From Whites to Minelab... couple questions for veteran Minelab users

nach0s · Jun 9, 2010

From White's to Minelab... couple questions for veteran Minelab users

Hi All,

I've been using a White's XLT for several years, had lots of good luck with it. However I recently decided to upgrade to something newer, so I went for a Minelab SE.

I know its going to take some time getting used to, I know the White's quite well, and it took time.

However, the following things have me a bit puzzled, would appreciate your feedback.

1. I am having trouble telling the difference between say a moden US quarter (say 70's) and a silver quarter (say 50's).
They both seem to come up with FER 00-01 and COND 29-30 signals.

On the White's, the silver quarter would give me higher VDI numbers (and a higher tone). Do I need to do some adjusting on my end?

2. Also, when pinpointing, if you put the detector down and start to dig, the pinpoint tone can really bore into the ears (with the detector just sitting on the ground). I seem to have to switch it off, put the detector down, then flip pinpoint mode back every time I want to check my hole.

Has anyone else noticed this?

These are just some of my initial comments, wondering what y'all think.

Cheers
Nach0s

Captn SE · Jun 9, 2010

Re: From White's to Minelab... couple questions for veteran Minelab users

Funny. A very similar question about quarter sounds was just asked on another forum.

Don't get too hung up on not being able to tell the difference between a clad or silver quarter. It doesn't really matter if you can't tell 100% of the time what type of quarter it is before you dig it. :dontknow:

If I were you, I would not pass up any signal which registers that high on the Conductivity scale. Large silver rings can easily register in the quarter/half dollar area. Worn silver coins or coins buried near trash targets(iron, aluminum) or in mineralized ground will tend to give different conductive/Ferrous values. A worn silver dime can sound like a wheat penny, or even an Indian Head penny. Also, deep memorial pennies or clad dimes will also sound like silver dimes.

Since you're using an SE, you may want to bump the Variability and Limits settings to their max values (10). That will give you the widest range/variance of tone from low to high conductors.

The most important detecting hint I can give you on your new machine is to not rely so much on the screen. The sound on the Explorers is key to success. Learn the tones of various keeper/trash targets in your hunting areas til your blue in the face. Then you decide if you want to dig based on tone/pitch of the signal and its depth. Eventually, you'll be able to tell depth by the tone (faint/loud) without even having to look at the depth meter. Also, since you're a previous White's user....you need to swing the Explorer much, much slower than your Whites. The slower the better. Start off with a count of 2 seconds per sweep (furthest left to furthest right). In trash, you'll need to even slow down more in order to locate deeper, fainter targets others have passed over. To isolate deeper signals, or any signal you may be thinking about digging, use what is called the "Minelab Wiggle" technique. It's nothing more than swinging your coil over your target in repeated short sweeps (2" to 4" on either side of your target). You can do this as many times as you want to give you a better ID and isolate it from nearby targets.

On pinpointing....yes, your detector can get noisy if you leave it in pinpoint mode for any length of time. You can't leave it in pinpoint mode after you set it down and begin recovering your target. Your machine will become unstable. A lot of Explorer hunters won't even use the pinpoint feature on their machines. They simply use the "Minelab Wiggle" technique to pinpoint. Then, they will have an inline (Sunray X1) or hand-held probe to further pinpoint their target after they have made their plug. Get a probe....it will be the single-most important accessory, aside from your digger, you can buy.

Good Luck!!

HH,
CAPTN SE
Dan

Woodland Detectors · Jun 9, 2010

Re: From White's to Minelab... couple questions for veteran Minelab users

Ignore and just dig.

Unfortunately, no screen is accurate to present day.

Dig the solid good tones.

Iron Patch · Jun 9, 2010

Re: From White's to Minelab... couple questions for veteran Minelab users

Being in New England the best way to avoid modern quarters is to find older sites! :thumbsup: