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2. Trash
If searching for coins, you want to ignore items like aluminum foil, nails and
pull-tabs. These undesirable items are generally identified toward the lower
end of the 0-100 scale. You can listen to the sounds of all objects detected,
and decide on what you want to dig up. Or you can eliminate unwanted
metals from detection by using the DISCRIMINATION feature.
3. Identifying Buried Objects
Different types of metals are classified along the arc at the top of the screen
on a 0-100 scale from left to right. A 2-digit numerical reading is also
provided in the middle of the display for more precise target identification in
Discrimination mode.
4. Size and Depth of Buried Objects
When using the detector in the motion DISC mode, the relative depth of an
object is displayed to the left of the display over the SIGNAL strength
indicator. A more accurate depth reading is available using PINPOINT.
Pinpoint displays target depth, in inches. The Pinpoint mode does not
require the searchcoil to be in motion to detect metals. The ability to hold
the searchcoil motionless over the target also aids in tracing an outline of
the buried object, or in pinpointing the exact location of the object using
techniques described in the pinpointing section of this manual.
5. Electromagnetic Interference (EMI)
Electrical interference, (EMI),
can cause a metal detector to chatter
spontaneously, to lose sensitivity for no apparent reason, or to cause a
periodic wobbly audio sound. Common sources of electrical interference
include power lines, electronic communication equipment such as
cellphones, fluorescent lamps, military electronics such as radar, other
metal detectors and computer equipment.
Your first line of defense against EMI is to reduce the Gain and/or
Threshold. In areas with heavy EMI, operating at reduced sensitivity levels
will result in the loss of some depth, but at least the metal detector will be
usable.
See the 2-page section on ELECTRICAL INTERFERENCE for a more
thorough explanation of EMI and how to manage it.
GOLD PROSPECTING
Gold Prospecting continued on next page
In the United States, gold is found in many places in the
western states, Alaska, and in a few localities in the
Appalachians. The old saying "Gold is where
you find it," means that to find gold, you
should look in areas where the yellow
metal is known to be present.
Hillsides are the best areas for
gold prospecting using a
metal detector, because
hillsides cannot be
cleaned out by panning
and dredging the way
streams can. Also,
gold on hillsides, not far
from its source vein,
tends to be larger, and hence more
readily detected, than alluvial (placer)
gold which tends to get pounded to
pieces and worn away as it rolls along
the streambed with gravel during floods.
Gold is valuable because it is a scarce
commodity. Even in a good gold producing
area, you will often spend an entire day
without finding any gold. Meanwhile you
will dig bits and pieces of other metal--
birdshot, shells and bullets from hunting and target
practice, bits of rusted barbed wire, chips off shovels and other mining tools,
rusted tin cans, etc. Hot rocks -- rocks containing concentrations of iron
oxides that sound like metal when you pass over them -- are also a nuisance
in many gold areas. Discrimination is usually ineffective because the loss of
sensitivity resulting from discrimination is enough to cause those little nuggets
to vanish. If you have gone many hours without finding gold and are
wondering if there is something wrong with your metal detector or how you are
using it, the most important clue is this: if you are digging tiny pieces of trash
metal, then if gold were present you would have found small gold pieces too!
THE BASICS OF METAL DETECTING
