Okay, honesty test...how many of you guys dig foil & pull tab signals...stuff in the nickel range? I don't mean once-in-a-while or sporadically, but always? Alternately, how many of you guys dig it all, and I mean ALL? Anything that beeps.
I usually dig a few lower conductivity signals for shits & giggles, especially in the beginning of my hunts when I'm still fresh and have all my energy, but that wears off after about 15 or 20 minutes
Obviously, I don't find much gold on the turf, but it doesn't bother me much as I'm not specifically chasing it. Now...
I WILL dig deep nickel signals virtually all of the time, in the hopes of a V, Shield or something like similar, but that's about the extent of my adventures in that VDI range.
So who among us really goes for the gold all of the time, or digs every signal? For those that do, in a guesstimation, what would you peg the pull tab to gold ratio at? I've heard anywhere from 500 to 1, to 5,000 to 1. And I'm talking over the long term...an average, if you will.
At some very old spots, or private properties, I will literally dig everything that makes a sound, but I'm talking in public places, like parks, wooded areas, etc. Obviously the beach hunters will dig the lower conductivity stuff, but I'm strictly asking about turf here.
Joe, yup I do dig lower signals and plenty of nickels signals. I found that my number range for nickels has expanded since the old days. I mean the nickels from 1998 and forward (2016) don't come in like older ones(pre 1984) - so I have to try harder investigating these and I do get can slaw because of it.
Now a ratio number - I would say that I dig several pieces of slaw and several pull tabs every hunt(maybe 10 to 15 on most days) but this is not being out for six hours - maybe two or three. I don't mind because it is all a learning phrase of the hobby. I learn numbers, sounds and display areas that might produced the gold. If I am in an area that I know the silver has been picked out then I might just coin shoot, dig nickels and listen for sweet gold sounds.
At new areas I am interested in finding wheat cents, silver coins and investigating deep signals - I then will shy away from gold/slaw signals unless that new area is a soccer field or the likes.
I hope this helps the discussion - most of the time silver hits in one area of my display (most of the time). Gold on the other hand has different characteristics and hits in many places on the display. Which this alone will make it more frustrating while dirt fishing and beach hunting.
I dig a bunch but let the site dictate just how much. At some sites it is just nuts to even try to make much of a dent in the trash , even if you pick small areas and work your way through , plus you will eventually leave a path of destruction behind that is not desirable in a public venue. I try to concentrate my heavy digging to areas that have a higher probability of valued targets and where I find the trash is manageable. High schools , public recreational areas in affluent areas and affluent church grounds if possible. I dig all the good solid sounding signals and will fill the pouch with balls of foil and tabs mostly but the damn zincs have become the new pull tab for today's hunter. So many machines are adept at discing them out that no one recovers them anymore and they are breeding like mice. With modern environmental awareness people have stopped tossing their aluminum trash and tabs and the zincs become the culprit in masking the goodies. I dig many zincs also ( at least for the first 30 to 45 minutes
and find lots of cosmetic jewelry and an occasional thin silver ring amongst those readings not to mention , the numerous combinations of clad spills that somehow average out in that range.
The FBS machines give me the best idea what I'm digging but I still dig most of it just to confirm my suspicions. As I mentioned in another post , using the Deus lately has shown me that the Minelabs may be just making me THINK I know whats under the coil but without both machines running at the same time it's impossible to tell.I would think the ratio of good to bad targets would be impossible to quantify as it changes so remarkably from one area to another , even in the same site , but I always look for sites that produce high rates of nickel finds. It tells me the clad sweepers have gone through and most likely left the high value stuff behind.
I make myself dig everything for the first 20 signals every trip out . If I am in an older private site I dig it all just to get the relics. I do not get enough opportunity to get out to give you a great ratio , but I can tell you I have found the shiney yellow stuff in parks.
With my AT pro if it hits a solid 50 , I try to dig it , I get disappointed more often than not , but the reward has been great enough times to make me keep at it.
The dig the first 20 came from my first season of digging, the forums I was involved with back then said newbys should dig it all to learn the language. I got tired of can slaw , foil and pull tabs , but then I dug my first class ring ( 10 k and a real honker ,I returned it to it's rightful owner). That got me a case of gold fever , but pull tabs suck. I had to make a compromise. I probably miss out on some good stuff , but at least I don't own 50000 pull tabs (yet)
Yes I use the 3030 and dig most signals mostly just discriminate about 1/8 inch on the bottom of the scree to get rid of the nails almost all gold I dig falls on the left side about half way up, I love that signal, I dig all bottle caps and pull tabs, aluminum and even foil. I go home with a pouch full every time
(12-17-2016 12:38 PM)Bigtony Wrote: [ -> ]Joe, yup I do dig lower signals and plenty of nickels signals. I found that my number range for nickels has expanded since the old days. I mean the nickels from 1998 and forward (2016) don't come in like older ones(pre 1984) - so I have to try harder investigating these and I do get can slaw because of it.
Now a ratio number - I would say that I dig several pieces of slaw and several pull tabs every hunt(maybe 10 to 15 on most days) but this is not being out for six hours - maybe two or three. I don't mind because it is all a learning phrase of the hobby. I learn numbers, sounds and display areas that might produced the gold. If I am in an area that I know the silver has been picked out then I might just coin shoot, dig nickels and listen for sweet gold sounds.
At new areas I am interested in finding wheat cents, silver coins and investigating deep signals - I then will shy away from gold/slaw signals unless that new area is a soccer field or the likes.
I hope this helps the discussion - most of the time silver hits in one area of my display (most of the time). Gold on the other hand has different characteristics and hits in many places on the display. Which this alone will make it more frustrating while dirt fishing and beach hunting.
I commend your patience, Tony, you have a lot more of it than I. Like I said, if I'm at a VERY old spot, mid 1800's or something, and there isn't too much modern trash, I'll dig everything. But I don't have the patience to dig many low tones (unless they're deep) at a post 1900 location, due to the excessive amount of newer surface junk. You deserve any gold you find
(12-17-2016 03:41 PM)Dusty Wrote: [ -> ]I dig a bunch but let the site dictate just how much. At some sites it is just nuts to even try to make much of a dent in the trash , even if you pick small areas and work your way through , plus you will eventually leave a path of destruction behind that is not desirable in a public venue. I try to concentrate my heavy digging to areas that have a higher probability of valued targets and where I find the trash is manageable. High schools , public recreational areas in affluent areas and affluent church grounds if possible. I dig all the good solid sounding signals and will fill the pouch with balls of foil and tabs mostly but the damn zincs have become the new pull tab for today's hunter. So many machines are adept at discing them out that no one recovers them anymore and they are breeding like mice. With modern environmental awareness people have stopped tossing their aluminum trash and tabs and the zincs become the culprit in masking the goodies. I dig many zincs also ( at least for the first 30 to 45 minutes and find lots of cosmetic jewelry and an occasional thin silver ring amongst those readings not to mention , the numerous combinations of clad spills that somehow average out in that range.
The FBS machines give me the best idea what I'm digging but I still dig most of it just to confirm my suspicions. As I mentioned in another post , using the Deus lately has shown me that the Minelabs may be just making me THINK I know whats under the coil but without both machines running at the same time it's impossible to tell.I would think the ratio of good to bad targets would be impossible to quantify as it changes so remarkably from one area to another , even in the same site , but I always look for sites that produce high rates of nickel finds. It tells me the clad sweepers have gone through and most likely left the high value stuff behind.
I have a hunting strategy which is very similar, Dusty.
The thing about the Deus' (or any other detector where the VDI struggles past a few inches) is that one is almost forced to dig more targets, because the numbers bounce around so much, and you must investigate. And the law of averages say that a few of those extra targets will be good. And you might have walked right past that same signal with a Minelab because the numbers weren't good, or the signal sounded shitty.
(12-17-2016 07:47 PM)Digsit Wrote: [ -> ]I make myself dig everything for the first 20 signals every trip out . If I am in an older private site I dig it all just to get the relics. I do not get enough opportunity to get out to give you a great ratio , but I can tell you I have found the shiney yellow stuff in parks.
With my AT pro if it hits a solid 50 , I try to dig it , I get disappointed more often than not , but the reward has been great enough times to make me keep at it.
The dig the first 20 came from my first season of digging, the forums I was involved with back then said newbys should dig it all to learn the language. I got tired of can slaw , foil and pull tabs , but then I dug my first class ring ( 10 k and a real honker ,I returned it to it's rightful owner). That got me a case of gold fever , but pull tabs suck. I had to make a compromise. I probably miss out on some good stuff , but at least I don't own 50000 pull tabs (yet)
I too tend to dig many (not all) of the lower conductivity signals when I first start hunting, for about the first half hour or so. But, like you, the trash quickly starts getting to me, as does the extra bending & digging. I admire the 'dig it all' guys very much. It takes a lot of fortitude and willpower to keep pounding away hour after hour, day by day, with oftentimes nothing more to show for it than a pouch full of junk. BUT, eventually, the gold will start flowing and all that patience pays off. It takes a special kind of dedication, which I am admittedly not blessed with.
(12-17-2016 07:59 PM)Steveo Wrote: [ -> ]Yes I use the 3030 and dig most signals mostly just discriminate about 1/8 inch on the bottom of the scree to get rid of the nails almost all gold I dig falls on the left side about half way up, I love that signal, I dig all bottle caps and pull tabs, aluminum and even foil. I go home with a pouch full every time
Steve, in your opinion, realistically, how often would you say you use the target trace feature? On every signal? Only on the deep ones? And how accurate is it? Reason I ask is, it's supposed to be one of the main selling features of the machine, yet, I hear almost nobody ever talking about it.
Joe, you too are just like others who metal detect.
You deserve all the deep signals that you find.
My hunts are very infrequent and usually short, say just an hour or maybe a bit longer. So in the past I have tried to cover a fair amount of ground quickly, seeking good high signals. But after reading so much on this forum about techniques and the good results from the posters I have been changing somewhat. Lately I have been working more slowly, covering less ground, and digging more of what I would have passed up earlier. The last few trips have been at an old school yard with basketball courts where in the past I have found silver rings and odd jewelry. If they lose silver they could also lose gold. Don't have any good results yet, but I am cleaning out some trash as I go and hoping that one of my trashy signals might be a nice ring. In an hour Saturday I pulled 23 signals in the 50's and got 18 tabs and 5 nickels, and an assortment of clad. I knew the 5 were nickels because of the solid clear 56 ID, but would never have known what the others were had I not pulled them. One of these days it should pay off. Wish I had more time so I could be really thorough.
Shade, I understand ....just enjoy the time when you are out and good finds will come when you least expect it.
I don't understand who if anyone would keep track of pull tabs and or foil finds in a ratio to finding gold. Beats me - it's not anything I ever would have thought to record.
Now that said - if you count the amount of coins you find and count the ones that are silver you certainly can determine the ratio of those two items easily. This is what drives this hobby - finding silver and finding deep older silver.
Finding the other stuff in this hobby is or can be fun nut you have to be able to roller skate in a buffalo heard......nah only kidding with that line from an old rocker from the 60's.
(12-19-2016 10:32 AM)Bigtony Wrote: [ -> ]Shade, I understand ....just enjoy the time when you are out and good finds will come when you least expect it.
I don't understand who if anyone would keep track of pull tabs and or foil finds in a ratio to finding gold. Beats me - it's not anything I ever would have thought to record.
Now that said - if you count the amount of coins you find and count the ones that are silver you certainly can determine the ratio of those two items easily. This is what drives this hobby - finding silver and finding deep older silver.
Finding the other stuff in this hobby is or can be fun nut you have to be able to roller skate in a buffalo heard......nah only kidding with that line from an old rocker from the 60's.
Believe it or not, I've encountered hunters in the past on other forums, etc., who have indeed kept count of how many pull tabs they've gone through, in relation to their gold finds. Or at least they claimed to. But they were hardcore people who more or less only enjoyed finding yellow, and not so much coins. I know I wouldn't do that, but I admire their effort and analytical approach. It can only be beneficial.
By far, the biggest niche of this hobby is coinshooting, but there are many who could give two hoots about finding coins - old or not - and they enjoy trying to go where the profit lies...in finding gold jewelry. I used to be mainly a beach hunter, so I can understand the passion. There are guy's like Chicago Ron, Gary Drayton and others who measure their yearly gold finds by the POUND, so, finding a merc or barber mightn't be as exciting for them, by comparison.
That's the wonderful thing about this hobby, there's choices; in machines, what one hunts for, locations, who they hunt with, etc. If it makes you happy, do it
