AT Pro: Persist or Return it?

[cusedpjd]

I recently upgraded from a Bounty Hunter (BH) Tracker IV with to an AT Pro. Reasons I wanted to upgrade were because while I could find coins other than nickels with precision (and could pinpoint the area well with the small coil), I was frustrated that I was eliminating gold and nickels in discrimination mode. I was attracted to the AT Pro notching out the pull tabs but keeping in nickel and gold. I was also looking forward to the numeric ID and the depth indicator because I was fed up with the BH getting tricked by large hunks of iron junk deep under the ground even in discrimination mode. So I ordered that AT Pro, tested it out and my first hit was a 1961 dime, which you can see in my last post. But it's kind of been downhill from there although I've only had about 5 hours of work with it and I know they say it takes 100 hours. Nonetheless, here are my concerns.

1. With the 1961 dime, after I extracted it, I tossed it back in the hole (with the dirt out) and folded over the plug to shown someone how it was detected by the machine. But oddly, when I passed over the dime (regardless of the direction) it would not ring up in the low 80s again as it did before or even in the 70s. I found that odd. Would an air pocket cause that? I had the machine ground balanced by the way.

2. My biggest problem in the field has been the numbers skipping around so much in small areas. Sometimes, it will go from 80s to 30s and I'm having a really tough time figuring out how to lock into the higher valued number and pin-point it with the machine.

3. In coin mode, I don't understand how to zero in on gold items because the target ID section has gold and rings in the 60 to 70 range but those are notched out. Yet my white gold wedding band comes up in the high 50s. So what does gold usually come up as on the AT Pro?

4. With the coil being so large, coins sound like they are covering a much bigger area than with the Bounty Hunter.

5. Weird instance tonight of my getting a high 70 to low 80 signal, I dig, and find a nickel and then the signal was no longer there. I don't understand that.

I have not given up yet but I can use some advice on making this a little easier. I keep watching the instructional videos over. Thanks.

 

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[Normsel]

One other thing make sure you have a cpl hundred hours with your detector before you think it is junk. After awhile you have a gut feeling sometimes with a very subtle sound and bingo it's a good hit. Practice practice practice. Even many of the guys that had one or have one and don't use it will tell you learn the sounds and don't be impatient.

 

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[lookindown]

Gold can come in 40 to 75. Small rings, hollow earrings and pendants read low. Most gold rings read in the 50s and large gold rings all the way to the 70s. Trash will give a jumpy signal. A trashy area with lots of targets will have the numbers jumping all over the place. Try circling your target and try wiggling your coil back and forth two or three inches. Sometimes you can "fish' a good target like a coin out of the trash. With the wiggle, the jumping signal will lock on to a solid repeatable when you get it right over the good target. When I learned to use the wiggle technique my good finds really went up in trashy areas. Some people believe the more you spend on a detector the more you will find. Those high priced detectors aren't going to be any easier to use than the ART pro. Hang with it, the AT pro is a good and capable detector.