INITIAL SET-UP
The owner's manual does a good job of describing the assembly of the Tejon.
Just remember to wind the coil cable in a clock-wise direction (looking down)
so that the cable doesn't pass over the small, center "receive" coil. Also, make
sure the cable clings to the pole with some slack at the coil end to allow coil
pivoting,
TONE CONTROL---Th|s is one of the nice things about the Tejon. You can set
the pitch of the "beep" for best auditory discrimination. It's been my
experience that, to my ears, the richest Tejon vocabulary occurs with a
relatively high pitch; this setting is around 2:30 to 3:00 o'clock and is the
setting most Tejon owners use. It's likely that the "high tone" mod that some
Cibola and Vaquerowners opt for is similar to this setting. Note: I have little
to say about the VCO click setting; I never use it, preferring the tone setting
above.
THRESHOLD---The threshold on the Tejon is not the smooth, clean tone that
you may be used to with other detectors. In fact, it is somewhat wavering
and raspy. Don't fret, this is apparently the case with all rejons and, it is
reported anecdotally by owners with multiple Tejons, that the less smooth the
threshold, the deeper the Tejon.
when setting the threshold level in the all-metal mode, if you listen very
closelyou may be able to detectwo threshold tones. One is the obvious,
louder, normal threshold audible from abouthe 12:00 position and upward.
The second, weaker, somewhat steadier tone lies beneath the louder
threshold tone and is easiest to hear below the 12:00 position. In air tests,
with my threshold set around the 11:30 position (and the sensitivity set at
"10"), I can sometimes hear changes in the weaker tone very slightly deeper
than the standard threshold tone. This hasn't, so far, been of any value to me
in the field but it's there for me to try on any ultra-deep targets I may
encounter.
so, as a starting point, your threshold knob adjustment will likely be in the
11:00 to 12:00 range for optimal depth detection (assuming your Tejon is
similar to mine).
SENSffiVITY---I try to run this setting as high as I can without chatter or
excessive falsing. This is usually in the neighborhood of "10." I'm rarely able
to venture into the Max Boost range. Note that even at the "0" setting, the
Tejon is still very deep (out to B" on coin-sized targets in all-metal) so don't
be afraid to cut back on the sensitivity to reduce falsing, iron pips, or other
noisiness.
AIR TESTING---Th|s is kind of a fun thing to do to learn the approximate
discrimination settings and to periodically check the health of your detector.
The owner's manual goes over the air testing procedure but I'd like to point
out a couple of things...
1. Ground balance setting---Ideally, you should ground balance a piece of
ferrite before air testing but most folks forego this. Realize, though, that the
GB setting can affect the apparent depth of a test target in the all-metal
mode. That is, setting the GB to full negative/CCW will get you an extra
couple of inches of depth compared to a full positive/CW setting. If you don't
have a piece of ferrite then, just set the GB at mid-range. The GB setting has
hardly any effect if testing in the discrimination mode(s).
2. Testing in the all-metal mode should get you air test depths in the 12"-15"
range depending on size of the coin (assuming you are using coins).
3. Testing in the discrimination mode is pretty revealing. Besides allowing you
to assign targets to knob settings, it also allows you to see how little depth is
lost with increasing discrimination. That is, a setting at the high discrim
setting of SCAP is only about a half-inch "shallower" than the much lower
FOIL setting; and high coins are still detectable in the 11u-12" range.
4. It's probably a good idea to keep a record of your air tests just to keep
track of the "health" of your detector.
TARGET PMcncE---After going through the set-up and air test, it's a good
idea to get some practice at hearing what good and bad targets sound like.
Most folks use a coin garden but even laying targets on the ground, practicing
ground balancing, your sweeps and pin pointing can be worthwhile before
going "into the field."
BATTERIES---The manual states that you can expect a battery life in the 20-
30 hour range. If there are a bunch of targets and the detector is forever
sounding off, battery life will be less than if targets are few and far between.
Standard alkaline AA batteries have a capacity of about 2100 mAH and, within
the past y
