Realistic expectations from Ace 250?

[MissIron.Maiden]

I've been detecting a couple years now . I'm most interested in finding hand forged iron and or Victorian era items. I'm not a tech savvy person, I like to keep things simple. I am finding my Ace 250 frustrating on my favorite kind of hunts , old homesites. Basically I find It's got a very small range of accuracy on giving a hint to what is underground . Basically , one bar lit up is nails. 2-4 bars lit up is pulltab. A solid signal on the high end is a coin. Anything that bouncer from tbe high end to the iron and back could be my hand forged iron. Erratic signals are trash. One bar above pulltab, could be absolutely anything. Am I missing anything? Have I reached the end of what this machine has to offer or am I doing something wrong?

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Agony and Death on a Gold Rush Steamer: The Disastrous Sinking of the Side-Wheeler Yankee Blade - Grab it through Amazon!

[airscapes]

I've been detecting a couple years now . I'm most interested in finding hand forged iron and or Victorian era items. I'm not a tech savvy person, I like to keep things simple. I am finding my Ace 250 frustrating on my favorite kind of hunts , old homesites. Basically I find It's got a very small range of accuracy on giving a hint to what is underground . Basically , one bar lit up is nails. 2-4 bars lit up is pulltab. A solid signal on the high end is a coin. Anything that bouncer from tbe high end to the iron and back could be my hand forged iron. Erratic signals are trash. One bar above pulltab, could be absolutely anything. Am I missing anything? Have I reached the end of what this machine has to offer or am I doing something wrong?

You got more experience than I do, but the thing i have been reading over and over and over is "Dig Everything" Other wise you will be missing something..
To try and add an answer to your question. I have a White's Coinmaster GT with 9 tones, All metal mode, VOC, VDI and auto ground balance ($399) A little of an upgrade from the 250.
Same issues you are having.. got a real good signal, think it is trash cause it sounds like a pull tab and bounces around with an iron tone along with the high tones, dig it up and it is a penny at 8". The VDI does not work so well as the item gets deeper. Some of the high end machines just make noises, no meter no number nothing but you knowing what that sound is from digging up all the crap it takes to figure it out. Other have computers that try and figure it out... Like all tools the more expensive one will help you do a better job, but you will need to learn how to use them as you have the Ace. It would be real nice to only did good stuff but I don't think there is a machine of any kind that can do that yet without missing stuff.. Take that with some salt, as I am a newbie with little experience other than hours of time on the internet and a hand full of hunts in my local parks before the freeze.
Good luck!

 

[khouse]

If your digging iron then really any machine will fit the bill. You would set it to all metal and dig it all. The jumpy ID's on ace 250's is mostly due to running too high of sensitivity. But if your digging iron then jumpy signal shouldn't matter. If your looking for coins away from a trashy sites then reducing your sens will make for better id's.

 

[treasurecoasteric]

You'll find that the most successful hunters dig it all. VDI is a tool and cool to have, but no matter what it says, I'm digging anyways. Some of the machines that find the most treasure have no VDI at all !!! These would be the Minelab Excaliber, the Fisher CZ21 & the Whites Surf PI. Think about it.....

Sent from my BNTV600 using TreasureNet

 

[Normsel]

You need to learn what your machine is telling you. Once you have found a few targets you're searching for your machine will let you know. I have a 250 and it is one heck of a coin machine and great for relics as well but I wasn't happy with mine until I had over 100 hours on it. It will not tell you what kind of iron you found. Your sensitivity adjustment is your friend. Your hand forged items will always show up in the lower scale in the iron area unless they are forged from brass then more in a penny range. I think all you lack is experience. Like others have said dig it all until you feel you know your machine well enough

 

[JunkShopFiddler]

Hey Miss I, It is quite impressive how well you know your detector and the different readouts! Some folks can't tell you what is where on their machines. I like old homesteads as well but they are trashy places and you may be getting more that one object at a time beneath your coil, that confuses most detectors. Scanning your targets from two different directions can clear up your readings as well, if you scan east to west, then step around 90 degrees and scan north to south, that may give a clearer reading. If you don't have one yet, you might try asking other 250 users if a Double D coil will work for you as they can better separate two adjacent objects.
Some relic hunters I know have AT PROs and they like the Double Ds for relic hunting...good luck!

 

[MissIron.Maiden]

You need to learn what your machine is telling you. Once you have found a few targets you're searching for your machine will let you know. I have a 250 and it is one heck of a coin machine and great for relics as well but I wasn't happy with mine until I had over 100 hours on it. It will not tell you what kind of iron you found. Your sensitivity adjustment is your friend. Your hand forged items will always show up in the lower scale in the iron area unless they are forged from brass then more in a penny range. I think all you lack is experience. Like others have said dig it all until you feel you know your machine well enough

Oh trust me I have hundreds upon hundreds of hours on my machine. Much of the problem is, I'm in such a history rich area that there are 300 years of metal layered in the ground. Nearly every target is a multiple . It complicates matters.

 

[MissIron.Maiden]

Hey Miss I, It is quite impressive how well you know your detector and the different readouts! Some folks can't tell you what is where on their machines. I like old homesteads as well but they are trashy places and you may be getting more that one object at a time beneath your coil, that confuses most detectors. Scanning your targets from two different directions can clear up your readings as well, if you scan east to west, then step around 90 degrees and scan north to south, that may give a clearer reading. If you don't have one yet, you might try asking other 250 users if a Double D coil will work for you as they can better separate two adjacent objects. Some relic hunters I know have AT PROs and they like the Double Ds for relic hunting...good luck!

Thank you much for your compliment. And the tips on the coils. I have spent a ridiculous amount if time detecting ever since I bought my machine a yeR and a half ago, but I'm still a newbie in my mind and relic cleaning... Lord I need to Get those skills perfected before I ruin something of value.

 

[hunter_46356]

Hey MissIron you have a striking resemblance to someone I once knew here. Figured you'd have upgraded equip. by now but since your still asking for advice may I offer a little the DD coils. I have been running one on a BH505 and an AT Pro for a few years now. Probably not the best coil to use in a trashy area like you describe "300 years of metal in the ground". A small DD like the AT line offers for the Pro is specifically design for better separation of good targets in trash. I use them to separate the trash (iron) in my areas from valuable targets. So in your case looking specifically for iron it's probably a waste of money. Don't think they make one for a 250 anyway. Just got to dig everything or you will miss something. You've been around here long enough all you have to do is listen and learn from the experienced ones. They all dig everything whether you swing a 250 or a Minelab. Love the new hat!

 

[Diggin-N-Dumps]

At old homesites, I would dig anything to get an idea of what is in the ground...also the Age versus how deep it is...Of course you dont want to waste your time in a Park doing that.

But really, I started with an ACE and found alot of good stuff, it took me a couple years to "Really" understand it, even when it jumps around. Sometimes you have to see where its jumping. because if its jumpy, but consitent. It could be somethign good mixed with somethign else.

 

[MissIron.Maiden]

At old homesites, I would dig anything to get an idea of what is in the ground...also the Age versus how deep it is...Of course you dont want to waste your time in a Park doing that. But really, I started with an ACE and found alot of good stuff, it took me a couple years to "Really" understand it, even when it jumps around. Sometimes you have to see where its jumping. because if its jumpy, but consitent. It could be somethign good mixed with somethign else.

It's amazing the good stuff I'm still pulling from my own yard.. I've gone over every inch , but as seasons n Saturation changes I'm finding even older stuff now . Someday I will upgrade... N probably be shocked at what I wasn't finding

 

[RotZorn]

The 250 is an ok detector, for the type of hunting you do, have you thought about investing in a different machine?

The T2 might suit?!?!

 

[MissIron.Maiden]

The 250 is an ok detector, for the type of hunting you do, have you thought about investing in a different machine? The T2 might suit?!?!

Not yet , paying the mortgage comes first

 

[golden sluice]

It sou ds like you need a discriminator to block out all tbe other garbage metals. A Bit of sensitivity ground balancing, tweeking and bench testing for ideal handmade metal work might help you translate your metal detectors tones.

 

[newgoldfinder]

Ace 250 is not the best in telling whats underground . I was outthe other day and the 1$ lit up and stayed on it. Said it was 6 inchsdown but it was 8. What i found was like a pie crust pan not a coin.

 

[MissIron.Maiden]

It's not the greatest and ideally I'd upgrade , but it's not in the budget. someday

 

[RotZorn]

Not yet , paying the mortgage comes first

Well, it's almost tax time?!??

 

[redbeardrelics]

I've been detecting a couple years now . I'm most interested in finding hand forged iron and or Victorian era items. I'm not a tech savvy person, I like to keep things simple. I am finding my Ace 250 frustrating on my favorite kind of hunts , old homesites. Basically I find It's got a very small range of accuracy on giving a hint to what is underground . Basically , one bar lit up is nails. 2-4 bars lit up is pulltab. A solid signal on the high end is a coin. Anything that bouncer from tbe high end to the iron and back could be my hand forged iron. Erratic signals are trash. One bar above pulltab, could be absolutely anything. Am I missing anything? Have I reached the end of what this machine has to offer or am I doing something wrong?

It sounds to me like you and your Ace 250 are both doing fine. It sounds like the targets are ringing up on your machine the same way they do on my Ace 250. The signals will jump around as noted if the coil is over two or more targets at once, and will also jump around if the one target under the coil is made of more than one type of metal. Lots of buttons, padlocks, etc. etc, are made of more than one type metal, so the detector sees that and will jump back and forth between the notch designation that it thinks it sees. Larger pieces of rusted iron will light up the high end 50 cent and $1 notches, because large chunks of rusty iron have similar metal conductivity as the larger silver coins. You are probably also getting the 'overload growl' when passing the coil over large pieces of iron that are near the surface right? The higher end Garret GTI 2500 does the same thing so you are not going to eliminate jumpy signals or some mis identifications just by spending more money on a detector. The Ace 250 can not tell the size of the target so you will find large aluminum cans and large iron when digging coin type signals. The only way I have found on the 250 to get an idea of the size of the target before digging it is to hold down the pinpoint button, and sweep the target, a small coin will give a squeal or beep in a small area of the sweep only, and the larger items will have a less define squeal or beep over a larger area. I doubt I am telling you anything new, it is just the nature of the beast and the hobby, and as others have said you just need to dig most of the targets to tell for sure what they are, and to get the trash out of the way so that the detector can better "see" the goodies. Good luck to you, I think you have as good an understanding of your machine as the rest of us do.

 

[MissIron.Maiden]

It sounds to me like you and your Ace 250 are both doing fine. It sounds like the targets are ringing up on your machine the same way they do on my Ace 250. The signals will jump around as noted if the coil is over two or more targets at once, and will also jump around if the one target under the coil is made of more than one type of metal. Lots of buttons, padlocks, etc. etc, are made of more than one type metal, so the detector sees that and will jump back and forth between the notch designation that it thinks it sees. Larger pieces of rusted iron will light up the high end 50 cent and $1 notches, because large chunks of rusty iron have similar metal conductivity as the larger silver coins. You are probably also getting the 'overload growl' when passing the coil over large pieces of iron that are near the surface right? The higher end Garret GTI 2500 does the same thing so you are not going to eliminate jumpy signals or some mis identifications just by spending more money on a detector. The Ace 250 can not tell the size of the target so you will find large aluminum cans and large iron when digging coin type signals. The only way I have found on the 250 to get an idea of the size of the target before digging it is to hold down the pinpoint button, and sweep the target, a small coin will give a squeal or beep in a small area of the sweep only, and the larger items will have a less define squeal or beep over a larger area. I doubt I am telling you anything new, it is just the nature of the beast and the hobby, and as others have said you just need to dig most of the targets to tell for sure what they are, and to get the trash out of the way so that the detector can better "see" the goodies. Good luck to you, I think you have as good an understanding of your machine as the rest of us do.

Thank you, I'm glad to hear your experience sounds identical to mine and that I am at least getting as much from my machine as it can offer.

 

[Tnmountains]

I like big iron signals. You never know. Today I dug up a large piece of angle iron in root infested ground. Yesterday it was iron canister shot. You have to dig some iron unless you are just coin hunting.