A newbie asking for help

[The Pulltab Collector]

Hello everyone,

I'm new to metal detecting and have recently started the hobby. So far I have been out to about 10 or 12 different locations - which I have had trouble finding a potential place to even hunt. I live in Minnesota and despite my research, I am having a tough time. I'm not sure if it is the metal detector I am using, if I am using it wrong, or if there is literally nothing to detect in my area. (I live in the Savage area of Minnesota) I've found some clad and a few odds and ends, but other then that nothing. I was hoping you guys would have some tips for me.

Is sensitivity supposed to be as high as you can get it?
Should I buy a different metal detector, or is the one I am using alright to start with?
Anyone from Minnesota have any tips on locations or places I could look?

Thanks for any help guys!

 

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[ivan salis]

I can help you a lot * -- the tracker IV (4) is basically a tone (sound type) machine * - the "meter" on it is basically useless - forget about it for the most part --

now the "basics's" - of the tracker 4 -- it has 3 "modes" that it can run in via its "toggle switch" --- it has 3 tones a low iron tone (sounds like a farting noise) - a mid tone -- and a high "ping" tone

#1 (far left setting) is "all metal mode" it makes only 1 sound --since your not be selective * on what you want to find - it will pick up all conduictive metals ( basically everything ) iron , foil, aluminum , nickel, gold ,zinc, copper ,brass, silver and mixtures of metals

#2 (middle setting) is "tones" mode-- still picks up most everything except for the smallest of iron i"trash type" tems -- iron nails and screws -- it will "cull" most tiny iron items --large iron will still tend to ring up however due to its strong return signal -- there will be differant tones "sounds" for the differant metals -- aluminum / gold / nickles will be middle tone --copper ( cents and clad coinage) and silver will be "high tone"-- listen to the machine closely to learn the "sound differance" as its the "heart" of how to use the machine -- learning to ubderstand what its telling you about the target --before you dig it up --learn to try to "guess' what its telling you about the target before you dig it up * then see if your 'guess" matches up with what you dug up --this will take about 100 hours of actual in the feild use in most cases

now the 3rd mode-- the far right setting * known as "disc" or discrimation mode -- it allows one to set ones "trash" level of items of items they do not want to find -- think of it as telling the machine to " ignore " signals below a certain cut off point --the higher you set it the less you find * -- one must be very careful at what level of "discrimation"you set your machine at -- if you set it too high you can miss out on gold items while trying to avoid pulltabs * since pulltabs , nickles and gold are all quite close on the "electrical conductivity scale" -- you see metal is found by a metal detector due to its "electrical conductivity" --the machine makes a "electrical feild" under the coil , as the machine approaches the metal item --its electrical feild "reacts' with the metal item -- the machine detects the reaction in its feild and alerts you "beep"-- now differant metals have a "differant" reaction level "amount of electrical conductivity"-- there is a 'scale " high to low reaction wize of the diffrant metal s --with iron at one end (low) and silver at the other end (high) --sadly some metals are very close to one another on the scale -like aluminum , nickle and gold 8 -- this is how you "pull them apart / tell one from another" using he tracker 4 -- get a pull tab and a nickle (and if possible a gold ring or gold item ) -- go outside away from any power source and find a metal free bit of ground ((check t first in all metal mode) --the place your machine in "disc mode" with the right hand knob --the disc level set fully to the left = "0"-- place the pulltab on the ground and wave the coil over it (it should "beep" ) -- while slowly waving the coil over it slowly up the disc level (turning the knob right) until the pulltab no longer 'rings" up -- now put down the nickle / gold item * -- run the coil and see if they ring up --if so fine your "properly" set up -- if not very very slowly lower your disc level (by moving the "disc" knob back to the left until the nickle / gold items fall back into the detection range ) now check to see if the pulltabs are still out of detection --if the pulltabs arestill detected at all they should not sunld "clean / sharp" like a nickle or gold item does -- but will sound "broken up -or - scratchy "--this will helpyou in culling most pulltabs before you dig them up ---with little to no loss of of any major gold items -- if any gold items are lost they will be quite tiny in size -( like a earring or such) - rings of course will still ring up ( this will help cull most pulltabs but not all of them) no machine "culls" all pulltabs to the best of my knowledge

now the last bit -- the "power or sensitivty" knob on the left -- the ground can only accept as much signal as the minerals in the soil will allow it to -- to sent out the maximum signal that the ground conditions will allow is called being "ground balanced" -- you want to be "properly" balanced to hunt at your peak -- you cannot "pound" more signal into the ground than the conition will allow in a attempt to get more depth *--yes more power / sensivity in "sweet soil" will yeild more depth --but--only if the soil can accept it * if not they you will just get "feed back" --beep - beep--beep - if this occurs back off on the power/sensivity level slowly until it settles down --nearby high powerlines / electrical power sources can bother the machines electrical feild made under the coil as well again you must lower the power level until it no longer "picks" up the nearby power source -- being the tracker IV is a "preset" factory ground balance type machine -- you can only "adjust" it to local conditions via using the power level as a sort of rough --ground balance knob.

I hope this helps you out -- last tip -- where to hunt --sometimes its what there now that makes on hunt a spot -- a tot lot --a ballfeild -- but often times it what was there in the past or what events occured there in the past that makes a spot desirible to hunt --did the town in the iold days used to have the circus in town in the 50's at a old faem feild *remeber in 1950 all the dimes and quarters were silver --- often what you desire to find will dictate where you hunt -- and what is now there is often not as important as what was there in the past.

 

[MassBK]

to start off, do you have a pinpointer?

I have no idea how I maintained interest in metal detecting WITHOUT one of these...you will be able to hunt at a much quicker pace, and therefore, find more goodies

 

[ohiochris]

Your detector should work , its just pretty limited. Many of the entry level detectors by the major brands get better depth , and have better discrimination ability and target seperation than the tracker you have. Im not trying to put your detector down or anything , thats just the way it is. You should be able to find some good stuff with the detector you have though , just think out of the box and try places you ( or anybody else ) may not normally think of trying , abandoned lots , fields with a tall tree on a hill in them , river banks , sidewalk strips , trails through the woods , around parking lots ,etc. , anywhere people have been for one reason or another but few if any have ever detected there. These places can give up some really nice finds because rarely does anybody think of detecting there. In the long run , getting a better detector absolutely will help you find more , you dont need to spend a lot but anything that has more to offer than the bounty hunter tracker series should really help.