AT Pro question

papaharley03

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Joined
Jan 13, 2014
Messages
973
Location
Near Dallas, TX
I have noticed on a few occasions while detecting, I am getting a 00 reading on the VDI. I take it that is a very ferrous target reading? I guess I believed that the VDI would always display greater than 0 if it was displaying a reading at all.

This is in Pro Zero mode.

Thanks,

Papa
 
00 VDI reading can be ferrous or Visual Indication Indication number can be skewed. The machine is giving you the information based on what you asked to give when you made the adjustments. Negative bias ground balance set down -10? Why? Ground balance over area free of metal? Sensitivity set incorrectly? Iron discrimination set at...? Why? Do you know what each and every setting does and how changing one may effect some of the others? You should be able to tell the difference in a machine that is broken or a coil that is going bad or a detector that is just not adjusted correctly. Copying someone elses settings or "programs", thinking it is the best thing to do may not be the best thing to do. Everyone's ground is different and so is what is in the "airwaves" around us. Recommendations: Factory reset, ground balance over area free of metal with no bias and try again. HH
 
00 VDI reading can be ferrous or Visual Indication Indication number can be skewed. The machine is giving you the information based on what you asked to give when you made the adjustments. Negative bias ground balance set down -10? Why? Ground balance over area free of metal? Sensitivity set incorrectly? Iron discrimination set at...? Why? Do you know what each and every setting does and how changing one may effect some of the others? You should be able to tell the difference in a machine that is broken or a coil that is going bad or a detector that is just not adjusted correctly. Copying someone elses settings or "programs", thinking it is the best thing to do may not be the best thing to do. Everyone's ground is different and so is what is in the "airwaves" around us. Recommendations: Factory reset, ground balance over area free of metal with no bias and try again. HH

Thanks for the advice. I do know what each adjustment does and how they interact. Having a background in electronics and RF energy allows me to understand detector theory.

I have found an area about 2x2 feet in my backyard where the detector goes crazy and I know there is nothing electrical buried there. That's where it was spitting out a lot of 00 and 99 with other intermediate VDI indications with depth showing 8 to 10 inches. I'm thinking that's a deep pile of construction trash from when the house was built.

Regards,

Papa
 
Well it would appear with all the proper adjustments and settings done to your satisfaction and a full understanding of the interaction of the those said adjustments... Why are you asking for advise or help? If I'm finding stuff and having fun that will be good enough for me. I guess life's getting too short as I just want to go have fun. I've never run out of targets yet... time is my biggest obstacle. Happy hunting
 
Well it would appear with all the proper adjustments and settings done to your satisfaction and a full understanding of the interaction of the those said adjustments... Why are you asking for advise or help? If I'm finding stuff and having fun that will be good enough for me. I guess life's getting too short as I just want to go have fun. I've never run out of targets yet... time is my biggest obstacle. Happy hunting

I asked because in all the documentation and media about this particular detector I have reviewed, the 00 VDI reading was never mentioned. It's a two digit VDI so I wondered if maybe the 00 was a rollover above 99 or was truly less than 01. Kind of like the ace in a card deck. In some games, it really counts as 1, in others, it counts as the high card in the suit.

Because this detector is fairly new to me, I sought the advice of other owners of THIS detector to see how their experiences compare to mine. That's what forums are for.

Papa
 
I believe it's more of an overload signal. I get them occasionally and I did dig a couple out of curiosity, one was an old showel head buried about an inch under, other was the rim from a tire. I tend to ignore them now especially if I lift the coil a foot off the ground and it's still going crazy.
 
Overload signal. A large piece of metal too close to the coil. An aluminum can just under the surface will do this. A much larger piece of metal a bit deeper may still do this. This will happen more often at full sensitivity and often you can reduce the sensitivity to get a proper reading.
 
Overload signal. A large piece of metal too close to the coil. An aluminum can just under the surface will do this. A much larger piece of metal a bit deeper may still do this. This will happen more often at full sensitivity and often you can reduce the sensitivity to get a proper reading.

Good to know. In my back yard, I tend to run about 2 notches below full sensitivity just to keep it from being too chatty. GB is around 51 after pumping the coil and I'm leaving it at that setting.
 
Overload signal. A large piece of metal too close to the coil. An aluminum can just under the surface will do this. A much larger piece of metal a bit deeper may still do this. This will happen more often at full sensitivity and often you can reduce the sensitivity to get a proper reading.

Sorry about the information overload. FMDF won't let me delete so this is the alternative.
 
overload/mercy/stop it/Buick/hubcap

Hey Irons, that Buick theory has come to mind a couple times except it's not a large enough area. :D

Maybe... it's that elusive treasure chest that I know just has to be buried in my back yard somewhere.

Oddly enough, it has my curiosity fired up to almost want to dig. This was all farm land and pasture until the late 80's. I have looked at the old topo maps overlaid against current sat images and there were some structures near where my home currently sits.

I have found a few aluminum cans at just over 12 inches with my HF detector.

It does remind me of an overload because of the strength of the audio tones.

Thanks,

Papa
 
Hey Irons, that Buick theory has come to mind a couple times except it's not a large enough area. :D

Maybe... it's that elusive treasure chest that I know just has to be buried in my back yard somewhere.

Oddly enough, it has my curiosity fired up to almost want to dig. This was all farm land and pasture until the late 80's. I have looked at the old topo maps overlaid against current sat images and there were some structures near where my home currently sits.

I have found a few aluminum cans at just over 12 inches with my HF detector.

It does remind me of an overload because of the strength of the audio tones.

Thanks,

Papa

Heck man dig it up! There is a beach I hunt that I have joked has buried Buicks just offshore because I can pull my coil to almost shoulder height and still get a signal.

My wife is like "what are you circling around out there?"

"Buicks"

:laughing:
 
I asked because in all the documentation and media about this particular detector I have reviewed, the 00 VDI reading was never mentioned. It's a two digit VDI so I wondered if maybe the 00 was a rollover above 99 or was truly less than 01. Kind of like the ace in a card deck. In some games, it really counts as 1, in others, it counts as the high card in the suit.
Because this detector is fairly new to me, I sought the advice of other owners of THIS detector to see how their experiences compare to mine. That's what forums are for.
Papa

papa, I just noticed you're in Texas and have a GB of only 51. If you are MDing on hardpack sand the 00 signal you're getting may be the reflection of your own coil. Maybe reduce your sensitivity andtry a area with a higher GB like in a park. My tries at surf searches with my ATP have all ended with frustration because, until I move away from the surf the DVI goes crazy. I'll try to go down to the beach today and see if I can get it to stabilize long enough to get a average number. That's what forums are for:laughing:

ATP/GPP/Fiskars Diggers/BH Outback/CT hand held
 
papa, I just noticed you're in Texas and have a GB of only 51. If you are MDing on hardpack sand the 00 signal you're getting may be the reflection of your own coil. Maybe reduce your sensitivity andtry a area with a higher GB like in a park. My tries at surf searches with my ATP have all ended with frustration because, until I move away from the surf the DVI goes crazy. I'll try to go down to the beach today and see if I can get it to stabilize long enough to get a average number. For my two cents...if a person is so busy they are bothered by anything posted on the forum, they'd better get off the computer and get about doing it. I'll let you know how the beach walk goes...

ATP/GPP/Fiskars Diggers/BH Outback/CT hand held

Thank you, Sarge. I followed your thread with the learning curve on the 5x8 coil. I have one, but have not put it on yet.

The ground here in north central Texas around Dallas is somewhat heavy clay. You know, the stuff that sticks to your digging implements and is hard to wash off... almost better letting it dry out and then comes off in chunks. Very little sand in the soil here.

What made me start this thread, is that small, approximately 2x2 foot area in my back yard where the detector goes crazy. I have been all over the rest of my property and I get normal responses and have dug a few interesting items. But that one area, must have something down there deep and conductive. I'm still thinking they just buried a pile of trash in that spot when they built the house, but that's a lot of metal for construction debris.

Thanks again for sharing your knowledge,

Papa
 
Heck man dig it up! There is a beach I hunt that I have joked has buried Buicks just offshore because I can pull my coil to almost shoulder height and still get a signal.

My wife is like "what are you circling around out there?"

"Buicks"

:laughing:

They do bury them nose up :D
 
Thank you, Sarge. I followed your thread with the learning curve on the 5x8 coil. I have one, but have not put it on yet.
The ground here in north central Texas around Dallas is somewhat heavy clay. You know, the stuff that sticks to your digging implements and is hard to wash off... almost better letting it dry out and then comes off in chunks. Very little sand in the soil here.
What made me start this thread, is that small, approximately 2x2 foot area in my back yard where the detector goes crazy. I have been all over the rest of my property and I get normal responses and have dug a few interesting items. But that one area, must have something down there deep and conductive. I'm still thinking they just buried a pile of trash in that spot when they built the house, but that's a lot of metal for construction debris.
Thanks again for sharing your knowledge,
Papa

I wish I had taken short hand more seriously in high school. Posting things so concise on the forum that the entire post consists of a capitol and a period, with absolutely no thought between, is extremely difficult for me. Since the area is only 2X2' I'd dig it for the same reason I'll dig a 42 in a area with absolutely no other targets. The subliminal suggestion behind MDing is a primordial belief that we are alchemists, and as such, can change a hole in the ground into gold. The 00 reading may be nothing more than this square being where the guy ground down the frame of his dune buggy and the grindings have migrated in to the soil to form a big pocket of rust. Your metal detector has no idea what "metal" is so all it can respond to is a reflected signature which it's circuitry interprets as being metal of a particular sort. With the AT Pro you can get a perfect sounding 86 only to dig up a rusty bolt. This is because the rust halo and the position the bolt was laying reflected a image like a honkin big silver ring.
Rust pockets form around abandoned steel wool balls and metal slag like a arc welder casts off. Try the 5X8 coil, dampen down the sensitivity and post your results. Should be interesting.

ATP/GPP/Fiskars Diggers/BH Outback/CT hand held
 
I wish I had taken short hand more seriously in high school. Posting things so concise on the forum that the entire post consists of a capitol and a period, with absolutely no thought between, is extremely difficult for me. Since the area is only 2X2' I'd dig it for the same reason I'll dig a 42 in a area with absolutely no other targets. The subliminal suggestion behind MDing is a primordial belief that we are alchemists, and as such, can change a hole in the ground into gold. The 00 reading may be nothing more than this square being where the guy ground down the frame of his dune buggy and the grindings have migrated in to the soil to form a big pocket of rust. Your metal detector has no idea what "metal" is so all it can respond to is a reflected signature which it's circuitry interprets as being metal of a particular sort. With the AT Pro you can get a perfect sounding 86 only to dig up a rusty bolt. This is because the rust halo and the position the bolt was laying reflected a image like a honkin big silver ring.
Rust pockets form around abandoned steel wool balls and metal slag like a arc welder casts off. Try the 5X8 coil, dampen down the sensitivity and post your results. Should be interesting.

ATP/GPP/Fiskars Diggers/BH Outback/CT hand held

True about the halo and sounding good, then digging junk. Hehe

I am the second owner of this house and I bought it from a coworker after his family got too large. He wasn't a welder or a dune buggy builder..hehe, but the guy was a wizard at taking scrap wood and turning it into something artistic and functional. The wooden workbench he left behind for me in the garage was a prime example.

Better weather coming this week so I may just do some exploring. It's my yard, it's privacy fenced, so I can take my sweet time and dig to China without worrying about the aesthetics.

I'll definitely let the forum know what I find if I can get to it.

Papa
 
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