E-Trac & Civil War Relic Hunting

[LowGrowlSal]

New to the E-Trac. I have been out to a couple of trashy parks just to learn tones. I have tried several programs just to see how machine operates with different settings. I have read Andy Sabisch's Book and the Manual thoroughly. I have completed air testing and plan on building a test bed in the back yard.

I also hunt 50% of the time for relics. I hunt in good ground (Clay) with low mineralization for relics. My XLT would find bullets 12" deep in All Metal, and frags down 18-20". Went to the E-Trac due to stability and I also like to coin hunt.

I am looking for recommendations to try in test bed for the best Relic Program. So far, I have collected Goes4Ever TTF, Andy S. Relic (including Jason's program in the book), and Pondguru used across see. I believe I run TTF and low discrimination (e.g. Roman Coins) are the best options to take.

Typical finds are Bullets, Percussion Caps (Brass), Shell Frags, and a few buttons.

ARE THERE ANY SERIOUS CW HUNTERS OUT THERE USING THE E-TRAC? IF SO, WHAT PROGRAMS/PATTERNS ARE YOU RUNNING? ARE THERE ANY TRICKS OR ANYTHING I HAVE MISSED?'

I appreciate the feedback!

 

[mickfin]

Hi L/G/S , I would say go with the Relic Program that comes on the E-Track with Auto Sens with say Deep on fast off If its a trashy spot if its not trashy Visa Versa??
But i just wanted too Dig your Question out so the Pros can Help??? Im just a Coin N Fresh water Hunter, Mickfin

 

[stasys]

Trik is simple, use stable max manual sensitivity, Respond Long to hear better Iron targets, and very little discrimination in conductive or no discriomination in TTF. Found good spot and kep coil low. Very simple. Good luck

 

[LowGrowlSal]

Thank you for the feedback. Sounds like I am on the right track. Your messages are consistent with what I read. I really enjoy hearing from you and your guidance. After all, I am always willing to learn. Don't tell my wife

 

[mickfin]

The Words MommSSSSSSS did you say Learn????? LOL LGS Mickfin

 

[Andy Sabisch]

Unfortunately if you opt for the base Relic program you will be assured of missing frags and larger irton relics . . . . the program that was initially released with the E-Trac was not setup correctly and Minelab has not changed it since that time. If you test some larger iron relics you will see that they register in a region that Minelab has rejected . . . . you need to make adjustments to pick up the targets you are looking for when Civil War relic hunting.

Andy Sabisch

 

[Mike Gresham]

For CW relics I run in TTF with a wide open screen and as much sensitivity as possible without losing stability. I also set my pinpoint setting to "Sizing" so that the target area doesn't decrease when in pinpoint (all-metal) mode. In normal soil this setting will hit bullets at 12" consistently in the TTF mode but you can hear them at 18" in the pinpoint (all-metal) mode. Shrapnel and other iron ring out as a low tone, and non-ferrous targets such as bullets, buttons, and coins ring out as a high tone. It's pretty idiot proof. In trashy areas it's like having a machine gun taped to your head, so I simply turn down the headphone volume a little and move slow, listening for a high tone. This method of hunting isn't for everyone, as it takes a little getting use to. But with it, there's no way to walk past anything non-ferrous. If you use this method, you will most definitely need a good shovel.

Hope this helps.

 

[silversweeper]

I have done very well picking up deep bullets and other relics using TTF with a wide open screen as well. (That's how I hunt most every site unless I'm specifically looking for coins that I don't expect to be very deep.) Depending on how clean your area is you will want to make sure you have recover fast checked off, and deep on, and your sensitivity on manual and pushed up as far as you can keep stability with ( I run mine around 27 and go down from there if I have to) or you will miss those real deep targets. It took me a while hunting some very hunted out areas but now I can hear those faint small signals of the deep goodies, almost as readily as I can the shallow ones. Nothing quite as satisfying to me as digging one of those "iffy" signals and finding a bullet in the 12 inch or deep range. Also, when I'm hunting for the deep stuff in those sites, I use a 10x12 sef coil or the 13 inch ultimate. In fact, unless I'm hunting a new site or some place fairly trashy, I rarely take the 13 inch ultimate off of my machine.
Good luck and happy hunting.