What am I doing wrong ?

[Mudball]

I have a AT Gold and Im brand new at detecting. Its been raining quite a lot here in the last few days in central TN. I cant give exact numbers from the detector because I dont remember them but I do know that Im in Disc 1 and it acts like iron mostly but jumps around and three or four different times in a row I think Ive found something, or so I think. I go to "All metal" and check and then back to Disc 1 just to double check, and the pinpoint location, and my Disc 1 is set at 37. I dig a circle in the grass, flip the sod over and I go to check to see if I got it or if I need to dig deeper and there is no signal. The same signal I had before is gone. The other thing I forgot to mention is that every time this has happened the numbers are erratic jumping from low to high as well as audio. I am finding some more old nails as apparently this is where an old barn or shed use to be. Tell me what Im doing wrong please when its there but gone after I dig ?

 

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[G.A.P.metal]

Lower the Sensitivity...see if that helps...don`t look at the meter for now....dig only nice smooth repeatable sounds.
Or lower sensitivity and dig everything till you know the Detector`s language.
Just try to have fun it will all come to you if you are patient. HH
Gary

 

[Mudball]

Lower the Sensitivity...see if that helps...don`t look at the meter for now....dig only nice smooth repeatable sounds.
Or lower sensitivity and dig everything till you know the Detector`s language.
Just try to have fun it will all come to you if you are patient. HH
Gary

That makes sense and sounds like great advice. I did have the sensitivity turned all the way up. Maybe I should cut it back a couple of clicks.
I didnt try that but I will.
Thanks

 

[rick67]

Halo's. Listen to what G.A.P. says.

 

[DirtStalker]

The more experience you get on your machine the Luckier you will seem to be. It just takes practice and patience.

 

[d2]

I have the AT Pro, got it last week, and was having the same problems. I dropped the sensitivity and put my disc at 25 and have about got rid of the barking and popping...d2

 

[Mudball]

This all sounds like more great advice.
Thanks
I hope to give it another try today.

 

[CoilyGirl]

Believe me I know how frustrating it is when you're first learning. Also make sure you dig straight down and not at an angle that way if the target is in the the plug you dug you can shave dirt off with your small digger back into the hole and if it's in the hole it can be just a neater hole all in all.

 

[Mudball]

Finally rain stopped and it was nice outside.
I did turn down the sensitivity two clicks and left the disc 1 on setting 37 and I felt like I was learning better today if that makes sense.
Thank goodness for iron discrimination. I hope that doesnt mess me up any way in the future but Im getting tired of digging up old barn/shed nails.
Thanks

 

[cruiserkev]

I recently bought an AT Gold and had the same issues for a couple of days. What helps me the most is to ground balance often. Helps clean up those scratchy signals. I run mine at iron disc 38, sensitivity at 2 notches from max and threshold at 1. Usually this works well in disc 1 or 2, I don't really use all metal that much as there are nails everywhere I seem to go. When I hear a good sounding target, I hit the iron audio for a few seconds and go over the target again to determine if the signal pitch changes at all, then pinpoint carefully and dig. Had this machine less than a month and this method has found me nearly 100 coins, a silver spoon, a silver button and many relics so far. No gold yet but I'm still trying. Keep practicing and good luck!

 

[ASTORIA]

when I first started I found a bunch of things around my house, nails bullet casings, coins, beer caps, beer cans, screws, my wedding ring and put them on the grass to see what they sounded like and what they read. it sounds like a waste of time but you'll be surprised what a difference it made other than going into it blind. I honestly think dig everything until your machine talks to you.

 

[ivan salis]

ok several tips --- first there are often minerals in the ground that will seem like metal to your detector unless you are "properly" ground balanced* --and by that I mean your machine is only sending out as much signal as the mineral conditions of the ground can accept * that is exactly what "ground balanced" means ... trying to push excess signal into the ground doesn't help or give "extra depth" --it actually hurts by causing feed back -- number two power lines and other energy sources can cause false signals and issues because the "energy bleed off" messes with the electric field made under your coil --if it occurs back off your sensitivity until the machine is stable ( no longer picking up the "bleed off energy") --- often time "hot rocks" in mountion areas or red clay (high iron) in the soil make things rough as well

oh and the "magic disappearing signals" ..often small iron items rust to dust but the "iron dust remains" and will trigger as a metal hit ... until you dig it up and disturb its "profile" once its scattered up enough however --it will no longer "ring up" .. poof it just magically disappears -- so look out for "rust colored dirt" -- its the tip off

 

[Mudball]

Thanks for all the great help.
I will keep everything in mind and try to be patient.

 

[creade]

I have a pro , not the gold so this info may be different for you When I think I find a target but the numbers go all over the place ,99% of the time it's a false signal due to bad ground balancing. The other times were chewed up metal pieces

 

[mydogisscout]

I love when you hit an 80-83 signal 4" down only to dig up the bottom of a Budweiser can 8" down

 

[Kodiak43351]

Something else to consider is when you get a jumpy signal and you dig up and gone if iron audio is off and you have iron disc check to see if detector is giving you numbers but no sound. Iron in ground can give high tones but it gives itself away by the jumpy tones and jumpy VDI numbers. I don't look at screen much unless I get a good repeatable just to see if I can guess what it is. The gold is a great detector and the all metal is a plus in the fields when targets are deep. The at pro is a great machine also I have used the pro for a couple years and got the gold late in fall and it's my main detector now. I've found my oldest coins to date with it. Keep digging and good luck

 

[DiggerinVA]

Gold is much more sensitive to tiny targets than the pro. It picks up .22 bullets and such much more often and they can sometimes "vanish" or seem to once the dirt is disturbed. Sometimes it takes a while with a pinpointer to find these small targets. These targets are a nightmare for relic hunters since we have to dig them....since a deep "relic" sounds much the same.....

 

[Mudball]

Well more great help and advice.
Thanks for all the info.
I will be glad to get back out soon to get more practice under my belt.