Unskilled or unlucky??? maybe both

[dartostunic]

Hello fellow detectors, I recently purchased a Bounty Hunter 505 and have no experience detecting...well now 2 days detecting. I have followed all directions carefully, read the owners manual 6 and half times and watched the instructional DVD. My problem is that I detect in areas where old trash metal is abundant. I have been dissappointed to discover that despite having discrim setting all the way to the right (in disc mode), I am not able to eliminate some trash metals like older beer cans and even some old foil. This is also the case in notch modes, even with sensitivity low. Is there something I am missing here????

thanks for your help

 

[abcoin]

Hey dartostunic, welcome to the forum! I'm fairly new to this hobby as well. Sounds like you have a very tough site to detect on. Keep this in mind: the discrimination control on your detector will not eliminate everything. Some items (like beer cans and large pieces of foil) will produce a signal on your detector no matter what. Why? Well, in the case of an aluminum can, you basically have a large hunk of highly conductive metal (which on most Bounty Hunter machines reads as a 25c or $1 on the meter). Your detector loves highly conductive metals, and will often respond to them, regardless of if the object in question is a quarter or a can. Aluminum and/or large pieces of foil also fall into this category. There is one way, however, that might prove helpful in avoiding these targets. Once your detector signals a high tone that might be a can, slowly raise your coil off the ground, continuing to swing the coil. If the target disappears quickly, you likely have a coin. If it continues to sound off a foot or more above the ground, you likely have a can. Since you're just starting out, I'd recommend going out and searching less junky areas first (i.e. parks, schoolyards, your yard, etc.) to get to know your detector and its capabilities. Then, once you know it well, go back to these sights and work through the trash. Yes, you would be able to avoid every piece of trash, but learning your detector will help quite a bit. Sorry about the novelization and HH, abcoin.

 

[dartostunic]

abcoin,

thanks for the tips. i guess i also have to be a bit more realistic about what i expect from the machine, which is where experience should help greatly. i still have great enthusiam for detecting and will continue to hunt. it certainly helps to others more experienced mentoring us neophytes.

dartos

 

[wasp]

Looking on the bright side, you are finding lots of metal in the ground with your 505. Abcoin is right about the aluminum cans - they give off a huge signal and after some experimenting you will know not to dig those signals....unless, of course, you think you are closing in on Blackbeard's lost treasure chest or a jar of buried coins. I still can't resist poking around in the ground just to be sure it is really an aluminum can.

One thing to remember though is that you probably won't find gold jewelry if you disc out all trash metal such as tab tops or any trash that gives a signal close to what a nickel would give. I recently was detecting at a park where people would set up lawn chairs etc to watch the amateur leagues play baseball and got a mixed signal that was bouncing around. I thought it was probably trash but dug it anyway. I popped a quarter out of the ground which surprised me because my Time Ranger is usually dead on with quarters. I passed the coil over the hole before I covered it and it signaled a nickel. I thought a tab top or some similar trash in the same hole explained the bouncing signal. Taking a chance that it might actually be a nickel I poked around in the hole with my probe and found a nice thick men's 14K gold wedding band! You never know what you might be passing over if you don't dig those low signals. Yes, I have a couple of buckets of tab tops and various other trash metal but finding my first gold ring made all the digging and frustration worthwhile. Besides, I figure that I am getting a lot of good exercise as well.

Stay with it and you will find the good stuff.

 

[dartostunic]

thanks wasp,

it is stories like that which will keep me diggin.

 

[GoGoGopher]

Here is my suggestions for you...

keep your SENSitivity between 9 o'clock and noon...Do NOT turn your DISCriminate up beyond 9 0'clock position...Keep your coil as close to the dirt as possible No more than 1" off the ground...Keep the coil level throughout the whole sweep...Your sweep should resemble a half-moon arc...you should be able to count to 2 mississippi from one end of the swing to the other...overlap your swings (the tighter the overlap, the better your ground coverage)...Hunt in DISC mode, unless you want only coins, then I use Auto Notch...Dig ALL repeatable signals...get off the beaten path...By this I mean, do not hunt where teens party, or you know a lot of trash congregates...take to wooded paths, camping spots, cellar holes, private property (with permission), etc...invest in a 4" coil (You'll thank me later)...Get the best set of headphones you can afford...KellyCo has some great ones in stock...
Hope this helps...

 

[ronaldj2]

Welcome to the forum, and gopher already gave you the advice that I was going to suggest. I will just bear witness to the 4" coil and some good headphones
make sure they have a volume control on them. Happy Hunting

 

[dartostunic]

thanks gogo,

i am heading out for a very promising spot tomorrow. an old resort that was built around sulfur springs which were believed to have healing powers. there from early 1800's, forgotten about after 1890's. should be a good one.

 

[Cherokeefan68]

thanks gogo,

i am heading out for a very promising spot tomorrow. an old resort that was built around sulfur springs which were believed to have healing powers. there from early 1800's, forgotten about after 1890's. should be a good one.

That does sound promising. What area of the country do you hunt?

 

[dartostunic]

northeast areas. just gettting involved with a lot of local historians and getting lucky with people who know people. stay tuned.