Iron mask revisited

[Ism]

I am really liking this detector, I dug a 1945 washington quarter yesterday in an area I hammered hard after finding a couple mercs with my other detectors.

I read a lot of posts/debates about iron mask to the point my eyes were blurring. My question wasn't answered in the posts I read so here goes.

When iron mask is on, I have dug several nails with a good repeatable signal that sounds like a coin next to trash (if I approach from another direction I may not get a signal at all).
There was no high conductor in the hole with the nail. If I turn iron mask off, the nail is disced out. (I tried this after digging a couple nails).
I have yet to find a coin with the nails I dug so I don't know yet what that would sound like. Is this is a common occurrence with iron mask on?

.

 

[BeachBat]

When iron mask is on, I have dug several nails with a good repeatable signal that sounds like a coin next to trash (if I approach from another direction I may not get a signal at all). There was no high conductor in the hole with the nail. If I turn iron mask off, the nail is disced out. (I tried this after digging a couple nails).
I have yet to find a coin with the nails I dug so I don't know yet what that would sound like. Is this is a common occurrence with iron mask on?

Those nails that you have found are probably a compound mixture of metals to make up the nail - that would explain why with "iron mask on" you are getting some sort of signal as it is producing a signal from part of the nail - that would seem to verified by the fact that when you switch "iron mask off" it can't see the detectable metal within the nail because it is masked by the other metals within the nail.........

Its all in the tone's with this machine - and that takes time to get used to. When I first got my GT I was extremely happy with it - after a couple of weeks I thought I had mastered the tones (I most definitely hadn't) - likewise after 2 months I thought I got it (again I hadn't), and really the same could be said after 6 months, 8 months........ even after a year there is still more to learn..... there is a constant learning curve to the sounds. When I get audio on highly masked targets I almost feel that the GT starts talking to me - which could be sign of madness actually!!

 

[GunnarMN]

ism, that is very normal , especialy with nails and wire, to me the nail is conduckting the ground signal like a tesla coil out around the edges of the nail but it will be a short zzzip zzip and it will not center if you seen my vidio detecting on bone hill I was getting those sounds in disq a good target will make a centered sound and be repeatable with more body to it

 

[JimmyCT]

I haven't even found one silver quarter yet lol nice job on finding a silver quarter.

Sometimes nails do come through sounding good. Read page 17 of your manual on IRON MASK ON / OFF. in part, " however, with iron mask / on, the detector MAY give an occasional "beep" on large ferrous targets and threshold may not be quite as stable." It also goes on to say that beginners may prefer to detect with iron mask OFF.

From day one of owning the GT, I never shut off iron mask. I always use it and have learned much about iron and how it reacts.

Case in point: just the othere day I was at my local park and recieved an iffy one way signal. Another words the audio climb relatively high, so I did the super wiggle and a perfect audio / 180 on my meter presented itself to me. Although, I really worked this signal very hard and moved on my slightly (an inch or two) but when I checked it by turning my coil 90 degrees, it nulled out. (no noise no nothing)
Although I had my suspicions this could be iron by the difficulty in getting the audio steadily rise, I dug anyways. (Hoping it might be my first silver...quarter? ) Anyhow, it was a huge iron, square nail. So my suspicions were confirmed.

When I found my large cent with two nails lying nearby, The super high pitched audio was as clear as day, very smooth, no breaks in audio but soon as I turned 90 degree to check at a different angle, it just nulled. However, shortly before this finding, I was reading about fwcrawford's article on the two silver dimes he found masked by iron. This article opened my eyes to what I had been going over and not digging.
http://www.findmall.com/read.php?21,1475718,1475718#msg-1475718



the link to my iron masked large cent:
http://www.findmall.com/read.php?21,1479224,1479224#msg-1479224

In this article,
http://www.findmall.com/read.php?21,1499416,1499945#msg-1499945
critterhunter made the statement, "Keep digging those one way coin signals and you'll soon know what false coin spikes from iron sound/act like compared to real coins being masked by iron. Only way to learn that is to dig all those marginal coin signals.
And this is what I still do. I am not leaving anything to chance. Walking away (for me) is not an option.


Hang in there,you will learn the difference, although digging the target is the only sure way of knowing. And do I dig a lot lol but that is how I am learning the difference. I have only had my GT for several months. But with all the wonderful help I have received here on findmall, I know it has excelerated my learning curve with the machine big time. And by all means, keep asking questions. - Jim

HH

I am really liking this detector, I dug a 1945 washington quarter yesterday in an area I hammered hard after finding a couple mercs with my other detectors.

I read a lot of posts/debates about iron mask to the point my eyes were blurring. My question wasn't answered in the posts I read so here goes.

When iron mask is on, I have dug several nails with a good repeatable signal that sounds like a coin next to trash (if I approach from another direction I may not get a signal at all).
There was no high conductor in the hole with the nail. If I turn iron mask off, the nail is disced out. (I tried this after digging a couple nails).
I have yet to find a coin with the nails I dug so I don't know yet what that would sound like. Is this is a common occurrence with iron mask on?

.

 

[Ism]

Gunnar, I have a Whites TDI and nails do the same thing so I figured that may be the case with the GT.
Beach, your explanation had occurred to me also.
EP, I did the wiggle just like you described in your post and received the same results. (without a meter)

Although these explanations had crossed my mind, I wanted sound experience to guide me, not my presumptions.
I will continue to dig, I'm sure that when I actually hear my objective, It will be a slap to the forehead moment.

Thank you all very much for the informative posts.

 

[fwcrawford]

I too have dug some nails that sounced good, but after finding a wheat penny next to a nail and then understanding what to listen for, I have dug many coins next to nails in the hole.
I fact there is a small park near my home that I have been searching and I have dug alot of coins mixed in with nails and other iron.
I have been very impressed with the ability of this detector to be able to detect coins close to nails.
Now for me, the signal is not perfect and you have to take a little time to work the signal, but once you find a coin next to iron, you will know what to look for.
I have dug more coins next to iron with the Sovereign than with any other detector, and until I bought the Sovereign, I just didn't think that there could be that many coins being masked by iron.. boy was I wrong!!
One thing I found is that if I run my sensitivity in the manual mode and try to set it up high, I get alot more false signals from iron.
I have been using auto sens. at this park as I am still relatively new to the Sovereign, but am planning on trying to use manual mode in the future here to try to get some deeper targets.
You might try auto sens. for a while and get a little confidence in the Sovereign and then once you get comfortable as to what to listen for, then try using man. sens.
I know most folks recommend switching out of auto and into manual for more depth, but many coins I found were not that deep and the only reason they were still there is because of the iron masking not the depth.
Hope this helps some

 

[joecoin]

ism,

It has been my experience with the GT that when I get a good signal on a nail it is bent, probably 90% of the time.
It happens to me a lot, as the main place I dig is a ghost town with tons of iron trash.

 

[Neil]

I haven't even found one silver quarter yet lol nice job on finding a silver quarter.

Sometimes nails do come through sounding good. Read page 17 of your manual on IRON MASK ON / OFF. in part, " however, with iron mask / on, the detector MAY give an occasional "beep" on large ferrous targets and threshold may not be quite as stable." It also goes on to say that beginners may prefer to detect with iron mask OFF.

From day one of owning the GT, I never shut off iron mask. I always use it and have learned much about iron and how it reacts.

Case in point: just the othere day I was at my local park and recieved an iffy one way signal. Another words the audio climb relatively high, so I did the super wiggle and a perfect audio / 180 on my meter presented itself to me. Although, I really worked this signal very hard and moved on my slightly (an inch or two) but when I checked it by turning my coil 90 degrees, it nulled out. (no noise no nothing)
Although I had my suspicions this could be iron by the difficulty in getting the audio steadily rise, I dug anyways. (Hoping it might be my first silver...quarter? ) Anyhow, it was a huge iron, square nail. So my suspicions were confirmed.

When I found my large cent with two nails lying nearby, The super high pitched audio was as clear as day, very smooth, no breaks in audio but soon as I turned 90 degree to check at a different angle, it just nulled. However, shortly before this finding, I was reading about fwcrawford's article on the two silver dimes he found masked by iron. This article opened my eyes to what I had been going over and not digging.
http://www.findmall.com/read.php?21,1475718,1475718#msg-1475718



the link to my iron masked large cent:
http://www.findmall.com/read.php?21,1479224,1479224#msg-1479224

In this article,
http://www.findmall.com/read.php?21,1499416,1499945#msg-1499945
critterhunter made the statement, "Keep digging those one way coin signals and you'll soon know what false coin spikes from iron sound/act like compared to real coins being masked by iron. Only way to learn that is to dig all those marginal coin signals.
And this is what I still do. I am not leaving anything to chance. Walking away (for me) is not an option.


Hang in there,you will learn the difference, although digging the target is the only sure way of knowing. And do I dig a lot lol but that is how I am learning the difference. I have only had my GT for several months. But with all the wonderful help I have received here on findmall, I know it has excelerated my learning curve with the machine big time. And by all means, keep asking questions. - Jim

HH

I am really liking this detector, I dug a 1945 washington quarter yesterday in an area I hammered hard after finding a couple mercs with my other detectors.

I read a lot of posts/debates about iron mask to the point my eyes were blurring. My question wasn't answered in the posts I read so here goes.

When iron mask is on, I have dug several nails with a good repeatable signal that sounds like a coin next to trash (if I approach from another direction I may not get a signal at all).
There was no high conductor in the hole with the nail. If I turn iron mask off, the nail is disced out. (I tried this after digging a couple nails).
I have yet to find a coin with the nails I dug so I don't know yet what that would sound like. Is this is a common occurrence with iron mask on?

.

Hey Jim,
you should at least try the other settins the Sov GT has, you will never know what your missing until you do. For years all I did was use the disc mode and then because of an old sponsor on here who started posting about using the pinpoint mode and the success he was having with it, well that got me to try it and that taught me a valuable lesson, to try all the modes/options on any detector I own. A guy named Monte always says to do this also and its darn good advice.
there used to be a guy here (crazyman) who swore that iron mask off worked best at his beaches and really its a simple as that, find out what works for you but you gotta try first. And you gotta give it full hunts I think, not just switch over and try different settings(although this is beneficial also).

 

[Ism]

ism,

It has been my experience with the GT that when I get a good signal on a nail it is bent, probably 90% of the time.
It happens to me a lot, as the main place I dig is a ghost town with tons of iron trash.

You hit the "bent" nail on the head Joe

 

[synthnut]

I'm gonna be a good boy and stay out of this "iron mask " conversation ..... ......Jim

 

[JHM]

Your got me curious. Go ahead and spill it.