I had a nice little walk with my recently acquired CZ-5 yesterday that I thought I would share with all of you.
I have hunted this area with several detectors beginning with my first serious detector, a Teknetics Mark I and more recently a Minelab Explorer XS, Sovereign XS-2APro and E-Trac. If I work hard, it always seems to give up a coin or two. Nothing real old usually, coins dating mostly between 1920-1950.
I had the CZ-5 set with a ground balance on 4.5, sensitivity on 5 and 0 discrimination. I started working a large flat grassy area that used to be home to a gigantic tree and is relatively trash free. (It was removed about 20 years ago and replaced with a flower bed) I picked up quite a bit of clad change looking for the deeper targets. After an hour or so, I decided to move to the most trashy area and see how the CZ-5 would do picking it's way along. The area is tough and most signals are iffy. I worked my way along and finally came to a signal not far from one of the many abandoned 1.5" diameter metal sprinkler pipes that run through the area. I picked up a high tone in the upper coins range. Pinpointing was a little tough but I finally pulled out a deep 1919-S Wheatie at 7". A good sign.
I worked along the same line and about 30 min later finally picked up a 5" deep '44 wheatie that was adjacent to some deep big trash I didn't excavate for. I turned around headed back the way I came and tried to work at angles to what would seem the natural path to hunt. I came to the far end of the area and turned back around and started weaving my way along between the runs of old sprinkler pipe that angled across my path. I finally picked up another tough high signal and found a '45-D wheatie 8" deep. It was getting a little late and nearing time to go and I tried to finish my selected path.
I came to a place where one of the pipes angled under the walkway and carefully searched along the pipe. A high tone signal was about a foot on the far side of the pipe and registered in the high coins segment on the meter. It was reading 5" and was most likely a newer penny or maybe a clad dime. I cut a small plug and carefully folded it back and immediately spied the thin edge of a worn silver dime only 4" deep but lying on a 45* angle. Holding the coin, with some dirt on the face, I thought that I had found a Barber dime, but there was some iron clinging to the face of the coin making it difficult to identify. Flipping the coin over revealed an unfamiliar reverse. After dabbing the dirt away with some water, I finally recognized the crown on the top of the reverse as that of a Canadian coin. After cleaning the coin at home, I was able to make out the date 1890 with the help of a magnifying glass. Very cool. It is the oldest coin I have found at this site in the 25 plus years I have hunted here.
While the CZ-5 isn't one of the latest greatest detectors, it is certainly very capable of finding good targets even in areas hunted by the latest greatest.
Good luck to the rest of you CZ'ers.
Rich (Utah)
I have hunted this area with several detectors beginning with my first serious detector, a Teknetics Mark I and more recently a Minelab Explorer XS, Sovereign XS-2APro and E-Trac. If I work hard, it always seems to give up a coin or two. Nothing real old usually, coins dating mostly between 1920-1950.
I had the CZ-5 set with a ground balance on 4.5, sensitivity on 5 and 0 discrimination. I started working a large flat grassy area that used to be home to a gigantic tree and is relatively trash free. (It was removed about 20 years ago and replaced with a flower bed) I picked up quite a bit of clad change looking for the deeper targets. After an hour or so, I decided to move to the most trashy area and see how the CZ-5 would do picking it's way along. The area is tough and most signals are iffy. I worked my way along and finally came to a signal not far from one of the many abandoned 1.5" diameter metal sprinkler pipes that run through the area. I picked up a high tone in the upper coins range. Pinpointing was a little tough but I finally pulled out a deep 1919-S Wheatie at 7". A good sign.
I worked along the same line and about 30 min later finally picked up a 5" deep '44 wheatie that was adjacent to some deep big trash I didn't excavate for. I turned around headed back the way I came and tried to work at angles to what would seem the natural path to hunt. I came to the far end of the area and turned back around and started weaving my way along between the runs of old sprinkler pipe that angled across my path. I finally picked up another tough high signal and found a '45-D wheatie 8" deep. It was getting a little late and nearing time to go and I tried to finish my selected path.
I came to a place where one of the pipes angled under the walkway and carefully searched along the pipe. A high tone signal was about a foot on the far side of the pipe and registered in the high coins segment on the meter. It was reading 5" and was most likely a newer penny or maybe a clad dime. I cut a small plug and carefully folded it back and immediately spied the thin edge of a worn silver dime only 4" deep but lying on a 45* angle. Holding the coin, with some dirt on the face, I thought that I had found a Barber dime, but there was some iron clinging to the face of the coin making it difficult to identify. Flipping the coin over revealed an unfamiliar reverse. After dabbing the dirt away with some water, I finally recognized the crown on the top of the reverse as that of a Canadian coin. After cleaning the coin at home, I was able to make out the date 1890 with the help of a magnifying glass. Very cool. It is the oldest coin I have found at this site in the 25 plus years I have hunted here.
While the CZ-5 isn't one of the latest greatest detectors, it is certainly very capable of finding good targets even in areas hunted by the latest greatest.
Good luck to the rest of you CZ'ers.
Rich (Utah)