New etrac

[Bryanhashemi]

Hey guys. New to the forum. I'm from savannah georgia and just bought an etrac from Bart at bigboyshobbies.com. Great guy. Definitely recommend him. I've been using a whites xlt for 13 years. Decided just now it's time to upgrade. I know this machine will take some time getting used to. I'm very patient and love metal detecting more than anything. Most of you are probably the same way. That's why I chose this detector. I've researched detectors for over a year before deciding on the etrac. I would like to ask all you guys about any advice on dealing with the new sounds coming from the etrac. I know I need to swing slower. Maybe advice on what to expect when first swinging it. Thanks for any responses!

 

[Idprospector]

I would suggest anyone who is new to the etrac to make a pattern that only detects the 12 fe line. Use it for an hour or two and you will find mostly coins and jewelry. Its not a great way to hunt everyday but will let you hear lots of good targets and few junk ones. You will miss targets this way but if your first hunt is in a trashy area it can take some of the first time stress away.

 

[Bryanhashemi]

Thanks Idp. Ill def try that. Any other tips or advise will help. I know it's goin to be a long road ahead of me but I'm excited! Thanks for your post!

 

[E-Trac-Ohio]

Good luck with your new E-Trac - we look forward to seeing photo's of your finds this season !

 

[Bryanhashemi]

Thanks Ohio!! Hopefully will be posting soon. Should arrive Saturday or Monday!

 

[PPLpilot]

Congrats on your purchase. I also bought my E-Trac from Bart, great service.
I am in Savannah as well. It would be nice to hunt with a fellow E-Trac user. If I can help, let me know

Congrats

 

[Bryanhashemi]

Hey PP. I've been looking for fellow hunters! Got a couple of civil war spots. Would love to meet up sometime! Maybe you could help with the new machine.

 

[PPLpilot]

Sounds good to me.

 

[Bryanhashemi]

Ill email you after I get it. Maybe meet at a spot and try it out! Thanks for your reply. You know how hard it is to metal detect in georgia. I've been looking for other enthusiasts who don't mind sharing spots. I have my own. I don't mind sharing. The hunt is what I love. Looking forward to meeting you! My email is bryanhashemi@yahoo.com

 

[Bryanhashemi]

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

 

[Jeff in Pa]

Train your ears to ignore everything except that special sound that a "Round shaped" target has. After you do that then you can start to recognize when you are over a "Thin" target like a piece of can slaw. Can slaw does not have that "Warble" like a coin does and it will never be round like a coin so that when you slow the coil as you go over it you can hear its junk due to its shape and size.

When you dig a target like a 12-35 to 38, in that range and you are sure its a coin, (probably a Zinc) walk around it, go slow with the coil and listen to the sutle changes of the edges on the coin. As you know a Zinc rots away to nothing and I am sure you have seen your share of them with the XLT. The Etrac sound is so precise that you can learn which side of the coin is rotted worse. This may sound crazy to some but if you have good headphones and there isn't any junk on top of the coin you really can do this on a coin in the 4" range and deeper.

Training your ears to do this takes time but its well worth it. It may only be a zinc but that zinc can teach you alot about the Etrac. Things that will soon help you "Call" the coin and even be able to tell if its a very green wheatie or even a thin smooth silver.

When you have a quality detector such as the Etrac just relax before you dig and learn what you are hearing. You can get all excited when you see that silver shine in the hole.

Taking that extra time on a target that you are considering digging and just listening to it from all angles, remembering what you are hearing and then digging it, analyzing what you have found and try to understand what just happened will pay huge dividends in the end.

After that then work on the sound a nickel makes. Thats the tricky one. Eventually you can be very proficient with the Etrac and if you take a little time on a target you will soon be digging very little junk and alot of "Good" targets.

Good luck with the Etrac and don't hesitate to ask questions here, many of these guys are very good with this incredible machine!

 

[NebTrac]

Hi Bryan.

I've seen a number of guys from your state. I think Ryan Chappell is another, but see him on Friendly Forum a lot more. Looking back on my learning curve, the biggest piece of advise I can give you is in 3 parts.

1. Coin Garden, if you haven't got one, you'll want to plant a few. 6-10 inchers and play with your swing speed.

2. 3 or 4 same sounding beeps is a shallow target. 3 inch or less, usually 1 inch or less. This was a big awaking for me and is due to the DD coil. So don't get frustrated that way. Also on shallow hits, if you go into pinpoint mode, your depth reading will be off (might say 1 inch, then 12 inches).

3. Just go out and hunt with the mindset of digging a lot of signals, learning the machine.

Have fun.

NebTrac

 

[Bryanhashemi]

Hey Jeff, thanks for all that wonderful advice. That's really gonna help me out a lot! And thanks NebTrac for your input as well. Ill probably be asking you guys a lot of questions once I get it so be prepared! Glad y'all are here. Makes me feel better. Thanks again

 

[Jeff63]

This is the best discription of tone ID-sound I've ever read on this forum in 3 yrs. . Are you using normal or smooth or long? What are your settings. Also is there any way that you could make a video of this with the sounds your hearing. If you could put it on a CD I'd buy it and so would everyone else I'm sure. I like the can slaw part and the Zink edges the best. Really , a Green wheaty and thin worn silver. If I could get that good I'd hunt 24/7 being retired. Thanks for your Info.

 

[Southwind]

As someone who also moved from a White's user for many years to a Minelab I can say my toughest challenge was learning to slow down and isolate each target. At first I felt the E-Trac was not my type, but I was determined to give it the very best shot, and I'm ever so glad I did. It changed my understanding of detecting and opened the world of tone ID I never cared for before. Now even when I used the trusty old DFX I had to turn on tone ID. For me the trick is knowing you must go as slow as conditions dictate. If you get in an area where there are lots of targets and swing too fast it will sound like a flute and be very hard to make heads or tails out of the overwhelming sounds. Slow down and each target will begin to make sense.

 

[GroundScanner]

New to the E-trac also ,all info i can get about the E-trac will help alot. Thank you

 

[Bryanhashemi]

That makes a lot if sense when you put it that way southwind. Thanks for your advise. Will keep you posted when I get going with it!

 

[Jeff in Pa]

Very, Very well said!

 

[Jeff in Pa]

Thank you for your kind words. In the spring after the thaw here in Pa I will try and get this together.

I use the normal sounds but I have seen that some prefer the other settings.

When I say circle the coin and listen to the edges you need to first have the correct "coil speed" as you go over the target.

This is extremely important that you are consistant with every target. Too fast and you won't hear it and too slow and you will start to "detune" the coil. You DO NOT want to detune the coil, a detuned coil loses alot of the information that you need. If you accidentally detune the coil you must reset it before scanning the target again.

So learning a slow but consistant speed over every target you consider digging is a huge key in learning this.

Just as Southwind stated, swing speed while hunting should always be dictated by how much junk is in the ground you are on. If you are losing the threshold hum alot and you are hunting conductive with a good bit of discrimination then you either need to slow down or open up the screen more.

I will say that the Etrac does handle trash (mainly iron) extremely well but it still needs to be treated accordingly for the conditions you are in.

One thing you will eventually learn is TTF. Goesforever has a very good web page that you can learn alot from. I use it when the iron gets real nasty.

Hope this helps you!

 

[ryanchappell]

Hi Bryan. I've seen a number of guys from your state. I think Ryan Chappell is another, but see him on Friendly Forum a lot more. Looking back on my learning curve, the biggest piece of advise I can give you is in 3 parts.

I am in Alabama.

I recommend that you start out at cleaner sites. If you are new to detecting detect your yard and practice your plugs. Then try a messy school or park, and keep trying those until you find one loaded with clad. Practice digging clad for 20-50 hours until you get good. Only dig 12-41 through 12-48, 12-13 (half nickels, half pull tabs) and a 1-5 signals between 12-08 and 12-36 to hopefully find some gold with your beginners luck. There is very little difference between clad and silver. Silver is a little deeper and may register a couple of CO points higher with a smoother tone. Use the coin program pattern but edit it to allow halves and morgan dollars to show. Use Terry's settings and advice, except leave limits at 15 until you get some experience.

Everyone wants to take their etrac to the junkies park or old homestead first hunt to find silver, but I suggest learning to sucessful dig clad, rather than teaching yourself to digging one false (nail) signal after another.