Question for all the ETrac users here.

[Southwind]

You are completely wrong. I have found too many good targets with rusty items any number of inches above them. Your statement is true for other detectors, but the E-Trac seems to trully be able to see the coin as long as it isn't underneath manhole cover.

To that I say, try it yourself. If it only works on coins found in the ground over time, and not in an air test, then you've only proved what I already said.

 

[Nick A]

You are completely wrong. I have found too many good targets with rusty items any number of inches above them. Your statement is true for other detectors, but the E-Trac seems to trully be able to see the coin as long as it isn't underneath manhole cover.

To that I say, try it yourself. If it only works on coins found in the ground over time, and not in an air test, then you've only proved what I already said.

Bleh. I don't care HOW it works, all I know is the E-Trac kicks butt! It has been well established that air tests of detectors only do so much. Comparing in ground results to air tests doesn't say a lot. I don't know about you, but I detect in the dirt, not in the air, so I want a machine that works in the dirt, not in the air. With Minelab machines, my experience has been that they air test much worse than other machines, but the results in the field exceed those other machines that air test well. I have found many coins in and around iron. I just dug a scratchy signal yesterday and up came a rusty bottle cap, dug a little deeper and out popped a wheatie. Now the coins may not be completely under the iron, there may be a little rim peeking out, but gosh darnit, the E-Trac finds that little bit of a good signal and latches onto it. Could be the DD coil vs. concentric playing into it as well. Often the iron will bring down the signal (the ID will not read right) but the tone is good. I don't know HOW the E-Trac does it, but it has great target separation and the ability to sniff out and lock on to higher conductive signals and give me the indication that I need to dig. In well used parks that have been heavily hunted for years, the E-Trac has really made the difference in getting a few more old coins out of these places.

 

[Jason in Enid]

You are completely wrong. I have found too many good targets with rusty items any number of inches above them. Your statement is true for other detectors, but the E-Trac seems to trully be able to see the coin as long as it isn't underneath manhole cover.

To that I say, try it yourself. If it only works on coins found in the ground over time, and not in an air test, then you've only proved what I already said.

You haven't said anything yet. The in-ground results are the ONLY thing that matters. Air-tests are all but worthless.

You need to either spend a lot more time with your E-Trac, or sell it because you act like will never believe what it's trying to tell you.

 

[Southwind]

Pssst... A detector works better in the air than it does in the ground. If you're one of those that believe your detector works better in the ground than in the air, I've got some land for sale.

P.S. if it makes you feel better, put the coin in the ground and then put the nail a few inches above it. It's not rocket science.

 

[Nick A]

My impression is that these comments are not adding any useful information to the thread.

 

[gibsondan]

Very interesting thread. In a nutshell what I got out of all this is reinforcement that it's good to hunt a site from different directions.

 

[Johnny]

Well have trying the etrac on depth where I live and the best I get is 8" on a dime. And the only way I get a coin very close to iron is if the quick mask is open all the way. I think it is hit the iron not the coin. All so tried the 6x8 butterfly and it is the same. On my SE I have a x5" coil and put a quarter about 3" from a large nail and the 5" would not hit it ( coin program) and then put the old 10" stander coil on and it did hit the quarter. So I called sun ray and he said that is called a rap around effect.

 

[go-rebels]

"Wrap around effect" a.k.a.classic iron masking.

It really does depend on your soil! I was very proficient with my Explorer II and I could barely see a 7" silver dime in my red clay soil in dry conditions. And I know for a fact that I could get at least 8" on a silver dime in loomy soil conditions in Ohio.

The fact that a 10" coil can see a shallow target next to iron, yet a 5" cannot see the same target is very surprising. Either the 5" coil is defective or the 10" coil is falsing on the nail.

I'd love to see a scenario where the Etrac (or any other machine) really gives a good signal on a silver target buried a few inches under a nail. I never could see it in my sanitized test bed where I've built that exact condition and I've tried all the top-of-the-line Minelabs and Fishers. I can set up nearly any machine to give false positive chirps on a single buried nail (w/o silver underneath), but that's not a diggable good signal, and if I put a silver underneath, I can get that same false signal coming from the ends of the nail. I don't believe the detector is signaling off the silver, but falsing on the nail instead.

These good detectors can pull a good signal from co-mingled targets (maybe within 1"), but once that good targets falls a few inches under the iron, I don't believe it is detectable any longer.

 

[Jason in Enid]

Well have trying the etrac on depth where I live and the best I get is 8" on a dime. And the only way I get a coin very close to iron is if the quick mask is open all the way. I think it is hit the iron not the coin. All so tried the 6x8 butterfly and it is the same. On my SE I have a x5" coil and put a quarter about 3" from a large nail and the 5" would not hit it ( coin program) and then put the old 10" stander coil on and it did hit the quarter. So I called sun ray and he said that is called a rap around effect.

Johnny, what setting are you using? Because I have had it happen many times, regardless osf what go-rebels thinks the machines does.

 

[Jackalope]

OK, my post was of a test observation and not just my impressions.

Using CO Multi, Trash Density HIGH, nail was discriminated OUT. In the soil, the coin at 4", 1", and 6" directly below the nail gave repeatable signals at two points on the compass directly across from each other and parallel to the hotspot on the coil. Used Trash Density High which only displays ACCEPTED target numbers on the Smartfind. Iron was discriminated OUT (FE 26). CO numbers were 43 to 46 and FE numbers were 13 to 24. Also, and I think significantly, the depth gauge tracked the coin as I moved it higher and lower so the repeatable tones (not chirps) were from the coin.

In addition, I decided to try FE 2 tone All Metal Trash Density High. Both High and Low tones were clear and repeatable.

Only thing I can think of that would be better is if the screen would say "dig this one".

Ron

 

[go-rebels]

What do you hear at other points on the compass... say 10-20 degrees off axis?

 

[Jackalope]

At points of the compass other than the two spots opposite of each other where the hotspot of the coil lines up with the nail, there's a complete null.

Also noticed that LONG or SMOOTH tones makes for a stronger signal.

Ron

 

[go-rebels]

At points of the compass other than the two spots opposite of each other where the hotspot of the coil lines up with the nail, there's a complete null.
Ron

"Hotspot of the Coil" meaning the axis of the DD lining up (paralled to and on top of) the axis of the nail?

 

[go-rebels]

At points of the compass other than the two spots opposite of each other where the hotspot of the coil lines up with the nail, there's a complete null.

Also noticed that LONG or SMOOTH tones makes for a stronger signal.

Ron

This is a good test. Thanks for sharing the settings.

I need to retest taking time to study more aligning the axis as you described.

 

[jbow]

Only thing I can think of that would be better is if the screen would say "dig this one".


It does...
I almost always hunt in relic pattern with two tones and ferrous. The numbers say... "DIG ME"!!

The E-TRAC is in a class by itself.

J