How does the V3(i) do in iron?

[earthmansurfer]

I'm in Germany and there is a lot of iron in the ground, both large and small - though generally the later.
What are your experiences like and what type of settings do you like to run?

 

[Larry (IL)]

I don't have a problem with iron. Many of us accept all VDI's and assign a 0 tone to what we do not want to hear. That way the audio is not turned off as it is with using discrimination.

 

[Goat Rancher]

My approach is a little different in that I want to hear the iron. I assign a 5 tone to negative VDI's so I hear a ticking noise when I encounter iron. I basically run Magic's program with some slight mods to suit me. I like to hear all targets in the ground. When I get around iron as indicated by the ticking I really listen up as a good target could be lurking there with it and my hunting approach changes somewhat. I slow down and listen for hints of high VDI targets.I don't find iron to be a problem with the V3 anymore than other detectors. One of the keys with the V3 is to be sure and get a good ground balance for smooth stable operation and seeing those deep targets. Finding a clean patch of ground to ground balance over can be a problem sometimes at my sites. I find that looking for clean ground in the search mode is better than the pinpoint mode as it will see deeper targets. That is where the ticking comes in as you can tell if you are over iron and the ground is not clear to balance over. I run in trac lock as my sites are loaded with iron and do ground balance when I can.

 

[Rob (IL)]

I use the 5 tone also. When not rejecting any VDI there is no nulling but there is no sound (zero tone) on some VDI. This eliminates the "nulling". The Geiger meter sound doesn't bother me and lets me know I'm in iron conditions. Rob

 

[earthmansurfer]

Thanks guys. I like to listen to iron as well. My detector gives a soft bass tone and when I hear that (actually I always do. ehehe) I listen for something coming in between. But actually, not all detectors are good in iron. It seems the newer detectors (last 5 years or so) have really made some leaps, mostly in that they have faster processors and thereby allow a very fast target response. In other words, if you have many targets in small area, outside of too large a coil, you should be able to hear that "machine gun" response on your swing. It can be overwhelming to hear so much, but ears adjust in time. Can you get a lot of targets like that with the V3i? I imagine so.

Being in iron like that would mean you'd want to have a small EM footprint with your coil (to reduce the targets under it). Mike Hillis talked about that in a post I read here. On other detectors sensitivity alone does that, but it seems the V3i has a lot more to play with.

 

[jbow]

Lots of small iron and iron ore here too. I have two machines that have a reliable VDI number at depth, like over 8", the V3 is one of them. I have no problem hunting iron with it. You just have to be patient and take the time to learn how to set it uo. The V3 stands on it's own but it it can also be a mimic... you can make it respond like most any machine or even "dream machine" you can think of. I've found that if something isn't working right it is because I am not thinking right. If the V3 or V3i isn't working right, it is almost always because either the user does not understand something or has forgotten something.

I can't imagine it not doing the job for you.

I have one other machine that absolutely ignores small iron, it likes large iron.. but it has no display.

In any case, i'd never choose it over the V3. Also the D2 coil is very good, the SEF 8x6 is very good, and the 4x6 shooter is very good... in my ground. Mineralized, iron ore, red clay, and small iron.

J

 

[jbow]

Yes... you can set the recovery delay to match the speed of that kind of detector. I believe the setting is about 45... but you can set it to recover even faster if you want or you can set it to recover really slow if there isn't much in the ground but targets may be deep... then you can adjust the "ground filter" to work better with a slower or faster swing and/or lower or higher recovery speed... plus all the filter settings have a high pass or band pass setting that can help with EMI or mineralization. You also have both frequency offset +/- and GB offset +/-. The F offset helps a lot with EMI and the GB offset helps with mineralization set slightly positive, relic hunters ususlly like a slightly positive GB, as i'm sure you know.
You have a full 180 degrees of VDI... IIRC, from -94 to 0 to +95. The three frequencies 2,5, 8.5, and 22.5 are used at once with either "best data" or "correlate" in correlate at least two of the frequencies have to agree that it is a good target, and of course all the settings in correlate are adjustable so you can control how much they have to agree. You can use any of the three frequencies alone and use it either "normalized" so that is based on set VDI numbers or you can use it "non-normalized" so you get raw data meaning that 7.5 is about the same as normalized but 2.5 expands the upper VDI range where silver lives and compresses the lower numbers. Of course 22.5 does the opposite expanding the lower range where nickels, squaretabs, and much gold lives. You can do a lot with this machine and like I said... it IDs very good at depth. Those fast detectors you mentioned that give a "machine gun" sound in iron... I know exactly what you mean... I have sites like that and machines that do that... those machines, in my experience, give a VDI number that jumps all over the place on a deep target.. not the V3, it gives a good VDI and tone. It always surprises me at how good it IDs a target and you can be sure that if it isn't doing it, either you have made a bad coil choice or have not set it up correctly for the site... and once you know how to set it up, it is quick and easy... everything is at your fingertips, in fact you can choose which adjustments you want to show along the bottom of the screen and which ones you have to click a couple of times to get to... very easy and very effective as long as you have the right attitude. You will find whatever you are looking for, both on the V3 and with the V3. With the available adjustments and variety of coils, the V3 is hard to beat. I have not yet upgraded to the V3i but I plan to send mine in next week. Oh.. the wireless headphones are not a must but they really sound great. I've heard that in some places you may be able to tun a little hotter without noise with wired phones. I sometimes use Killer "B" phones and sometimes use the wireless phones... no real reason why, just according to how I feel or a whim.

Julien

 

[Larry (IL)]

Nice post J, White's should have you on on their PR payroll............:blush: