Third time going to the desert for nuggets need advice!!!

[littlenugget]

Next week i will be going to the desert for nuggets need advice in setup with x etrra 705

Do i use autotracking all the time?

discrimination on 5?

do i put senitivity first or grand balance first?

Thanks!!!!


i will be using 18.75 coil double d

 

[Ozgold]

Hi Mate,
I live and hunt for gold in Australia and also use the xterra 705 with the elliptical 18.75 double d coil and have found quite a bit of gold with it.
I don't personally like the auto tracking when i hunt gold as i feel you lose a little sensitivity and depth so
i turn it off.
Soil mineralisation will ultimately dictate where you can run your settings.
If the ground is not too bad or trashy i hunt with discrimination on 0 or 1 and the sensitivity cranked up to 30.
I always ground balance before adjusting the sensitivity and find the auto ground balance works well but you can do it manually as well.
Don't forget to work slowly with this machine and keep the coil as close to the ground as possible and look for areas where the ground might be shallower.
I am sure everyone has their preferred settings and you will have to experiment a bit to see what works best for you.
Cheers Paul.

 

[Digger]

I would try to run with Prospecting mode because it is more sensitive to small targets that the Coin/Treasure Discrimination Patterns. Just remember, instead of having TID numbers, targets will be identified by a change in the pitch and volume of the Threshold Tone. And, the display will provide a numerical indication of the level at which your Iron Mask is operating. The Iron Mask range is 0 - 20. The higher the number selected, the more iron signals you will reject. The segment bar at the bottom of the screen indicates the amount of iron signals being rejected. When prospecting in areas of high mineralization, keep your Iron Mask setting low. Setting it above 5 or 6 could result in rejecting the smaller gold targets.

I set my NC first, then my GB (using Auto) before adjusting Sensitivity. And I set my Threshold so that it is just barely audible.

I'd try Tracking for a while, and check the GB numbers every few minutes. If they aren't changing very much, I'd probably switch Tracking off and lock in the GB as it seems to provide more depth/stability for me. I would set my GB and then turn up the Sensitivity until it just starts to chatter. Then back it off a click. If the detector starts "warbling" in Prospecting mode, instead of making target tones, that usually means the GB is not adjusted properly.

As Ozgold eluded to.......try various options and go with those that provide the best results for that site. JMHO HH Randy

 

[littlenugget]

Thanks for your response guys!!!!!