MD test targets

[AurumHunter024]

Hello folks,

I’m a noob detectorist receiving a Minelab Equinox 800 today & am wanting to get a few items together to use as targets for MD performance testing. I saw a couple folks use targets fastened to poker chips (w strings attached for easy recovery) & I liked that idea so I’ll prob do something similar.
I plan to document my findings w my new machine (its all I’ll have, hehe).

I’m guessing I’ll need a copy or two of each denomination of USA coins.
Silver dollar (is there a clad version?)
Half dollar (silver & clad)
Quarter (silver & clad)
Dime (silver & clad)
Nickel (I don’t know the composition or types issued. Suggestions please)
Penny (Copper & Zinc)
Gold coins maybe?

I’ve access to scrap metal as well (Aluminum, bronze, brass, copper, iron, stainless) but not sure what to use for test pieces. Suggestions are appreciated. Also suggestions for other metals I may have overlooked would be handy.

I’ve got a few gold nuggets ranging in size from .04 gram to 6.25 grams. (Should make for interesting testing to see if MDs will pick up some of these tiny pieces.)

This is what I’ve come up with so far.
Suggestions for other targets are welcome & appreciated.
If there is already a similar thread, I apologize & ask for a link.

Thank you all for looking.

 

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[holepuncher]

I use clad and silver coins that I buried. It works for me.

 

[cudamark]

Test gardens are fine for comparing detectors, but, IMO, you're overthinking this. Air tests and freshly made gardens will only go so far. Just go out and start hunting with your new machine. Dig every target for a while and you'll get used to the sounds and readings real fast.

 

[Loco-Digger]

You might want to add an Indian head penny to the mix and instead of the gold coin, maybe a couple of different sized and weight gold rings.

 

[Professor of Engineering]

Test beds are a good tool, but "Cudamark" has a great point. By digging every target and taking mental notes of their tone (VID also, but I'm sure they are usually off (lower) for deeper targets).

I have a very old test bed (many items) I use to "get the most" out of each of my settings or programs. I use the silver Washington Quarter at a true 12" and Mercury dime at a true 9". The game is to adjust the detector on the dime to obtain the best tone, VID, Depth reading...etc. I then test it on the quarter with these settings and it rings up very nice. The only problem is my test bed is not exactly the same for each area I hunt, but is does give you some indication if you are going in the right direction with machine settings.

Good Luck with your machine!

 

[AurumHunter024]

Thanks for the quick replies folks.

The idea isn’t so much to make a test bed. Rather, it is to have a few reference items that I can use to get an idea about local soil conditions because they’re so variable in my local area. I’m surrounded by red dirt & sand so expect to run into mineral heavy soils. Until I can master the machine, I thought it would be prudent to test the ground I’d be working using known targets. Maybe I am over thinking it a bit but that’s my nature. Doh!

I took the 800 out to a campground for an hour or so today. All I found was a bunch of trash, both there & in the river.
The river was exceptionally warm & difficult to walk around in so I set the detector down & had fun w the kids & the dogs.

 

[CASPER-2]

CONDITIONS VARY SO MUCH IN SOME AREAS- take my word for it - try and dig every thing and you will pick up certain differences eventually
time + talent = treasure...and it helps to have a little luck now and then
Ive been at this since age 12 - 1975 - I hunt in all metal most of the time and follow guys that try and "cherry pick" good targets or
they crank their discrimination and try and only get the good stuff - they miss stuff - some times a lot of stuff
small gold can read as tin foil or pull tabs among other things and cranking your discrimination you can lose depth and miss gold - especially white gold
I believe if you try and dig it all - hopefully you will get it all
other thing is not everything lost lays flat for you - coins and rings on edge will give completely different signal then when they lay flat and
many times depending on items angle a good target may read bad
good luck

 

[AurumHunter024]

I’ve been screwing around in my dried up garden bed trying to get it cleaned up previous to planting test targets.
I think I’m going to have to find another location. After covering it in both Park 1&2 as well as Field 1&2, I’m still finding little wads of aluminum foil all over the place. In all metal mode I get about 10 iron signals per sweep. It’s almost as if someone used the yard to dump they’re burn barrels out in. I’m going to go to the river & check out some camping spots. See what I can dig up.

Oh yeah... digging in the garden requires a pick n shovel because the soil is so compacted. Ouch!

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

Try digging a hole and putting a quarter at 6" and a nail 3" above and just off to one side. That can help you figure out how your detector works with iron masked out or with "peeking" targets.

I bury some trash - shotgun shells, steel and aluminum bottle caps, pull-tabs just to get the "junk" sounds. And I put a 1" lead ball 12" down.


Clad silver dollar? That's an oxymoron. Look for a clad Eisenhower $1 from 1974 or so. Or just don't worry about it. Your detector will go all happy for a dollar whether clad or silver.

I keep a nickle in my finds bag. If I am in a super trashy area I will mask out just up to where I still get a solid hit on the nickle placed on the ground. I find a LOT of nickels so I assume other coinshooters are passing over them.

 

[cudamark]

"Clad silver dollar? That's an oxymoron. Look for a clad Eisenhower $1 from 1974 or so. Or just don't worry about it. Your detector will go all happy for a dollar whether clad or silver".

Actually, there are clad "silver" dollars. The 1971 to 1976 Eisenhower dollars from San Francisco were made with 80% silver in the outer layer. They were made for mint and proof sets and not issued as a regular coin for circulation, but, it's not unheard of to find one. In fact, I just found a proof Jefferson nickel with my detector the other day.

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

Bah. "Clad" is like pregnant. You either are or you are not. ;-)

 

[AurumHunter024]

Try digging a hole and putting a quarter at 6" and a nail 3" above and just off to one side. That can help you figure out how your detector works with iron masked out or with "peeking" targets.

I bury some trash - shotgun shells, steel and aluminum bottle caps, pull-tabs just to get the "junk" sounds. And I put a 1" lead ball 12" down.


Clad silver dollar? That's an oxymoron. Look for a clad Eisenhower $1 from 1974 or so. Or just don't worry about it. Your detector will go all happy for a dollar whether clad or silver.

I keep a nickle in my finds bag. If I am in a super trashy area I will mask out just up to where I still get a solid hit on the nickle placed on the ground. I find a LOT of nickels so I assume other coinshooters are passing over them.

Good ideas!
Thanks for mentioning the trash near treasure scenario.

I was detecting in my front yard yesterday & found a ‘44 wheats. A friend was sitting there so I handed it to him & I haven’t seen it since. Doh! Not t sure what he did with it. Lol It will show up I think but I’m not worried since I smacked it with the pick & bent it. Was a neat find, none the less.

Can anybody tell me why chrome plated steel pegs (a hair clip) the meter around 34-36 (EQ800)?

I’m seeing why y’all tell noobs to dig everything. Some of these readings seem a bit anomalous.

 

[cudamark]

Bah. "Clad" is like pregnant. You either are or you are not. ;-)

I didn't say it wasn't clad....quite the contrary. It just that some clad has some intrinsic value above face value. The '65-70 Kennedy halves are another example. They're clad, but, have extra value because they're 40% silver. I'll take those any day of the week!

 

[boogeyman]

If you really want to go overboard as I did, dig your holes on a grid. Wheats = 3" 6" 8" next nickels. I used the fence posts as corner markers and made a drawing with measurements. To be honest, I've only used it 10 or 12 times in 7 years. My buddy put his in around the same time, his only problem is he keeps tearing it up with the roto tiller. So it's a lot of work, and is it worth it? If you want a real test, carry a pocket notebook with one of those keychain tape measures. Dig everything & record it. You'll get a lot of samples in a lot of different conditions with a heck of a lot less work. After a lot of practice you'll get to the point where you can tell what it is without all the bells & whistles. It's what we did back when detectors only had meters!

 

[Stringtyer]

small gold can read as tin foil or pull tabs among other things and cranking your discrimination you can lose depth and miss gold - especially white gold

So very true. I've been at this hobby for about 4 months and still dig every signal, even if I think they are junk. I'm like the guy at the casino who has crapped out all night but am absolutely sure the next roll will be a winner. At least with detecting I'm not having to plunk down a few hard-earned each time I roll the dice.

 

[johnwon2]

Can anybody tell me why chrome plated steel pegs (a hair clip) the meter around 34-36 (EQ800)?

I’m seeing why y’all tell noobs to dig everything. Some of these readings seem a bit anomalous.

I've found that most Chrome items hit the mid 30's. I was searching by an old garage foundation and everything chrome that fell off of their cars over the years hit in that range (door handles, etc).

 

[TerryC]

I like to make test "strips" from Laminating machine plastic. Silver dime, wheat cent, etc. Most importantly, make trash strips too! You can bury the strip at exactly the depth you want then simply pull it out by grabbing the strip and out it comes. Re-useable too. ╦╦Ç

 

[AurumHunter024]

Similarly, I put each coin target in a food saver strip.
My tiny gold nuggets go into tiny plastic baggies.

 

[pulltabfelix]

I agree 100% with other posts about just getting out there digging all targets and take mental or written notes. Especially on the junk finds. I have a box full of junk and good targets that i use on the surface just to keep my ears trained on what I am hearing. You will have to learn that a coin or civil war bullet near an iron object will sound and ring up different on the VDI than just the coin or bullet alone. But with time you will learn the 800's considerable abilities to find good targets among junk targets. Be prepared for a long learning curve being a newbie with a hot detector. There are a lot of factors to success in this hobby. Hours spent, luck, research and site location. Park volley ball courts and playgrounds are a good place to start using the stock settings like park1 or park2. One of the attractions of this hobby for many is learning a good machine and how to use it. If this hobby was slam dunk easy, then all the good targets would be gone a long time ago. It is a little like golf but much with mud, dirt, bugs, snakes, heat and cold. You are competing with yourself as much as competing with others.

good luck, this hobby can be very discouraging or very rewarding and addictive depending on how you approach it. Beware of youtube videos, you will not have the find rate that they have due to their editing out of trips that are not productive which people do not want to watch.

Also with the 800 on your first trips to trashy parks or fields you will hear so many tones and see so many VDI readings you will think your detector is going bonkers. It takes experience on learning how to set up the 800 for each hunting situation. But when you do learn this you have an excellent machine to use in your hunts. 9 times out of 10 it is not the Equinox but your settings and ground conditions.

Have fun and don't give up.

 

[TerryC]

I agree 100% with other posts about just getting out there digging all targets and take mental or written notes. Especially on the junk finds. I have a box full of junk and good targets that i use on the surface just to keep my ears trained on what I am hearing. You will have to learn that a coin or civil war bullet near an iron object will sound and ring up different on the VDI than just the coin or bullet alone. But with time you will learn the 800's considerable abilities to find good targets among junk targets. Be prepared for a long learning curve being a newbie with a hot detector. There are a lot of factors to success in this hobby. Hours spent, luck, research and site location. Park volley ball courts and playgrounds are a good place to start using the stock settings like park1 or park2. One of the attractions of this hobby for many is learning a good machine and how to use it. If this hobby was slam dunk easy, then all the good targets would be gone a long time ago. It is a little like golf but much with mud, dirt, bugs, snakes, heat and cold. You are competing with yourself as much as competing with others.

good luck, this hobby can be very discouraging or very rewarding and addictive depending on how you approach it. Beware of youtube videos, you will not have the find rate that they have due to their editing out of trips that are not productive which people do not want to watch.

Also with the 800 on your first trips to trashy parks or fields you will hear so many tones and see so many VDI readings you will think your detector is going bonkers. It takes experience on learning how to set up the 800 for each hunting situation. But when you do learn this you have an excellent machine to use in your hunts. 9 times out of 10 it is not the Equinox but your settings and ground conditions.

Have fun and don't give up.

I found $4.28 in between the back door and the usual spot to park the car. I had to dig in "phases" as not to turn that area into mud after a rain. It was only 50 feet long! I like to hunt very old parks. LOTS of trash but if you will clear those good spots out, you WILL find the old stuff under the trash. Just think of every piece of trash as one step closer to the goodies! ╦╦Ç