TID quandary

[michaelosully]

machineman,

I'll try to make this as short and direct as I can.

I like mapper65's analogy as it relates to AUDIO RESPONSE, but since your original post is about TID [VISUAL], here are my thoughts:

I MD in the hard rock mining areas of the San Juan mountains of the Colorado Rockies. Here, the GB number range on my 705 is from 9 to 11 with DD coils. Using the factory CC coil, I rarely GB more than 5 or 6! (Keep in mind that the 705 GB range is from 0-90). The TID #'s are so jumpy and inconsistent that they are of no real value to help determine what the target is in the ground under the coil, not even when the target is only and inch or so deep! Fact is AUDIO RESPONSES are just more accurate than TID #'s ... especially in the areas I hunt. On occasion, when I travel to other areas to MD and where I obtain what I would call normal GB #'s (over 40 or 50), my TID #'s are consistent enough to help me identify what a target is in the ground.

I hunt with a friend who uses a machine with no TID or meter. Does this mean he finds more and better targets than I do?...NO! By using my 705 with audio & TID, do I find more & better target than he does?...NO! TID is just another tool in your arsenal if you have a machine with this feature. Since the X-Terra has great audio - USE IT. If the TID is useful - USE IT.

Hope this will be useful.

 

[machineman]

Thanks for the info. I have been getting 11-15 on my GB here with DD coils, so that might be my problem. I was using the 10.5 HF DD today and got a solid 24, turned out to be 5 nickles and a penny. Never gotten so many nickles from one hole before. Next target also solid 24, pull tab. I basically dig everything that's not iron.

 

[oldmancrash]

Mapper65, I hope you didn't think I was beating you up on the training wheels quote. I honestly do like it and thought about putting it in my sig. I am just learning my 705 gold and don't even think I am off the trike yet. But the quote just hit me as very true and a great laugh.

Mountain digger, Thank you for the TID explanation. I am in Montana and when out usually get about 15-30 TID when GB. I was thinking it was high. But your opinion of TID 40-50 being normal (your opinion) I guess I am under the norms also. I had been wondering how the numbering system of the TID worked.

I know I need to read diggers book again now that I actually own the 705. But I have every excuse ready as to why I have not re-read it.

Thank you all for the time you put into these questions and answers. Even the most simple of thoughts may be the one I understand and can run with the best. So keep them coming and Thank you Findmall for a nice family friendly site.

Crash

 

[mapper65]

Mapper65, I hope you didn't think I was beating you up on the training wheels quote. I honestly do like it and thought about putting it in my sig. I am just learning my 705 gold and don't even think I am off the trike yet. But the quote just hit me as very true and a great laugh.

Crash

Maybe just a little but but my replies were because I didn't want you to discourage other people that haven't tried it or just not gotten used to it yet. I NEVER thought I would get used to it but now I can't see myself going back to 4 tone. I admit, it takes a little while to get used to 99 tone mode and I would say it was a few weeks before I felt comfortable with it and a few weeks longer than that to feel that I had it about mastered. It sounds like your detector is out of control when you are not used to it. I really think for the first year or so that it's very helpful to stay in the 4 tone mode. There is a lot to be learned while in 4 tone. My quote about taking the training wheels off is exactly what it felt like to me when I switch the modes. It kind of sounded the same but then there were times when I just couldn't tell what was going on because the sounds appear to be more random. Eventually everything came together and like I had mentioned before, I really felt like it was a free upgrade to my detector.

 

[Old Longhair]

I have to agree with mapper65 to a point.
I too used to think that AM and 99 tones wouldn't be tolerable most places that I hunt. So I started out at a remarkably clean site, and after about 8hrs I was beginning to get the hang of it......training my brain. Now I only hunt with DISC on rare occasion, when the trash density is insane.

I believe that when you start in AM-multi for the first time, it's easy to be overwhelmed and confused by all the noises. But the reality is, that you've gotten used to swinging too fast in DISC mode, and when you make the switch to AM it becomes obvious. When you slow down enough to isolate each potential target, then you will have discover the correct coil speed. Then, if you switch back to DISC mode, swing the same slow speed and pay more attention to the null as well as the tones.

An unforseen (by me) benefit of learning the 705 in AM and multi-tone, was when I got an FBS machine. The learning curve was flattened pretty well, making the transition much easier than it otherwise would have been. And inversely, going from the Explorer back to the 705 seemed even easier. The 705 is a treat after lugging the weight of an FBS machine. And in it's element, the 705 works every bit as well as an FBS (or better).

 

[tjhoosier]

I don't dig everything, only the stuff that I want to see! But seriously, I'm like most other guys. If it's a consistent signal, whether it be tone or TID I dig it. Given the variables of soil type, moisture, corrosion of the target, etc, you just won't know what it is unless you dig it. But if I'm in a trashy area that I know has a lot of nails, iron, etc, sometimes I will not dig the -6 or -4 if it's not a consistent signal. It all goes back to getting a feel for what your machine is doing. Only way to get that is to spend time with it and when in doubt, dig it.

 

[BADBAJA]

My GB numbers are usually never over 20. Most of the time 10-15. The dd hf 6" and elliptical hf can pull nickels all day long. Have to be honest though and say I have not pulledx any gold but very hopeful. The trick with this is the tone, the TID jumps around a bunch on them but the tone is usually solid in the same area. Now can slaw can give TIDs and a tone that sounds very close but you can hear the slight rougher edges, like a scratchy sound. Guess what though? I still dig them most of the time unless it gives me negative numbers at a 90 degree angle from the original swing location. That's how I know it's slaw. Lol

 

[thecoinhunter]

machineman,
Ghost towns are probably the hardest places to hunt. Most of these towns had something to do with mining, which means the are highly mineralized. Secondly, these places have been hunted to death. There are so many "Ghost Town" books out there telling every Tom, Dick, and Harry or (Mary) where each town was. I've hunted these towns all over Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana and Nevada. Unless you can find a town no one knows about, you'll be in the same boat as the rest of us. Is there still great "finds" being found at ghost towns, you bet there is. But, it's some of the hardest hunting you can do. Whether you are new at this game or an old hat, each and every town site has to be hunted using every trick you can think of. I once found a small gold signet ring at Cumberland, Wyoming next to a 18 inch square piece of tin buried six inches deep. I'll bet so many detectorists had bypassed that ring because of the "big" target on top of it. Well, I dug up the tin and rechecked to hole and guest what I found. Cumberland is an old coal mining town south of Kemmerer, Wyoming. I can't count how many "club hunts" we have had at this site. There are about five metal detecting clubs within fifty miles of where I live (SLC, Ut.), and they have all been there many, many times. So, just because you think a site is old and should have plenty of silver and/or old coins, remember one thing, metal detectors have been around since 1964 and some even before that! So, don't get discouraged, just hunt "smart". Slow down and hunt areas that are not easy to hunt!
Good luck,
thecoinhunter