[quote dahut]I am new to metal detecting but I here others talk about 10 turn ground control vs Vaquero 3.75 ground control. I like this machine but am wondering am I missing a feature that I should have. Its all a little confusing sometimes and I really dont want to jump around on machines I feel like I am just getting the Ciboloa figured out. Thanks for the help. Eric
Dont jump off the Cib wagon just yet.
All that GB talk is often enough just that - talk. For 80% of your Cibola hunting (maybe more), it wont matter. Do the coil lift and lower trick in AM first, to learn the ground around you. Then hunt with it for 50 hours or so. For the longest time I didn't know about all that GB stuff, using a Tesoro preset machine - the older Silver Sabre II. I did well with it.
The Cib is indeed preset for a wide range of conditions and should present you with little problems. If in doubt, don't listen to forum advice - call Rusty at Tesoro first thing Monday. Tell him where you live and let him advise you. I bet he'll tell you not to worry.
You dont need to max out your controls, either. If something is there worth finding, the Cib will tell you. What it wont do is create goodies from thin air or vacuum them in from a distance, no matter how high you run the circuits.
Those wide open SENS settings just tend to overwhelm the receive circuits on your detector, especially in the presence of congested trash. 7-9, even less, will be adequate unless you are on clean, deep soils, like in a field. This is where testing will pay dividends.
I suggest you hunt in the DISC range around foil, a notch or two below nickle. Then beep and dig everything.
DISC was initally created to discern and overcome IRON, not ID every pulltab and screwcap known to man.
Back then, every detector was a basic, progressive DISC model like the Cib. You should adhere to that model, when using such a detector. Yes, yes, you can go lower and some will advocate it. But, except for specific hunt regimes, it won't help much to do so.
Mark a spot on the DISC dial where nickles and screwcaps cut out. I use a little bit of bright paint, tape or nail polish. Then you can "thumb" the knob as you check out a target and get an idea of its conductivity. I call this thumbing, "ID Ranging," and with lots of practice, you can get quite good with it. I could tell one sort of pulltab from another with my old Silver Sabre II.
TIP: You SHOULD swich to MINIMUM DISC now and then and see just how much iron is around. There is often far more of it than you may realize and it will MASK responses if you don't realize its there. I think every detector made should have a specific low tone for iron.
If you simply must have a GB control after you learn the Cib, then sell it and get a Vaquero. Unless you are adept at, and tooled up for, micro-electronics repair, this modification is not a job for the weak-of-heart. It also voids your warranty, in almost all cases.
Remember, you're new. Stay with it and avoid the wicked Doubt Monster. 50 hours, man - that's the cut-off.[/quote] Great advice dahut, even for us folks that have been detecting for a long time. Steve.
, my wife has a Cibola and she is so happy NOT to twiddle too many knobs!!!
