Missing something

[SW Iowa Digger]

How much am I missing.I am hunting with a Xterra 705 with 9" 3 KHZ coil, with what I feel is good success I have hit sliver everytime out 2 barber dimes 3 mercs 1rosie 1 washington quarter 1 silver canadian quarter stering id bracelet in 4 trips with some trash 1 dollar and change in clad and about 5 wheaties I just feel yards giving up old silver should have an indian or old nickle I run in the factory coin mode, program 1, ground tracking on, sense at around 20 I dig signals that I can get to repeat without being choppy I have found the memorial cents are almost always 34 on id, dimes will be 38 40 42, quarters were both a 44 I hardly ever get a signal that reads below 20 I get and occasional 16 that is always some type of trash or old style pull tab It just seems like i am not getting many signals down where nickles and indians would be hoping it just because they are not there I would hate to think I was walking over them Any advice

 

[garyo1954]

Do some air tests. Drop some nickels and see what happens.

 

[SW Iowa Digger]

with the 9" 3 KHZ coil I run tracking and when I check it the numbers are usually between 5 and 8 I am in southwest Iowa i always here numbers like 28 or 30 when I here guys talking about ground balance so is something wrong with my machine or am I doing something wrong to have such low numbers and also how low can i set the senseitivity without it being a loss

 

[Surfchunker]

with the 9" 3 KHZ coil I run tracking and when I check it the numbers are usually between 5 and 8 I am in southwest Iowa i always here numbers like 28 or 30 when I here guys talking about ground balance so is something wrong with my machine or am I doing something wrong to have such low numbers and also how low can i set the senseitivity without it being a loss

before you GB it make sure there is no iron under the coil first ... find a clean spot to GB it

 

[SW Iowa Digger]

Ok I did some "Bury" testing today ok at 6" a silver 64 quarter is invisible to my 705 at 4" it is there but not a solid signal but a choppy scratchy signal at 3 1/2 it is a solid clear signal and a 44 on id ,a silver dime was pretty much the same result I had sensitivity at 20 could not go any higher without getting unstable, ground balance tracking was on, I tried coin levels 1 2 and 4 and all metal. So if you take into account halo effect how deep do you think I would hit these targets or is something wrong with machine or coil Help please I dont think 3 1/2 inches is a good depth for a freshly buried quarter

 

[Surfchunker]

fresh buried coins don't hit well at all

 

[SW Iowa Digger]

fresh buried coins don't hit well at all

But shouldnt I get more than 3.5 inches on a silver quarter fresh or not

 

[Longhair]

But shouldnt I get more than 3.5 inches on a silver quarter fresh or not

No.
I've stated it before. Fresh buried is no better than an obstructed air test. The soil matrix has been scrambled, so the machine can't see where to adjust Ground Phase to. And having Ground Phase properly adjusted is critical to obtaining proper target response.

 

[PhilB]

If I had a machine that would only get 3 1/2 in on a freshly buried coin I would sell it or send it to the factory. Of course I'm talking about the soil in the area I detect, perhaps yours is different. My little Tesoro Compadre will hit on a freshly buried qtr down to about 6in. My higher end machines will do better. If you are using silver coins there is not going to be a noticeable "halo" effect. The "halo" effect is caused by a metal corroding and leaching into the soil surrounding the metal. You know how penny's get that green patina and iron rusts? That is corrosion and can make a target appear larger when the soil is damp and more conductive. Iron probably develops the best halo. Silver corrodes very little or not at all in most soils so there is no halo to speak of. Perhaps you have very mineralized soil which is masking your coins. I just know that in the soil here I would think my detector had a problem if it didn't hit a 6in deep qtr that wasn't masked by trash, iron or EMI of some sort.

 

[MadTownScoop]

No.
I've stated it before. Fresh buried is no better than an obstructed air test. The soil matrix has been scrambled, so the machine can't see where to adjust Ground Phase to. And having Ground Phase properly adjusted is critical to obtaining proper target response.

Thats why people have "Test gardens" Where they completely clean ALL metal out of it and let it sit for a period of time. Then plant your coins and let them sit for a while. Metal in the ground kind of gets a "halo" in the dirt touching it. It affects the dirt in a weird way. Imagine putting a color dye tablet in the sand. Now wet that area and wait, Then dig the area and the color has spread out into the sand. Kind of a lame example but I think it gets the point across. If you are worried you're missing things. Keep going over the same areas. Once you've pulled something out from ??? 4" Maybe next time you'll be able to "See" the deeper object cause the halo from the shallower target is gone.

 

[Longhair]

The whole thing about the "halo" effect, is that the metal has to be of a composition that actually breaks down in the environment. Iron and zinc are two of the only materials that we encounter that do that quickly. Copper, brass/bronze, and aluminum can to a minor extent, but silver, pewter, gold, and nickel do not.

Think about this. The minerals that concern us fall into two basic categories, conductive and magnetic. Now stop and consider how magnetic minerals might establish their orientation in the ground over time given the earth's natural magnetic fields. This is a large part of why a machine with auto GB or GB Tracking won't fair well on fresh buried targets.

Beyond that, the Xterra is unique, in that it's the only all digital machine out there, so what applies to an analog machine isn't necessarily applicable to it. Comparing it to anything else is apples and oranges in terms of how it handles and responds to a variety of situations.

 

[PhilB]

The whole thing about the "halo" effect, is that the metal has to be of a composition that actually breaks down in the environment. Iron and zinc are two of the only materials that we encounter that do that quickly. Copper, brass/bronze, and aluminum can to a minor extent, but silver, pewter, gold, and nickel do not.

Think about this. The minerals that concern us fall into two basic categories, conductive and magnetic. Now stop and consider how magnetic minerals might establish their orientation in the ground over time given the earth's natural magnetic fields. This is a large part of why a machine with auto GB or GB Tracking won't fair well on fresh buried targets.

Beyond that, the Xterra is unique, in that it's the only all digital machine out there, so what applies to an analog machine isn't necessarily applicable to it. Comparing it to anything else is apples and oranges in terms of how it handles and responds to a variety of situations.

I don't want to argue but I had an Xterra and I had no trouble picking up freshly buried coins 6in or more. I've detected off and on since the early 70's and the only detector I had that wouldn't pick up a 4in deep qtr was the BFO detector I built and that was because it only got 2 or 3 in depth on its best day. Perhaps it is the soil we have here in Indiana but I've never had a problem with a detector not picking up freshly buried coins. If the detector will pick a coin up in the air it should pick it up in the ground unless (1) the ground is mineralized enough the detector sees the soil as a target (2) there is enough iron or trash close to or over the target to mask the target signal or (3) you have an EMI source that is interfering with the detector's operation. I heard the same kind of stuff when I got my first Minelab Sovereign 15yrs ago. You can't air test them or try them on freshly buried coins cause the ground matrix has been disturbed. The only thing I have noticed in all my years detecting is that copper alloy coins like penny's can sometimes be picked up at a greater depth in moist ground than very dry ground because they do corrode(that is the green patina) slightly and develop a halo. I am always willing to be learn something new though and I'm old enough to know that I don't know everything, not even close.

 

[Longhair]

It could also be that he has a bad coil, and should check again with a different one.

 

[SW Iowa Digger]

Thank you all I will be checking with the same coin in the same spot with the stock coil probably tomorrow afternoon after family leaves

 

[SW Iowa Digger]

No.
I've stated it before. Fresh buried is no better than an obstructed air test. The soil matrix has been scrambled, so the machine can't see where to adjust Ground Phase to. And having Ground Phase properly adjusted is critical to obtaining proper target response.

So Longhair based on this would you say it is nearly impossible to test depth on this machine without building a test garden and waiting a few years

 

[Longhair]

So Longhair based on this would you say it is nearly impossible to test depth on this machine without building a test garden and waiting a few years

For the most part, correct! Nothing compares to real world application though, so nothing that you've dug up at any time will exactly duplicate normal hunt conditions.

 

[SW Iowa Digger]

For the most part, correct! Nothing compares to real world application though, so nothing that you've dug up at any time will exactly duplicate normal hunt conditions.

Thank you I am going to run the exact test with stock if gives same results I am going to pay attention to depths on future hunts I mean silver on 4 hunts in a row and some with nails in the hole with silver makes me think my machine works well. I dont know if you saw my Van Buren Token about a week ago but it was a good 8 inches deep and my barber dime that day was about 5 maybe I should stop thinking and just hunt

 

[Longhair]

maybe I should stop thinking and just hunt

Best idea yet!
I understand being bored and wanting to play, but there is nothing to be gained by any "testing" other than tests on real targets in real conditions.

 

[SW Iowa Digger]

Best idea yet!
I understand being bored and wanting to play, but there is nothing to be gained by any "testing" other than tests on real targets in real conditions.

Thank you again for loaning your wisdom. My new attitude is " I have a good machine and I am a good hunter so have fun and enjoy what I find and not ruin it by over thinking"

 

[SW Iowa Digger]

Did a little playing this afternoon and was hitting a clear tone and 44 on a 6" quarter I know test dont establish alot but now I have peace of mind