800 help for Downeast Maine "beaches"

[Bodkin]

I cut my teeth with my Blue Excal 1000 on the beaches of FL many years ago. I bought the Enox 800 in Dec. to use primarily as a dry land detector here in Downeast Maine because I wanted a machine without the wired headphones or no headphones at all (I love all the headphone options the 800 offers). I'm wanting to learn the 800 and have been taking it to my local "beaches" when the tide is out as this is the only place not completely frozen right now. I emphasize "beaches" because it is all rock cliffs, stones and gravel, nothing like my beloved FL beaches. Nonetheless, there is stuff to be found here and I've done pretty well so far. My questions run with how to set the 800 for this environment? I started with the stock coil, set the 800 for Beach 1, and off I ran. I went out a bunch of times and did okay for what's to be found around here. I did the "upgrade" and put on the ML 15" coil I purchased and things were all over the board numbers wise. No consistency at all. Very strange. Same area, same settings but very disappointing. I have the 6" coil too as I bought that for the severe thickets come summer time but, of course, would use it on the beach too if that's the better option. There's no electrical interference, no cell phone coverage and really nobody around where I go although in the past there was plenty activity. Does anybody have any suggestions as to how they would set the 800 up for an area like this? All I can find out there are settings for pristine sunny, sandy beaches. Thanks

 

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[stevemc]

Yes I have been to some Maine beaches and the first thing I noticed, no sand, rounded rocks. Rocks like that can have differing density, and make up. Some contain minute amounts of metal compounds. It can be difficult for a metal detector to balance out the ground, and be stable. I have tried using an Equinox, the guy who owned it never used it before, so I really never got any training with it. Having a bigger coil can cause some problems. The reason why people use a smaller coil in trashy areas is to go between hits, and tiny bits of iron, etc. a big coil cannot and kind of goes crazy. Big coils are great on sandy beaches with little trash. Maybe try to stock coil again. Keep the 15” for sand beaches. I have heard people say that upgrading the Equinox caused it to be noisy, maybe more sensitive? Could be reading all the different rocks. Try decreasing sensitivity or maybe a ground balance on the rocks. Since it worked prior with the stock coil and factory settings, it could be a little of both.

 

[stevemc]

Clive Clynick has a great book on the Equinox. I suggest getting that.

 

[Bodkin]

Thank you stevemc. I don't really know the composition of the rocks but that makes sense. I've heard mixed reviews on the "upgrade" but I'm willing to ride that one out for a while longer and if it seems to be getting me nowhere I'll set it back to the original setting. I was kind of thinking the same thing about the 15" coil, too big and hitting on a lot of things. I'll go back to the stock coil and even give the 6" a run. There are a lot of targets, maybe I just can't get between them with the 15". I'll check the book out too. Far cry from the Excal on FL beaches that's for sure. Thank you!

 

[1KBlueTuber]

I hunt NH & Me beaches year round and have the 600 with Trond Bluetooth headphones from Amazon $50 awesome. My suggestion would be to try beach 2 with the larger coil. The ground tracking should help stability and you might even try knocking down the sensitivity a bit. If it’s still flaky try restoring factory presets by holding on button for six seconds then going into beach 1 or 2. At this point if you’re still having falsing/tid all over the place, I’d restore to original programming and forget the update. I have not upgraded/updated my 600. You will find some valuable info in the brands/Minelab/equinox sub forum here on Tnet. Vferari has some great info for new users. The Nox is a beast in the wet sand and it has amazed me more than any detector at the beach in the wet sand and tidal pools. Good Luck

 

[Bodkin]

Thanks 1KBT. I have the wireless ML headphones that came with the 800, non-ML underwater headphones with the long wire (love these) and of course, the speaker on the unit itself. I've really gotten used to this and prefer it as there are some coyotes that roam the beaches where I am and have had some squirrelly experiences in the past. I haven't tried the beach 2 mode, I haven't been venturing into the water yet and from what I've read that's for "in the water" (not that it couldn't be used anywhere else). I did switch over to park 1 on the beach for a spell and if I remember right Vferari recommended that in another thread. I seemed in that mode all it did was stop hitting on as many targets. Didn't really do much. I will say this, it does hit on very small and very deep targets. Compared to the Excal, it's another beast entirely for me. I believe my problem is that there are so many options and configurations that I'm getting lost in trying to come up with the right combination for the different areas. If I had started on a similar type machine maybe I would have a better handle on this. The Excal was a "set it and forget it" machine for me. Always worked great, found me loads of stuff and never left me guessing on the right setting and such. I DO think a lot of the issues I'm having is because of the environment I'm in. Freshwater streams coming into saltwater tidal flats, some sand with gravel, rock, boulders, and it seems, pockets where everything washes in. I don't know if I'll ever come up with the exactly right combination but I'm trying to get close so I won't be dragging a lot of equipment out with me. Lot's of info is out there for "normal beaches", I was just wondering if anybody has cracked this code yet. I certainly appreciate the reply and suggestions you and Stevemc offered up and will be trying it all. Thank God for factory presets as I keep going down the rabbit hole. Thanks again!!!

 

[dewcon4414]

Hot rocks consisting of graphite can cause issue with most machine. The main settings that seem affect this machine the most are...... Sensitivity and recovery speed. As far as IB..... one of the ML Engr said the Sov ran like it was using IB 6, that would give you some idea since you were used to the Xcal. Im in Fl and i prefer IB2 to hear a bit more of the target. I also run AM..... with the Iron volume down to 2 and turn off the Threshold... its just not needed. You will get somewhat of a threshold from minerals and iron. Recovery speed here go between 3 and 4 depending on the chatter........ BUT the main thing for you is switching over to beach 2 id say. Ive ran both programs..... i preferred the earlier version likely because thats what i learned on. BUT what i did notice was there didnt seem to be much depth difference between the two beach programs when running the current version.... there is on the old version. It seems like they tweaked beach 2 a bit. Takes a bit of time to get used to hearing more from the ground than you are used to on an Xcal...... but once it clicks you totally ignore it and can pick out targets very well. But ...... try reducing the volume on iron i think that will help alot. Ive been running in 50 tones having switched from 5. It gives a bit more information on each target. This machine seems to want to wrap iron/minerals up to the second bin..... so in 5 tones i found it a bit more diffiicult to choose the right tone. 50 tones seemed to be a little less confusing to my brain..... and maybe because id used the Xcals as well.

 

[Bodkin]

Yikes, lot of info here! Thanks dewcon4414. Again as above, I think I'm getting lost in having so many options on how to set this thing. That being said, I never really know if I've chosen the correct and best set-up. I know it's a matter of becoming comfortable and knowledgeable with all the options like I have with the Excal over the years, but I'm questioning if I'm getting the most out of the 800 while I'm out there. I've used the 800 on dry land and all went great. Park 1 setting and I had no issues. Very straight forward and simple. I felt very confident I had it set right (kinda hard to screw that up). Confidence in the right settings is a lot of this and I'm beginning to believe I'm just in a very unique environment. Hot rocks and hot spots plus areas with few targets and then into areas with tons. I have the next three days off and plan to get out there and try some of these ideas. Switch out the 15" coil to the 6" (but bring the stock one along), keep the upgrade on for now, try running in Beach 2, play with sensitivity. I've been wondering about changing the tones. Your comment "This machine seems to want to wrap iron/minerals up to the second bin" sounds interesting. I did notice on my last venture out (with the 15" coil) that iron objects were making things dance all over the place. At least I believe they were iron as I got so frustrated digging I finally called it a day and went home. Which is what prompted me to ask for help here. I was constantly getting dancing hits in 13-16, 17-19 and again in 35-40. It didn't matter what range I got these hits, I would still dig iron in them! I would also dig everything else in these ranges too! I had no consistency, and in lies the frustration. With that, I take the steps above and see what I come up with. I'm sure I'll figure it out (with a little help). Thanks all for the suggestions. I'll post what I've come up with. Thank you!!!

 

[Bodkin]

Following up: Switched out the 15" coil for the 6" and did a factory preset to make sure I was back a square one. Turned on the 800 and set it to Beach 2 and off I went. About an hour in I realized I never did a ground balance. By then though I already had a few coins and a cool old copper medallion with some gold paint on it. Looks religious, but who knows (at least for right now). The 6" coil I believe made all the difference. I was just hitting on too many targets when they got thick. I never tried the stock coil that day because I was doing great with the smaller one. I did try the Park 1 setting where a freshwater stream emptied into the flats, but no real difference. I was hitting on stuff all over the place. The next two days were too cold even for me to go out but I secured an incredible permission site. Can't wait to get back out there and solidify these settings for this area. I can try a tweak these right now but I did pretty well and am happy with the results. Thanks guys for talking me off the ledge!