Safari false signals?

[mikemachinest]

I have been reading this site for several weeks and got tons of good info. I finally got my Safari Friday and have had it out for a couple hours a day for the last 3 days. 1st day I got nothing but confused. I planted a detector garden and did some practice. 2nd time out I got a couple Penny's and a nickle. 3rd time I got a couple more Penny's and a quarter. None of the finds were old. Maybe I'm missing the deeper / older stuff? All the stuff found so far was only 3 or so inches deep. I'm using the stock settings mostly and in coin or coin / jewelry mode I have tried a couple different setting I got from posts here on this site. I'm wondering about the many good sounds I get that have me perking up only to not get them to repeat. Do you just swing over them again and if they don't come back just move on or should I be doing something different. Secondly I'm finding that aluminum flashing gives a really good signal that is hard to pass up and I find I dug a good bit of it in 3 days. Also copper pieces like old pipe clamps are great signals that I can't not dig. Any tips for a new guy. I will say with my little practice this thing kicks butt. I got out my very old Mini Red Baron and I couldn't find any of the stuff I put in my detector garden. The Minelab could find it all easily! Thanks Mike

 

[The Fog]

Yep Mike, aluminum flashing, lead, copper pipes, bullets, shotgun shells, nip bottlecaps, etc will give you a nice repeating signal, and I dig it too, all the time. That's just the nature of detecting. Don't worry about the depth so much, If there's a coin 6-10 inches down it will read it. if it's on edge the signal may be a bit flaky, or you may only get it one way. I move all around it and then just make a judgment call whether I want to dig it or move on to another target. I do 90% of my detecting in the woods. You can find old coins just about anywhere I suppose, but I don't hunt parks.... to much trash and too many new coins. I will probably only dig 10-12 targets in 4 hours in wooded areas, but that's where I find things from the late 1600's thru early 1900's. You have to do some research however. Just walking around in the woods won't usually cut it. You need to find cellar holes, or areas that may have been farmed in the 1700-1800's. Sites where a mill was at one time, look at old maps, do some internet searches on wooded areas near your house. Alot of conservation areas were once farms that were donated to the town. Hike around the wooded areas near ponds and lakes to find that cellar hole.... most people lived near a water source. If you are unfamiliar with waht a cellar hole looks like do an internet search on that. Sometimes they are very subtle, 300 years of forest growth accumulates a lot of debris. Some of the cellar holes I've seen are nothing more than a depression in the ground. Look around it for some round stones, and then work SLOW. Seems like there are many frustrated Safari users on here, I was one of them... ya gotta stick with it, dig holes, remember what you heard, remember what #'s you got. I've said in several posts on here that those all over the map signals you get when the machine sounds like R2D2, 28, 32, 34, 38, 16, 18.... all over the same target... for me its been mostly trash, there could be a good target in there, so dig it if you have time. If its crap you still gained some knowledge anyway. I have found nothing good (yet) when digging those signals, so I concentrate on the ones that are relatively constant and fluctuate only a few #'s apart. And don't discount coins at the 3" depth, I found a 1700's King George at 2", and a 1837 Large Cent at 2 inches as well, conversely I've pulled memorial pennies and eisenhower dimes at 6".

 

[zeekeys]

Mike and Fog thanks for your posts. I have been thinking of moving on to another forum because of all the negative posts here on the Safari. I was on 8 hunts and found (9 coins) 6 pennies and much much trash.
I guess I am different? I don't think you can learn a detector on the bench. You can get an idea of the sounds but when it comes to field work it AIN"T the same.
With every detector I have had I dig every signal for weeks to see just what the detector is seeing. I have no idea what it is doing until I dig it and than I get ideas from my digging. After many times of digging certain signals (tones) I kind of get the idea of what the detector is telling me. I am still not 100% sure but as time goes on my gut feeling on a target tells me that is a digger and that is when the detector and I start to become friends. I don't think digging trash is evil. I think it is a good thing. The more trash I dig the more good targets I get.
I have never had a Minelab before and it is a different type of detector. I can see that many will not like Minelab because you have to stay alert and not drift off into the Fog bank (sorry Fog) and have the detector wake you up.
I realized some time ago the swinging a light easy to use detector for hours can be easy but when you are not finding anything but 1" or 2" deep targets isn't detecting for me. I had a target that I could just hear and it was a beer can about 6" that is when I started to look for a detector that would go through the ground to the deeper targets.
I was looking at the Quattro but reading the forum about how slow and heavy it was I just gave up. That is how I ended up with the Safari.
Sorry for rambling like this. I like the detector more and more with every use.... Z

 

[ngrelic]

Thanks for the positive post Z. To bad that some just want to give up, hopefully some posts like these will make them think twice. You definitely have to be willing to put the time in to learn the language of an FBS detector.

 

[zeekeys]

Also want to thank you ngrelic for your posts.
I don't know if all minelab's are the same but it is really different kind of learning. It is more of a hearing learning than anything I guess? The tones are tight so the difference is the most important part of the learning.
I have been a ham for over 50 years and when coping code with 5 or more signals there you have to make sure that the one you want to copy is the one you can pick out from the rest.
Yesterday was a different day for me in that I put Nuon batteries from Batteries Plus in my Safari and it worked for about an hour and than all kind of noise started showing up. The battery meter had all bars black but the number of signals with each swing were too many to investigate. It was time to go home anyway so got home and put in Energizers again.
I am 68 years old and the first month of detecting is about 2 hours in length per hunt. I have been retired 9 years and got back to metal detecting because of my wife. She didn't want me to just sit around house all the time. MD'ing is very important to me now......Z

 

[ngrelic]

Before I bought the Safari I went to youtube and mlo tv and watched as many videos as I could find of Explorer users. I listened very closely to the tones they were getting on good targets. Very similar to the Safari and I think it helped give me a leg up at first. I was using a X-Terra 50 at the time which has 4 tones, pretty different.

 

[zeekeys]

ngrelic I did about same thing. I watched the Etrac videos. I was leaning towards the XT70. Picked the Safari because close to the Quartto and the Quartto got good results on the beach. Most of my hunting in on the beaches.
Fog: I wanted to comment on the R2D2 and numbers all over the place. I have noticed that when a low tone with a high tone in there too. Say -10 and a 32 or more meter reading popping in there as I move around the target I always dig those guys because I have been very surprised to find a coin in the hole. Just like the videos with the trash and coin together. The sun of a gun does see the coin like the videos show.
I am enjoying the adventure with the Safari. It is an excellent name for it..... Z

 

[The Fog]

Agreed Z, I don't doubt that at all... as I've stated there very well could be a good target mixed in. If I get a two number bouncer that jumps from -10 and then 34 or 32 etc I dig it, because I'm pretty sure its 2 targets. The ones I ordinarily pass on is when I get eight diff #'s bouncing all over the same target, I was digging these and it was almost always iron. I am surprised at how quickly some folks seem to be giving up on this machine, I've had mine for almost 2 months and I still know very little about it, but each time I use it I learn more. Frankly I don't see how one can expect to use a new machine for a few weeks and give up, each metal detector is a completely different animal. I used a Tesoro Cibola for a year and then upgraded to the Safari, and trust me after the first few times out I missed my Cibola dearly and wondered if I made a mistake in spending a grand on the Safari. I knew if I put the Safari away and used the Cibola in the same area I would have an easier time, but that doesn't mean it was a better machine, because it's not. It's just that I KNEW that machine. Now even though the Cibola is a great little detector, the Safari is much better.

 

[ronaldj2]

These are all the positives I was hoping for in some of my last posts. We are the kind of detectorists that are needed to help motivate others. When the going gets tough, the tough stick it out. My last detector, and I still have it is a White's spectrum xlt. At the time of purchase was top of the line almost 10 yrs ago. Imagine using a detector that long, and then switching to a new machine from a different manufacturer. I could use the xlt blindfolded and dig something. I love the newer technology and the xlt hadn't changed for years. When I read about FBS technology I knew I had to get me some. Kellyco had a good deal going so I decided to go for it. I am glad I did and like so many others, at first I was sketchy about the detector. After 2 mths of use, and not giving up I am thrilled with this machine. I have found over 15 dollars in clad, including 1 silver dime 1964, 4 rings, tokens, buttons, modern bullets, and casings, lots of pennies, and yes, lots of trash. Like fog said "hthat appens in the detecting hobby". I am gonna say" keep on beepin on".
DON'T EVER GIVE UP!!!

 

[zeekeys]

Fog: Those numbers that are all over the place, trash and not digging many of those any more. If there hasn't been a target in some time I will even dig those just for the practice of not using the pin pointer. Old dead eye here usually hits the target a little high. I also check how close the depth reading is. But not using the pin pointer it usually the target falls into the hole from the side. So not so good of a check. With every dig I get a little better with pin pointing and the scoop estimate for depth. With the Safari it is not the usual one scoop pick up any more with a light scoop. I had to get the heavy duty scoop out and it takes me 2, 3 or more scoops now to retrieve the target.
2 summers ago the county came in and did some beach improvements. They dug the sand down about 2 feet maybe a little more and boy did I have a time digging up some old coins. It was a ball and very enlightening to know that there is plenty of coins just below the depth that we are detecting.
Ron I had the XLT also. Very good detector. I traded my Wader and F5 for the Safari with some money. But I think it was a very good trade.... Z

 

[mikemachinest]

Thanks for all the good information. I don't plan on giving up at all. I could see that this machine is really a good machine and I intend on learning it. I worked around my 100 plus year old barn today and it is really tough. A huge amount of all kids of trash. Tried all metal to sort through all the blanking that the threshold does and there is just to much there for some one with little practice with this detector. I'll get back there a little later. Frog, I have a few cellar holes in mind I'll hit them when I gain a little more confidence with this thing. I'm going to hit my parents yard a little tomorrow after work. Also Frog you are plucking my heart strings when you talk about old maps and such, I love the GPS and putting old places from old maps into the today and trying to verify that I got it right. I' really looking forward to combining the two hobbies into a good time. Hey, Zeekeys Just to let you know.. I'm a Ham also. no quit 50 years but about 15. I had to do the code. I haven't copied much for a while. Thanks all I'll be here reading on for a long time. This is a great site and one of the main reasons I got the safari in the first place! When I started thinking about getting a detector again I start trying to learn whats new in the hobby and I landed here and started reading.....I'm still here.

 

[ronaldj2]

Old maps and a GPS combined with the detector, sounds like a winning combo !!

 

[ronaldj2]

Well I went out for a little while Yesterday. I had my Safari with the standard 11" coil found some clad, some kind of a buckle, think it's brass. The little buckle had a good signal high 20's, thinking it might be from an old dog collar. Also found a dog license in the shape of a Milkbone dog biscuit. It says: "MilkBone" on the front and on the back is the dog's name and the owner's name, address, and phone number. I think it is only about 20-25yrs old at the most. Got a quick signal in the high 30's one of those disappearing signals, I pursued it anyhow, and found an old square nail down around 1 foot deep.
I did this by pinpointing with the safari and then using a pinpointer probe. It was a good test for depth (wasted a little time) non the less a good test. Now as far as mixed signals well, the second to last targets I dug had three coins in the hole a few inches away from each other. Out came a dime, still getting a signal so dug a little more a penny, and the last thing was a penny underneath a rusted out bottle cap. The numbers were a little jumpy and choppy and the reason was the mix. When you get the pinpointing narrowed down you can seperate the targets before you dig. Does this make sense to anyone ? Also found a lot of as it used to be and old baseball field. Goin out today with my wife to a couple of old parks they go back to the mid 1800's. Have a nice day all !! Ron

 

[Tinfoil]

n/t

 

[The Fog]

Yeah I run mine in custom coin mode, I turned my sensity down to 15 and keep the threshold around the same area, it quieted the machine down quite a bit, I know you lose some depth as you lower the sensitivity, but even at 15 I've hit targets 8-9" down fairly consistently. I'll turn it up on certain targets, but I've found that running the sensitivity too high makes the machine erratic.

 

[mikemachinest]

I have still been using mine around the yard and trying different settings. I dig a lot of junk just to see what is going on. I'm glad someone mentioned the disappearing signals. Those are the ones that have me sweeping all over to try to get them back. When you get one of those good sounding targets that only sounds off once then kinda disappears.....what do most people do, spend time trying to get it to sound consistent or just sweep it a couple times and if it doesn't sound consistently good ...... just move on ?

 

[marxionu]

You are right. All the trick is dig repeatable signals. Kick the ground once and if the signal is there it must be coin.

 

[The Fog]

If I'm in an area with a lot of targets I only dig good repeating signals. If I'm in the woods and only finding targets every 15-20 minutes or so I dig almost everything.... except iron that is.

 

[ronaldj2]

You will definately find more stuff if you learn to "Just Say No" to the disappearing signals.

 

[mikemachinest]

I'm going out with a friend tomorrow morning, We are going to detect around an old farm house. The house is gone (bulldozed). The house is on an 1875 map I have. I hope we find something. Will tell when I get back here tomorrow. I'm going to try to put all this good advice to work.