Thumbing disc and losing depth because of doing so... confusion. :blink:

[GaryF]

Okay...hear me out on this little bit of confusion I have.

First I have a Vaquero, Bandido and have owned a Conquistador so I know a bit about Tesoro detectors.

I was sitting here thinking about deep coins or just deep good targets in general and since I do thumb
the disc when deciding what targets to dig this partial thought hit me.

If lets say a coin was at the edge of detecting depth but giving a so-so beep and you thumb the disc...on that deep coin would the
signal break up as you lost depth due to the disc being higher and in effect ether have the signal break up early or
lose it altogether which would lead many to ignore it as something not worth putting digger to soil to retrieve?

Thinking it may actually work this way I sit and wonder how many good targets I've passed up and not dug.

Now I know some of you may say (when in doubt...dig) and yes I understand that the ultimate disc is the person
swinging the detector and not the detector itself but it is something to think about.

Sorry as it seems I'm rambling on about this but looking out the window at the snow has me detecting in the head
and not outside...lol

I would like to hear some feedback on this subject.....I'm sure most of you know alot more about how disc-depth signals
and how things work along this subject than me and I welcome all thoughts.

I've posted this on two forums to catch the attention of everyone I can and hear all views.

Thanks and HH
Gary

 

[bowdenet]

The tone should be the same, but just softer. The discrimination increasing shouldn't reduce the depth that much, if at all. If I have an iffy soft signal during discrimination I switch to all metal mode and see if the sound is the same. If it becomes dramatically different, then it is probably what you are trying to discriminate out in the first place. If it has the same sounding tone, then dig! It would be interesting to dig a test bed with two of the same type coins, one at the edge of detection, and one a little deeper and test this out firsthand. Or you could do an air test, but it would not be as accurate of a simulation.

 

[Dan-Pa.]

With the exception of a Fisher CZ and Wilson and I have tried a bunch the higher the disc. the less depth while the two aforementioned has slight or no change...So indeed your thinking is right on.
How much is a ? mark depending on your ground and of course how high you run the disc. Been there done that so speak from experience and in some case a 1/2 inch could cost you a nice coin or ring....
May be more than the aforementioned 2 with little or none but with the units you mention there is a trade off...."More disc. less depth"

 

[tvr]

Another thing I sometimes do ... probably should do more, is to raise the coil slowly to do a depth check estimate while the disc is still at a low setting, and then thumb the disc with the coil back in the low to the ground sweep. Can get depth info with the loudness and in case of Tejon, if in vco mode, the pitch in pinpoint.
tvr

 

[Canewrap]

Yep, the raising the coil trick, is how I've come to deal with this exact issue. if the signal is small when I pinpoint and I lose it almost immediately upon lifting the coil, I dig, but lately I try to pinpoint with my Garrett pro pointer to see if its just a real small piece of metal in the top couple inches. I credit how tight a Tesoro's pinpoint is to how I'm able to do this.

 

[BarberBill]

It's been my understanding that some depth is lost with disc. The higher it's turned the more the loss, but not necessarily a great amount. May mostly matter when trying to get that last 1/2 inch or so on deep targets. Usually the only time I turn mine high enough to knock out nickels is when I'm thumbing to determine what range (coin or?) the signal is in. Generally the targets aren't deep enough to be lost due to the raising of the disc, but with a bit of practice I've been able to Identify nickels, tabs, zinc pennies, copper pennies and clad/silver pretty well by where the signal cracks or scratches.
BB

 

[DiGGER27]

I am just starting to mess around with this but power balancing in disc seems to give a little more depth than setting GB in all metal and then switching to disc.
If we really do lose some depth with higher disc, this could get some of it back.

http://www.findmall.com/read.php?17,643248,643579#msg-643579

 

[Paul of Harrisburg]

I know FOR A FACT that if a good target is truely at the maximum detection depth and you were to thumb the disc to try to see if to dig(i've done it many times myself) you will lose the signal, thus figuring the target is trash, when it is only too deep to be detected under a higher disc setting.
I always raise the coil slightly under the least disc setting, and then I can tell if it is at the deepest detection range, before thumbing the disc.
Paul of Hbg

 

[BarberBill]

Another quick option is to switch between all metal (on detectors that offer it) and a discrimination setting that is pre set at what level the operator prefers. Whether to dig or not if the signal is lost on the discrimination setting is up to the operator, but if the signal seems fairly solid, dig to be sure.
BB

 

[JHM]

I love Tesoro detectors but I don't like thumbing the disc. It takes time and I wonder if I ever get it set back where it was. Which is why i hunted with a Tejon for years. A simple meter on the Vaquero would be great. Something like what is on the Whites IDX. It wouldn't add a lot of cost. I don't understand why Tesoro doesn't do it.

 

[dixiedigger57]

i am hearing impaired, between don't need an aid yet, and can't half hear, according to doctor. background noises make me miss words in sentences sometimes. My mid range in left ear is lacking. SOOOO.... can a meter be added to an old Tesoro, like a Big Box Eldorado? I am not worried about warranty, they have been so good on that, this machine is old, but perfect, and I would take chance. if it did go kaput, I would eat the loss, salvage, and would be great excuse for NEW ONE! how about it fellas, could an analog job be added? thumbing disc and raising coil works, if you can hear the faint signal to begin with.

 

[Hombre]

Howdy Dixie

It would be best to stick to a metered detector to begin with, than to modify a non-metered detector. just my two zincs. Tesoro made some really fine metered detectors such as the Toltec 100; Toltec 80 and the last Toltec ll. but you would have to search the classifieds for one of these as they are no longer in production.

Randy

 

[dixiedigger57]

guess you're right on that Hombre! no sense chancing a good machine. will start looking at the Toltecs. i know my local dealer, he may have an old one himself.