Fisher F2 discrimination

DrkJrny

New Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2012
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2
I'm new to metal detecting and I'm having a problem with the F2 discrimination. For example, the screen will say it's a quarter, but ends up being a mason jar lid. I'm starting to wonder if I should have looked for a model with integrity because it seems like the F2 lies like a politician. I mean when it hits there is definitely something there even up to 15 inches deep so far, but just not what it says it will be. After digging what seems to be a hundred holes, I can now understand what it feels like to go for big bucks and instead get the whammy.

Seriously, I'm not looking to strike it rich. I find a lot of enjoyment from a historical standpoint. I'm looking for some tips on how I can improve so the detection results are better.
 
I'm new to metal detecting and I'm having a problem with the F2 discrimination. For example, the screen will say it's a quarter, but ends up being a mason jar lid. I'm starting to wonder if I should have looked for a model with integrity because it seems like the F2 lies like a politician. I mean when it hits there is definitely something there even up to 15 inches deep so far, but just not what it says it will be. After digging what seems to be a hundred holes, I can now understand what it feels like to go for big bucks and instead get the whammy.

Seriously, I'm not looking to strike it rich. I find a lot of enjoyment from a historical standpoint. I'm looking for some tips on how I can improve so the detection results are better.

You are kidding me, right?
I mean, that first part was a joke, correct?
Even though you said seriously, still kinda hard to tell.
I will assume that you were kidding, and try to help.

You do realize that there are many things that come up the exact same in the MD world, right?
Aluminum and steel might be the same signal as dimes and quarters on many detectors.
Pull tabs, nickels and gold rings, too.
Zinc penny signals might actually be a zinc penny, but it also could be all manner of zinc items like pins and rings and tokens and toy cars which could also be made of zinc.
Even two very large class rings I have dug, gold class rings, show up on all my detectors including the F2 as...zinc!

Then there is the size thing.
If the object you are chasing seems bigger than a coin or ring when you swing over it, like you will get the same solid signal tone and numbers over a large area, or when you use the pinpoint button the numbers and tone won't change over a large area, guess what?
That thing ain't gonna be a coin or a ring.
Probably something more on the order of that mason jar lid.
If the bars on the right have only one lit up, and the pinpoint button signal says 00 or 01, and you dig 4-5 or 6 inches down and still haven't found anything, it is going to be something large and deep that has fooled the detector and in turn, fooled you.
The detector did not lie to you, it is just telling you about the world in the only context it knows.
All detectors lie to you if you understand how it really works in this MD world of ours.
You can, however, learn to get past and then get around the lies to a certain extent...eventually.
Learning to listen and hear the the tones and all their colors, which actually are slightly different, (a quarter does not sound like trash), and learning what the numbers are really saying to you on the screen, whether they are solid or jumpy, is something that is the most important thing we talk about around here when you are starting out as a total newbie, or even as a more experienced hunter with a brand new machine...
That thing is called ***LEARNING THE LANGUAGE***, and just like learning a spoken language like French or Spanish, at first it truly is a foreign language that seems to make very little sense at first, but much more sense later when you have learned some of the words.

This confusion is entirely normal.
I went through it, lots of others have too...we all have at one point or another.
Some have a harder time of it and it takes a little longer till that "Eureka" moment hits and you get it, others learn things right away and find it a little easier with a little shorter learning curve.
Little by little, as you learn a tip here that works, and hear a tone that you finally recognize there, you will finally put it all together and that's when this hobby really gets fun...and it usually doesn't take all that much time and it sure is fun while you learn.
Rest assured even the best of us still dig trash...sometimes a lot of it, but overall, we dig way less and find way more than we did at the beginning.
You will too, just keep swinging and practicing and asking questions.
We are a pretty helpful bunch, and I would like to think pretty good looking, too, :D but I guess that fact doesn't really count for much in the grand scheme of things.
Lots of us use the same detector as you do, and many here are very good with them and enjoy it immensely.
I myself have found more wonderful things than you would believe with this so called beginners detector, including many items that were historic, and some silver and gold along the way, too.
But not right away, I also had to put in my time learning.

Here are many tips in this thread that I put down as I learned things, and there are many more tips all over the forum if you use the search function and put in "F2".

Good luck, HH, and keep swinging!

http://metaldetectingforum.com/showthread.php?t=53930
 
What digger said is all true, you didn't buy junk, and have patience grasshopper :)
 
f2 questions here too

I own an F2 and the pinpointer buzzer will go off regardless of where I aim and press the pinpoint function in my backyard. Are you having this problem too
 
yep cans and big targets can fool you. sometimes even when you think you know the detector well. all is part of detecting.
 
My experience so far

I have learned so far that metal detecting is frustrating but once you find something of value, it instantly becomes worth it. Sometimes you might be swinging your detector for hours pulling up pop cans and pull tabs. You'll even end up pulling up bits and pieces of shredded metal that gives a high tone. I started off using a Bounty Hunter Gold Digger. It's got to be the most basic VLF you can get at the lowest cost. If you google it, you'll see what I mean. No target ID, 2 tones (high and low), no battery indicator, no pinpoint, the discriminator has no markings, the analogue meter just hops to max for any tone. I learned to use it, and I figured out what sounds the machine makes. After I started pulling quarters, pennies and a dime out of the ground with it, I finally had a clue as to how it sounded. I even figured out how to size up my target, how to tell how deep it was from the sound and I learned to memorize settings on the disc knob. Very crude machine. I decided that I needed an upgrade to a better detector though. I picked up a Fisher F2 and I haven't had a chance to field it yet but it's light years ahead of my cheap ole' bounty hunter. I'm positive that the F2 can run circles around a $23 (yes I got it for that) bounty hunter gold digger. Your success will be determined on your ability to *learn* how metal detectors work and how to *interperet* what your metal detector is trying to tell you. Metal detectors with an ID system tell you what range the conductivity of the unknown object rang up in. The actual groupings mean that the metal falls in that range. That's why copper pennies ring up as dimes (or produce the same tone), because dimes are a composite of nickel and mostly copper. Gold is whole different issue though. Good luck.
 
you need to start learning the numbers, just because it says Quarter doesn't mean its a quarter but when you learn what number a quarter is you will have a better idea if its a quarter. I believe quarters show up as a 83,but thats not set in stone, if the quarter is on edge or angle it may not give a solid 83. Nickels will give you a 33 if they are flat. everytime I've got a solid 33 its been a nickel. I have dug a thousand bottle caps pretending to be quarters.
 
you need to start learning the numbers, just because it says Quarter doesn't mean its a quarter but when you learn what number a quarter is you will have a better idea if its a quarter. I believe quarters show up as a 83,but thats not set in stone, if the quarter is on edge or angle it may not give a solid 83. Nickels will give you a 33 if they are flat. everytime I've got a solid 33 its been a nickel. I have dug a thousand bottle caps pretending to be quarters.

Metal!iner is spot on but I will add the VDI numbers could be different depending on your soil. Where I hunt, a quarter always hits either a 79 or 80, a dime is always a solid 70 and a nickel chirps of at a solid 32.
 
...and I can add my minimal silver finds (see my sig) all hit as dime 70-71...hope this helps a little...
 
Welcome

Welcome from Lake Dallas Texas. I am asking anyone new to MD to Please Read "The Treasure Hunters Code of Ethics", and to Please learn to cut Flaps/Plugs and to be sure you know proper digging and REPAIR Techniques! Please use Shovels only in the Woods or Farm fields, Please Don't Dig in Sports fields During Season, And Don"t Leave any debris or scrap at a search site! Realize everything you do now Reflects on our Hobby and on MDers everywhere!!! Please make the effort to be an Asset not a Liability!!! Good Luck and Happy Hunting..... :biker: :signals: :digginahole: :biker:
 
Digger, I was joking about the F2. Sometimes it helps to put a light hearted spin on a bit of frustration.

So far I really enjoy the F2 and I believe that I made a wise purchase because it has exceeded my expectations. When it says something is there, it is there. I've had no problems with the pinpoint button as it has been pretty much spot on. I can tell the tones apart, but I haven't really invested much time in learning the numbers which I now plan to do.

I appreciate everyone's tips and input. More than anything else, I wanted to make sure that I wasn't doing something wrong that was causing a false identification. Being new I find myself continuously wondering if I'm doing everything right. Glad to know that others have been in my shoes.
 
Digger, I was joking about the F2. Sometimes it helps to put a light hearted spin on a bit of frustration.

So far I really enjoy the F2 and I believe that I made a wise purchase because it has exceeded my expectations. When it says something is there, it is there. I've had no problems with the pinpoint button as it has been pretty much spot on. I can tell the tones apart, but I haven't really invested much time in learning the numbers which I now plan to do.

I appreciate everyone's tips and input. More than anything else, I wanted to make sure that I wasn't doing something wrong that was causing a false identification. Being new I find myself continuously wondering if I'm doing everything right. Glad to know that others have been in my shoes.

Whew!
That's cool.
We have had a few weirdos come onboard lately, and it's getting a little tough to tell the difference, nowadays.
As long as you are just the normal kind of crazy, you will fit right in with the rest of us.
Welcome!
 
I just got in and seen this thread. Been hunting all day with my.......F2!:yes: All I can add is to take time and learn your F2 and the sounds it makes on coins and objects. And, It will take time. But...... Those numeric values assigned to coins in the owners manual are just a start. Not "set in stone". Believe me, you will get some different things on hits that mimic a coin. Today I was hunting with two other members and got a soild 72 signal. Want to guess what I dug up? An entire Wrist Watch! Band included!:lol: Still in pretty good shape to. And Digger is right. Just because it reads Zinc for example, doesn't mean its always gonna be a penny. And the same holds true for the other indicators on your F2. I would say the Quarter sound and read out holds true for me about 90% of the time in that it actually is a quarter. But, I have hit rings anywhere from Iron to 91 plus. The F2 with the 4 tones and the LCD display, are both very helpful when detecting. But, just like anything else, the more you practice with it the better you get. I really believe in time, you will discover what a fine machine the F2 can be. I wish you Good luck and HH!
 
Found my first larger silver piece the other day with the F2...it was a bracelet and it hit up towards the "quarter 80-82" range on the screen...all my small coin like silver has hit 70-71...bracelet was laying flat about 2-3inches down and it hit with a "double beep" like pop tabs usually do....but the numbers were consistent....so I dug it... glad I did...
 

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The biggest tip is to raise the coil about 6-10 inches above the ground and if it still rings then you either have a pipe in the ground or some big gold bars. Like digger, I started out using the F2 and after 30-40 hours on the F2 You just start making good guesses on what the reading says and what's in the ground. For the most part, The F2 doesn't go 10 inches into the ground so using your pro pointer also tells you if its a coin.

I am using my F5 now and I find this to be more discriminate in coin reading and now I have this machine with a few numbers that I have to remember. The F2 is not retires though since its a little lighter easier to swing.

I still have to figure out the notch system in the F2

I like running on the F4 nickels, zinc, dimes, quarters,
 
I have learned so far that metal detecting is frustrating but once you find something of value, it instantly becomes worth it. Sometimes you might be swinging your detector for hours pulling up pop cans and pull tabs. You'll even end up pulling up bits and pieces of shredded metal that gives a high tone. I started off using a Bounty Hunter Gold Digger. It's got to be the most basic VLF you can get at the lowest cost. If you google it, you'll see what I mean. No target ID, 2 tones (high and low), no battery indicator, no pinpoint, the discriminator has no markings, the analogue meter just hops to max for any tone. I learned to use it, and I figured out what sounds the machine makes. After I started pulling quarters, pennies and a dime out of the ground with it, I finally had a clue as to how it sounded. I even figured out how to size up my target, how to tell how deep it was from the sound and I learned to memorize settings on the disc knob. Very crude machine. I decided that I needed an upgrade to a better detector though. I picked up a Fisher F2 and I haven't had a chance to field it yet but it's light years ahead of my cheap ole' bounty hunter. I'm positive that the F2 can run circles around a $23 (yes I got it for that) bounty hunter gold digger. Your success will be determined on your ability to *learn* how metal detectors work and how to *interperet* what your metal detector is trying to tell you. Metal detectors with an ID system tell you what range the conductivity of the unknown object rang up in. The actual groupings mean that the metal falls in that range. That's why copper pennies ring up as dimes (or produce the same tone), because dimes are a composite of nickel and mostly copper. Gold is whole different issue though. Good luck.

I too started out with a BH Gdigger and went to the Fisher F2. Love the machine and all that comes with it! I have found things that a 600dollar machine missed. Some due to experience im sure, but either way!
 
Found my first larger silver piece the other day with the F2...it was a bracelet and it hit up towards the "quarter 80-82" range on the screen...all my small coin like silver has hit 70-71...bracelet was laying flat about 2-3inches down and it hit with a "double beep" like pop tabs usually do....but the numbers were consistent....so I dug it... glad I did...
SWEEEEET FIND !!!!:shock:
 
Be patient,trust me. Read that manual from front to back,back to front. Heck ,make a copy of the list of pictures with their values and tape it to your unit for you to remember.Great response Digger,well put. I love my F2 and have the F5 as well. Both excellent machines. I use the F2 around tot lots with the sniper 4" coil so I can get super close to the playground equipment. You will learn,and listen to the "Vets" on here. I am a noob as well.I have found a wealth of helpful info from them. Keep on digging ! you will not be disappointed.:grin: You have a reliable,well made metal detector.
 
+1 for the 4"coil. I swung mine today behind a chainlink baseball backstop and pulled coins out that were 3 inches away! Try that with a larger coil.
 
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