Does the TR/disc mode ignore iron?

[XL-PRO PRO]

Back in the late 70's I used a whites 6db to hunt silver coins/jewelry.In those days the only mode used was tr-disc.I managed to find quite a few and dont remember digging nails;only non ferrus items.So,would this mode be better for iron infested areas?Does it actually ignore iron?Just curious! Thanks DBULL

 

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[Tom_in_CA]

Your question is confusing. If, as you say, you used the 6db, then the preferred search mode would've been GEB disc. (motion disc.). The TR disc. mode on that machine was wimpy, when compared to the ground-breaking motion disc. of that vintage unit. But to answer your question, yes, the TR disc. could reject nails (afterall, that's what "discriminators" are for, eh? ). I think what you are confusing, is when people say "TRs saw THROUGH iron. The TR they are talking about in that case is not TR disc. (as was found on the 6db) but rather TR-All-metal mode. Such was not on the 6db.

TR all-metal was found on a variety of machines of the 60s & 70s. It would, by nature, ignore and see through small iron. But that was where the discrimination stopped. You couldn't reject foil, or any conductive targets as you could on TR disc. It was also a bear to keep balanced, lacked depth, and lacked ability in minerals.

While TR disc. could also reject small iron, it wouldn't "see through" it, as all-metal TR could. So for example, if you put a nail over a coin, you'd likely miss the coin in TR disc. But all-metal TR would get the coin under the nail (yet pass nails sitting alone all day long).

Hope this answers your question.

 

[Shortstack]

If you adjusted the old Whites Coinmasters to TR Disc. with steady tone, the discriminated stuff would cause the tone to "null-out". You had to go slow so that if a nail was beside a coin, the coin could be "found" by the detector circuits. You had to really know your machine to be able to tell the difference between "rebound" and the detector reacting to a good target snuggled to a bad one.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

Shortstack, to clarify: yes, since TR disc. was non-motion, you could go sllooowwllly and hear coins "NEXT" to nails quite nicely. Ie.: target "separation" was great. But target "averaging" was not great. It did not average or see through if the nail was directly over the coin. TR all-metal would do this, but TR disc. would not.

For example I used the Garrett groundhog for several years. It had TR disc, and yes, you could get knife-point separation, since it was non-motion disc. But if you put the nail directly over a coin, the TR disc. did not average them, and would mask. Contrast this to the 77b, where you could put 3 or 4 nails over a coin (yes, smack dab on the top) and still get a signal on the coin. Sure, it may not have been able to do it too deeply, and it may be a bear to keep balanced, but it could do it

 

[Shortstack]

Tom:

I agree with your statements, basically. But, a lot depended on the direction of your swing. If the nail lead the coin, the nulling could mask the coin, but on the return swing with the coin leading the nail, the good tone would start up then null out. That's the best way I can describe it. Slowing way down helped to separate the targets. The older Coinmasters would do this, but the later ones that you had to use a fast whipping swing probably was a bear to use. That's basically why I didn't get one of those.

 

[XL-PRO PRO]

The 6db was my second whites detector and was probably one of my favorites.I found more silver and jewelry with this detector than I did with the 6000 I replaced it with.Basically,I didn't have a clue as to what I was doing and at the time didn't understand geb disc(no internet,no local dealer,no one to learn from)so I just hunted tr disc and dug all targets.As I recollect,I used quite a bit of disc so I probably missed a lot of small jewelry,but even still I found several class rings and silver coins.This detector was fairly light and could be swung for long periods.Also,there were a lot more good targets in the 70's.Thanks DBULL

 

[Deese]

Your question is confusing. If, as you say, you used the 6db, then the preferred search mode would've been GEB disc. (motion disc.). The TR disc. mode on that machine was wimpy, when compared to the ground-breaking motion disc. of that vintage unit. But to answer your question, yes, the TR disc. could reject nails (afterall, that's what "discriminators" are for, eh? ). I think what you are confusing, is when people say "TRs saw THROUGH iron. The TR they are talking about in that case is not TR disc. (as was found on the 6db) but rather TR-All-metal mode. Such was not on the 6db.

TR all-metal was found on a variety of machines of the 60s & 70s. It would, by nature, ignore and see through small iron. But that was where the discrimination stopped. You couldn't reject foil, or any conductive targets as you could on TR disc. It was also a bear to keep balanced, lacked depth, and lacked ability in minerals.

While TR disc. could also reject small iron, it wouldn't "see through" it, as all-metal TR could. So for example, if you put a nail over a coin, you'd likely miss the coin in TR disc. But all-metal TR would get the coin under the nail (yet pass nails sitting alone all day long).

Hope this answers your question.

Thanks Tom,you answered my question before I even asked it! Could you recomend some TR all metal detectors? I have my eye peeled for a 77b already.What other machines would be good choices?