[quote Gunnar of bradford MN]i did a masking test today using a dime and a bottle top i put the dime down next to the bottle cap 4" away im using the 8x9 coil now when i swing from left to right hiting the dime then the bottle cap the dime is silent no sound i have to turn 90 digree andgle and sweep side to side aproching the dime first then the bottle cap to get the dime to beep its as if im being held hostage by the bottle cap who says dig me if you want the dime can any of the whites machines get a beep on the dime and bottle cap going left to right or do you have to aslo come at them dime first then bottle cap you know what im saying ? pleas do the test and post you r results and the detector and coil combo i would be intrested maybe its all detectors that do that really bugs me i put the dime on the left bottle cap on right 4" seperation and swinging left right dime is silent only bottle cap i tried a quarter as well did the same thing hummm[/quote]Gunnar, there are tok many variables involved for everyone to try a similar 'test.'
Coil size, shape and internal design need to be factored in.
The level of discrimination needs to be considered.
The sweep speed used can be quite critical to how such a set-up 'test' will turn out.
While everyone might use a US dime, they are all quite similar, but the bottle caps chosen can be a little different. Also, you can observe some differences in performance if the bottle cap is laying with the open-side facing up or down, and a freshly used bottle cap might be more of a challenge than one that has been rusting/deteriorating away.
With that said. the only way for you to know how well your Cibola will handle such a set-up compared with the M6 is for YOU to use BOTH models at the same time over the same targets. Side-by-side comparisons can reveal a lot about differences in optimum sweep speeds, etc.
I've read this post and all those below it in the thread and would like to add the following comments:
1.. I'm one of them who thought you might like the learning experience, but also felt that you're not going to like the non-metered Cibola as well as the M^.
2.. I find it hard to believe that a properly working M6 wouldn't perform better than you had described, and certainly not on par or better than the Cibola.
3.. I'd strongly urge you NOT to invest in a DFX come spring. You've not yet mastered the M6 or Cibola, and I don't think you would be comfortable with the heavier unit, the faster sweep requirement, and wide array of adjustment functions, or the fact that the DFX might not do as well as the Cibola or M6 in some of your sites as you've related these past several months.
4.. Both the Cibola and M6 operate on a silent-search principle and I'd imagine that it would take you a while to get used to a model that is best used with a slight audio Threshold sound.
5.. It might be a good idea to get out all you can between now and winter to learn all you can about both the strengths and weaknesses of the Cibola. Then, during the winter months, do an ample about of bench testing (air testing) with multiple targets to help get a better knowledge of the Cibola.
6.. ALL metal detectors are going to have problems with any masking situation in the Disc. mode. Some less than others, some more than others. Some models do a better job of handling bottle caps than do their competition and they can discriminate them quite well most of the time with just a comfortable sweep speed and still recover quickly to respond to a nearby desired target. Other models will have a little more difficulty rejecting bottle caps, and due to their circuitry deign they don't work that well in very challenging masking-trash environments.
I would personally grab a Cibola or Vaquero to make quick work of the open areas in woodchip playgrounds, or even hunt in all of a woodchip playground because they can respond pretty well to the gold jewelry and most coins. But in those locations I keep a very low Disc. setting and recover all targets to investigate their worth to me. Foil, pencil tops and all sorts of trash that could be a good target.
But if hunting in the grassy parks or school grounds or on someone's private lawn, I prefer a good detector with very functional Target ID. I would also prefer to use different Tesoro models than the Cibola or Vaquero for some of the ghost town hunting I do. Yes, they could work OK in most places, but in the trashiest of them, I prefer some of the discrimination 'qualities' of some other Tesoro model or that of competitor's models.
There's no perfect detector out there, so hunt a lot, save up the change you find, sell the gold and silver when it's opportune, and end up with TWO detectors so that you'll have a versatile battery for different hunting applications.
Monte
PS: Even though the DFX has all those adjustment features, it can NOT be made to operate like an MXT or an M6. Just the same as the Cibola is a Tesoro but that doesn't mean it works like all other Tesoros. There can be some noteworthy differences in circuitry design & performance betwen models that might otherwise appear to be quite similar.
