Question about setting ground balance

[Chuckieo]

When first starting out for the day, how do you set the ground balance ? I have been going by what is said on pg 13 of the owner's manual. You set the mode, dual control,gain and threshold and raise the coil up and down several times above the ground surface. But later in the manual it says to just press Ground Grab one time. (Don't hold it in, that is for something else)

I am not sure if they mean to press ground grab after the initial setting of ground balance and you have been detecting and it might have gotten out of adjustment. Or is this a much simpler way to start off at the beginning of the day, Just press Ground Grab.

Also, I think I read somewhere that the detector will self adjust the ground balance after a few sweeps of the coil. I am just a little confused and simpler is better for me. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Aarong81]

Ground balance will adjust automatically while the "TRAC" switch is in the "GROUND" position. That is the absolute simplest ground setting and you may leave the "TRAC" switch in "GROUND" position and forget it if you choose but I don't like doing that.

If you are more particular about accuracy like me, Move the "TRAC" switch to "LOCK" and then move the coil up and down(pumping the coil) from the ground to about 6 inches from the ground several times and then press the "GROUND GRAB" button. Be sure that the spot on the ground that you 'pump the coil' is free of any metal targets INCLUDING iron. This method keeps the ground balance set at that exact setting until you tell it to update again at any given time by simply pressing "GROUND GRAB".

Why do I lock ground balance?... While detecting a faint target, I swing the coil over the same spot for quite some time trying to decide if its a target I want to dig. By doing this, The detector automatically assumes it is detecting Mineralization and will cause the ground balance to "DRIFT" and the once faint target will slowly dissapear, not a good thing. If the "TRAC" switch is in the "LOCK" position the detector cannot drift as I concentrate on faint signals.

While detecting, every 15 minutes or so, look for areas free of targets and press "ground grab" as long as the "trac" switch is in "lock".

Why update ground balance if you already set it 15 minutes ago?... Mineralization changes as you cover ground and have moved away from the spot that you first ground balanced. So by updating the ground balance you will get more accurate signals and less mineralization noise.