I cant figure this out.

[swcda]

I can't figure this out.

Hello,

I've been detecting for about a month now and I bought a used X terra 705 (hopefully there is someone in here still using one of these). I am enjoying my new hobby! Now that I have had some understanding in "how to run his detector" I've run into something that I just don't understand. First I'll explain how I go about setting up my detector when I hunt.

First thing I do is auto noise cancel
Then I ground balance (making sure no metal is below)
I usually start with my sensitivity around 15 (if I get lots of miss hits I lower it)
adjust my threshold till I hear the hum then back it off two points
then hunt

What I'm finding out is that I find pennies (it seems I find 90% pennies) anywhere between the numbers of 30-38. From what I've read clad dimes are 36, silver dimes are 36-40, and pennies are 36--38. My question is why am I finding so many pennies in the lower 30's? Should I be setting up my machine differently?

Thank you in advance.

 

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[chrisplay2004]

It has a lot to do with ground minerals and how long the penny is in the ground.
I find that many highly corroded pennies will signal even wilder then that.
Don't always trust the numbers, trust the sounds.

 

[swcda]

Will quarters, dimes etc. do the same thing or is that mainly with pennies only?

I will have to work on getting better with sounds.

 

[cudamark]

The published numbers from a detector manufacturer are just guidelines. All metals will ring out differently in different soils, moisture, and mineralization. Use all the features of your machine before you decide to dig. Some people live by the readout on the meter....some use sound only. I use both along with the depth reading and knowledge of the area I'm hunting to decide. If I'm in an area that has deep older coins, I'll dig anything deep regardless of readout and sound. I'll also dig shallow targets if the reading and sound make me believe it may be an older coin that somehow is shallower than you would normally find it. You'll find lots more rings that way or by digging everything.....but sometimes that just isn't practical.