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Excited to report a new Discovery 3300 was under the tree. I've never had a detector but have wanted one for years. Any advice for a newbie? I am also curious if it will work on frozen ground. I know the digging will be nearly impossible until the spring thaw, but I don't think I can wait that long.
Waiting for spring in SD.
The best advise I can give you is do a search on this forum and other online resources. Do a lot of reading! The 3300 is said to be a very good machine. I myself would like to have one in the future. Many veterans of detecting have used this machine and have been impressed. Good luck
And get to know the sounds it makes on known targets doing air tests...I've made a few posts about my success with the 3300 so do a search under my user name for 3300.
It is a powerfull machine & I enjoy mine a great deal. Just want to make sure you get through the initial learning curve. Mine is still teaching me new tricks....in pinpoint it is stupid deep in very tough conditions & I'm using the sound to judge when to dig. When I first got it I had no idea it was more than a good coin hustler. It goes deeper than some very well known machines.
I'd avoid high power settings unless its a very clean area. Frankly the depth is still good with the unit one beep above the minimum setting.And the target ID is much more reliable for shallow coins & park hunting. Really deep targets do not ID well for most machines so I rely on the pinpoint mode as I describe in some posts earlier.
Then I set the notch so the last 2 segments are notched out in disc mode & start swinging. It is not a "fast" recovery machine but not horridly slow-a steady sweep even with the ground/overlapping at a slow walk does fine.When you get a repeatable beep hover over the target & hit the pinpoint to "size" the target & find its exact l;ocation-For a neat recovery wich is critical to keeping this hobby in a good light.
The ground balance is best left at minimum settings till you get the hang of it. On my machine max adjustment-In Disc- is only 1/8 turn or so.And despite what every other review says the GB does affect operation in disc-at least on my machine.
Setting the GB in all metal is a bit more tricky-you are trying to cancel out hot rocks/sand wich can vary by location. You start with the coil 2-3 feet flat in the air & lower to the ground. If the noise increase headed down rotate GB knob CW, if the noise increases when coil is lifted adjust CCW.Your trying for no noise or a neutral hum as the coil is raised/lowered. Keep in mind you have to do this on clean ground so sweep the area before starting.
With that setting it will get max depth in pinpoint mode. It will also false like crazy when you switch to disc or all metal motion if the soil has hot rocks/sand etc..In good loamy soil its fine.To settle theGB down-adjust aprox 1/8 turn CCW in soil conditions that cause this effect.
Why wait for Spring? On those "nicer" winter days, put on some warm gear, get some good batteries and go out to the bottom of sledding hills or where people tend to congregate at the hilltop around fire barrels, etc. Also check parking lot areas where the plows push the snow and along shoveled sidewalks. Digging in the snow is easy and you would be surprised what you can find; coins, rings, watches, pocket knives and usually less junk. When it is cold out rings can more easily slip off of fingers. Use your imagination to think of areas where outdoor activities take place. Kids drop lots of everything. So, around the edges of school parking lots and the "islands" in the lots would be great places to detect. Use "All Metal" and dig everything that beeps in the snow.
Good luck with that new 3300 and Happy Winter Hunting!
