FisherMan_1266X said:
Thanks for the welcome!
A little history to begin: I started hunting in 1986/87... I had a 1265 first, and then got a 1266 for a little bit after that (and had to sell it) - and I just recently got another 1266... I primarily look for old silver coins, but I won't pass up any clad if I walk over it... so, on to my questions...
One of my favorite places to hunt is a lot where house(s) have been demo'ed - but the bad part about those places is that they're usually a junkyard, and the 1266 just makes *so* much noise... I understand about using sensitivity to cut down on the noise, but I was just wondering how you handle extremely trashy areas with it? Do you utilize the dual-disc at all? Would it be better to turn Disc 1 *down* rather than up to accept more targets?
Now, I can and do find coins in the middle of really trashy stuff, but it gets to be intolerable after a while of listening to all the discrimination noise...
Basically, I just want to get the *most* out of my 66, and although my methods have been mostly successful in the past, I am positive there are many things I still don't know about the machine, and just want to keep on learnin'!
Another thing is how to better distinguish between tiny, shallow objects (can slaw, grommets, pencil erasers, etc.) and deep, coin-sized objects - as they both give a very similar weak, sometimes broken tone... What I usually do is use the pinpoint mode - I've found that a deep coin will pinpoint more quietly than a small, shallow object (and will usually give the same signal "footprint")... does that sound correct?
My regards,
Robert
Robert,
I will say this... the 1266-X is not an adept coin cherrypicking machine--especially in light of some newer machines that have ID numbers and a depth meter... It can and will do well in trashy areas, but it will always give partial signals for the discriminated targets. (This is VERY handy in finding CW sites and old housesites though, and I wouldn't have it any other way!).
With regards to your question, I am familiar with the sensitivity "trick," but I wouldn't turn the sensitivity down--it changes the quality of the tone (makes the tone "flatter" and less distinguishable from the background "chatter") as well as having the side-effect of losing depth. I have never liked that method personally. What I do in trashy areas--if I'm only out for coins--is to use the dual disc mode and switch back and forth. You'll still dig some large aluminum and iron, but that's par for the course with the machine. Pinpoint's overload "whine" will tell you when you have a large target rather than a small one, and I agree with you about using the pinpoint mode to distinguish the difference between two similar "footprints" in disc mode on a deep coin vs. shallower target. I use this ALL THE TIME for extending the depth of the machine--even if I get a broken signal that I wouldn't normally dig, if the depth (pinpoint) checks out, I dig. You probably already know that you get a "fuzzier" signal on a deeper item in general, and a nice sharp onset to the beep itself when you have a shallower target or a coin. Now, that said...if I were cherrypicking coins with this machine, I would CERTAINLY have missed my two oldest coins for the year so far (1700's Silvers) because of how thin they are. You might also miss half-dimes, brass relics, lead items, pewter, and tombac. So you pretty much have to dig in trashy areas.
As sites get thin, I coax more depth from the machine (at least a foot of depth total on coin-sized targets) by turning the Disc 1 knob down into the nail range and riding the Disc 2 just below 5. When you lower the operating disc. mode on the machine, you will hear more, and you'll have the power of making the decision on digging the target. Coil orientation, orientation of the item in the ground, surface features like cornstalks, and other factors will affect your depth as well--so you have to make sure that more than the usual conductivity range of desirable targets sound good in order to make sure you get everything. This means that I dig targets that I wouldn't normally dig--in order to get the maximum depth out of the 1266! I have dug, MANY CW bullets at a foot or more using this method. I wish it were easier on trashy sites, but yes the machine can drive you a little nuts. You just have to clean it out. You *could* just hunt the area with Disc 1 set at 8 and only dig non-overload, small-pinpointing signals. You'd get coins, but likely miss deep IH's and wheats, an occasional small silver coin, all nickels, all gold, and all small brass.
What the 1266 lacks on cherrypicking it more than makes up for on CW relics and housesite hunting. And another reason I don't turn down the sensitivity is this: In CW relic sites that are *thin*, having this sens. maxed out allows me to get a raise in the threshold tone during a sweep where I am not quite over top of a minieball hiding below a bush, fallen log, or other obstruction that I can't get a direct swipe over. If you lower the sensitivity, you miss this feature--and in worked out sites, there are more goodies hiding in spots like that than in the easy-to-hunt areas.
I hope this helps you, and feel free to keep the questions rolling. I love the machine too, so I'm happy I get the chance to talk about it.
Regards,
Buckleboy
