Looking for help with my new ATPro

[davkeene]

I need all the advice I can get either on this forum or email it to me. I have coins burried in my back yard for at least 5 or 6 years. I just spent the better part of an
hour trying to locate them. I'm getting some iffy signals in the general area where the coins are burried but there are no strong, solid signals. The VDI numbers
are jumping around and most of the time when I try to pinpoint, I hardly get any signal. A few times I only got a one way high pitch signal no matter what direction
I moved around the target area. I'm not a rookie; been detecting since the early 70's but I believe the ATPro is a totally different detector from any I've used in the past.
Would you please tell me, step by step, how I should have my ATP set so that I can get some really good signals. I originally burried these coins at approximately
8" to 9" deep. I had the ATP serial number checked at Garrett and it was manufactured in October, 2011. It is the latest model. I have the stock 8.5" x 11"DD coil,
the 9" x 12" concentric coil and the 5" x 8" DD coil. When and where should these coils be used? I know that I'm asking a lot but I wish all of you will share your
secrets with me. Thanks for any information you may supply and have a very silver/gold Happy New Year. Dave.

 

[GoGoGopher]

Are you properly Ground Balanced??? Are the connections to the coil tight and properly seated...Remove the headphones for your test...If you use the headphones, make sure they are also properly seated and tightened down...does your machine have the camlocks and extended armrest (upgrades)??? try a hard reset of the machine by holding down the power botton for about 8 seconds until you hear the double beep...
Test your area in ALL modes to see if any mode will pick up your targets...if your still having problems...contact Garrett.


Happy Hunting,

 

[Forrest Mc]

I hunt with the 8.5"x11" DD coil and the ATP set in Pro Zero mode, 32 iron disc, 2 bars down from full sensitivity. My ground balances typically around 90-92. If my ground were less mineralized I would also own/use the 9"x12" concentric coil for its deeper seeking capability. Here in the Northwest my ATP finds coins and relics usually no more than 4", but have pulled coins at 6"- 8" that gave solid signals. A time or two I have stomped on a bouncy signal that resulted in a solid coin signal. Given that you burried coins flat at 9" and nothing like extreme thatch build up or high grass is lifting your coil from the target I would try the 9x12 in the modes as GGG suggests. If you have no luck, then Garrett may help you out.
Note: when I got my ATP last winter I went on the Garret web site and reviewed all 6 or 7 training videos they have on using the ATP. Very well put together.
Good luck,
Forrest

 

[INCH]

I guess you have tried other detectors in your test garden in the past and picked up the coins with success? If the Atpro isn't picking them up , do you have another detector now that's picking up the coins? I'm a rookie , that's why I'm asking . Is your ground froze now? I know you want advice , but I was wondering if youve had other detectors pick up the targets. . Maybe somebody here can help you ...

 

[ralph]

Since the coins were buried 5+ years they may no longer be 8&9 inches, there could have been soil build up or in an area that gets a decent amount of rain they may have sunk deeper. Try pro mode iron disc 31, iron audio off. sensitivity at 65 to 80%(6 or 7 bars) then ground bal and manually lower it(the ground bal number) 3 to 6 numbers. Let us know what that does. PS -high sens in mineralized ground is somewhat akin to bright headlights on a car in the fog, often one can get more depth with lower sens in high mineral ground because the reflected signal from ground minerals is interfering with the machine seeing targets. At least thats my thinking---please let us know the results.

 

[vanner]

I guess you have tried other detectors in your test garden in the past and picked up the coins with success? If the Atpro isn't picking them up , do you have another detector now that's picking up the coins? I'm a rookie , that's why I'm asking . Is your ground froze now? I know you want advice , but I was wondering if youve had other detectors pick up the targets. . Maybe somebody here can help you ...

I am wondering the same thing as INCH. , also what does your ground balance read on your soil.

 

[John LA]

Coins buried 8" several years ago might be 10" now. The gb must be done for max depth. I manually set my Gb 8 to 10 below the auto setting for coins. The machine will not pinpoint as deep as it will detect. In some soil conditions it won't pick up coins 9" deep.

 

[tcrews]

Agree with manually setting GB...my pro auto GB's at 80 and I have walked over coins at 10 - 13 inchs...I set my GB about 20 under auto and pick those coins up clear as a bell. Hope this helps...HH

 

[John-Edmonton]

Two things work against a metal detector picking up deep coins....

1) 5-6 years is not long enough to build up a halo around the coins, especially in very neutral soil. To speed up the process, occasionally pour some salt water over the coins to help the coins oxidize

2) Did you clear any and all other targets in the soil before you buried those coins? I mean in a true all metal mode? Just because the junk won't register in a metal detector in discriminate mode, doesn't mean it won't mask some of those deep coins you buried.

The AT Series are deep machines, often times keeping up and beating depth with other detectors costing much more. But depth is always relative to many variables. I doubt if there is anything wrong with your detector. I bet you would get similar results using other metal detectors.

For maximum performance, most sensitivity as possible with least amount of discrimination. Try finding those signals with your pinpoint button held in place, as that amounts to a true all metal mode.

Hope this helps......

 

[INVASCdigger]

Agree with manually setting GB...my pro auto GB's at 80 and I have walked over coins at 10 - 13 inchs...I set my GB about 20 under auto and pick those coins up clear as a bell. Hope this helps...HH

That's very interesting about setting the GB 20 under the auto setting. I want to be sure that I understand that correctly, because it sounds like something that I need to be doing. For instance, if my ground reading in auto is 75, are you saying that I should go to manual and lower it to 55? It sounds as though you're defeating the purpose of automatic ground balance, but if it works....count me in! One other thing that I've noticed with my AT Pro in Auto balance.........if I check the GB in another area of the field that I'm detecting, I've often noticed that the numbers don't change downward. What I've been having to do is go to manual GB and lower the number say from 60 to 30, then go back to auto GB, and then the number will increase to a number around my original number (in this example...60). Has anyone else noticed that the GB numbers don't tend to go down as easily as they'll go up? I've retested a reading of 60, where it has remained at 60, then I'll make the manual change to about 30, then do Auto GB where the number will end up at 55. Hope that this makes sense, because I've noticed this on many occasions. Thanks!
INVASCdigger

 

[EtracTom-AdirondacksNY]

Your GB number don't go down because that is where the level of mineralization is at in that particular area you Auto GB in so that is why the same general 60 reading. One park I hunt in it's low 80's and another park nearby is high 80's. 60's is good low mineralization compared to my 80+'s here. If it went lower like at a beach you would see low mineralization maybe 10's -20's then it's from the salt and light mineralization.

All they are doing is when after they Auto GB the machine is skewing the machines ground negating properties to bias it for a possiable better reading on targets by going lower or higher on the B number.

I can't recall at the moment but one way down lower or up higher is better for some kinds of conductive targets and the other way down or up is better for other conductive targets. I'd have to look it up someone else may know off the top of their head.

The New AT Gold alows you to spread that ground reading number out over several numbers for just this purpose.

 

[vanner]

On the tweaking ground balance,, its manually raise it to get a better reading on low conductors...and lower it to get a better reading on high conductors

 

[William-NM]

Good info! Thanks, guys, I'll have to experiment with the manual gb. Always learning something useful on these forums!!

 

[Cutaplug]

Agree with manually setting GB...my pro auto GB's at 80 and I have walked over coins at 10 - 13 inchs...I set my GB about 20 under auto and pick those coins up clear as a bell. Hope this helps...HH

Sorry bud but you need to get out a tape measure. I've owned the AT Pro since the first shipment in Nov 2010 and spent hundreds of hours and dug thousands of coins and lots of jewelry with it. I can tell you that the AT Pro will NOT find coins at 10"-13" deep. It will find one coin (the nickel) at aprox 10" deep max if excellent soil conditions are present. I've used auto GB, ran it -10 , +10 , -20 and +20 in many different soil conditions. Here are the depths that I've experienced after countless hours of testing and in field use. The depths represents when the first audible signal is present (not a positive repeatable target ID).

IH and Wheat pennies: 8" max
Silver dimes: 7" - 7.5" max
Quarters: 8.5"-9" max
silver halves: 9.5" - 10" max

 

[togamac]

Thanks for the data RC. Sometimes the personal testimonials can get confusing. I wish everyone would include hard measurements and settings with their claims like you did.
HH, Mac