to get back out there and try again using your ideas. I shouldn't have said anything with the little amount of time I have using this machine-but I've learned alot from your posts and I sure am glad I found this forum and all the good helpful people on here!! Thanks for taking the time to put all that info into your post for me! John

 

[Dean (Whitby Canada)]

I am probably the worst person in the world when it comes to any that has electronics..My friends come over to fix my computer!!!

For the past 15 years I used a Nauty DMC....just a few dials that I NEVER adjusted.
When I got the T2 I was afraid of it..I had heard of many with the minelabs giving up due to the learning curve..and I thought this would be the same.
On my 3rd time out I figured it out..at least good enough that I could pull a good target out of a nail filled area..if I can do it so can you.

I had tried the machine twice before in trashy areas and was getting a bit fed up.
The 3rd time I started in a trashy area..and again getting a bit fed up I moved to an area I knew to be cleaner..perhaps no "good" targets but at least not as many bad ones. Once there I began to play with the settings until I found the ones I was comfortable with..then I moved into a trashy area again and BANG I had "got it!!" I was tricked very few times..yes newer clean bottle caps come up good..but I know with more time on the machine I will be able to tell these targets a bit better.

What I did was I relied on sound first..if a target sounded good, I would go over it a couple of times..doing this let the machine have more time to figure the target..many times the sound let me know it was old iron..also if the target sounds good, I would move to a 90% angle of my first sweep..many times this let me know it was not a good target.

Now maybe there are better setting than I used..but I did find good stuff in a bad area..with time I will tweek a bit more..but for now I am comfortable with what I am using.

This is my set up
Desc Mode , Sens 40, Desc 10 sounds 2+
Also ground balance every few mins..I do it after each good hit and I do it every 3-4 mins (or less) in a trashy area.

As I said using these settings I pulled bullets at 8 inches (.45 cal not minies!!)in an area full of nails, foil, wire and bottle caps and as this area was within 8 feet of the country road and just after a winter of ploughing that road here in Ontario..you can imagin how "dirty" it was.

Don't give up!!!!! If I can do it anyone can....try to hunt with the presets first..try to find a cleaner area....learn the sounds..to me thats number one...worry about the read outs if the sounds are good after moving as I explained...also I have learned 2 things about this machine...you don't swing fast as with most other machines..this is a tough one for me...and don't wear steel toed boots!!!!!! I had to extend the shaft full lenght becase I did and the machine would pick them up..and since I am only 5 5 1/2 inches tall..it was a pain..

OK I have gone on long enough..I am not an expert..or as good with this machine as others on this forum...I think the important thing is to find settings that you feel comfortable with..hunt with them and slowly, as you gain experiance start playing with the settings...you don't need to start with the best settings..you and I will learn them..just get started working in a reasonable fashion...when you learn more you can always go back to your first sites.

Just my thoughts.

Dean
Whitby Ontario

 

[Mike Hillis]

n/t

 

[Dean (Whitby Canada)]

Sorry for the long post..and I am sorry that I repeated several things..but this machine scared me...but it wasn't as hard to "workout" as I thought..
I would say to any newcomers..run it on the factory sets....get comfy then learn....easier than a minelab and cheaper and works as well or better
You can always go back and rehunt your sites!!!!

Dean
Whitby Canada

 

[suxbux]

n/t

 

[Low-Boy/LCPM]

If you know y our machine and your meter good to bad for me is 85% good if you are looking for gold rings ect you have to dig trash so it would be the other way around lots of trash and if you are lucky you may find gold. I have increased my gold rings 100% by digging the trash. So it is up to you and what you are looking for and willing to dig. Sometimes I just want clad and dig higher tones or higher reading on my meter and it pays big time...But I live in Calif and people lose all sorts of things in parks and at schools. I can find close to $1,200. a year in clad and maybe twenty gold rings and fifty silver rings and then all the other fun stuff

lawrenzo