Really new guy, need advice, help........etc!!

[sleepsafe]

New guy with new detector, a GTI 2500. Took it out for the first time today. The first thing I noticed was a hum , a bit high pitched that is constant. It gets louder and quieter with the volume switch and is present not just with the Garret headphones, but with a pair of KOSS headphones too. Trip to the local park was a bit disappointing. I got lots of targets, but nothing good. The tones seem a bit confusing to me, but admittedly I haven't used this thing much. There is a buzz that I take is having the coil over a target, but the are also some sort of subdued beeps, I have no idea what these are. I have watched the DVD, and read the manual. But I do realize much comes from experience and time using this machine. I just would have felt better finding anything, but I was out of the apartment for a couple of hours.

 

[Mick in Dubbo]

Hi Sleepsafe and welcome to the forum.
That background hum you can hear, is called the threshold. You can change it or get rid of it if you want, just go through your menu choices. (see instruction manual.)
It's a really good idea to play with the detector in your back yard or similar before you go out with it. Especially if you are new to detecting. Use coins, pull tabs coke cans foil and screw caps as your test items, plus anything else that you have already dug up. putting each of these on the ground and learning where they show up on the scale, as well as what they sound like, will really be a big help. It will make learning the detector a LOT easier. You are mostly listening for the solid hits, as these are you good targets. Targets that don't repeat are often junk. There are exceptions to this, but for now, only concentrated on the good solid hits. Play around with your imaging as it is a tremendous help in leaning about how big a target is. Having a target inside the smallest coil is vital to getting the imaging to work though. You can do this by using the intensity meter on the screen or by detuning the pinpoint.o detune, press the pinpoint button when you have the coil to the side of the target you want to check out and then bring it over the target. When you think that you have the target in the centre, release and then reapply the pinpoint button. This will put out a signal only the width of the inner coil. Once you have done this, re pinpoint the target again as per normal, just to be sure that you are getting an accurate imaging. Also keep the coil more than 2 inches away from the target, because if you are closer, you will get an incorrect size.
Run your sensitivity at between 6 an 8 bars till you become familiar with the detector. 6 bars is better at first, as the detector will be more stable and predictable. You can open it up as you gain experience.
Have fun with it and keep asking questions. Both here and to yourself as to what you are learning. It can feel a bit of a challenge at first, this is quite normal and you will pull junk out of the ground. We all do, we just don't post pictures of the junk that often. As Charles Garrett said in one of his books, see if you can guess what the target is, before you recover it. This will help to hone your skills and is fun to do.
Mick Evans.

 

[marcomo]

Excellent advice from Mick, with the best description I've read on how to detune.

Do a search of the posts from both Uncle Willy and John Edmonton. They are both Garrett gurus and you will learn a lot by just reading their posts.

By the way, thank you to Uncle Willy, John Edmonton and others who have shared their knowledge and are helping shorten my learning curve with my GTP 1350!

When you're searching, pay attention to the informational posts about the 1350 and 1500 as well as the 2500. These three have a lot more similarities than differences.

The factory default setting for the threshold was too high for me. The sensitivity default setting has been too high in the areas I've hunted with it so far with the stock coil, although it hasn't been too high with the sniper coil but that's another subject.

Here are some good tips I read on another forum:

1. Tape the coil cable straight up the lower rod.

2. Set the threshold to the point where you can barely hear it.

3. After number 2, run sensitivity at 5-7.
If the detector is not stable back down a notch, or until it becomes so.

And some more good ones:

NUMERO UNO. It's very sensitive and running your SENS too high will kill you...especially in trashy sites. Always start low (4-5) and work your way up till the falsing begins, then back down a notch or two.
As Bill Revis says, "The 1350 is sensitivity driven."
He also says, "...the SENS control is NOT a depth control." He's right...it is a gain control for the receive circuits. Cranking it up has a combined effect: increasing the gain AND sending the circuits into instability, especially in the presence of trash/minerlization/multiple targets.
- Strap the cable to the lower rod so it doesnt flop around, as it'll pick up the wires in the cable if your SENS is set high. But don't tie it down rock solid - give it a little strain relief. I use Velcro straps.

These were tips for the 1350, but they apply to the 1500 and 2500 as well.

Also, watch the DVD and read the manual multiple times. It will shorten your learning curve.

 

[Uncle Willy]

First of all if you're new to detecting you took on quite a load with the 2500 as it has quite a learning curve. Should have started with something simpler until you learned the basics. AS has been mentioned the buzz is the threshold. Go into the menu and turn it down to a very faint hum or completely off. Hunt in coins mode only for the first 100 hours. Set your sensitivity at 6 to 6.5 and leave it there for quite a spell. IF you have bark chip playgrounds in your area practice your detecting there until you get the hang of it.

Tape some coins about a foot apart to a piece of cardboard. Turn the cardboard over on a surface with no metal underneath and practice pinpointing the coins. Use something with a sharp point to poke through the cardboard to see if you have pinpointed the target correctly. Scan slow when hunting. Centering the target correctly when pinpointing is crucial with a GTI to get accurate readings. When pinpointing watch the cursors at the top of the display ( signal intensity ) and when they line up all the way across - the target will be under the center of the small hole in the center of the coil. You will need lots of practice with this machine so take your time and learn it. Once you do then it will reward you handsomely. Don't expect to find a pot of gold right away. It don't work that way. You have to learn how the machine works before you find anything. Detecting ain't as easy as it looks or sounds.

Bill

 

[sleepsafe]

To those who posted advice, thanks. I've done it all. I had a good day, I didn't find anything really old, or really valuable. But finding something that no one else knows is there is a lot of fun. I found 2 quarters, one dime, one nickel, and 11 pennies. I'm pretty new to the area and not sure of a lot of places to hunt, so I hit the park and the ball field. Gotta ask some people at work where some good spots might be. I bought the GTI 2500 because I wanted a machine I could use for a long time and not one where I would be wanting more features right away. I know I have a lot to learn and again I thank everyone for their help.

 

[Uncle Willy]

Good luck bud. Keep plugging away and the goodies will come your way.

Bill