New to hunting, new to Vaquero: Help on settings?

[jeg208]

Hello all! I just ordered a Vaquero with the 8x11 for my first detector yesterday!

I've been watching videos and trying to get a baseline for settings. Here is my understanding so far:


Sensitivity: Run at 7.5-8 as to not miss smaller shallower targets, go higher or super tune for more depth

Ground Balance: Run slightly negative for more depth, run slightly positive to reduce junk target response

Discrimination: Run somewhere between the N on Iron, and the notch between Iron and 5c. More discrimination = less junk, but will miss small gold targets


Any other tips and tricks? Is "super tuning" worth it? Seems like you would likely miss shallower targets. Anything I am totally off on? Thanks in advance! Cant wait to get out there and dig!

 

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[tabman]

The best settings that I've found for my Vaquero in my soil.

Threshold - Use a very slight audible hum on the threshold. If it's set so low that you can't hear it you will lose depth and if it's set too high you will start losing the audio modulation which helps you determine the depth and size of a target. Once you find the sweet spot, mark that location on the discrimination dial with a 'tick' mark. If you change that setting your ears will be thrown off and will have to become familiar with the new setting. A good set of headphones is a absolute must! I use Killer B Wasp headphones with the 'limiter' switch in the on position.

Sensitivity - I set mine as high as I can without the detector becoming unstable in the discriminate mode. Most of the time it's set at full sensitivity and very seldom will I have to dial it back some. Even when I do, it's still in the red. The Vaquero detectors and Cibola that I use will lose noticeable depth as the sensitivity is decreased.

Ground Balance - It's very important to have a slight negative ground balance. Too negative and the detector becomes unstable and too positive and the detector will lose depth.

Discrimination - There are '5' very important points to know and mark on the discrimination dial.

The first point is where a common iron nail just barely discriminates out. I use that setting the most because it's the most effective at unmasking good targets at nail infested sites and will hit hard on very small gold jewelry.

The second point is where a Gatorade Sports Foil Cap just barely discriminates out. Any higher and you will start to lose very tiny baby size gold rings. I use that setting when I'm digging a lot of foil caps or lots of tiny pieces of foil. If you're after small gold rings, never ever go any higher than that point.

The third point is where a modern day pull tab (square tab) just barely discriminates out. That point is very useful at newer parks that are loaded with square tabs and there are no older style beaver tail pull tabs to contend with. At that setting you can still find gold rings, but not the smaller ones that are the most numerous and overlooked.

The forth point is where the older beaver tail style pull tab just barely discriminates out. This setting can be used at older parks that are loaded them. Even at this high of a discrimination setting you can still find the larger gold rings and find plenty of silver coins. You really should never go any higher on the discrimination than this. Just dig the zinc pennies and screw caps.

The fifth point is where a modern zinc penny just barely discriminates out. I very seldom if ever use a discrimination setting that high, because all hopes of even finding large gold class rings are gone. Now, if you're not into digging a lot or can't and still want to find silver coins and modern day coins this setting may suit you.

It's best to use as little discrimination are you can, because you will lose gold rings at higher discrimination settings and you will have less masking of good targets. You really should start off detecting using the lowest discrimination setting until you see what you're up against at a particular site. At the point where nails just barely discriminate out, dig 20 targets. If I only dig 2 beaver tails and 18 modern day pull tabs, I'm going to set the discrimination at modern day pull tabs and dig the occasional beaver tail because I want to stay as much as I can in the gold ring zone.

A discrimination setting depends on the site conditions and how much a person wants to dig and give up.

Tesoro has by far the best discriminators in the business. Use them wisely.

tabman

 

[jeg208]

Great info! Thank you very much. I will save each of these items as I dig so that I can mark where each discrims out.

 

[Mr Steve]

What would you consider a slight negative ground balance? Would that be just enough for the threshold to go silent when the coil is lowered?

 

[jeg208]

I would say probably not silent, just a slight decrease in threshold volume, but Ill let the experts chime in!

 

[Welgund]

When you set the GB, turn the GB set the knob at the 12 o'clock position, turn it counter clockwise 5 complete rotations then clockwise back 2 rotations you should be pretty close to neutral. Check it. If you have a consistent sound in the threshold when moving the coil up and down to the ground you are neutral. Then turn the knob about an 1/8th to 1/4 inch to the negative making sure you are stable and no falsing.

 

[jld66]

i dont bother with super tuning and all the "cosmic" settings. i run mine just normal with neutral GB. have read when you switch into disc, the GB goes to slightly positive. it works just fine. thats the purpose of having manual GB, is to balance it. im not an expert nor claim to be though. but i have tried the all the settings mentioned and normal works best for me, is plenty deep enough, and the disc is accurate. learn in it first running it normal, the way it is made to run, then try the other settings. sensitivity i will run at 6-7 in a trashy area and at 10 where there are not a lot trash targets. it has been said on here that it is deeper at 6-7. but, i have a small test bed and have found on the deeper coins, 8-10 inches, it wont hit them at 6-7 but does at 10. getting out and have fun is the main thing. we can all tell you the best way to run it. but, experience is, like with most everything else, the best teacher. you will find the way you like and is best for you.

 

[jeg208]

Took it out last night for about 30 minutes before the rain rolled back in. Had a little trouble with the ground balance, but I'll get the hang of it. Found some really cool old keys, a penny, a 7" deep zipper pull, and a couple pieces of trash. Cool thing is, I have watched so many videos, I knew the trash was trash but dug it just to make sure. The keys were the only thing that had me dreaming of what I found, and they turned out pretty cool!

One thing, is there a way to adjust the speaker volume (maybe the threshold affects this?)? I hate the idea of using headphones, and the speaker is quite loud. Currently I put some electrical tape over it