My machine can find a dime at 14 inches, can yours?

[dirtscratcher]

I will say I have a couple single frequency detectors that are pretty deep seekers. That being said I also have a couple multifreqency detectors that for me at least are way easier to dig deep coins with. The don't give the same signal as a shallow coin but the give a signal that is definable as a good target easier recognized as a coin.

 

[DeepseekerADS]

I now live in that rocky hard clay of Southwest Virginia, and the deepest coin I've found here was 5", at the bottom of the sod resting on the beginning of the hard pack clay.

32 years ago I lived in Southeastern Michigan and had the opportunity (with permission) to search a scout camp in Ohio dating to the turn of the 20th Century. The soil there was like dark pound cake, and there was actually very little trash. I ran with almost no discrimination, just a notch up to cut out some chatter, and was the first to search there.

At that time, the coils were concentric, where as the signal grew smaller concentrically as the depth increased, such that over 6" the diameter of the signal was so small you had to seriously overlap your swings to thoroughly cover an area. Using my Fisher 1260X, I once hit a streak of 22 straight silver dimes, and I was moving very slow. Two times I found dimes at 10". Normally my finds were at 6" or less.

At that same camp, the deepest signal I dug was at 15", elbow deep straight down and not off to a side. Sounded just like that faint signal of a dime. It was a balled up cigarette pack, and man that was disappointing! All that work getting there......

Through experience I would say that deeper coins are possible, but have a lot to do with the method of searching. Certainly at a new spot you can swing normally until you've "cleaned out" an area. In covering that area again, you change your methods to a very patient pattern.

 

[JOe L]

I'm not crazy about digging 1 foot holes anyway.
Most of my finds are in the 3-7 inch depth. I do hear "things" deeper, how much deeper, most likely not much but, this ole back just ain't diggen em. Sometimes I get pissed at my Vaquero cause I dig what it sounds off to and it gets to the point......

 

[MrMikeJackie]

I now live in that rocky hard clay of Southwest Virginia, and the deepest coin I've found here was 5", at the bottom of the sod resting on the beginning of the hard pack clay.

32 years ago I lived in Southeastern Michigan and had the opportunity (with permission) to search a scout camp in Ohio dating to the turn of the 20th Century. The soil there was like dark pound cake, and there was actually very little trash. I ran with almost no discrimination, just a notch up to cut out some chatter, and was the first to search there.

At that time, the coils were concentric, where as the signal grew smaller concentrically as the depth increased, such that over 6" the diameter of the signal was so small you had to seriously overlap your swings to thoroughly cover an area. Using my Fisher 1260X, I once hit a streak of 22 straight silver dimes, and I was moving very slow. Two times I found dimes at 10". Normally my finds were at 6" or less.

At that same camp, the deepest signal I dug was at 15", elbow deep straight down and not off to a side. Sounded just like that faint signal of a dime. It was a balled up cigarette pack, and man that was disappointing! All that work getting there......

Through experience I would say that deeper coins are possible, but have a lot to do with the method of searching. Certainly at a new spot you can swing normally until you've "cleaned out" an area. In covering that area again, you change your methods to a very patient pattern.

I agree, curious though, is that Fisher analog or digital?

 

[DeepseekerADS]

I agree, curious though, is that Fisher analog or digital?

I don't even know! But bought that the year before my first computer. I'd say analog off the top of my head.

I still use that antique!!! Oh, it's old and wobbly now, but it still works perfectly. And it's a lot lighter than my Etrac or CTX. For the type of soil here I'd say that performance is on par with the Minelabs. I understand the language it speaks, where I'll be years learning the Minelabs.

An odd point here, one shouldn't immediately discount the capabilities of older machines.

 

[Digger]

I would have to question the legitimacy of a claim to be able to hit a coin at 12" consistently. On the other hand I have gotten many good solid hits in the 10" range. I would say consistently, but, I do get them and can be 90% sure it is a coin. Of course it does depend on the location and how well you know that location and your detector. So I would say 8-10" is not unusual but 12" is pushing the believable limit for me.

 

[MrMikeJackie]

I would have to question the legitimacy of a claim to be able to hit a coin at 12" consistently. On the other hand I have gotten many good solid hits in the 10" range. I would say consistently, but, I do get them and can be 90% sure it is a coin. Of course it does depend on the location and how well you know that location and your detector. So I would say 8-10" is not unusual but 12" is pushing the believable limit for me.

Exactly

 

[bigfoot1]

I have read where people use AT pros where they dig silver 10 to 12 inches all the time,and if the AT pro was that good they would be a $1000 instead of $ 600,and they try to convince people that they are better than the MInelabs are.I havent dug any real deep silver with my machines.i have about sold my machine two or three times to buy me one of those turbo ATpros LOL!!! all metal detectors will find things but some are just are deeper than other ones,some will also separate targets better also,but i would really love to have one of those turbo AT pros tho.I do believe that alot of these deep silver finds are over estimated,so i hope that i havent stuck my foot in my mouth by writing this post.

If you hear what seems to be more claims of extrordinary depth involving a particular machine it is likely there are simply more of that machine out there.Nearly everyone who masters a machine has great faith in that machine,has to.I read less than believable claims made concerning all machines for this reason.turbo etracs,tejons,xlts,atps etc.
I am convinced that most of these claims are ernest,but mistaken.some are just fan boys spouting off.

Vlf tech.has likely reached the limit of depth performance...sad but likely true.The mid level machines are getting better while the high end machines are getting bells and whistles.Even beginner/intermediate machines are pretty dang capable,f2..cpmpadre..250 etc are better than high end machines of the past concerning depth and id.

Let the fan boys spout and bash...but the truth is the differances between manufactures will be less and less pronounced as we move forward untill entirely new technology is developed.Just chuckle when you read about the dime at 15 inches etc.

 

[pepperj]

I chuckle every time I hear or see a depth dispute between users touting their machine as the "deeeeeepest" machine out there. They can "hear" a "whisper" at 14" and that they pull coins all the time at 12 inches no problem.
Really? First off, I didn't realize you could even get a "whisper" sound on newer digital machines, secondly I don't believe 95% of users even know what to look for when seeking deep coins. I believe most go right over them, their machine makes some weird sounds (mostly iron tones), they stop for a second, the display shows a bunch of nonsense on the screen because at that depth no machine out there can give a positive id, so they keep going.
Every now and then a guy will get lucky, the smart hunters will dig only because of repeatability, or because the depth is maxed out on the display. Then others just have a very bad sense of depth, an 8" deep coin turns into a 12" deep coin, or they dig a huge plug and coin happens to fall to the bottom. My 3 deepest coins where dug only because they repeated, one way, barely.
But to say my machine can find a dime at 12" inches no problem is unrealistic under normal hunting parameters. Am I wrong?

Great thread and I'm sure parts have been beat before but there's a refreshing tone to it. "Whisper" tones I hear them all the time (ya right) it's very comforting to read that that you didn't realize that either. I don't know how many times I have read on a thread "got a whisper tone and dug this up" I look at what they using and it's the same Minelab model that I'm using. I sit there and wonder am I missing targets as I get a signal or no signal, is it the noise cancelling headphones, or something else? I have to really think about what a signal sounds like when I'm sitting here, I guess the best way I could describe the sound response times for the same target will be shorter for deep, and longer for shallow. Do they have depth gauges on the screen?

For digging in soils I have measured a LC at 14" once, and a Cartwheel at 14" inches maybe a bit more. These two stick out in my head as those are the only two out of the tens of thousands of recovered targets that I can remember. On the beach well it's just not the same as I have recovered some deep targets and thought this defies logical reasoning for target recovery.

Went out to proven site and a buddy that had the Ace 250 and I had the Etrac I would get a good signal say a penny at 10" (after being dug) and ask if he could here it, "scratchy tone never would dig a signal sounding like that" we did this through out the hunt comparing what the two machines could do and hear. He went out and bought the Etrac but it's interesting to note that after digging thousands of iffy one way, chirping signals I get a surprise every once in awhile with a recovery that makes the other non notable target recoveries worth while.

 

[MrMikeJackie]

Great thread and I'm sure parts have been beat before but there's a refreshing tone to it. "Whisper" tones I hear them all the time (ya right) it's very comforting to read that that you didn't realize that either. I don't know how many times I have read on a thread "got a whisper tone and dug this up" I look at what they using and it's the same Minelab model that I'm using. I sit there and wonder am I missing targets as I get a signal or no signal, is it the noise cancelling headphones, or something else? I have to really think about what a signal sounds like when I'm sitting here, I guess the best way I could describe the sound response times for the same target will be shorter for deep, and longer for shallow. Do they have depth gauges on the screen?

For digging in soils I have measured a LC at 14" once, and a Cartwheel at 14" inches maybe a bit more. These two stick out in my head as those are the only two out of the tens of thousands of recovered targets that I can remember. On the beach well it's just not the same as I have recovered some deep targets and thought this defies logical reasoning for target recovery.

Went out to proven site and a buddy that had the Ace 250 and I had the Etrac I would get a good signal say a penny at 10" (after being dug) and ask if he could here it, "scratchy tone never would dig a signal sounding like that" we did this through out the hunt comparing what the two machines could do and hear. He went out and bought the Etrac but it's interesting to note that after digging thousands of iffy one way, chirping signals I get a surprise every once in awhile with a recovery that makes the other non notable target recoveries worth while.

There's no doubt some machines are a little deeper than others, but dimes at 12" consistently? I love my Minelabs, but........

 

[ColonelDan]

I don't really pay attention to "how deep" comments or questions. The reports I do for Kellyco only very briefly even mention specific depth...only ranges...and I always caveat it by saying results can and will differ depending on the environment. There are just too many variables involved. The beaches here is central Florida are much different than the beaches in the northeast for example and soil composition plays a big role in how well or how deep any detector's ability is in reporting targets under its coil.

I also totally agree on the comment about the 4" hole in the field quickly becoming an 8" hole in a forum post!

Just the view from my foxhole...

 

[ZR2guy]

Never debate religion, politics................or detector depth. If I want to get to China, there are much easier methods than digging my way there.

 

[Skippy SH13]

Sometimes, we get lucky because of the conditions, too. I've found REALLY deep quarters (as in 12+ plus, measured as "two dollar bills of depth, plus a little" as a direct result of a really good soak on a field, and a whole bunch of years in the ground (nice halo). As you noted though, the signal was super spotty... only reason I dug it, was because I wasn't finding anything, and decided to dig every signal. I believe, as you noted, it was hitting iron a lot, and bouncing around like all get out. This was an ACE350. And with bell tone. Whispers are a matter of volume.

It does happen, but I can't produce it in any regularity. There's also the event where I've found "stacked" items in a hole, where I'll pull one, wave the MD and get another signal... Dig a few inches deeper and out comes another. Then add a third detected only with the pinpointer. End result is greater than 10". Does that make my machine consistent. Nah, it just means I can brag a little about how my machine has FREAKING AMAZING DEPTH.

It's dirt-fishing. When doing ANY type of fishing, human nature is to add a little embellishment.

Heck, you don't even have to be the one doing the detecting! Last week, I was in a park, and a guy came up to me telling me how about in Romania (where he was from), someone using a really CHEAP DETECTOR. He then pointed to my ACE 350 and said "Like that one" (wow. Slap in the face... it's not like it's a Harbor Freight!), and they found and old Roman hoard. I said, "Yes, I've heard of that happening." He then went on to tell me the hoard had a pillar of gold that weight a full 7 TONS. And the guy found it in a cave using his detector.

I just smiled and told him I didn't think I'd get lucky like that in a city park. I've laughed ever since. Cheap detector found 7 tons of gold, apparently waving it at a cave entrance. He might have thrown in that it was done by a 5 year old with a Barbie Detector, and it would have had the same amount of truth.

But hey, it was EXCITING listening to him! I really wanted to detect Romania... and find my own 7 tons of gold!

Skippy

 

[pepperj]

There's no doubt some machines are a little deeper than others, but dimes at 12" consistently? I love my Minelabs, but........

They're called pipe dreams I believe.

It's a one of, when the soils, moon, temp, attitude, focus, moisture, and the whatever align, it happens and that's all the memory remembers.
Just think on what the post up would be like if all the dimes were recovered at a foot or more. Someday maybe at what cost, but then again maybe just maybe it's not that far away now.

 

[BosnMate]

When I first purchased my MXT, my first time out besides my yard at home, was to the Oregon coast, and detected a beach near a campground. Had two or three kids along, including a grandson, and I wasn't wearing head phones, so the kids could hear the tones. Needless to say, there was no discrimination, every hit was accompanied by flying sand. On one hit I was totally impressed how deep the MXT found a clad quarter. We got through the dry sand in into damp, and without anything but the sand scoop to measure with, I will swear it was over a foot deep. I will also say that it was an OMG moment, and I was totally impressed by my new machine. But then reality hit, and I've had that machine many years now, and I've never found a coin that deep again, anywhere. Seems like most of my finds are above 6 inches, probably 4 inches would be average. I don't want to dig lots of really deep holes anyhow, and the deep hits seem to be pop cans reading as a quarter. I was spoiled by that first deep find, and dug a lot of cans before I wised up. It's surprising how deep under turf can slaw and get, and how good it sounds until you learn better. One local school, it doesn't seem like the guy ever got off the mower, he just mowed them up with the grass, and now they are pretty deep under the sod.

 

[Sandman]

Guys, Guys, depth of targets are like fishing stories. People exaggerate, mostly the At Pro hunters LOL I have dug targets at shallow & deep depths with all detectors. Remember not all detectors are equal in performance even of the same model.

 

[pepperj]

Guys, Guys, depth of targets are like fishing stories. People exaggerate, mostly the At Pro hunters LOL I have dug targets at shallow & deep depths with all detectors. Remember not all detectors are equal in performance even of the same model.

It's like a pair new shoes, get 4 pair the same size and one would think the same. My electronic knowledge goes as far as don't stick a pair of scissors into an outlet so I have a hard time understanding how gizmos work. I'm not sure if this analogy works but here it goes. If a widget in the brain of the detector falls between 5-8 on the test bench, and this scale is used for circuits, chips, wires, PCB and as long as the testing falls within the range it's good. So if a person happens to get a machine with all 5's or 8's it's going to be perform differently but it falls within the acceptable limits set out by the Manufacture?

 

[FreeBirdTim]

Depth means nothing. The assumption is that all the old coins must be 10" or deeper, which is incorrect. I've found dozens of pre-1900 coins and all of them were 7 inches down or less.

I've also dug a lot of targets in the 8 to 10 inch range, but almost all were clad coins, beer cans or iron objects (even though I was in jewelry mode at the time). The only really good deep target I've ever found was a colonial shoe buckle at 10" down.

Don't spend thousands on a detector because you think you're going to get all the deep silver coins everyone else has missed with their inexpensive detectors. Not gonna happen...

 

[Digger]

I've learned to never underestimate the ability of ones knowledge to take the average detector to extreme depths. You use a detector long enough and one can achieve amazing depths. I'm a loyal DFX fan and we all know the DFX is no depth monster, but I have been using one for 12 years now and I have been able to achieve some extraordinary depths with it.

For the longest time I used to argue with people on the depth ability of the DFX until I realized it was my being at one with the DFX that got me the extraordinary depth. I've moved on now but still keep my DFX near. I've moved to the E-Trac for my great depth hunting and my AT Pro for the tot lots, but I still take the old DFX out for a swing now and then.

 

[MrMikeJackie]

I've learned to never underestimate the ability of ones knowledge to take the average detector to extreme depths. You use a detector long enough and one can achieve amazing depths. I'm a loyal DFX fan and we all know the DFX is no depth monster, but I have been using one for 12 years now and I have been able to achieve some extraordinary depths with it.

For the longest time I used to argue with people on the depth ability of the DFX until I realized it was my being at one with the DFX that got me the extraordinary depth. I've moved on now but still keep my DFX near. I've moved to the E-Trac for my great depth hunting and my AT Pro for the tot lots, but I still take the old DFX out for a swing now and then.

Like I mentioned before, 2 of my deepest coins was found with a DFX. Does that make it a depth "monster"? Not at all. The machine happened to make a little squeak, making me stop to check. Couldn't get the machine to repeat but one way. Pinpoint with the 12" concentric coil was nice and right and bottomed out. So I dug. At no point in time did I have any idea what was down there.