Great video should be able to help those etrac users.
That's what I'm hoping Scott. There are countless posts on other forums about which small coil to go with. I only own this one, so it's the only one I can test and comment on.
Great video, Medic! That little coil was getting some serious depth in the air test! Question...
Having never used an Etrac, I always heard 2 tone ferrous is best used in thick iron, so one can hear the good stuff popping through the iron/junk, would you agree with that?
How do you find the Etrac in its ability to locate coins next to iron/trash? Will it give a definite DIG ME signal, letting you know with fair certainty that a coin is near trash, or is the signal real scratchy/broken/mutilated?
Joe
Thanks Joe. Well, I always used two tone Ferrous, but since I recently had my eyes opened, I won't go back. In theory, it gives an iron grunt for anything Ferrous and a higher tone for anything conductive, like a coin. If you put a coin between two iron nails and go over it in TTF, it will miss the coin. I tested this myself and found it to be true. It was also true with the buttons from my last hunt. I went over it thoroughly in TTF and it missed those buttons in the iron. I've changed to 4 tones conductive and it has really opened up the site. It will hit a coin hidden in a blanket of nails every time. I use a "tadpole" discrimination pattern that is easy to find online. Basically some discrimination along the bottom and lower right corner. You get some iron falsing and dig some junk, but it comes with the learning curve, which I'm still dealing with.
(03-15-2016 08:05 PM)RelicMedic Wrote: [ -> ]Thanks Joe. Well, I always used two tone Ferrous, but since I recently had my eyes opened, I won't go back. In theory, it gives an iron grunt for anything Ferrous and a higher tone for anything conductive, like a coin. If you put a coin between two iron nails and go over it in TTF, it will miss the coin. I tested this myself and found it to be true. It was also true with the buttons from my last hunt. I went over it thoroughly in TTF and it missed those buttons in the iron. I've changed to 4 tones conductive and it has really opened up the site. It will hit a coin hidden in a blanket of nails every time. I use a "tadpole" discrimination pattern that is easy to find online. Basically some discrimination along the bottom and lower right corner. You get some iron falsing and dig some junk, but it comes with the learning curve, which I'm still dealing with.
I might take the plunge soon, myself. Don't be upset if I start chewing your ear off for pointers
Keep the videos coming, I found that one very valuable, and I believe other Minelab users will get a lot out of them.
Joe
I appreciate the support Joe. Chew away bud. If I have an answer, you will too and if I don't, I'll get the answer for you.
(03-15-2016 08:22 PM)RelicMedic Wrote: [ -> ]I appreciate the support Joe. Chew away bud. If I have an answer, you will too and if I don't, I'll get the answer for you.
Thanks
I would never sell my Safari, as I just have too much time invested in it, and it's found me a bunch of stuff, but where it's lagging is on coins next to/near iron. Additionally, I feel having the ferrous/conductivity meter will be another useful form of information, which I don't have now. Not that it's always correct, but the more information one has to better help them make a dig/no dig decision is a plus.
Joe
I completely agree. One feature that I feel sometimes gets overlooked in the etrac is QuickMask. You sweep over a target, it sounds broken up. You turn 90 degrees and it's still a broken signal but doesn't quite sound like iron. You can change between TTF and 4TC if you want, just to see if the signal will clear up some. You may even change your discrimination pattern. Instead of doing all of that to determine if it's good or not, hit one button and turn QuickMask on. It opens the screen right up and voila...a bent square nail. I've played around with it quite a bit and every single time (out of 100's) the broken signal was a bent square nail. Surprisingly enough, even a coin on edge hits pretty consistent and has a strong tone with a complete loss of threshold. The etrac can give you alot of information to process, but in time, it just clicks. I'm still learning because with every change in settings, it behaves like a whole new machine. I leave my volume gain high and the variability high. I always use manual sensitivity. I adjust the threshold level sometimes, but that is usually headphone specific. I'll be keeping it in 4TC - multi conductive is just too much for my brain and ears to process. Using 4TC, you don't have to swing really slow, unlike TTF, where I used to move at a snails pace. I like the fact that when you hit the "detect" button, it gives you a few different screen layouts if you hit it more than once. I like the bigger vdi display with the target mark on the screen. I love everything about the etrac except for the weight. I have shoulder injuries from football and body building in my younger years, so my shoulder gets fatigued after an hour. The screen has an awful glare that makes it hard to see, but that's minor for me. The stock Koss ur31 headphones like to break at the plug. I've been through a few sets. I use the Rapoo h3070 wireless headphones (when I think to charge them) and a set of ear buds. Battery life is decent. I can get about 12 hours out of one charge on the stock battery (3 years old) The RNB battery is pretty kick ass. Saving up for one now actually. You won't regret picking up an Etrac. They work great on wet sand beaches, salt or fresh, all soil types and mineralization. Stable around power lines with noise cancel option. Can't beat it!!