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Planning a strategy

Posting an update:

I now appreciate just how rare and difficult to find silver coins are. I've also improved my skills a LOT - even though I have much more to learn. Just found my 4th silver yesterday and have adjusted my approach. I've been going to older parks and not caring about easy shallow clad. Been going slower and looking for deep faint signals. It's been paying off.

That is awesome! I'm still confused on the searching for deep "faint" signals. Is this a signal that has the right tone, but just not as loud? Is it still a consistent beep that you get swinging in both directions? Is the VDI showing the right numbers to dig? Or by faint do you mean you are getting a tone, but the VDI is all over the place? or a tone that is scratchy or just a one direction beep? I keep trying to go over my iffy signals, but I only get rusty nails. One day I will catch on, lol.
 
That is awesome! I'm still confused on the searching for deep "faint" signals. Is this a signal that has the right tone, but just not as loud? Is it still a consistent beep that you get swinging in both directions? Is the VDI showing the right numbers to dig? Or by faint do you mean you are getting a tone, but the VDI is all over the place? or a tone that is scratchy or just a one direction beep? I keep trying to go over my iffy signals, but I only get rusty nails. One day I will catch on, lol.

Excellent questions.
 
That is awesome! I'm still confused on the searching for deep "faint" signals. Is this a signal that has the right tone, but just not as loud? Is it still a consistent beep that you get swinging in both directions? Is the VDI showing the right numbers to dig? Or by faint do you mean you are getting a tone, but the VDI is all over the place? or a tone that is scratchy or just a one direction beep? I keep trying to go over my iffy signals, but I only get rusty nails. One day I will catch on, lol.

I'm no expert, but to me a faint signal is simply that, a tone that you might barely hear (a good reason for headphones) I've occasionally had times when I'd hear a faint tone, then it might take me a while to re-find just the right spot and slowly scan to pick it up again, and I think I remember one or more times when I wasn't able to pick it up again :?:

It is my understanding that deeper targets are usually going to be easier to pick up within a few days of a good rain while the ground is moister than usual.
 
That is awesome! I'm still confused on the searching for deep "faint" signals. Is this a signal that has the right tone, but just not as loud? Is it still a consistent beep that you get swinging in both directions? Is the VDI showing the right numbers to dig? Or by faint do you mean you are getting a tone, but the VDI is all over the place? or a tone that is scratchy or just a one direction beep? I keep trying to go over my iffy signals, but I only get rusty nails. One day I will catch on, lol.

Good questions, but that's not really easy to answer, but I'll try.

I'm also fairly new to this hobby (started in March), and I also just got the Equinox 800 a month ago so I'm also trying to learn that machine. I mostly just detect nearby parks that have been hit hard in the past and that I've been over before with my Vanquish. Initially I detected these parks just trying find 'coins' - any coin. I also had watched UTube videos about how to dig less trash and more coins. So that also affected the way I detected, just trying to get the 'easy' targets.

So basically, my approach now is to do the same parks with my Nox, but go slower and try to find signals that others (and myself) may have missed. I'm not so worried about digging possible trash anymore. But I go a lot slower and pay more attention to the audio signals from my Nox. The Vanquish does not vary the loudness of the signal like the Nox does, so that has been a learning experience.

When I think I hear an 'interesting' higher tone, I'll go back over it several times and from different angles. If I get any kind of repeatable signal, I'll dig it. The VDI is another story. For me so far, the Nox seems quite inconsistent with the VDI. At least compared to the Vanquish. The recent silver dime I found was giving a VDI of anywhere from 21-31. It was about 6 inches deep but was giving a very light inconsistent signal and the initial pass over it was just a blip. Going back over it several times it repeated often enough to dig it.

As I keep going, I find the best lessons I learn just come from experience. There's really no way to convey that - just get out there and do it. And have FUN while you're detecting!

GL & HH
 
Thank you for your explanation.

Yes, experience is what is needed to understand. I think I will try an air test to see how the tone will vary in volume, maybe I can train my ears to hear that difference.

That was helpful to know about the blip, and going back to see if the blip will repeat. I do that a lot now. I spend way to long listening to the beep before I dig, but one day it will be silver and I will know how it acted before I dig it. So far all the silvers I have found have been screamers, and I go over the area again again hoping to find more. I end up digging the junk signals that have any sorts of high tones, and don't grunt on the iron audio. That's where I gain experience, haha.
 
Hey, congrats on the wheaties !!!!

As nice as silver is to find, I am happy to dig older coins even if they are not silver, like wheaties or older nickels, definitely better than pull-tabs and Zincolns :lol:

Thanks Gary! Me too, always happy to dig wheats. Have not dug too many older nickels though and never a buffalo nickel or Indian head cent, those are still bucket listers for me.
I really need to start door knocking but will pursue sneaking around 50's neighborhood curb strips for the time being and hope those Garrett guys missed a couple.... :-)
GL & HH!
 
Also, keep in mind ONE VERY IMPORTANT THING…. The shape of the transmitted signal pattern (for a concentric coil) is an ever-narrowing inverted cone of detection (picture a funnel duct-taped to the bottom of your coil). The deeper the target, the more likely you are to totally miss it unless you overlap your coil sweep pattern while swinging. If you do pick up the hint of a good signal and then try to find it again, it’s like trying to detect a penny near the surface with only a coin-sized search coil. It’ll take more time. That’s essentially what you have at the bottom of your inverted cone of detection; a coin-sized search coil.
Somewhere on this forum, there is an illustration of what I described, but I’m typing this on my iPhone now and just reached my tiny keyboard patience limit.
 
Thanks Gary! Me too, always happy to dig wheats. Have not dug too many older nickels though and never a buffalo nickel or Indian head cent, those are still bucket listers for me.
I really need to start door knocking but will pursue sneaking around 50's neighborhood curb strips for the time being and hope those Garrett guys missed a couple.... :-)
GL & HH!

Don't feel bad, while I have dug somewhat older nickels and pennies, still no buffalos yet, or Indian head cents. While curb strips are public areas and okay to detect I realize some homeowners mistakenly think it's part of their property, maybe if you wear a reflective vest for safety from detecting close to where cars go, it can have the added benefit of people thinking you are a worker and not give you a second thought :lol: now if asked I would be honest and say you are simply detecting on public property. I need to find some fresh detecting spots myself, just need to check around for public areas I have not yet tried. (still want to get private property permissions too)
 
Good questions, but that's not really easy to answer, but I'll try.

I'm also fairly new to this hobby (started in March), and I also just got the Equinox 800 a month ago so I'm also trying to learn that machine. I mostly just detect nearby parks that have been hit hard in the past and that I've been over before with my Vanquish. Initially I detected these parks just trying find 'coins' - any coin. I also had watched UTube videos about how to dig less trash and more coins. So that also affected the way I detected, just trying to get the 'easy' targets.

So basically, my approach now is to do the same parks with my Nox, but go slower and try to find signals that others (and myself) may have missed. I'm not so worried about digging possible trash anymore. But I go a lot slower and pay more attention to the audio signals from my Nox. The Vanquish does not vary the loudness of the signal like the Nox does, so that has been a learning experience.

When I think I hear an 'interesting' higher tone, I'll go back over it several times and from different angles. If I get any kind of repeatable signal, I'll dig it. The VDI is another story. For me so far, the Nox seems quite inconsistent with the VDI. At least compared to the Vanquish. The recent silver dime I found was giving a VDI of anywhere from 21-31. It was about 6 inches deep but was giving a very light inconsistent signal and the initial pass over it was just a blip. Going back over it several times it repeated often enough to dig it.

As I keep going, I find the best lessons I learn just come from experience. There's really no way to convey that - just get out there and do it. And have FUN while you're detecting!

GL & HH

Hi Grey! I want to recommend you using your E 800 with recovery speed at 5 and sensitivity 25, Fe at 9. Swing a little slow and you should get some silver coins I know I have been doing very well with mine and it's been 3 years with my Equinox! It really is a great detector.
I forgot to say I am using Park 1 for most sites except the saltwater beaches. Happy Detecting!!!
 
Don't feel bad, while I have dug somewhat older nickels and pennies, still no buffalos yet, or Indian head cents. While curb strips are public areas and okay to detect I realize some homeowners mistakenly think it's part of their property, maybe if you wear a reflective vest for safety from detecting close to where cars go, it can have the added benefit of people thinking you are a worker and not give you a second thought :lol: now if asked I would be honest and say you are simply detecting on public property. I need to find some fresh detecting spots myself, just need to check around for public areas I have not yet tried. (still want to get private property permissions too)

Hey Gary I wear a reflective vest every time I go MD'ing. I have had zero problems too. Plano Cop rolled down his window and asked me if I was finding anything---- this past Monday afternoon.
My new strategy yielded a trickle of wheats for a couple weeks but now zip. DOH!
I'm still too chicken to door knock and only go for the curbstrips I know I wont be challenged on.
This week I'm doing some old home sites (homes no longer there-torn down) that should have silver and wheats but am getting nothing but copper memorials and clad.
Had a beautiful hi tone yesterday, 31-33 on the NOX. Tried to not get excited. Good thing too because it was just a chunk of metal broken off of something. Silver is still only a dream this year.....
 
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