Having depth problems

[Truth]

I’m not sure if it’s me or I’m expecting better results. I’ll put a silver dime 7” deep and I expect the equinox to hit that no problem and it’s very very iffy if not won’t hit it in different modes. Our mineralization in our ground is mid to high range. The 800 ground balances from the 40s to 80s. Even on the same property I’ll get different ground balances in different areas, so I’m just starting to use tracking. I’ve been using the equinox now for a while. I was one of the first ones to receive one and detect very often, and having had other detectors I was expecting it to hit a dime at 7 inches with an 11 inch coil. I’m kind of disappointed. I hope it’s just me or conditions.

 

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[mtcooley]

Sounds like the mineralized ground is affecting the deep. If it ground balances at 80 sometimes then it is pretty hot ground.

 

[Truth]

Sounds like the mineralized ground is affecting the deep. If it ground balances at 80 sometimes then it is pretty hot ground.

Yeah it’s hot my AT’s always hit in the 80’s. But it usually stays in the 50-60 range but then again I have a hard time ever find a spot with zero noise. Our ground is hot and dirty.

The Dirty South

 

[Rookster]

Did you try the AT on the dime? We both have AT's and I know mine will hit it.

 

[nagant]

I cant dirt hunt much yet but at the river beach i have got down around 8" in clean sand on clad and copper pennies, maybe 10", and once i didn't even ground balance and seemed about the same.

 

[Truth]

I cant dirt hunt much yet but at the river beach i have got down around 8" in clean sand on clad and copper pennies, maybe 10", and once i didn't even ground balance and seemed about the same.

I don’t beach hunt much but I had the opportunity couple of weeks ago and I was stunned to see the 800 hit targets deep and it was smacking them. I wonder if I should lower down to 4 or 3 for my depth problem.

 

[vferrari]

I’m not sure if it’s me or I’m expecting better results. I’ll put a silver dime 7” deep and I expect the equinox to hit that no problem and it’s very very iffy if not won’t hit it in different modes. Our mineralization in our ground is mid to high range. The 800 ground balances from the 40s to 80s. Even on the same property I’ll get different ground balances in different areas, so I’m just starting to use tracking. I’ve been using the equinox now for a while. I was one of the first ones to receive one and detect very often, and having had other detectors I was expecting it to hit a dime at 7 inches with an 11 inch coil. I’m kind of disappointed. I hope it’s just me or conditions.

If your ground is highly mineralized, then depth is going to suffer big time unless you go with a PI machine (but that comes with its own problems). No way around it. I hunt Culpeper, VA regularly and it has some of the worst ground around. You cannot get reliable TIDs greater than 4-5 inches in most spots and deeper than that everything sounds like iron, and you can't hear anything greater than 8 or 9". So if your ground is mid to high mineralization, then I am not surprised by your results. In fact, I am impressed you can hit it that deep. But like I have said previously, do not obsess over a single target type or obsess over depth, frankly. Try other targets than your lucky silver dime, including other dimes, pennies, quarters, buttons, and minie balls to see how your machine responds across the board.. But frankly, I will only worry if I am not picking up any targets. I don't use test gardens to figure out how deep a detector can find a target, I use it to do general comparison testing. No test garden or target can replicate all the conditions you will ever encounter because there are just too many variables. If you are going out to a variety of sites and time after time coming back empty handed then it is time to consider you have the right tool in your hands.

Yeah it’s hot my AT’s always hit in the 80’s. But it usually stays in the 50-60 range but then again I have a hard time ever find a spot with zero noise. Our ground is hot and dirty.

The Dirty South

Be careful about comapring GB numbers between machines. That is basically meaningless, the GB number displayed is just a reference number applicable the specific machine as an operator aid to help in setting ground balance - it is not a parameter that can be compared from machine to machine. Even on the Equinox, each mode needs to be individually ground balanced, and each mode will give a different GB number on the same exact patch of ground. If you have a lot of variability in ground phase reading at a site, then go ahead and use tracking. Very little, if any, down side.

Did you try the AT on the dime? We both have AT's and I know mine will hit it.

That is a good suggestion. But all it may do is cause more anxiety. lol.

I don’t beach hunt much but I had the opportunity couple of weeks ago and I was stunned to see the 800 hit targets deep and it was smacking them. I wonder if I should lower down to 4 or 3 for my depth problem.

If you are talking about recovery speed here (you didn't say) then that might be a good move, but remember, the problem with lowering recovery speed to gain depth is that you will also have to lower sweep speed to compensate and, especially in mineralized ground, may increase the level of ground noise you are picking up. So there is a point of diminishing returns where the raw depth gained by lowering recovery speed is overcome by the increase in the noise floor. If you do tweak recovery speed lower, I would advise against going any more than one or two points away from the default for the mode you are in. Experimentation is good to see how it affects the signal. In fact, taking your single "lucky" silver dime target. Try the various modes, tweak recovery speed to see what that does to the signal, try all metal to see if discrimination has any effect, and then finally, try hitting that dime with single frequencies from 5 through 40 to see how it sounds and reads. Good luck, Truth. Don't drive yourself crazy over depth and a single target.

 

[sgoss66]

I don’t beach hunt much but I had the opportunity couple of weeks ago and I was stunned to see the 800 hit targets deep and it was smacking them. I wonder if I should lower down to 4 or 3 for my depth problem.

Truth, I think to some extent, there are some answers to your original question contained within your most recent post, which I quoted here. What I mean is, if you were seeing the 800 hit targets deep -- smacking them, in your words -- on the beach, then I think you have ruled out the concern that your particular machine is not CAPABLE...i.e. you don't have a problem of any sort with your unit. Given the right ground, it obviously CAN "see deep." The issue definitely -- based on your beach results -- sounds like it is your soil. And the only positive words I can give you are that if your soil is so bad in some spots that the Equinox can barely hit a silver dime at 7", then you can at least be confident that it is extremely likely that any other VLF unit is likely to do no better (and many will quite likely do worse).

BUT -- as vferrari said, you can't really use a buried dime in one spot to overall assess how your machine will perform, of course; you proved this to yourself with the performance of the 800 on the beach. I am sure there are places, even in your area where your soil sounds "tough to hunt," where the dirt is "less bad" in some areas. So, it's likely you will get more depth in some spots, but less in others.

Like vferrari said, as long as you are having some success, and finding targets, then I wouldn't worry about it too much. You have an excellent machine, that should do as well if not better than most any other in your type of dirt (except for a PI unit). And as your beach experience showed you, any time you find a spot to hunt where the soil is less hot/mineralized, then your machine will correspondingly achieve better depth performance for you.

Steve

 

[Professor of Engineering]

My AT Pro GB's at 93 in my soil, but hits a 10" quarter target (in old test bed) with no problem!

I also agree about being careful not to compare GB values of different companies. I also wonder if the GB scales are linear, quadratic, logarithm...etc., IMHO: my thought is a log graph function.

 

[vferrari]

High GB numbers do not necessarily correlate to high mineralization. They often do, but to be sure you need a separate mineralization readout which is only available on some detectors like the XP Deus and Fisher F75. Again, the numbers do not mean much in and of themselves, they just give the User a reference point for manually adjusting GB. On the Equinox, 0 typically is the neutral ground reference point; on my Deus, neutral ground rings up at 88 to 90, so detector to detector comparison of GB numbers is worthless. Also, on my Deus I have found neutral and highly mineralized ground to ring up with the same GB number so really you cannot infer much from these GB numbers, alone.

 

[smokeythecat]

Like they said. You can't rely on meters. Best gold and diamond ring I ever found was a horrid signal. The ground mineralization matters, however, as they said, don't rely on one buried test. Air tests and such as useful to a point, but having something in the ground for decades or longer makes a difference. A HUGE difference. Both my Cibola and Deus will nail a quarter at about 10". I'd just try looking for native targets and see what you come up with. My most expensive item ever was 4" down. The next most expensive was less than 1/4" under. One gold coin was on top of the sand. The Cibola is a beep and go and I have set the Deus on a factory preset with tracking balance, even at the beach and do not tweak settings. Tweaking settings can foul you up on many occasions.

 

[Truth]

Like they said. You can't rely on meters. Best gold and diamond ring I ever found was a horrid signal. The ground mineralization matters, however, as they said, don't rely on one buried test. Air tests and such as useful to a point, but having something in the ground for decades or longer makes a difference. A HUGE difference. Both my Cibola and Deus will nail a quarter at about 10". I'd just try looking for native targets and see what you come up with. My most expensive item ever was 4" down. The next most expensive was less than 1/4" under. One gold coin was on top of the sand. The Cibola is a beep and go and I have set the Deus on a factory preset with tracking balance, even at the beach and do not tweak settings. Tweaking settings can foul you up on many occasions.

My girl you’ve done and all you must be proud of yourself. I’m going to start using that ground balance cracking I heard you lose depth and it really doesn’t work but that just may be from people that haven’t figured it out yet like myself. LOL

 

[Truth]

Did you try the AT on the dime? We both have AT's and I know mine will hit it.

I sold mine and it’s funny you brought it up I bid on one last week. I miss it just don’t know whether to get the Deus as a 2nd, But that means relearning a Nother set the tactor’s language while I’m still learning the equinox. My AT Pro/Max I had that down to a science but at the time I was at a location where everything was very deep so I had to use my storm in my thunder coil and it was killing my arm

 

[Truth]

My AT Pro GB's at 93 in my soil, but hits a 10" quarter target (in old test bed) with no problem!

I also agree about being careful not to compare GB values of different companies. I also wonder if the GB scales are linear, quadratic, logarithm...etc., IMHO: my thought is a log graph function.

I was just throwing that in there I know they are completely machines

 

[Truth]

High GB numbers do not necessarily correlate to high mineralization. They often do, but to be sure you need a separate mineralization readout which is only available on some detectors like the XP Deus and Fisher F75. Again, the numbers do not mean much in and of themselves, they just give the User a reference point for manually adjusting GB. On the Equinox, 0 typically is the neutral ground reference point; on my Deus, neutral ground rings up at 88 to 90, so detector to detector comparison of GB numbers is worthless. Also, on my Deus I have found neutral and highly mineralized ground to ring up with the same GB number so really you cannot infer much from these GB numbers, alone.

The problem I’m having the VA is that when I was holding the 1800s public park I was finding three ringers a foot down with the huge now Coil which after the 80s 90s and now nobody was going to deep so I’m used to digging in deep. Which brings me to this property the 1820s house has been detected by this one other guy who had an E track and he told me all the many buttons and coins and relics he found one really deep and he found a lot in his 15 years. He told me the only thing he hasn’t found was a half time and he knew they were in there. Well I found two that were deep enough in a fist full of iron nails was it luck probably, twice I’m one lucky ******* and I did that in my first thought five huntss. Because the falsing rusty nails it sounds and rings up just like a half dime. I truly believe I got very lucky with those half dimes. Most things I find with plenty of nails around them might have one high VDI in the bunch, so I’ll dig it just for that. I do like to dig more than the average guy at least while I still can and at the same time I don’t want to unnecessarily dig too many holes in this guys property.
But that showed me that whatever is left from him might be a little deeper that’s why I concentrate on that at this moment.

 

[jb58]

The problem I’m having the VA is that when I was holding the 1800s public park I was finding three ringers a foot down with the huge now Coil which after the 80s 90s and now nobody was going to deep so I’m used to digging in deep. Which brings me to this property the 1820s house has been detected by this one other guy who had an E track and he told me all the many buttons and coins and relics he found one really deep and he found a lot in his 15 years. He told me the only thing he hasn’t found was a half time and he knew they were in there. Well I found two that were deep enough in a fist full of iron nails was it luck probably, twice I’m one lucky ******* and I did that in my first thought five huntss. Because the falsing rusty nails it sounds and rings up just like a half dime. I truly believe I got very lucky with those half dimes. Most things I find with plenty of nails around them might have one high VDI in the bunch, so I’ll dig it just for that. I do like to dig more than the average guy at least while I still can and at the same time I don’t want to unnecessarily dig too m


any holes in this guys property.
But that showed me that whatever is left from him might be a little deeper that’s why I concentrate on that at this moment.

i was having depth problems..mine turned out to be the coil cover i took off and cleaned out was not put back on all the way..i eventually noticed this and after snapping the cover all the way on..it worked great.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Truth1253, what is your recovery speed set at? It may be set too high to get max depth.

 

[nagant]

Not saying this is your problem, just putting it out there. Since mine never gets taken apart i have to remember to check the coil connection, once in a while it's loose. I lost out out on a one time chance property with my Tesoro golden µmax because of a loose coil, thought it was EMI. And had hot dirt under the coil cover before too. So checking things like this will pay off someday, maybe the day you get a shot on a good permission and are rushing to get swinging. Last time at the beach with the Nox i dug a few quarters between 8" and maybe 12" in the water with stock coil.

 

[Truth]

Truth1253, what is your recovery speed set at? It may be set too high to get max depth.

I mostly have it on 5, in heavy iron I’ll do 6. I’m gonna try 4 in open field.

 

[Truth]

Not saying this is your problem, just putting it out there. Since mine never gets taken apart i have to remember to check the coil connection, once in a while it's loose. I lost out out on a one time chance property with my Tesoro golden µmax because of a loose coil, thought it was EMI. And had hot dirt under the coil cover before too. So checking things like this will pay off someday, maybe the day you get a shot on a good permission and are rushing to get swinging. Last time at the beach with the Nox i dug a few quarters between 8" and maybe 12" in the water with stock coil.

Oh I must admit I don’t beach hunt much but when I did I wish it was like that in dirt. Smacking and I mean smacking Quarters at 10”