Old Topics, New Idiot (me)

[utmike]

Hi all- My wife has a T2 which I sometimes use also. It is an awesome machine and we have both enjoyed success with it. Our problem is that at times, the machine chatters a lot. When it happens, the TID screen also jumps around pretty wildly. I think this is an error on our part because on some hunts, it has ran very smooth and has been literally on the money. We are primarily coin hunters and have only hunted modern parks and schools since getting the T2. We did try a hillside that had to be very mineralized but, cut it short out of frustration.

The typical setup has been sens 25-30, 3tone, disc 40-45, and auto ground track usually coming in at 89. The coil is connected tightly and the machine has the update. So, my newbie questions that have probably been asked and answered time and again are:

1- Besides go read the manual Dumb-A$%! (Which is probably a fair assessment of my intellect), are there any helpful tricks you all are willing to share on set up?

2- Is it normal to be at this level of sensitivity for trashy areas? Trying to adjust beyond 30 has resulted in a noticeable increase in noise. I have read here where some folks are running 80-90.

3- I just realized we didn't try adjusting channels . I am usually in the area with my minelab while she hunts with the T2, any chance I'm causing interference. I have seen the power lines/ transformer issue brought up. What's the real scoop on this?

4- Realizing the T2 is a high power machine, and some noise is expected, what do you all consider to be an acceptable level?

We think that the Teknetics is a fantastic machine! We would just like to be a little better using it. Thanks for taking the time to read and for any help you can offer!

Mike

 

[BuckeyeBrad]

You can only confirm if that's the problem by moving away and make sure you are on the best frequency for interference avoidance.

 

[Captain Kirk]

Mike,

You and I are hunting similar environments. I run the T2 SENSITIVITY at 80+ and I get very little "chatter". We have to make sure we mean the same thing by "chatter". Does this occur when the coil is motionless or when sweeping the coil?

I run my T2 withing 10 to 15 feet of an Explorer II with very little if any interference. But, the Explorer II may have a different interference profile than the Xterra 70.

HH,
Glenn

 

[jeff@middlesex]

Be sure your getting a clean ground balance. I usually turn on my machine and without making any adjustments sweep the ground till I get no audio and no vdi numbers on the screen. Thats where I ground balance in Fastgrab. Sounds like your ground may be a little hot as well.

 

[tnredneck]

UTMike,

I am fairly new to the T2 but at an older homesite i usually get a reading of @60 on the GB but there is an area in the back yard that drops to #45 and when i enter that area my T2 chatters tremendously. I avoided it for a while but after i worked the rest of the area pretty good i went back and i lowered my sens. to @ 25 to 35 and worked slowly checking each repeatable signal and i was rewarded with a 1925 SLQ, a 1856 seated dime and a 191o Census taker badge. My other detectors never even saw them! I now look for areas that are trashy to hunt because i know the T2 will cut right through there.

HH Tnredneck

 

[Phil]

There was almost no place I could run even a factory pre-set sensitivity without the popping and cracking and the display jumping. A trip back to Texas and a new coil transformed my machine. Now I can hunt the same sites with sensitivity turned up as high as I need. The T2 has gone from a machine I was considering trading off to the one that goes with me the most while my Minelabs, Whites and Tesoro set in the corner.

 

[utmike]

Thanks for the responses. I did a couple of quick tests in my yard after a more careful ground balance. Ran over test targets with sensitivity at 60 with no problems. It had been raining a little and I have heard detectors tend to run a little smoother after rain so, we'll see what the next few outings hold. Hopefully, I can work through this without sending it in.

Captain Kirk and I live in the same city. He has offered to take me on an outing to compare machines. I think having the chance to observe two T2's in the same setting might be a big help. I appreciate all the comments so far.

Mike

 

[Dick from NC]

Mike, the next time you and your wife are out hunting try disc. 10, sens. 80, and mode +2. The +2 mode will let you hear the iron. The iron will give a very low dull sound and everything above iron will give you a nice tone. Use the ID to give you and idea what is in the ground. After you do this for a while you get to the point you can almost tell what is there before you dig. I have found some times if a run my disc. up I start to get a little more chatter. If I'm coin hunting in a trashy area I like to run disc. on 80, sens. on 80, and mode +2, and dig all repeatable signals. If I get a signal I will make a circle around the target swinging back and forth and if I get a good signal all the way around the target it will usually be a coin. If I don't get a good signal while I'm making my circle it usually turns out to be junk. After a while you can almost tell if it is a coin. Try this by putting maybe a bottle cap on the ground and a coin and do this with the coil maybe 4 inches off the ground. Good luck and happy hunting.

 

[chuck ky]

when the t-2 and the f-75 are set above 20 on the disc. level the sensitivity is raised causing the machines to chatter.

 

[utmike]

I played around some more with settings. I did notice that as I increased disc. and tones upward, the chattering increased. The sound on targets has not been an issue it is still clear and consistent. Is it fair to say that when you guys are able to set sens. at the upper end of the scale, you are reducing disc. and tones to keep the machine stable and disregarding iron and foil signals as opposed to "notching" them out?

Thanks again to all for the replies on this thread.

 

[Dick from NC]

When I relic hunt I run disc. at 10 so I can hear everything. The mode is set at +2 so I can tell when I'm over iron. Anything above iron will have the same tone from a tin can to a quarter. I use my ID number to tell me what it might be. A number from 64 to 72 could be a shot gun shell or a 58 calib. mini ball. You just have to dig a lot of targets at the various numbers, then you start to get an idea what might be there. I have noticed if I run my disc. up a little it will start to chatter a little. If I want to coin hunt and don't want to spend a lot of time digging junk I will set my disc. at 80 to get above pull tabs and sometimes the zinc pennies, but don't have any problem with chatter. Sometimes I will run my disc. up a little and don't have any chatter. Maybe it depends on how the detector gods feel at that particular time. You just have to try different things and get to know the detector. I've had my T2 since last summer and I'm still learning things. You can get to be really good with the T2 and you will still continue to learn things. I don't like for my detector to run completely quiet. I like to hear something. I have detected when the detector was quiet and after some walking and swing I realized the my ear phones were off. If its too quiet I will swing around to my shovel to make sure everything is ok. I usually don't detect in all metal, but I think I might try it more and more. It will give a wider tone so you can pick up those small deeper targets. I hope that answers you question.

 

[utmike]

I think your comment about the detector-gods pretty much sums it up! I have had days where things couldn't seem smoother and days where nothing seems to work. I don't like a totally silent machine either but do want to determine if my machine is working properly. Thanks to all the responses on the forum and a couple of gracious offers for help from people here in my town, I'm going to get some side-by-side comparisons with other T2's done. I think between that and just getting out and learning the machine we'll get there!

I'll try to quiet this thread and give you guys some room to post pics. of all your great finds!

Thanks again,
Mike