Question on which Tesoro machine is best in bad soil.......

[padiggin]

Are there any Tesoro Tejon or any other Tesoro models that good results in badly mineralized soil that the Central Virginia area is known for? Anyone use a Tesoro in that area? I hear so many people in that area that will ONLY use a White's or Minelab and say that Tesoro just can't handle that badly mineralized soil. I don't know if I buy that non-sense. Anyone have any first hand experience in that regard?? I'm really interested in getting a Tejon, but so many people tell me to stay away from it because it just can't handle "hot" or badly mineralized ground. One person said the Tejon just shrieked when he used it in that area. Again, I'm not fully sure this individual knew what he was doing with it which is why it may not have handled well for him. So if anyone can speak of first hand experience of using a Tesoro in that area, I would be very grateful.

 

[damiano]

I think that change coil from stock to DD (widescan) do the best for hot ground.
For models who is the best - i don't know.... Vaquero, Tejon ??

 

[oldcoon]

[size=small]Any of the Tesoro models with the manual ground balancing
will work in Virginia soils.
Just be sure to re-check the balance every few minutes
in case you wander into a particularly obnoxious piece of ground.
Another brand of machine that seems to hold up in highly mineralized ground is
the Nautilus but they are very complicated and have a very high learning curve.[/size]​

 

[Canewrap]

If you're talking about the bad ground in Culpepper Co. VA, then the truth is most machines have real problems with that ground. I've used the lower frequency Eldorado in that ground and it will work, but it reduces your effective depth some. The Tejon doesn't fair well at all, even with a DD coil. That soil is like powdered iron and will give most machines fits. I know a lot of people at the DIV events that have gone over to using PI machines because a PI doesn't have the problems, but a PI cannot discriminate, so you'll be digging most signals.

 

[padiggin]

If you're talking about the bad ground in Culpepper Co. VA, then the truth is most machines have real problems with that ground. I've used the lower frequency Eldorado in that ground and it will work, but it reduces your effective depth some. The Tejon doesn't fair well at all, even with a DD coil. That soil is like powdered iron and will give most machines fits. I know a lot of people at the DIV events that have gone over to using PI machines because a PI doesn't have the problems, but a PI cannot discriminate, so you'll be digging most signals.

Yes, that is exactly where I'm talking about, those DIV events. I used a Tesoro Golden Sabre II at one of the first DIV events in that soil, and you're right, it didn't excel, but I must say I found more during that first DIV event with the Tesoro than I ever did after using the MXT. Everyone said the MXT was the machine to have...now they are all raving over the TDI. I'm just surprised that the Tejon doesn't fair well with it's manual ground adjust. I haven't tried that one there, but I have heard others say that about the Tejon and that just surprises me. I would think the Tejon would perform as well as any other Tesoro product in that ground. Most of the guys at the DIVs are using Whites, Fishers, Garretts and as you mentioned those new TDI's/PI machines. I guess that is why I'm asking because I'm wondering if anyone who lives down there actually had any success with the Tejon.

 

[Canewrap]

The Tejon even loses depth in my backyard (N. Alabama) because of the amount of iron in the dirt here. It has a lot to do with the frequency and the gain. The Eldorado I used is 10khz and in all metal could hit a target deeper than the MXT I had, in all metal (moderate/bad backyard). The Tejon is around 17khz and the gain is maxxed out, so it would be like driving in the fog with high beams to be using it in ground with a lot of minerals/iron oxides. If you turn the sensitivity past ten on a Tejon and you're around much of any EMI you'll start get the sounding off phenomemon when you raise the coil. I noticed the same thing with the F75 I had for a bit and they're hyper-driven machines as well. Oh, also I won't go back to DIV unless I have a PI. Some of the PIs will drive a VLF detector batty from a good distance away and you'll hear the pulsing in your headphones. It kind of limited where I could detect. This was just my experience and if someone knows a good way around this problem, I'm all ears.

 

[padiggin]

The Tejon even loses depth in my backyard (N. Alabama) because of the amount of iron in the dirt here. It has a lot to do with the frequency and the gain. The Eldorado I used is 10khz and in all metal could hit a target deeper than the MXT I had, in all metal (moderate/bad backyard). The Tejon is around 17khz and the gain is maxxed out, so it would be like driving in the fog with high beams to be using it in ground with a lot of minerals/iron oxides. If you turn the sensitivity past ten on a Tejon and you're around much of any EMI you'll start get the sounding off phenomemon when you raise the coil. I noticed the same thing with the F75 I had for a bit and they're hyper-driven machines as well. Oh, also I won't go back to DIV unless I have a PI. Some of the PIs will drive a VLF detector batty from a good distance away and you'll hear the pulsing in your headphones. It kind of limited where I could detect. This was just my experience and if someone knows a good way around this problem, I'm all ears.

Oh, got it! Now I understand. That makes sense about what you said regarding the frequency and gain. I was wondering why that was the case.

Regarding the PI's at DIV, yeah, I noticed that too. Actually it seems like the DIVs are now catering to the PI owners. They keep going back to the same places so that PIs can pick up the left overs from what the MXT's and DFX's missed. I'm not going back because 1) I'm not investing in a PI machine just to go to DIV and 2) they keep going back to the same locations. Most of those places have been hit two or three times already at the DIVs. With around 300 guys each time pounding those sites, I can hardly believe there will be much to find. Maybe a nice find or two, but after my last one I just came back with a few bullets and one button....compared to the first one or two where I came back with 20 good buttons, 50 or so bullets, clay pipes, a spur and a whiskey bottle. Now you have to either own a PI machine or be willing to dig down five feet in hard clay soil in the latrine pits for the bottles. Don't get me wrong, I love the DIVs. They are great and a lot of fun and they are run by awesome people. But I just can't justify it anymore with upgrading equipment all the time to keep up with the "Jone's."