Concerns about my G2. Or, is it just me.:rage:

[2 Much Trash]

Hey guys, hope everyone had a good Christmas. I've got a few concerns about the performance of my G2. But I'm really hoping it's something I'm doing wrong. About 2 weeks ago I got the G2 out in the yard just to mess around. I tossed some different targets on the ground, ground balanced, put in disc mode, sens. all the way, set it at 40 and starting checking the targets. All coins and lead gave high tone and high numbers, the nail gave a low tone and low numbers, but much to my dismay so did the brass cuff button. The only way to get the brass cuff button not to grunt iron was to put the coil almost touching it. Got a regular size eagle button out and it did give high tone a high numbers. Today I went detecting to one of my dependable spots. After about 4 hours nothing to show but junk. Mostly aluminum. But that's no big deal, that happens. I don't know about you guys, but I stop and check a lot of low tones, I guess just because I got a reading on something in the ground. Back in the woods I got a strong iron audio signal and out of instinct I kicked the pine tags and leaves away only to find 2 new shotgun shells on top of the ground. Ran the coil over them again and they grunted iron with low numbers. I don't mind telling you I was ticked. How many small brass targets like cuff buttons, did I miss all day because they grunted iron. Anyway. Went back to the truck got my Fisher 1266 out checked those 2 shotgun shells and got good solid sounds that I would not hesitate to dig. I hope there's no problem mentioning the 1266 since it's made by the same folks. Don't get me wrong, I love the G2. It's the most enjoyable and quietest machine I've ever used, when I pick it up it just makes me feel like I'm gonna dig some goodies. But, for a detector that is made to be awesome on small low conductive targets like brass something is not right . Is it something Im doing wrong, is this just normal for the G2, or is something wrong with my machine.

 

[Ken in Georgia]

Tell me how you setup the detector ???

 

[Rick N. MI]

Try turning your disc down and see what the numbers are. I think 29 takes out small nails. Did you test the brass with nothing around it. Maybe there was iron in the hole with it. Did you get just a little bit of a high tone hit from 1 direction? I have a Gold Bug Pro and I'll try some of my shotgun shells on it and will let you know.

Rick N. MI

 

[2 Much Trash]

Thanks Ken,
First I turn the machine on. Then I turn it ,to all metal. Then I find clean ground, push the ground grab button and pump the coil until the numbers match up. Pretty simple procedure. Then I turn it back to the disc. mode. Then set disc. to 40. After that I'm hunting. Not to be misunderstood, since I got the G2 I have found coins, buttons, bullets, etc. I've been diggin' for over 30 years. But its been with non digital units, strictly digging by tone. But what I have found to be the case with my new machine is that the deep stuff, and just recently even some shallow ones, especially brass, you get an iron grunt. Every once in a while a little high tone and and high numbers mixed in for just maybe second, so I don't dig them. The reason I got the G2 was to be able to tell the small iron from the other stuff. But when a small brass deep target, even the small shallow brass targets grunt as iron and read low numbers what are you to do. Maybe it goes back to just dig it all.

 

[Ken in Georgia]

OK, seem there is a problem. first you need to contact first Texas and see what they say. Sounds like the number and the speed dial is off and needs to be looked at. Sorry, but you will find the guys there most willing to help.

 

[2 Much Trash]

Thanks again Ken, Had already decided to call First Texas before I did this post I've dealt with them in the past. Good folks. It's just nice to vent frustrations with you guys in the know.
Merry christmas and Happy New Year
Willie

 

[therover]

When you put the unit in all metal, what does the 'speed dial' read when testing the brass cuff button and shot gun shells ? Or, what do they read when the discrimination level is set to 10 ? If they read in the mid to high 30's, then they will hit as low tone since they are below 40.

Best to run discrimination level at the 18-22 level, which knocks out small iron and nails yet hits on the lower conductive targets.

I think you are running your discrimination too high.

 

[Rick N. MI]

True, this detector is very sensitive to small objects as it is a gold detector. It is a great relic & coin hunter too. All the small junk I've seen is foil and you don't have to dig that if you don't want to. If you're only after coins get something like an Omega 8000.

good luck,
Rick N. MI

 

[Terry(Mi)]

Not a big surprise, The GB Pro, or Teknetics G2 is a good machine if you want to find junk. Poor quality if you ask me, sorry I bought mine.

The G2/GB are just another tool for the toolbox... Like any other beeper u need to put in the time to learn what it's saying. Some folks will buy then turn around and sell this unit pretty quick, and others like me, prolly never will let it go. The unit does as it should do. Just because an operator doesn't learn how to effectively utilize it for it's strong points does not make it a piece of crap.

 

[sgoss66]

If you have shotgun shell brass hitting below 40, something is not right. They should hit higher than that. What did First Texas say about your machine?

Steve

 

[Rick N. MI]

Shotgun shells on my GBPro on there side hit 66-67. Turned up hits 79. If yours don't hit high numbers like that something is wrong.

Rick N. MI

 

[ron_c]

Use a magnet on the shot shells. When you said modern shells, some shells use iron/steel alloy and not brass, only brass plated.

 

[Rick N. MI]

The shells I tested were old.

Rick N. MI

 

[2 Much Trash]

You may be right about new shotgun shells. I didn't realize some new shells were made of iron and steel. I don't have them to check them, I tossed them. But still concerned. If they were brass coated why did the machine read them as iron. The reason I say that is because the other day I got out that little brass cuff button and a bullet and did another test. Same results as before. Then I discovered the cuff button I was using has an iron back. So instead of high tone on the brass part of the button it's low toning on the iron content. Big concern. The reason I bought the g2, or for that matter had I bought any new machine, was to be able to recognize small iron such as nails by a low tone and all other stuff by high tone. I expected the good metal to rule the roost, not the iron. Maybe i'm expecting too much, but it sure does reduce my confidence level when i'm out diggin'. I also did another test just to see. I wanted to find out at what disc. level a nail would be nulled out . It was 57. At 57 it did null out the nail but everything else read low tone and iron except the dime. So do I hunt at disc 57 and just dig it all. Ain't This fun?
Thanks, Willie

 

[ron_c]

I believe it has to do with the conductivity of the metal and if there is more iron present than brass on the cuff button. For example, a couple of years ago I found a gold plated V nickel and when I just checked it in an air test, with the G2, it still reads in the 57 - 58 range instead of a lower reading for the gold.

 

[godigit1]

With a two piece button that is part iron after being in the ground for a long time the iron halo will overpower a much larger piece of brass. I know of no machine capable of splitting hairs that closely they primarily average the signal. But in the time Ive had with my bug and G2 they are the most precise at separating adjacent targets but nothing can pick between joined targets that I have heard of yet.
Good luck out there!

 

[therover]

Very interesting discussion on where you should set the discrimination. For me, I always like to hear the iron. Unless it's just too overbearing where I have to null it out, I feel listening to the iron signals gives me a better chance of sniffing out a non-ferrous target in the iron mix. If you do need to hunt in the 55-57 discriminate setting, then yes, you should dig all the targets that give off an audio signal. There will be some low conductive targets hitting as a low tone that have to be dug.

The ID feature on the G2 and Gold Bug is pretty nice, and when it locks on in a very tight range, the target ID is pretty accurate and the chance very high that the target is rounder/compact in nature. Unfortunately small balls of foil, bottle caps, tabs, brass screws, etc. fall into that category

When those numbers are bouncing all over the place, the target has more of a chance to be jagged, elongated object like a nail, can slaw, bent piece of aluminum, etc.

I am sure most are aware of this, but make sure you sweep the target from all angles and get a repeatable signal. You get a much better idea what the target can be, both in the visual ID portion as well as the audio.

Lastly, I know on my GB 2.9, ( not sure about the other versions or the G2 ), deeper targets that are good ( ie, non-ferrous) will have a faint audio 'tick' with a somewhat reasonable ID number range. I have dug deep wheat pennies and small brass items in the 8-9 inch range where there was a repeatable, faint audio 'tick' sound and the ID numeric range tight.

 

[cowtownkid]

Use a magnet on the shot shells. When you said modern shells, some shells use iron/steel alloy and not brass, only brass plated.

That is what I was thinking...I believe the newer shotgun shells have a much different metal composition than the "Old School" brass shells.

 

[2 Much Trash]

I just want to thank you guys for talking to me about my concerns. This forum is great. The only thing better is if we were all sitting in my den by the fire, drinking a few brewskies, and jawjacking about detecting. But anyway, I do thank ya'll. Again I just want to say that I love this G2, and I have no plans at all of letting it go, only plans of learning more about its abilities and figuring out where those abilities will most benefit my search for relics, coins and treasure. The guy who chimed in and said the G2 was a piece of crap, well, he was just a trespasser. I posted my concern about the G2 for 2 reasons. One was reading those shotgun shells as iron. The other was reading a brass iron back cuff button as iron. Please know that i am a hunt by tone relic hunter, and have been using a fisher 1266 for the past 12 years and other hunt by tone detectors long before that. A lot of water has gone over the dam as far as detectors go since then, and I am probably passing a little judgement before I know what the hell i'm doing with my new machine. But that doesn't delete the fact that had I been using the G2 when I came across that button I would not have dug it because it would have toned as iron and given low numbers. But my old machine gave a good tone in all metal and in disc a high repeatable signal and I got the button. The test I did in my backyard proved this. My old unit read the iron back button, in all metal, as High tone , read the nail as high tone. In disc it read the button as high tone and clipped/nulled out on the nail. It picked the brass out above the iron. The G2 low toned on both, so I would have passed it up. What to do, what to do.

Happy New Year Friends,
Willie