Questions on my Ace 250 and cleaning detector???

[CSOhio]

Ok went out tonight for the first time with my ace 250. Im new to the hobby. My first time out was horrible lol it can only get better. I was very patient. As i know i have alot to learn about my detector before i get good enough to find anything. I was out in my back yard and it sucks in my back yard. All i found was nails, and other junk items no clad. I was out for almost 2 hours. I finally decided to call it a day and head in to clean up and eat.

Questions about my ace 250?

I kept it at 4 bars for sensitivity, and i had it on all metal mode. I also tried it on coin mode. It seemed if i would get a hit and go over that spot again nothing, but then if i moved the detector faster it appeared to be a better hit and clearer.

On coin mode or all metal it would show a penny, quarter sometimes 1.00 and it would be nothing i would dig dig dig and find a rusty nail or piece of junk metal. Why would it show its a coin if its not That is why i switched to coin mode and still showed coins but they werent. Something im doing wrong I mean if i would go over that spot and it showed a .25 then id go over it again and again to find it and it would show .10 now. Quite confused. But the good news is if it showed a hit there i would find something just not what it showed.

I dug up around 15 or so holes. The ground here is rooty and very hard with alot of rocks in it. Sucks the ground in this yard. But like i said i did find junk and that i guess is a good sign that im finding stuff. Find junk while learning the detector sooner or later ill find something good.

Im not that good at digging holes, but i was surprised to learn that pinpointing seemed to come the easiest for me i was about 50% right on the 15 holes i dug being within a few inches or it being in the hole i dug. So that is good.

Overall not a bad night i guess. I got some hours to put into this before i get good, i do have some prime spots hooked up to hunt so im hoping to learn fast and move to the better spots. Im gonna sit down and watch the dvd video tonight and hopefully learn something there. I got dirty, did alot of hard digging. I had fun, just didnt like the fact that my detector would show a coin and it would be a nail or what not, is that normal

Also how do you clean up the dirt from your detector? What do you use? I got dirt on my hands and then on the detector.

last question when sweeping your coil do you sweep it right on the grass touching it as you sweep it or always keep it off the grass? could that be my problem i was touching grass.

thanks
digger that is my childhood nickname

 

[hollowpointred]

is it normal for your machine to sometimes say something is a coin when it really isnt? in a word....yes. the machine doesnt really know if something is a coin or not, it is gathering info on the ferrous content of an item and making a guess. even the most expensive detectors can be fooled by iron bits such as nails. its all part of detecting. in general, if your detector locks onto an icon such as a quarter and doesnt bounce all over the place, it is a pretty good indication that it is something good. if it bounces around chances are its trash.........but not always! in time you will learn to understand what the machine is trying to tell you most of the time. the ace is a motion detector which means that in every mode except for pinpoint, the coil has to be moving in order to detect a target. read your manual, watch the video, and repeat! once you understand the info in the book, practice practice practice! i clean mine with just a damp rag and some water. just dont submerge the control box.

 

[CSOhio]

thanks for the info that makes since. now i understand more why the detector was jumping around on nails and such. from like a nickel to dime to 1.00 even.

My only other thing is ill be swinging my coil and then i get a strong signal but i swung past the spot the signal hit, so i tried to go slower but it seems slower the less active the detector is. when i swing it faster it seems to find more things in the ground.

thanks for the help

 

[hollowpointred]

thanks for the info that makes since. now i understand more why the detector was jumping around on nails and such. from like a nickel to dime to 1.00 even.

My only other thing is ill be swinging my coil and then i get a strong signal but i swung past the spot the signal hit, so i tried to go slower but it seems slower the less active the detector is. when i swing it faster it seems to find more things in the ground.

thanks for the help

yes, that is because of the fact that your coil has to be moving in order to detect something. except in pinpoint mode which is a non motion mode. in pinpoint, you can hold the detectors coil over an object and it will sound off. the video should explain how fast to swing the coil. also, keep in mind that gold will ring in like a pulltab in most cases as will nickels sometimes. you are going to dig a lot of trash, its to be expected. some guys dig every target they come across. it can be time consuming but you wont miss anything. i would recommend hunting in jewelry mode to learn and dig it all for a while. that will teach you how the machine behaves on various targets such as coins, rings, cans, tabs, foil, etc. dealing with trash and how a machine will react to it is a big part of the hobby. in most cases thats what seperates good hunters from great ones! the great ones know what the machine is saying to them, even when its lying!

 

[Boobydoo]

Hi Digger,
welcome to TNet and to the greatest hobby of em all.

It's quite overwhelming at first. We all have been through it.
I would go to a place like a schoolyard for your first 20 or 30 hours hunting. There are a lot of good targets, not a whole lot of trash, so you can get the hang of swinging, pinpointing, and digging. A pinpointing signal is a lot more consistant and clearer when your over a good target like a coin or piece or jewelry I think. Nails and bits of metal make a loud signal and they easily move around in the hole unseen while your digging and searching for your target.

Definitely get some gloves to protect your hands. I use the gardening gloves with the rubber fingers and palms, and the wristbands and backs are a nylon material. They keep your hands clean plus protect you from getting cut by all the dangerous stuff in the holes we dig. I have read a lot on this site of hunters slashing their fingers open on glass in a hole, or sharp metal.

It's best to stay about one inch above the ground, or just tickle the tops of the grasses. You will have to dig hundreds of signals before you start to feel comfortable with pinpointing and learning the machine. No matter what mode you are in, I would dig every signal for a good while. You will get the hang of all the little differences in the signal size, shape, and sounds.

Once you dig a nice keeper, you will really be hooked. Best of luck to you!!

Smiles!
BDoo