True all metal on the GT

[Jack Flynn]

I've got a place I've dug quite a few silver coins and 11 gold rings. Not much bigger than a double car garage. I used pinpoint on my Excal II a few weeks ago and got some more silver and an old ring. I want to put the GT on the area and the area is small enough to dig everything metal. More gold and silver will come forth I'm sure of that. So the question is how to set the GT to all metal. Might be just flip the switch but I'm wanting to make sure.

 

[Critterhunter]

Set the disc iron mask on/disc iron mask off/all metal switch to all metal. Then set the other switch to all metal track. Now, you can hunt in that mode but it won't give best depth, so my advice is to now set the ground balance while in track and then switch to fixed. You can set the balance by just sweeping around for several minutes (try to stay in clean iron-free areas), or you can set it by pumping the coil up and down slowly in a CLEAN spot. Don't completely hit the ground with the coil, but instead just kiss the grass at the height you'll be hunting at, as that's the way it should be balanced for hunting, because if you move the coil closer to the ground when balancing it will change things, so only lower it to hunting height...Raise it to about two foot...lower it.....do this over and over. When the threshold stays the same as you approach the ground, and it stays the same AS you leave the ground, that's when it's set right so throw it to fixed and then hunt. Now, to gain a tad bit more depth, I prefer to set a machine a little hot, meaning to where the threshold raises just a tad as the coil aproaches the ground. It's more of an art than a science. Just don't get in a hurry to do it, and I still like to re-set it every 30 minutes or so just in case I botched it the last time or have moved to different soil in the area.

I've never really hunted much on the Sovereign in all metal, because every machine I've ever used all metal on was no deeper than discriminate. Being deeper in all metal was more true of older machines I think back in the 80's and such. I know PP mode on my GT can not hear deep targets sometimes that discriminate hits just fine, but I haven't checked all metal to see if it's deeper that I remember.

You might want to try PP mode too and see, because some claim it's deeper (especially on the Xcal) than discriminate mode. It might be it's deeper than all metal pure mode, or at the least easier to hear faint targets with. One tip I've read is to hunt in PP or all metal and when you hear a deep whisper, to switch to discriminate and wiggle. If it nulls then don't dig, but if you hear anything then dig. However, it might be so deep of a coin that it will only null in discriminate, so remember that.

Also, some swear in all metal they can tell certain targets. For one, I remember reading that a things below a nickle will go high/low, where stuff above a nickle will go low/how....Or I might have that reversed, but there is a difference in audio between that split point in conductivity. There are other traits as well to targets people swear they can hear on the Sovereign in all metal.

Sounds like a great spot with that many gold rings! Can I ask what the spot was used for, as I'm curious why both silver and rings are laying there in such a small spot in such quantity. Good luck!

 

[Jack Flynn]

Actually it is an old beach. Oldest on the impoudment as far as I know. The goods are up at the full pool water line. The lake is 10 ft low righ now and is expected to drop more. Just got through at this spot again with the Excal II after water hunting and pulled another Rosie, 2 green nickels and a couple of green pennies. Bad part is they just spread sand over the beach, where I was finding stuff per it was rocky red clay and pebbles. Fresh sand is spread out to what would be the 10 foot mark at normal pool. It'll wash down but it's gonna take a tropical system which it looks like we will not get if the last several years pattern holds up. Most everything I've found here has been under 6 inches. It has been detected before but the mineralization is killer to most all detectors.........people that is. The GT when ran slow has pulled some goods out of the ground here. I know that digging it all, everything, will be worth while in this place. So back to the GT. All metal and track should get it done then. I had thought that in some settings it would adjust an object right out of detecting the object if the coil was passed over the target too many times is why I asked the question. The Excal II would work superb if not for the junk they call headphones attached too them were as good as the machine. I'm gonna put the GT in there with great headphones and dig it all some more.

 

[Critterhunter]

Yes, if I'm reading you right...Yea, track on ANY machine (in discriminate or all metal) will track out objects (particularly deep ones) if swept over too many times. That's why I prefer fixed so long as the ground isn't changing much in minerals and such. Of course in discriminate mode the Xcal/Sov is NOT using a form of auto ground tracking like on any other machine that has that, but rather it's using a unique way to ignore the ground signal. It changes with the ground conditions, but it is NOT auto tracking. That's why Minelabs get more depth and better ID at depth. Now, though, in all metal track, the Sovereign is using a conventional ground tracking system like on other detectors, and on detectors with auto or fixed I prefer to set ground balance for best depth. But, as said, in discriminate mode the Sovereign/Xcal is using not auto tracking, but rather a unique system only found on Minelabs. Closest thing I've heard said is that it takes a digital picture of the ground and then compares that to a picture of it with a target present, and it changes/adjusts all the time, but as said is much deeper/better than conventional "auto tracking". Now, in pinpoint mode on the Xcal/Sov, way I hear it they use a non-ground balance form of all Metal mode. So, setting ground balance in all metal normal mode has not effect on pin point mode. Instead, PP mode uses no ground balance. I know some of the old metal detectors had these two forms of all metal...a ground balance needed one and a non-ground balance one, so it appears the Sov/Xcal in pinpoint mode use a non-ground balance form of all metal. Not sure what the differences or merits of it are compared to all metal using a ground balance? I suspect that in some situations a ground balanced all metal mode will see deeper. On the other hand, some say PP mode is deeper than all metal. That throws a fly in the ointment...I'm only guessing but I *suspect* the impression that PP mode is deeper is due to the more pronounced response of targets, and not that it in reality is deeper than a set all metal ground balance mode. Now, to confuse things even more, some say PP mode on the Xcal is different then PP mode on the Sovereign, and that the Xcal one is deeper? Not sure if they are different, but some Xcal owners swear PP mode is deeper than discriminate mode for them, but I have seen some signals I can hear in PP mode on my GT that I can't hear in PP mode. Now, is all metal on the GT even deeper still? Not sure, as I haven't really tested that. Just food for thought...