Do I really need a meter

[Piero franchi]

Hi
I have not long bought my self a Sov GT,
I am considering buying a meter for it, but am questioning if I really need one.
Could it be that I am lacking confidence/experiance on the new detector.
Most of my searching is on farm land,

 

[Silverstar_Lawman]

I find it helps with land hunting, but I am fast learning the tones, the meter just keeps you from digging some trash. I like it because the digging here is tough. I don't use it at the beach.

 

[Piero franchi]

what one you got,

 

[Silverstar_Lawman]

Digisearch (180 scale), looked for a sunray but wanted it in 180 and they no longer make it, but the one I got works fine and ID's are good so nothing to complain about.

 

[Ron from Michigan]

On land in lots of trash the 180 meter is the only way yo go.

 

[UK Brian]

n/t

 

[funkyoldude]

The meter is very helpful for at least two reasons that I can think of:

1. It helps you identify trash and treasure that you see over and over, like pull tabs, bottle caps, and coins, especially on the beach. The numbers don't lie, but unless you have perfect pitch I don't think anyone can remember the exact pitch of a target. I have an aluminum bottle cap that pops up over and over between 176 and 179, and I can't tell it apart from a coin that comes in at 180. The tones are way too close together for my ears, but I can spot the difference easily on my meter.

2. Targets come in hundreds of different tones, and it's just easier to remember a tone number, than it is the actual pitch of the tone. You can also make a chart showing different targets and their numerical values on the meter. Some meters come with an ID chart as part of the package, showing gold, silver, coins, etc.

Other hunters can add more reasons to use a meter. But learning the timbre of a tone is also very critical to target ID, and it takes a lot of practice to become proficient. But once you learn it, there is no other detector target ID system, computer or not, that can beat the Sov, your ears and your brain.

Good Hunting and Good Luck
fod

 

[UK Brian]

You are forgetting he's not looking for large U.S. coins as he's in England. All our coins, gold, silver or copper come in a variety of sizes from those where you can fit about eight on a cent to the largest that weighs two ozs.small hammered silver comes in as a minus figure on metered machines as do many Roman coins due to size and the poor quality of the metal.
Our gold coins read right across the meter depending if they are staters, Sovereigns, half Sovereigns or hammered gold (large in size but super thin).

For the best results he should nor even use tones unless he wants to confine himself to the dry sand at the top of the beach. With no notch and at minimum discrimination the detector is still over discriminating for our use.

 

[Ron from Michigan]

With the sites in the US the meter is the only way to go,but the conditions you described the meter would be of little use.

 

[UK Brian]

Better over here to save the money for a really good set of headphones and an extra coil or two.

 

[Gary Drayton]

There are so many different things from many centuries you are going to be finding in the UK ploughed feilds and pasture, are you really going to look at a meter and decide not to dig something up because that target has the same number on the meter as a button or a coin you dug a few yards back ? it could be a jetton , token , coin weight etc, forget the meter and hunt in disc and dig it all , if you want to dig iron stuff up then knock it into all metal mode. Brians right use the money to get another size coil. I loved using my GT this summer in England and found some cool stuff, there are so many different mixtures of metals & alloys I wouldnt even think about slowing myself down checking a meter before digging a target you just have to dig because it could be anything from any age. In the US in certain areas using a meter, sure I can see it but in England in the worked feilds? Just my opinion on using the GT in your situations mentioned .

 

[jim/wpb]

I have a meter and used it to assist in learning the sounds of the GT....it took about a weekend. The meter is only accurate for a limited depth and the detector goes much deeper than the meter will read. I thought it would help with gold vs pulltabs, but it really doesn't. Learn the sounds and the harmonics...Swing Low and Slow..... It doesn't take long. Dig it all to start.

Within a couple months you'll know what you're digging before you dig it.

 

[wpruden]

Well said!!!