TTF...wowww...total love//hate relationship

[sunraysux]

so i have recently taken the time out of shear frustration with the other modes on Etrac...to explore the TTF mystery
first...credit to Kurt//NALC on this forum for being a patient tutor to an impatient Etrac newbie
his excitement about TTF and the associated possibilities inspired me to reach out to him and he has helped get me started
i am still just in my TTF infancy....but already i am stoked about the ability to rock up the sensitivity to mid 20s and grab some awesome depths!...in regular modes, after the noise cancel set up finished, i would see the projected SENS level that the Etrac thought was appropriate and i would start to push the manual SENS up above that level(most times around 14-15-16)....and instantly, the machine would start to null out the moment i moved the coil, and almost worse, it would make so many erratic electronic BS noises it made me want to smash the thing on the macadam!!
so i would back it off until it was a bit quieter and more stable...but i would never hear a signal over 4-5 inches
never dug deeper targets....just tons of clad and some shallower newer silver
i knew i was missing tons of things; i knew the sites i got permission on were killer and should absolutely have some deeper more desirable stuff...but i was going home frustrated and disappointed repeatedly
so the last 2 hunts i turned on the machine....did the noise cancel minute....and then jumped over to a clear screen TTF
rammed the manual SENS up to the low 20s and away i went...
and OMG!!!...this mode is soooooo noisy!!! yikes!!! thump thump thump thump thump
there must be sherman tanks underground or something because it would not shut up!!!lol
literally every site i went to was the same!!....dull iron noise was perpetual
but i started to be able to isolate some beeps in the fray....to slowly pick out a beep or 2...then more and more
pinpointing sucks in TTF....as does the target ID features
both are very skewed and undependable relative to normal....so i figured i would dig most beeps
and bang!....barber dime....V nickles....deep wheaties...war nickels
yes, much trash as well but this is in spots that i hunted with the coins mode already....and then went at it with TTF
the coins mode smeared all the iron into the other good targets and blanked it all out!!
but TTF allowed me///with much teeth nashing and patience to learn to pull some sugar out of the piles of subterranean metal
i am still pulling my hair out some....and am writing this to ask some more experienced TTF users a few trade ??s, but i surely see the benefits of this now....the depth i can get routinely now is exciting
i will most definitely be getting some deeper better targets hence forth
the weird thing i did notice though.....was that as i was moving the coil and there was all the iron thumping and grunting(almost constant actually)...i would get a beep and isolate it and then pinpoint it
and it sounds like a lone item!!!...in other words, it sounds like there is a hardware store of nails down there with all the ferrous noise and grunts, and yet when i get a beep and pinpoint it, it sounds as if the target is alone in the dessert!!
i don't get why it needs to grunt and growl all the time as if there is a billion ferrous items under the grass.....when it seems as it there isn't when i dig up the target; a very weird occurrence that i would love some help understanding from some of the TTF vets if possible; along with any suggestions as to managing the constant barrage of ferrous noise(other than dialing the SENS way back
i would also love to hear from people with experience in the TTF mode...as to where they use it....and don't use it
what determines where you use it and don't?? is it your normal operating mode...or just a fall back?
i do like it alot actually....but would love to dig less trash and not go home with a headache!!
sorry for the long post here....and thanks in advance for your feedback and thoughts

 

[expII al]

These machines are not for the weak of heart. You need to start off slow and easy. You will find the deep stuff in due time. Learn what the machine is trying to tell you it will pay off. I've had my Explorer II since it came out and I'm still learning something new each time I take it out.

 

[nalc472]

When I am using the e-trac and suddenly a "light" comes on and I come up with new ideas. The e-trac never ceases to amaze me with different settings.

 

[IDXMonster]

My toughest thing to realize with my Explorer2 and even the CTX at times is...deep coins don't sound like 5" coins, even with the Gain maxed out. When that light comes on that Kurt mentioned and you know what that really deep coin sounds like.....that is where the Minelabs shine!

 

[nalc472]

I hear the deep sounds in a chirp and turn 90 degrees and it still chirps or better and gives a reading on the CO side of 30+. I did. pay little attention to FE numbers when it is deep.

 

[sunraysux]

went out again last light to a colonial era park....i guess i just don't get why this TTF makes soooo much "false" noise
it thumps and grunts constantly....and then beeps when you go over a non ferrous item
i did get several flat buttons and an Indian...some old wheaties/etc
no silver which sucked....but still way too much noise from TTF which really detracts from the enjoyment of the event
but TTF is the only mode i can use where the threshold stays put and i get any depth at all
all the other modes on my machine limit my depth to like 5 inches if i back of the SENS to the point i can maintain a semi-normal threshold...its a real problem
the second i start to ramp up the SENS on manual or AUTO...and move the coil, i lose the hum

 

[Explorer.se]

went out again last light to a colonial era park....i guess i just don't get why this TTF makes soooo much "false" noise
it thumps and grunts constantly....and then beeps when you go over a non ferrous item
i did get several flat buttons and an Indian...some old wheaties/etc
no silver which sucked....but still way too much noise from TTF which really detracts from the enjoyment of the event
but TTF is the only mode i can use where the threshold stays put and i get any depth at all
all the other modes on my machine limit my depth to like 5 inches if i back of the SENS to the point i can maintain a semi-normal threshold...its a real problem
the second i start to ramp up the SENS on manual or AUTO...and move the coil, i lose the hum

Congrats on the Indian!

 

[Silver Bullet]

I typically hunt in public places and try to use Auto +3, and conductive. However, there are two parks that I must use TTF because the nulling is so bad when running in conductive mode. I too run a wide open screen. I typically use the Auto +3 in this mode as well for my sensitivity. I only use TTF at these locations because there is no threshold at all when I swing the coil. When I switch to TTF, my machine sounds just like you describe. I do notice there are a lot of iron targets in the hole when I dig for conductive signals (I've pulled silver coins with nails above, below, and beside them).

The one thing I noticed when I first started using TTF, and I haven't seen anyone else make this comment. When I run in conductive mode I get larger nails that read as a conductive target. This is usually after a good soaking rain. I dig thinking it will be a deep coin, or a copper target and it turns out to be a nail (usually a bent nail). I have also found my E-Trac has been fooled in TTF mode. I will get a a solid conductive target in ferrous mode, and I dig to find a large nail. I sweep the area after removing the nail, and there are no conductive targets remaining. My conclusion is the E-Trac reads all the targets the same, TTF just gives a different way to signal the target. I was really miffed when I pulled the first large ferrous nail from the hole in TTF mode. Maybe I'm the only one who has had that experience.

I do love using TTF at these two locations because I don't know if anyone else has the ability to separate the ferrous from conductive targets. I have found some good old silver coins using this method where there is a lot of iron.

 

[sunraysux]

ahhh lone Ranger...that happened to me last night as a matter of fact in that colonial park!!....twice!
was in TTF...had nice beeps that read deep....probably 9-10 inches and 37-39 on the conductive numbers
then when i dug them, they were really large super old rust encrusted square nails...
and you know what??....i don't care!!ha
i am falling in love with TTF for all of my hunting now
the depth is awesome and i have gone back to a bunch of places i hunted several times with COINS mode...AUTO+3
and i am getting tons of coins!!!
i went tonight to several places and she was balanced and behaved...some thumping and grunting but much better
and the targets were crisp and clear as day!!
got one silver quarter and several $s of clad in about an 1.5 hours of hunting between rain showers
and yes...there was alot of rain Friday so those nails were quite wet in the colonial park yesterday
i have a whole list of the places i have done already with regular conductive discrimination on the Etrac and now i will go back and actually get all the good stuff i have left behind!! lol
i am getting stoked about this TTF mode and when i use the 6 inch sniper coil....crank up the SENS and then let her pick her own noise cancellation channel upon start up....she seems to be very happy with that and behaves
and the loud strong beeps on deep targets are awesome!!

 

[nalc472]

Glad U are finally figuring out how to unlock the mighty power of the E-trac.

 

[sunraysux]

thanks Kurt...still a work in progress for sure but this is much better than the other patterns//techniques
and going back the the same places that i hunted carefully with COINS or other patterns....and getting alot of new stuff//deeper stuff from the same spots tells me that this is for me going forward
digging alot more junk because the ID is not as accurate but to get to the deeper better stuff....i guess it is a necessary evil

 

[nalc472]

Are U still trying the NC manual shift? What pattern are U using? On the open screen are you shifting the FE/C numbers to suit the areas U are hunting?

 

[sunraysux]

no pattern Kurt....and the reason i named this thread love//hate is i hate the Etrac tonight!!lol
tonight it just would not behave worth a hoot at 3 different sites!!...thump thump thump
perpetual noise muting the attempts of the beeps to come through...i just don't get this damn machine honestly
totally erratic....there was NO metal in the ground in most spots and yet all it did was thump thump thump
did the same set up as last night when it acted wonderfully
no manual NC...i do the auto NC 60 second set-up and in an open screen with SENS up high, i plod along....
but tonight was a BS fest....total waste of time

 

[sprchng]

no pattern Kurt....and the reason i named this thread love//hate is i hate the Etrac tonight!!lol
tonight it just would not behave worth a hoot at 3 different sites!!...thump thump thump
perpetual noise muting the attempts of the beeps to come through...i just don't get this damn machine honestly
totally erratic....there was NO metal in the ground in most spots and yet all it did was thump thump thump
did the same set up as last night when it acted wonderfully
no manual NC...i do the auto NC 60 second set-up and in an open screen with SENS up high, i plod along....
but tonight was a BS fest....total waste of time

I think what might really cut your learning curve down would be the addition of a X-1 probe to your etrac.
That smaller coil/probe really narrows the targets down allowing for a great deal of simplification,,,might be just what the Dr. ordered for you.

 

[sunraysux]

have a 6 inch COILTEK sniper on there...not the 11 inch stock coil
and she still whales away without provocation at times...a mystifying little gizmo
like i said....love//hate

 

[nalc472]

There is somebody just posted a Tornado coil for sale for 40.00. You should buy it.

 

[Explorer.se]

That is me but the coil is non working :clsoedeyes:

 

[sprchng]

That is me but the coil is non working :clsoedeyes:

That's okay,,,it won't be quite so noisey

 

[Explorer.se]

That is me but the coil is non working :clsoedeyes:

That's okay,,,it won't be quite so noisey

lol! that's a good one!

 

[sunraysux]

amazing....someone finally figured how to silence this ridiculous thing