Summarized information is from same the same website. (
http://www.whiteriverprep.com/vintage/ArticlesTipsAndTech/bhtech.html)
10 Time Ranger Tips for Newbies
1.Time Rangers were correct on most of the id's.
If it said it was junk or iron, it almost always was. If the target wouldn't settle down to a specific id, it was also usually junk. I mean the detector signal was swinging wildly from an id at the low end to one at the other extreme and all parts in between! Junky signal, junk target.
2.Solid, repeatable targets that gave the same id when scanned in one direction (move coil left/right) and in another (move coil forward/back);
or else by walking a quarter turn around the target and scanning again from side to side, if the signal stayed consistently positive.
3.I dug. A small "test"
gold nugget gave a very weak signal that varied somewhat, but was noticiable because of it's "soft" sound. Also, a small ring I found this summer did alternate a bit in the id, but not as radically as most junk targets. It was a different signal than most targets, so I dug it, and was sure glad I did!
4.I switch modes pretty often, depending on the area and number of signals.
Few signals, I go to all-metal and once I locate a target, I might change to discriminate to help determine the target id. All metal mode pinpoints better as well.
Many signals -In a trashy area, I use discriminate mode with discrimination turned down low or off and increase it only enough to silence the most common trash at the site. If you are digging nothing but nails or other trash target at a location, toss a typical "dud" on the ground and pass the coil over it, changing the settings until the trash item just vanishes from the signal. Now double check with a nickle, dime and quarter or test nugget to make sure you are still picking out the "good stuff". I make sure I carry some coins and other items with me while hunting to provide a reliable test target, if I feel a need to check the machine's operation. I just scatter one or several coins in an area that is cleared of pre-existing signals and pass the coil over the spot. I have also brought along and scattered poptops, nails, bolts, tabs and screwcaps about the test area next to my coins to see if the detector could separate the individual signals. It quickly gave me a lot of experience with the machine in my own backyard and at nearby locations, and one time it helped me discover a loose coil connector while in the field.
5.If your machine suddenly seems to sound off on everything, as you mentioned it did in the creek, the batteries are good and the coil plug is secure, it is probably due to an extreme difference between where you set up and gound-balanced the machine and where you moved to actually use it. This can happen in a matter of a few feet, and water or wet vegetation and soggy soils will change it as well. Just ground-balance the detector again in that area, even right in the water, or turn it off and back on again to start from scratch with ground balancing. Another possibility, sometimes the fancy computer inside locks up or crashes, just like on your computer at home! Ain't technology great? ;-)
6.Reducing sensitivity can help stop false signals, as can scanning from a greater distance above the surface, but also reduces the depth you will achieve, but sometimes this is the only way to hunt highly mineralized areas.
A smaller searchcoil can help as well, as it is "seeing" a smaller portion of the troublesome soils, minerals, trash, etc., but again you will lose some depth.
7.If the "auto-groundtrac" feature is available on your particular machine, and when you stop to dig a target, if you set the machine down with the coil facing at an angle to the ground, instead of flat against the ground, I discovered it tries to ground balance to the air while you are digging, which makes it take a long time to settle back down again when placed against the ground as you resume hunting. I either swivel the coil to lay against the ground, or simply turn the detector off while I dig. I own a second pinpointing detector to fine-locate my signal and don't often need to rescan once a target is discovered, so I usually turn off the Bounty Hunter to help preserve the batteries. I noticed that in Discriminate mode, I did not have this problem, only in All-metal mode.
8.As to
telling mica from gold, a simple push with a tweezers or sharp fingernail will bend gold, but mica will crush and break apart. No need to beat the poor thing to death with a hammer, but you can if want to! ;-) Mica will also float all over the bottom of your gold pan, while gold usually stubbornly stays put. Fine gold flakes might float about a bit under water, but will readily go to the bottom, unless buoyed aloft by surface tension. Then you can't seem to get them to sink again! Mica will re-sink much more easily from the surface than the fine flake gold. A tiny drop of common dish soap will relieve the surface tension, allowing the fine gold to settle better. When you are down to the black sands and you think you still might have some mica, when you do the "swirl" to separate the gold, the mica will race around to the back, instead of staying in place. Mica will also lose its shine when viewed in shade, but gold will remain bright-looking.
9.If you are finding a lot of suspicious material, try to concentrate and separate it, then check a quantity of it with your detector. While a couple individual flakes will likely not be detected, a small quantity of several dozen or so flakes concentrated in your plastic gold pan or a vial will be confirmed by most any good detector. The signal may be weak, but it will be there if you have sufficient quantity of metal-bearing ore in your pan. Micas and pyrites will not cause your detector to sound off, but gold and other heavy metals will.
10.If you are in all-metal mode, it is not very likely, but it is still possible you may be detecting a quantity of "black sands" or Hematite in the stream or deposit. This is easily checked by using a magnet to attract the Hematite. Put the magnet in a baggie first to help remove the particles from the magnet. Just turn the baggie inside out, and the black sands will now be "in the bag"! Gold is often found with black sands, so if you are finding a great deal of it, pay close attention, and perhaps save some of the sands for further experimentation at home. The gold may be too fine to see without magnification, but the black sands may be leading you to more concentrated deposits.
Hope this long letter has a few hints you and perhaps other newbies can use.[/b]
