first outing ever.

[gordygroover]

No pics to share but here is how my first ever M.D. outing went today.
I have read every post on this site since the 250 hit the market, watched the video and scoured the pamphlet so with toy shovel and fanny pack in place I took the plunge.
Knowing my digging and pinpointing skills are non-existent I headed to the bark chips at a local ball park. SCORE!!!
Within my first four steps I dug three targets. A clad quarter, dime and a Sacajawea dollar.
Instantly called my wife to tell her to quit her job "cause we-uns is gonna be rich!! Heck a buck thirty five in four steps...I can walk twenty miles a day so by my math we will be GAZILLIONARES by the end of the month.
My darling bride didn't share my optimistic long range outlook however and perhaps it is a good thing. It seems my intake slowed down dramatically so off I went to the shore of the Columbia river a mile away.
Really showed my lack of skill in the sand. I marked a ton of stuff with whatever setting and mode I used and when the bell tone sang it's sweet note I could only find the target one out of six times. Sometimes when I would give up on a target it looked like a 4x4 truck had been spinning cookies in the sand.
All holes were filled and smoothed and with each signal just a bit more knowledge was gained.
Not the least bit disappointed with the three hour hunt. 1.68 in change and a lot of knowledge and trash brought home too.
A three tined garden claw will be a must for the bark chips and a sand scoop will be needed for the beach as the start of a blister became apparent far too soon.
One step at a time and sometimes two steps back but I am cool with that.
Gordy

 

[bottlebum]

n/t

 

[Uncle Willy]

Hey you done good. Welcome to the addiction.

Bill

 

[draaiorgel]

Hey Gordy,
That's a good start, just remember we all have good days and not so good days.
We went hunting midweek and I got zilch to show for 3 1/2 hours, Eileen leathered me that day and she lifted a fiver in clad = about $10.
Of course my favourite saying is "you've got to walk over it to find it" 'n I'm sticking to that.
Forgot to say it was p'ing down 'n' we got pretty wet and for all that, I still enjoyed the hunt.
The next hunt will be better when we get the chance.

 

[roceda]

WTG. If you use the sniper coil the pinpointing is right on. .... Ron

 

[IndianaSmith]

Congrats on the finds Gordy! Well, women are funny that way, but let her keep HER job, you'll need gas & battery money Occassionally, I'll hit a good signal with my 250, pinpoint it & dig, and after searching with my (handheld) pinpointer, there's nothing there. So I lift the 250 over the spot again....and nothing, like it dissapeared You'll get better at pinpointing pretty quickly. Also, I don't pay alot of attention to the screen, IMHO the majority of the time it's not all that accurate (outside of dimes & pennies). A coin on the surface many times will show 8" deep.

Just keep swingin'......it's the best way to learn, that's what I'm doin'
Smitty

 

[gordygroover]

smitty I agree with the screen. (actually I agree with YOU about the screen) issue. I bought my father in law a Whites prisim 2 as a gift for this x-mas and of course had to power it up to make sure it worked.
The screen had a better field of view and it seemed as if the display was easier to read but those are totally non-issues in my book. By the second hour with my Ace I never gave the screen much thought other than to search for the rocker buttons. The Ace felt much lighter and comforable also so maybe with a sniper coil installed I will have the pinpointing issue under control.

 

[John 'n' W.Va]

It gives me a good idea on depth, and target id. The depth was calibrated for coins. I adjust the Id mentally in my head to the situation and soil condition. If you listen carefully it will tell you something. If a signal disappears, many times it is an iron target. When you dig you break up the halo affect. If you have highly mineralized soil it will make things go wacky. If I get a bouncy signal at 2" I usually don't mess with it. If I get a bouncy signal at 4"+ I investigate it. Doesn't mean I dig it up. I have bad soil here and my cents will jump around from cent to iron. When I live in Fl. last year most all targets were right on. I had to adjust and try to see what the detector was telling me. Know your detector. Sometimes I pp with my sniper coil and see how many targets there are under the coil. Depends on the situation but there are many thing I can do to qualify my target. Center up the target, shake the coil, angel the coil, swing from a different direction, adjust sensitivity and check for large targets nearby that will affect your signal. It changes with every old house I MD. Relatively speaking one house I did this past week was fairly free of trash. If I got any signal and it was 4"+ I dug it. I got silvers, wheat's, pocket watch, ring and two war nickels. The next place I MD'ed I got lots of nails. I had to change what I did to relate to the changing conditions. There is a lot more to MD'ing than just swinging the coil. If it is under the coil just dig it up isn't that easy. Scoping out your site is another long lesson.

 

[Uncle Willy]

Those signals that disappear after digging are often rust pockets. Once you dig them they are gone.

Bill