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Different Approach

A

Anonymous

Guest
I have a sort of unique job...I co-own an asbestos consulting firm. We design and oversee asbestos removal projects. While on a job site I have many hours during the shift with nothing to do. I have a new Explorer II and have had an Explorer in the past that I used very little. The new Explorer I have has remained in its box for several weeks now. I know, I know...blasphemy! But since I have been on this project, seven days a week...twelve hours a day, it has allowed me to read and study a lot of the posts on this site, Andy's book, and the owners manual, all very extensively. Hopefully in about another week I'll have the opportunity to put the detector together and do some hunting. My question is, based on my experience with DD coils, do most of you use the pinpoint feature in order to pinpoint a target, or like me, just use the target response while in Disc mode? I don't seem to get much additional information in the all metal pinpoint mode with a DD coil as I would with a concentric coil. Thanks, Ray.
 
Just speaking for myself.
The pinpoint mode on the XS or XS11 really sucks, sound is too low for me to hear well.
My method is to locate signal then circle with just the toe, I am good enough this way where I can dig a hole that is only around a 3 inch diameter.
There will be times due to masking that I may be off a little but I think in pinpoint you would get the same results.
Charlie
 
Ray you can read all you want but in the field is where the Explorer starts to fall into place...I really feel you get a more distinct audio to pinpoint in mode with pinpoint on..I myself pinpoint in disc. mode and works fine for me..Its very distracting to go from a multi tone to a single tone and when in pinpoint its bascially all metal so a nearby junk target could alter your pinpointing abilities..I would try both as I am sure both are used and work very well in either case. Best advice...try both and see what works for you and I myself know the Disc. pinpointing can be used with efficiency. Reguarding my first Para. I read all I could before purchasing an Explorer and read the manual several times before I even hit the fields so indeed it helps, but in the field is where its at...
In addendum if the weather is detectable no way would an Explorer lay in a box for several weeks...but the again I am retired..
 
The pinpoint mode is weak in my opinion. That is one reason why I have the Audio Gain set to 10 as the pinpoint signal is greatly improved. Pinpoint does have a feature to auto shrink the traget to make pinpoint better. Unless we take our time and read how to pinpoint we can create problems when we try to pinpoint. However, with the Audio Gain set to 10 I have very few problems with pinpoint after the target is located in the normal search mode or iron mask. There are times when very deep targets have a poor pinpoint signal. I use a probe so the combination of the probe and pinpoint works nice.
HH, Cody
 
You've been out of law enforcement too long if you can't remember just working and sleeping, then working and sleeping, for long periods of time...haha...take care Dan.
 
I near to never use pinpoint mode on the Explorer. It a waste of time IMHO. Once you practice you'll come very good at pinpointing in DISC or IM mode. If it's a signal that I only get one way like you sometimes do in iron... I'll dig under the Minelab logo on the coil and it's worked for me very well. Once in a great while a coin will hit at the very back of the coil in iron but it's pretty rare in my experience.
-Bill
 
Worked long hours in my 30 year career...just spoiled after 30 years of retirement...come on Spring...
 
Bill,
I find the pinpoint mode is a valuable tool, but less than half of the people that I have hunted with use it. Generally, the discriminate mode will do an adequate job of pinpointing, but it takes less time (less than 10 seconds) to zero in using the pinpoint mode than to dig a deep hole only to find that the coin is off to the side of the hole. It is very true that deeper targets may produce a target indication in the discrimate mode, but not do so in the pinpoint mode.
Here is where I find the pinpoint mode to be of most advantage. I will explain the two scenarios when hunting in the Iron Mask on.:
#1 There is a deep rusty nail that will be rejected when the coil center is over the nail, but when the outer edge of the coil is over the nail, then the signal breaks through the mask and indicates a good target. One can go through the pinpointing operation in the discriminate mode and locate the spot where you think the target is. You dig and find nothing in the hole.
#2 One goes through the same process described above with the exception that you switch to the pinpoint mode before digging the hole. The pinpointing process will show that the target is not where you thought it was. The pinpoint mode will lead you to the nail a few inches away. Now you go back to the discriminate mode and the detector produces a null when over the target.
I will state further that one may have been able to come to the same conclusion using the #1 approach
if one is very careful about how the pinpointing is done, but I find it much easier and quicker to just briefly go to the pinpointing mode. I am sure that many will disagree with this approach. The bottom line (as others have said) is to determine for yourself which you like better. It only takes a very short time to make that determination.
HH,
Glenn
 
Well, I agree completely and this is how I pinpoint. I have tried several methods and once it is recognized what is going on it is easy to use pinpoint. You are making some really good points about the off centered targets. I often think of how important it is to understand the edge of the electromagnetic field as it relates to target ID and pinpoint. To find the target and center it really saves a lot of needless digging and the only way I work the detector. Some targets will almost seem to move around in the soil depending on how they are detected based on the detection footprint of the coil. I have found targets as far as 12" off center that were fairly small. As you say there are a lot of ideas about this and so be it. What ever floats one's boat and they like.
Have a good one,
HH, Cody
 
Like I said, rarely do I use pinpoint. I very rarely have to 'widen' a hole to get a target that I pinpointed off center. I understand what your saying but pinpoint mode on the Explorer is not my cup of tea. I use a UniProbe which helps alot on those on edge coins. HH!
-Bill
 
Thts 13 years of retirement...if it was 30 would be older than dirt..
 
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