Someone just posted something that got me to thinking.:rolleyes:

[NH Bob]

He said ("we'll just have to wait for Minelab to come out with a machine that will go another 6" deeper") Just for conversation sake lets say they do. He buys one and go off to his favorite Park and start hunting. He get a good signal and dig his hole. He's now down 7" and he hit gravel and his target is laying right there.
I buy one and take it to my Field of Dreams. I get a sweet signal and dig down 14" and hit clay and my coin is right there.
How deep is too deep? Where do coins stop and why? Soil conditions determine that for us. How often do you really think the coins are just beyond the reach of your Explorer?
I say we can reach 99% of the coins in the ground right now. The other 1% are out of our reach and will probably stay that way unless man or mother nature decided to cough them up.
Just my opinion and no offence to the poster I quoted.

 

[RonNH]

Some people won't be happpy unless there is a machine with a LCD screen that shows the object in 3D. The deepest I have dug is 12" and for a Memorial Cent, no less. You are right Bob, there are some coins that are out of reach, but how deep are we willing to dig for them? How big of a hole to we want to put in someone's lawn? I think right now, the present technology is keeping up with our demand but there will come a time when people will start to lose interest in the hobby, especially us who go for the deeper, older stuff. Minelab, Whites or whoever will keep working on deeper, faster machines but there has to be a limit to the depth and machines can only put out so much power, it's mandated by law and the FCC. Right now, detectors have more power than most people can handle. A Ferrari can got 180 mph, but how many people can drive it that fast? I'm rambling and it's time for work. Ron

 

[jeff & Maria]

The depth of coins depends on many factors. Composition of soil being the biggest factor. Dense soil such as clay like we have here in NJ does not allow coins to sink too deep. My KG coppers, 1800's, 1900's and modern clad are all found at depths of 7 inch max. Most at the 5 inch level. In plowed fields or ground that has had fill added, it's a different story. I personally have no idea how deep my Explorer will detect a coin sized target. It's good in a way since I never have to dig a deeeeeeeep hole, but lessens my chances of finding a target since even circa 70's detectors would have found targets years ago. My high tech Explorer would be best suited in an area that has targets out of reach of the old technology units.

 

[tomtowns]

Try digging ALL the repeatable targets under the coil of a minelab SD or GP series detector....You'll SOON really appreciate the discrimination capabilities of other...COIN/JEWELRY detectors...You want a signal in your field of dreams at 14"? Childs play for a P.I. gold machine...you'll soon discover how REALLY trashy the ground is...& how hard it is recovering anything over about 10" without a pick & REAL shovel...However,IF Minelab ever comes out with a GP series detector that can actually tell you the composition of the metal in the ground I'll be the first in line to buy one...TT

 

[Charles (Upstate NY)]

While there may be sites where coins are no deeper than 7 inches this is by no means representative of all sites. An additional 2-3 inches of depth would absolutely result in a whole new layer of targets at several sites I hunt in Upstate NY. The same is true for many civil and revolutionary war sites where coins and relics can be up to several feet deep.

How do I know this at my sites? First target size is a factor. With the stock coil I can detect a car door at 4 feet, a can lid at maybe 2 feet, a small cent in some of our soil maybe 8 inches. Since I have dug many larger dollar, half dollar sized relics in the 14+ inch range it stands to reason there are some coins down there also. Guess how many small cent or dime sized targets I have dug at those depths? Zero!

I could make a case that some of these deep targets sunk deeper due to their weight, the small turn of the century padlock I dug recently for example. But I have also dug shoe taps and half rotted away large caliber shell casings at those depths which weigh almost nothing.

I also know from experience that the difference between a target that can be heard and one that is undetectable can be a mere 2-3 inches. I hunted exclusively with a 15 inch WOT coil for 18 months. I routinely dug small cent and dime targets in the 9-11 inch range. Unfortunately my shoulder could not take the weight of that coil so I switched to the stock coil. In the several years I have hunted the same sites with the stock coil I rarely hit one at 9 inches and can't recall any in the 10+ range. Keep in mind depth is highly soil dependent, in other types of soil one might get a lot more depth on a small cent than I do in our local soil, or a lot less.

I was once hunting an old home site with a guy who was using an Explorer with a stock coil, I was using the WOT. I had set his machine up for him so we were using the same settings. I got a solid coin signal on a deep target, the signal on his machine with the stock coil was a weak iffy at best. Up popped a 1786 NJ colonial.

Even large cents at the stock coils limits can be very iffy. I got permission to hunt an old home site and Ed and I were hunting the lower end of a field above the old home. I dug 3 early 1800's large cents all solid signals. Then I got what I would say was a pitiful signal at best. I doubt if I would have dug it most days but since I just dug 3 large cents nearby I dug it. It was a teen large cent, I was shocked how pitiful the signal was.

Anyway I think we'll have a answer to this question shortly. Advancements are being made in the area of discriminating PI machines. I hear the first Pulse Devils are heading to Australia soon for testing. From what I have heard about their ability to ignore mineralized soil and the incredible depths they are able to reach machines like that should put this one to rest in short order.

Just my two cents worth.

Charles

 

[tomtowns]

will allow us to see further into the ground with more clarity...It's inevitable...

 

[alaskaseeker]

Not a lot of junk where I hunt and the rewards can be stimulating... HH Geo

GP 3000

<img src=http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b206/Alaskaseeker1/geonug02.jpg?t=1167848400>

 

[NH Bob]

n/t

 

[tomtowns]

n/t

 

[NH Bob]

I've dug Large cents at 1" and at 14" . The 1" was on a rock just below the surface and the 14" was in a loamy soil with a seemingly endless bottom. Most of my old coppers are 5"- 8" on average. You just never know.
As for deep relics , the Shadow X5 has been logged at 3' on a pile of cannon balls.
I generalized on my post as most of us use coin/relic machines. I know there are machines out there that can find water mains and other deeper targets but we are talking coin shooters.