Detector settings

[Troller]

Hey all. I have gotten pretty good at finding quarters now. Started out I was just finding pennies and it got to the point where I was wondering if I was ever going to find anything more than a penny. Then I got a hit the yielded five quarters in the same hole. Now I pick up a quarter just about every other hole. The oldest coin I have found is a 1972 penny. Now I am looking to trying and find some rings or relics. Until recently I have been detecting with everything but zinc, nickle, dime, and 50+ notched out. I have to say the Fisher F5 is an awesome machine for finding coins! but after having expanding my search to include FE and 5 cents I am finding nothing but nails and screws when a hit shows up in that target ID range. I scanned my wedding ring band and it showed a hit in the 33 range so I started digging targets that showed up in the 27 to 37 target ID range. Still I got nothing but nails and a aluminum can tab. This leads me to two conclusions. One I am probably doing something wrong or two I over paid for my wedding band! I would like to think it is that I need to make some adjustments. I am working primarily with a Fisher F5. Any pointers that might help me find rings or relics would be much appreciated! I typically metal detect at the local school and more recently at a park nearby. The park near my house is massive and we have a carnival there once a year so I figured it would be a sure bet to find something there!

 

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[cudamark]

Most silver rings will be up in the copper cent to quarter range. For gold, you're going to dig a LOT of trash if you're going to hunt a park or school. There are no short cuts or machines that will tell you it's gold and nothing else. You didn't think this was going to be easy did you?!

 

[TheHunterGT]

If you want gold rings...you must dig the foil range. Many smaller rings with lower amounts of gold will go below foil into the high iron range. Larger rings with more gold will go higher into the zinc range.

Like cudamark said...you will dig trash...and it is not easy. It is why I prospect for gold and MD for coins and relics. I'll never hunt a park for rings...madness IMO. To each their own of course...it is not like prospecting is easy work either.

For relics...just dig anything above iron depending on the relics you desire. Many relic guys disc the small iron and dig the bigger stuff. Up to you what you prefer. Many hours of digging deep targets at a relic site will make your decision come quickly.

 

[Fletch88]

Neither conclusion was correct. The 3rd conclusion and correct one is as Hunter said, to get the gold you have to dig those junker targets. You can run all kinds of notches/ disc and still get a certain percentage but to find all gold you have to dig them. Site selection will increase the odds. Junky parks are not where I find it to be pleasurable

 

[luvsdux]

I agree with the comments above, but would like to add that for jewelry and especially rings location, location, location. Granted an occasional ring may be found most anywhere, beaches, swimming holes etc. used by lots of people seem to be where most jewelry is found. No matter how you set your machine, you have to pass the coil over a ring or other jewelry so finding and detecting areas that give up more should improve your success.
luvsdux

 

[Tom_in_CA]

Luvsdux is right: The "trick" to finding gold jewelry is not to "lower your disc. and dig junk till your arms fall off". Why would someone being going to junky blighted turfed parks, trying to be a hero, if gold jewelry is their goal, for pete's sake ? Instead go to swim beaches. Or sand volley-ball courts, wrestle pits, ski lift lines in the summer melt season, etc....

And same for old coins: The trick is not some sort of "notching" or whatever. Instead go to where old coins are more of a likliehood: stage stops, oldtown urban demolition tearouts (like sidewalk removals in old-town districts). Beach storm erosion (if you're near the coast), old camps and springs on the emigrant trail, etc....

 

[Troller]

There is a sand volleyball court at that park! Thing is it seems my F5 hates the sand! I will have to try the TC2X on sand! I have even tried to do ground grabs with the F5 I am going to have to figure out how set up the F5 for beach combing!

 

[Fletch88]

The white sand in volleyball courts should have no effect at all on any machine. Are you sure there isn't landscape fabric with the big U shaped staples holding it down under that sand?

 

[Troller]

Not sure, but my F5 just chirps from time to time but there's no repeatable signal. There have been times when I thought I had a good hit and then dug down only to find that the signal was lost. I went out to a volleyball court today and walked half the area and didn't get a single hit. I gave up on that and hit the grassy are which was rich with pull tabs. I came up with a dozen pull tabs 5 quarters 2 dimes 5 pennies 3 1 foot long steel spikes and a 7 mile fair token. Over all it was a pretty good hunt but I didn't find anything spectacular. I didn't do a grid on the grass as there was standing water in some areas. I didn't find any landscaping staples on the court though!

 

[Troller]

The only time that area sees a lot of foot traffic is during our villages annual fair. Usually just a beer tent, some carnival rides and softball games. There are a couple of other parks in the area that I have have permit to detect on and I can go back to the larger park after the fair.

 

[luvsdux]

Even though sand lots etc. are often the first place we begin hunting in parks and the like, in the overall picture I've retrieved more good targets from the grassy areas. Especially where many people have walked over, thrown frisbees or otherwise recreated.
luvsdux

 

[Troller]

I am close to Lake Michigan too but I get the feeling that may be pretty picked over. I still plan to go out there and check it out though. things probably wash up there all the time. There are a quite a few beaches within 30 minutes of my house so I am planning on picking up a scoop and maybe a new trowel. The handle on the trowel I have now is starting to wear out on the end. The weather here as been crazy so making plans to go somewhere, especially the lake front is a crap shoot at best. yesterday we had 3 snow storms roll through and the wind was so strong we had thunder snow... Yes it is a real thing!!! Then today at 9 Am it was 32 degrees out and by noon it was 64 degrees. I also found some information on the location of the first and second location of the school house. The first one was built in 1908 and the second one was built sometime in 1935. There was a third but only the approximate location is known and I think the land is now privately owned.