Tot lot challenges

[hftrsrskr]

Any tips for searching around play equip. I have a Vaquero (9x which can't get close with any disc and even my Compadre w/ 5 and 3/4" struggles.

 

[pkrska]

Well if they don't work, then I guess you'll have to use your pin pointer.

 

[fwcrawford]

You might try reducing your sensitivity setting some as most of the stuff is not going to be that deep anyhow.
I usually can do pretty well with the 5.75" coil on my Vaquero around playgroud equipment and have been surprised at the amount of finds very close to metal polls and such.

 

[thump7]

I use the 9x8 and can regularly find coins a foot away from steel structures, I have found them as close as 6" from the steel structures. What works best or me is to swing directly towards the structure and directly away - not along or parallel to the structure. Get used to hearing the overload signal, in time you will recognize any chirps or unusual interference as the signal is overloading. When I get these I dig the sand away down to about 6". Usually there is a coin.
'

 

[tvr]

Like thump7 says, move towards and away from the structure (poles, fences, slides, metal steps, etc) not sweeping along it. I slide the coil slowly until it sounds on the structure and then pull it away slowly. Listen both towards and away for a separate chirp that may indicate a target just outside of where it gets overloaded by the structure. Lower sensitivity and smaller coils help. I like a cleansweep for working near structures. I slide the cleansweep up to the structure with the narrow side towards the structure.

On some hunts I'll scoop the chips or sand away from poles and detect that material. Then put the chips or sand back where it was.
Cheers,
tvr

 

[blue dunbar]

I also do what tvr just said. If the chips are piled up at all I will kick them aside to scan and kick em back. And sweeping parallel to the equipment slowly after getting the beep on approach has also worked for me. And I mean slowly. I have the 8x9 coil on my Umax so I have to work around the same problem using some of what I've read here.

As I do beep and dig, I sometimes hear a signal just before or just after coming up to the equipment. I used to ignore that until a couple of times where the sound was just different enough to warrant checking. And if I remember correctly, the first 2 times I "checked" I was rewarded with a quarter each time. It just took learning a little more of the language my detector "speaks". And as time goes on, it's "vocabulary" gets larger and larger.

Let's see Rosetta Stone teach that.

 

[hftrsrskr]

Thanks for the tips. I'll try the to and from scan. I was trying to go slow till the overload and probably missed the odd signal. I like the scoop and scan method too.

 

[REVIER]

I have a Vaq and a Compadre and am mostly using the Compadre lately.
It is an older one with the 7 inch coil and the sense is turned way up internally so I can't close to big metal in tot-lots at all.
I did discover that if there is a target close in near the metal...even within a few inches, there is going to be an extra beep so always listen for that.
Go slow and listen for that double beep and you can find that treasure!

 

[mudpuppy]

Its a skill all in and of itself...not just any old swinger can clean a totter properly...chips are different than gravel. You got some golden answers here, HFT

 

[Monte]

While I prefer to seek renovation work and other old-coin potential sites, the wood-chip, and sand-filled playgrounds many cities have can produce am ample amount of modern change as well as silver and gold jewelry. I average about 12 gold rings a year from playgrounds, and while my health has slowed me down, it was just a few years back that I was getting between 1600 and 2100 coins, per-month, from March through August just from hitting the playgrounds a lot. I will say that it was when I lived in the Portland, Oregon metro area and they have an excellent number of 'Tot-Lots' to hunt!

Any tips for searching around play equip. I have a Vaquero (9x which can't get close with any disc and even my Compadre w/ 5 and 3/4" struggles.

Well, let me share my tips and see if they might help. I'm wrapping up my 47th year of metal detecting and I know what makes my different approaches to success work for me.

1.. A person needs to have patience. I see too many people give up too easily when they find a playground that seems a little thinned out, or when they have too many metal structures.

2.. Most of the moderate-to-fast sweep detectors models are no longer manufactured, like the XLT or 6000 Di Pro SL, so a person has a better selection of slow-motion detector to chose from. A slow-sweep model might work well, but only if it is a quick-response/fast-recovery design. Long, delayed recovery detectors, like the Gamo Raider, are NOT the right choices for working close to metal structures. Tesoro discriminators usually work well, and my personal preferences are the Bandido, Bandido II, Bandido II

 

[Dan-Pa.]

Small coils and fast units excell in this enviroment..Just remember Mommies bring the tots and more than one nice adult gold ring has been found along with a lot of loose change...

 

[hftrsrskr]

Monte- Thanks for the info. Really seems like patience is the key.