Advice for a newbie

[The Felderhoff]

Hi all,

I just received my x-terra 705 and had a couple of questions. I live in a older home that was built in 1895 and am not finding any older coins. The house has been in the family since the 40s and to our knowledge has never been hunted. When I ground balance I typically get a number between 65 and 75. Sensitivity set around 19. With the package I bought I got a 6" L digger, 10.5 M DD, and a 5x10 H coil.Which coil would be best for my ground conditions? I am also going to search for a good ring my uncle lost 20 years ago and wondered if one of these could would be better for specifically searching for it. Thanks for the advice in advance and happy hunting!

 

[coinhunterseth]

I would use the 5x10 high frequency coil to look for the ring.

 

[7centsworth]

You need to swing really slow and listen for those high tones. Sometimes they just barely chirp a high tone. If there is old coins there you will eventually find them. It takes time to learn a new detector. I like my sensitivity as high as I can get it without a lot of falseing. Sometimes you have to dig the trash to get the good stuff.

 

[The Felderhoff]

Thanks for the advice guys. I will give the 5x10 a try and see if I can find the ring. I think my ears need some training to pick up those high tones. How slow is too slow on swing speed? I try to go 3 seconds each direction. Will swinging too fast produce more glass readings? Thanks again

 

[Old Longhair]

With ground phase numbers like you posted, I have to ask, "Are you using Auto Ground Balance, or are you doing it manually?"
Are you using Auto Noise Cancel?
Do you have Ground Balance Tracking On or Off?

 

[The Felderhoff]

I have been using auto ground balance and auto noise cancel. I have not tried out the tracking. I have been finding a clear area to ground balance by putting the detector in AM. I

 

[Old Longhair]

Cool! Turn your Tracking ON. Now the worst case scenario....you're in an area of horrible EMI, in which case you should save it until you have more time on the machine. Otherwise, here's what you do.

Slow down a bunch and turn your Sensitivity up some (you have incredibly mild soil). Sweeping too fast causes more falsing, irregular tones, and poor ID. It is often mistaken for instability. Practice seeing how slow you can go and still get a good tone.
If you really want to learn proper sweep rate, go AM and learn to isolate each hit. If it sounds like a Kaliope on meth, either you're still going too fast, and/or you need a smaller coil.

It's not that the machine is slow. It's more that you'll stand to miss less that could be masked to a faster swing by a machine that can sort slowly through other objects. That is the strength of Minelab machines, and why their owners enjoy success.

 

[mapper65]

If it was me I'd start with the 10.5" MF and run my sensitivity up as high as it will go without chattering. Turn on GB tracking and go. If the area seems trashy switch to the 6" Coiltek coil.

Keep in mind that if someone "thinks" that they lost a ring in that area that often times they lost it somewhere else. If they "know" that they lost it there then that adds to the thrill of the hunt.

Have fun!

 

[The Felderhoff]

Thanks for the advice longhair and mapper! I will try it out and let you know how it goes. Mapper the ring was actually lost on our farm when my uncle was planting some trees. Good thing is that we had a drought and most of the trees died but are still in their rows. I will try that 5x10 out. Thanks and HH

 

[mapper65]

That's good that you know that it's lost there. Those are the kind of hunts that are fun when you know you have a chance at something that's really there.

We've had a lot of people send us on some wild goose chases because they "think" it could be lost in a certain area.

 

[jarrow]

Thanks for the advice guys. I will give the 5x10 a try and see if I can find the ring. I think my ears need some training to pick up those high tones. How slow is too slow on swing speed? I try to go 3 seconds each direction. Will swinging too fast produce more glass readings? Thanks again

What are glass readings
I hunted a home site that has been in my family siencs 1894 and found 1 zink cent.

 

[The Felderhoff]

That would be an autocorrect for false readings

 

[pecor]

I hunted my grandfathers farm house built in 1860, For 1 year hard, And found no old coins or silver, some newer coins not many and lots of cool junk, Old porcelain canning jar tops with the zinc screw rings and a model A spark plug. I did a bit more research And found out they were pretty darn poor back then, Toys were recycled from child to child even if broken. My great Gramp's grew veggies and had a few cows, chickens, and a pig or 2 that were for meat. He sold the veggies in town to the fancy hotels by horse and wagon. So I would do some family research back farther. Or even the original owner or builder of the home. Good Luck And have Fun. I enjoyed the research as much as the hunt.

 

[Donnie]

I really like the small 6" coil.