Etrac TTF and sensitivity

jerseyben

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Just got my Etrac and I am learning the ropes.

I loaded up Goes4Ever's TTF program and took it out to some spots. So far I like it except I had to change Audio style to Normal from Smooth (too hard to get used to otherwise).

Anyway, my question is: I know TTF is best for iron heavy sites. I exclusively hunt Colonial sites; mostly fields and woods that have potential to hold very deep coins (Reals, large coppers). Is TTF my best option for such conditions or is there a program that would better suit my needs. I am mostly looking for major depth and great separation above all else. I do not mind digging a lot of trash targets and I will never be digging zinc pennies or clad coins.

*When running TTF, I noticed a lot of signals that had a CO of 03 (15-03, 18-03, 12-03, etc). What does that mean?

My second follow on question is regarding sensitivity. It has become quickly apparent that to get the kind of depth I am llooking for, I need to crank the manual sensitivity as high as I can. Is this appropriate? Today I was running at 28 and while there was some falseing, it seemed to be running fine.
 

Bart@Big Boys Hobbies

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Ben I would suggest using Auto +3 until you really get a handle on it. It will cut down on falsing a lot. The E-Trac is very deep even at lower sensitivity settings.

Go slow and listen, don't worry about #'s so much. Audio audio audio.....
 

Born2Dtect

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Most of the good stuff you will find is on the 12 line, (11,12,13). up to 12-46 then curls around to 1-44 to 1-46, theses two are the large silver $1 and halves. A lot of relics fall on this line and curve. Check out the post by "The Beep Goes On" his Excel spreadsheets are a great tool to understand what to look for as far as numbers.

I don't use TTF. When hunting any place but fields I use the Minelab coin program and auto sensitivity, I adjust Fast and Deep as required. In fields I still start with the coin program but load iron mask about 1 on the left and 30 on the bottom. This changes discrimination to let you see more targets good and bad. I leave it here unless it is too trashy then I will go back to the Minelab coin program. My area does have Civil war relics but not much large ordinance so I don,t work about that. I still get lead and buttons and buckles. If I were in a possible battle are with heavier concentration I might use the relic program or TTF.

Ed D.
 

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jerseyben

jerseyben

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Bart, I took your suggestion and only hunted in standard coins mode in auto with no adjustments on the first day.

My big concern is that I could not hear or see a Barber Dime at 7-8" with these settings in "Auto".
 

okdiggermark

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jerseyben said:
Bart, I took your suggestion and only hunted in standard coins mode in auto with no adjustments on the first day.

My big concern is that I could not hear or see a Barber Dime at 7-8" with these settings in "Auto".

Play around with Auto and Manual. Don't be afraid to crank it up. Your learning curve may be faster than someone else's. What have you got to lose? If it seems to be chattering like a nag, then bump down 2 or 3 on the sensitivity. You have to find what works best for you, in your soil, and for your desired targets. I've had mine on 29 before and it was stable as a house, and in other areas 26 was the highest I could run. Higher sensitivity will throw your numbers off I think....but we all mainly go by sound anyway......right? :icon_sunny:
 

Woodland Detectors

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jerseyben said:
Bart, I took your suggestion and only hunted in standard coins mode in auto with no adjustments on the first day.

My big concern is that I could not hear or see a Barber Dime at 7-8" with these settings in "Auto".
I think what Bart was suggesting was to familiarize yourself with the tones and comfortable audio detecting. The setting at Manual 28 is not at all inappropriate if you don't mind the chatter that comes with it. You WILL indeed achieve greater depths using the manual setting, and I run mine to 29 most of the time hunting wide open with little discrimination in the "Quick Mask" mode. The Two Tone Ferrous mode is about as goes it gets in the very trash sites where good targets lay adjacent to the iron slaw. Feel free to call me if you would like any further help.
 

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