my 705, nothing but a backup detector

[Carolina Phil]

I have dug my fair share of horseshoes and shotgun casings that I know will be discriminated out by the Minelab.

Those items will not be discriminated out by your 705 if you have your discrimination adjustment set up properly. Shot gun casings are of brass, so unless the brass range is notched out, or you reject everything on the low end from iron range up to and including brass range, you will find them if they are at a detectable depth.

I've dug my share of hundred year-old shot gun casings with my X-Terra 70. I hunt in the Coin & Treasure Mode. I pick a Pattern, it doesn't matter which one, and I adjust the discrimination setting for that Pattern to my liking. I usually set up to reject the first two segments on the left-hand side (which is the iron range), and the last segment on the right-hand side (to reject "hot rocks"). This is only enough discrimination to reject square iron nails and "hot rocks", and larger iron like horseshoes will still be detected. I dug a mule shoe this past year at this discrimination setting. When the discrimination setting of a Pattern is changed, it remains at that setting when the detector is turned off and back on. The detector can be used in All Metal, in which nothing will be rejected, but I don't search much in All Metal due to a lot of iron nails at my sites.

There is also the Prospecting Mode. Its discrimination adjustment is called Iron Mask. With the Iron Mask set at the highest setting for maximum discrimination, it is about enough discrimination to reject a small iron nail. The range of the Iron Mask is small.

Happy hunting.

 

[jhettel]

I cannot help you with how to find iron relics with the 705.

I will say that when using the Tejon, and this may apply to any detector, I first try to determine how large the target is. If I am in civil war country then it can easily be a horseshoe, but if it just gives a small bleep in all metal then I kind of figure it is just a nail or a square nail. If it gives a large signal, kind of over a large area then I do dig the target. I do have a great collection of horseshoes.

The main thing that I do is try to analyze the target with all the capabilities of my detector if I think it is iron..

I bought the 705 because the Tejon just cannot find a lot of goodies in iron infested, or trashy areas. From what I have read on this and other forums, and the one single time I used the detector before the ground froze, it seemed to be a fine detector, I really think it surpasses all three of my previous Minelab detectors. It just seems to be very well engineered.

My understanding is that the X-terra 705 is just as deep as the Tejon, and if this is true then why would I take the Tejon over the Minelab, except in heavily forested areas.

 

[jhettel]

It would be nice to meet and see how the real pro's use this detector. New Madrid is a great area for civil war, even though it has been heavily hunted. I have seen some of the collections that belong to the locals and they are huge. Not just minnies and buttons, but canteens and other really neat things. USMC and I will do some asking around and see if we can get somewhere in that area where we can all meet and do a good hunt.

 

[Canewrap]

I bought my Advantage as a beep dig type detector that is easy to setup and gets a little better depth than the X-terra. Once I've established that I'm on the site of a civil war camp, skirmish, battle, whatever (through use of the X-terra 705 to find a few goodies), then I start digging pretty much everything (setting disc to just knock out nails) and that's what the Advantage is for. The 8" DD coil is a perfect size for separation and gets great depth for its size and is real useful in a picket post that's loaded with nails. To answer your question about iron, once I know I'm in a potential spot then I start digging larger iron targets as well. If I'm hunting a CW site that has been pounded to death and its in an open area, I'll hipmount the Advantage and use a large coil to look for deep iron targets that have been passed by (gun tools, shells, etc.). The 705 is also real useful in areas that have a lot of modern trash dumped on top of the possible older targets. I don't consider one better than the other, but rather tools that compliment one another.

 

[Shenandoah Digger]

The Tejon is a great detector, but everyone knows that hot ground kills it. My Xterra 70 will find relics in ground that my Tejon has been over many times without a peep. You just don't see many successful relic hunters in Virginia using it. Most who use a Tesoro here use the Vaquero or Cibola. But it sounds like it works great in many areas. Just not here, and I've had it since it came out.

 

[morelic55]

The Tejon was lacking depth in my area an it had to be GB'ed all the time. The Xterra 70 & 705 work great because of the auto tracking and the noise canceling...MO

 

[Digger]

What part of the State do you live in? I know Gen Price was involved in Wilson's Creek, across the State line at Pea Ridge and even up toward me in the Westport area of Kansas City. Just curious if you've hunted in the KC area. HH Randy

 

[morelic55]

Randy, I live about 5 miles as the crow flys from Wilsons Creek National Battlefield. Every one, including myself have pounded every campsite from Rolla MO to Pea Ridge Arkansas. Every once and awhile some one will discover a "Patch" of relics, maybe not even a acre in size. Did that last year when we discovered a spot in a neighborhood in Springfield. The only thing spectacular that was found was a US Belt plate that I got and a bud of mine got a complete boot pistol. We just do not have the aggergate of relics in this area that the boys out east have. I know of a few spots on my to do list and I have been looking for one federal camp, walking over 100 acres for a year now. You have a new generation of relic hunters that are very tight liped about new sites and to my knowledge, only 5 guys that are "Hardcore" relic hunters that will hunt at least once a week. Confederate items are RARE only one or 2 buttons and no plates that I know of have ever been found. The rebs in this part of the Western Theater just did not look like your storybook ideas. They picked up alot of gear from the Federals off the field & raids on supply depots. Even the officers were not dressed like you see in posed photos. Missouri was the Confederate step child and the central government did not supply them well. I'm sure that the Kansas City area has been pounded just like our area, as far as hunting, I've never even thought of going up there, just not worth the trip........Mark

 

[jhettel]

Years ago I hunted in the Lexington area, but it was right in town, in fact smack dab in the middle of town. That was about 1970. Have not traveled to K.C. area at all. Did some S.W. Mo. hunting on occasion. Price actually entered the State in the Eastern part of Missouri, somewhere around Doniphan. He traveled all over the State. Had a somewhat medium sized battle at Fredericktown, then went to Pilot Knob where he lost a large amount of men to less than one thousand federals. They then went on about a 44 hour march with the Confederates hot on their trail. Lost of skirmishes and even a cannon lost in a river until they finally met at Leasburg where the Federals again held off the Confederates until the Confederates finally pulled out. Pilot Knob was a big mistake as Price's goal was to take St. Louis, Pilot Knob ruined those plans. St. Louis was heavily fortified with about eight large forts, but all the forts are today in heavily populated areas, lets just say not overly friendly to caucasians, although I have no problem with that race, but it can be bad areas. Missouri actually had the second or third largest amount of battles and skirmishes, but most were small, but being a border State there was lots of unrest. I find a lot in Eastern Missouri, and I know others on this forum do very well in Western Missouri Price actually invaded the State two times from Arkansas, both times with tens of thousands of troops. Most of the troops were not in uniform and many had no firearms. Missouri had a Confederate Government which was quickly forced out of the State by the Federals. Joe Shelby, Quantrell and many others were active in Missouri. Watch "Ride With The Devil" which is a great movie about the war in Missouri.

 

[jhettel]

You are right about places being pounded in Missouri. However, I still do find quite a rew relics on pounded sites. I know there are hundreds of sites in this state that are untouched. The troops were everywhere, camped at the fords and alongside many creeks, 95% of this information is undocumented and you just accidentally find them. My finds in the last three months in Missouri included a pistol hammer; French triangular minnie; Sutler token; not to mention numerous minnies and round balls. One of my hunting buddies found a rare dime and also a great find of two buttons and three clay pipes all packed together in a hole, which were evidently in a small bag which was lost. The pipes were a real find because the area was recently bulldozed down about eight inches and there are horses in the one or two acre plot, a few more months and the pipes would have been dust due to the horses hooves. Luckily, no grass was growing yet. I look at the big pile of dirt and just wonder what is in that pile.

Frozen ground, and talking relic hunting is torture.

 

[morelic55]

Yep, I have a few spots that I need to look at. Lots of times I go out, by myself and probe those spots and come up with just .22 & shotgun hulls, but heh, that's just another site I can check off of my list. I did find a picket post last year and by the guys diary the main camp was very close, I just need to get back and hunt 100 more acres!!!! Yea, it's snowing here around Springfield and the cold is not letting up for another week

 

[Shenandoah Digger]

My area here in Northern Virginia was inundated with troops, but if you want to find a hot spot, you just have to look for a new area, and throw the research out the window. Any well known site will have been hunted to death. I got permission to hunt a 700 acre area of woods that is not "close" to anything of significance Civil War wise. I do a lot of walking, but I've made some great finds there, and have never seen another detectorist or been asked about the area. A lot of detectorists want to be park their car and get out and dig brass. I prefer to cover ground and find a little hot spot on my own. I've found many.

 

[Steve(MS)]

I have only one of those french triangles, it's a good find.
I haven't seen anyone posting them and they are rarely mentioned on forums.

 

[David]

Is this a French Triangle? Not only a musical instument but also I think it is sometimes hung outside on a house porch and used to call people, on the farm-acreage, in for dinner-supper? Like a dinner bell.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triangle_(instrument)
Triangle (instrument)
The triangle is an idiophone type of musical instrument in the percussion family. It is a bar of metal, usually steel in modern instruments, bent into a triangle shape. The instrument is usually held by a loop of some form of thread or wire at the top curve.

An old-fashioned triangle, with wand (beater)

 

[David]

Thank you very much everyone for helping me answer my questions as it is appreciated. Very briefly, morelic55 or anyone, I am curious, how is-was the F75 (LTD) for relics?

As much as we do love our X-70(5)'s, have or do any of you use the MXT with a big 18" SEF coil for relics?

 

[morelic55]

My experience with the MXT is you could put a 20 x 24 SEF or any big coil for that matter, and it will still only get a coin size target at 8" MAX. As far as the New Fisher detectors, well, nuff said, I'm back with Minelabs.......................

Thank you very much everyone for helping me answer my questions as it is appreciated. Very briefly, morelic55 or anyone, I am curious, how is-was the F75 (LTD) for relics?

As much as we do love our X-70(5)'s, have or do any of you use the MXT with a big 18" SEF coil for relics?

 

[Steve(MS)]

This is the end view of the one I have...

 

[Digger]

We never had any battles in this neck of the woods. But I've found some old newspaper articles that told of a few encampments in the area. I've been hunting for one in particular for several years now, to no avail. But I keep looking, hoping to find something that will prove I'm in the right vicinity. The soldiers serving from this area didn't have uniforms either. And the only firearms they carried were those they took with them from home. I've found a few buttons over the years, mostly from private yards. I have to think they were from uniforms brought home from the War. I agree that relics could be anywhere. We have to remember these guys were traveling by foot. As such, to get from point A to point B required walking miles and miles, crossing creeks, climbing hills and camping in some pretty remote locations. Interesting subject, indeed. Thanks for the responses. HH Randy

 

[Canewrap]

I used to have an MXT, but it took one of those monster coils to be able to get decent depth and the thing weighed a ton with one of those on it. To give you an example of a test I ran. I buried a repro CW belt buckle, flat, at 11 inches and a year later I checked the signal with the MXT (stock coil) and could barely pick it up and the signal registered as iron. I tried my X-terra 70 and it came up as a decent non-ferrous signal. That decided me on what machine I would be using. Now that I've been using the X-terra my shoulders are back to normal, no more persistent pain, like I was getting swinging the MXT.

 

[Canewrap]

In fact, I know a lot of relic hunters around here are changing their focus over to period homesites as there are still plenty of those undiscovered as of yet and some of the best belt buckle finds coming out of this area are ALL from homesites.