Garrett AT depth performance characteristics

[eddie13]

I’m just not finding any deep targets I want to dig..

I’m digging pretty much every target over 40 VDI that either don’t jump around all over the place as far as VDI #, or targets that do jump around a bit but stay higher than 40..

I’m almost always running in all metals mode with iron audio set at 40 and ignoring targets that grunt (hit below 40)..

The thing is that I’m just not finding any targets that meet these standards and are deep..
The deepest things I end up digging are can tops maybe up to 8” max..
Almost every target I find like this will set off my AT pinpointer from the surface (so not very deep)..

I must be doing something wrong..
Their must be deeper targets that I must be missing or not digging on for some reason..

Does something happen to VDI numbers as targets get deeper that would be causing me to reject targets that I should be digging?

This is on an AT Gold, but I imagine it should act very similarly to the Pro or Max..

Any experience here?
How were/are you discriminating targets with your AT detector and what kind of depth were you getting?

 

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[gunsil]

Number one is maybe you are not hunting where there are good deep targets. Number two is that your AT is basically maxed out at 8" for a dime (with standard 11" coil) and will likely not see a dime on edge at 8". Most if not all detectors lose VDI accuracy the deeper the target. Number three is that in 50 some years of detecting most of the coins I have found have been in the top 6" of soil even colonial coins if the ground hasn't been modified by landscaping or silted in from flooding although this would also fall under number one. The ONLY true discrimination is when the target is in your hand so dig more iffy signals, he who makes the most holes finds the most good stuff, period. Also, most experienced hunters basically disregard VDI and pay more attention to the sounds which are more reliable. Metal detecting is all about patience, keep at it, dig iffy signals, and look for places that haven't been hunted hard before (not easy to do in many areas). One more thing, if you set your AT to discriminate out aluminum and lead you will not find many gold items.

 

[eddie13]

That’s a great answer!

I did not realize that most things were quite shallow, 6”, so that explains a lot..
I just don’t have the long time experience to know these things..

And I believe I have the stock 8x5 coil for the Gold detector..
Have my eye on a NEL Hunter 12.5x8.5 coil local on FB though..
It’s for an AT Max but I think it’ll work..

I am digging tons and tons of can tabs, beaver tail tabs, foil pieces, all sorts of bottle caps, bullets and casings, and can tops..

I am getting to the point where I can pretty much tell bullet casings (brass) and can tabs, but I dig them all anyway..
Where I detect mostly their is just as many brass casings as their are can tabs, and some places 5X as many casings..
Lots of lead bullets and copper jacket frags everywhere too..
I even found a string of beaver tail tabs all linked together like a chain! Pretty neat..

Beer and guns.. Merica!

I just thought I should be finding a lot of deeper stuff..

 

[xr7ator]

Lower the iron discr to 28 and pay attention to the very faint grunts and tones.
Dig a couple holes and drop coins in them and check out what the machine does.

 

[gunsil]

Eddie, I keep the 5x8 coil on my Pro, hardly ever take it off, it is a great coil for parks and yards but it does lack the depth of the 11" factory coil. I don't think that coil on my AT Pro will hit a dime at 8" unless conditions were perfect (moist soil, coin lying flat, no nearby iron, soil not very mineralized, and a lucky day). Now woods hunting is a little different, things will be deeper due to faster soil and leaf build up over time. Sounds like you are vacuuming up the countryside!! If you're learning to tell brass shells, pull tabs, etc you are well on your way to getting the most from your machine. I think you will love the bigger NEL for depth but it won't separate as well as your 5x8 but woud be much better in fields and woods for general depth and might just turn up a few coins deep where you have already been. I jump around between machines too often, so I am not an AT expert although I have used it alot, I have a buddy who knows his so well he can often call the target by the sound, they are very capable machines when well learned. Sounds like you might be hunting my old residence (LOL), I had a small outdoor range firing from a picnic table on the lawn, must be several thousand .22 shells in the ground there. Few pulltabs though, most of my fiends and myself prefer bottled beer.

 

[DiggerinVA]

I know this thread is 6 months old, but for anyone else looking for the same info i will add my 2 cents.... I used the AT Gold and was one of my favorites fot quite a while....great relic machine. To get good depth you need a coil bigger than the stock 5x8. I used the 11x8 off of my AT pro. Secondly, you must run in the ALL Metal Mode (greatly deeper than disc mode) and ground balance the machine. Do NOT set the iron audio up to 40!! Garrett AT machines drop VDI numbers greatly at depth! Especially in mineralized ground like we have here in Virginia. I dug a 12-13" U.S. box plate with the AT pro that hit in the nickel/foil range untill i opened the hole up, then it jumped way up to a high tone. I have dug many Sharps bullets in a confederate camp with the AT Gold that jumped around from 35-70 at depths of 6" down to near 10". One other thing i found out about the AT Gold and most other VLF machines is that very dry, hard ground will greatly reduce depth. I went back to that same camp after a good week of rain showers and found dropped sharps bullets at depths that i didnt think possible from that detector. Try this method for deep targets: Once you locate what you believe to be a deep target, position your coil where the target is centered under the coil....swing back and fourth across the target 6 or 8 times watching the VDI numbers....if they ever jump up into the high 60"s or more, the target is worth digging. Also, listen to the audio of the target....a truly deep, good target will not sound strong. A traget that sounds strong with low VDI numbers and the occasional high number is most likely iron falsing. Hope this helps someone make a good find or two....

 

[xr7ator]

good advice DiggerinVA. However, with a pinpointer my recovery is very quick.
I usually will just dig the target instead of going over it and over it again and again. Get it out, in the pouch, and get up to swing for the next target.

 

[DiggerinVA]

good advice DiggerinVA. However, with a pinpointer my recovery is very quick.
I usually will just dig the target instead of going over it and over it again and again. Get it out, in the pouch, and get up to swing for the next target.

I agree in most cases... however in red Virginia clay, 10" deep targets are in no way quick to recover...