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Tesoro compadre depth question

CEB 427

New Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2018
Messages
8
I'm new to the group and detecting so sorry if I'm asking this question in the wrong place or repeating the question but I just purchased a Tesoro compadre with an 8" doughnut coil I did an air test and it will only find dimes at like5 - 5.5" inches nickles at 6 inches and quarters at 7 inches and the signal is spotty at 7" with the quarter was wondering if this was normal for this detector or not larger items it will detect up to 10" like an 18k gold bracelet I tried or a mint tin I also tried it with a hallow 14k gold cross pendant that was fairly large like 1.5" by 1" and it would only detect that at 4 inches that didn't seem deep at all for a gold hit is this because the pendant is hallow I appreciate any help I can get with this thank you - Chris
 
Sounds about right to me. You bought an inexpensive beginners detector, were you expecting "top of the line" for $160?

Way too many variables in your post, but taking it (your post) "as is", I'd say things would improve some once you learn how to use it.
 
Thank you for your reply I know it was only $160 and the post was all over (sorry) but I bought this detector as a simpler and lighter machine than my garrett ace 400 I know it's a beginners detector I was under the impression from other users of this detector that I spoke to that the depth results would be better I had the discrimination knob set to all metals what really has me concerned is it only detected that gold pendant up to 4" perhaps it's because most of the pendant is hallow and only a small part solid maybe the results would be different if it were solid ?
 
Thank you for your reply I know it was only $160 and the post was all over (sorry) but I bought this detector as a simpler and lighter machine than my garrett ace 400 I know it's a beginners detector I was under the impression from other users of this detector that I spoke to that the depth results would be better I had the discrimination knob set to all metals what really has me concerned is it only detected that gold pendant up to 4" perhaps it's because most of the pendant is hallow and only a small part solid maybe the results would be different if it were solid ?

1. Don't go by air tests...you can get a baseline but there are variables like where you test.
If you did this test in or just outside your home EMI interference like Wi-Fi and other things can affect depth.

2. Yea...hollow gold will react differently than solid gold.

3. The Compadre with the 8" coil can find the coins you tested a bit deeper than that...sometimes.
Not all detectors are calibrated exactly the same in the factory...you might think they are but nope.
It is pretty well known that buying Tesoros new you have an equal chance of getting one of three kinds...weak, medium or normal and there are some that are extra hot.
Most are medium and yours is close, from what I have read most will act like yours or go about an inch further or so out of the box with that 8" coil.
Some owners got further than that.

There is an adjustment inside that will enable you to turn up the sense a bit higher and maybe get a bit more depth and it is pretty easy but you can seriously screw up your detector if you don't know what you are doing.

My 7" coil Compadre had this adjustment and I am getting close to your results with that smaller coil.


What to do...

First take it out and hunt with it in real world conditions.
You might be getting further than you think out there in the open away from high EMI and you might be worried about nothing.

Second call Tesoro and talk to them about it.
Yea, they are having some issues right now but the repair people are still there and might offer some help.
Who knows, they might want you to send it in so they can recalibrate it for you if they think there is an issue but yours seems to be acting pretty normally IMO.

Third, you can turn up the sense, there are tons of info on how to do that and what to adjust all over the internet.

Fourth, 95% of the treasure we look for is usually at about 5-6" or less in depth, most of mine has been, anyway, and you are hitting that region.
If you are expecting to consistently find tons of targets way further I got news for you...you didn't buy the right tool for that task.


My Compadre cost me $130 used and I am the third owner, minimum.
Mine pretty much hits the depth yours does, I have never worried about it, and I have found over 10X's what it cost me in coins, silver and gold over the years using it part time.
It has provided me with hours upon hours of thrills, fun and joy, there is still nothing on the market even today that can match it for what it can do vs what it cost pound per pound.
It finds coins easily, can find targets laying closer to big metal than most any other detector out there and it has the ability to sniff out all chains and jewelry including silver and gold like it is a religion with this thing.

Quit worrying about it...just go out and hunt.


https://metaldetectingforum.com/showthread.php?t=87892
 
7 inches deep for compadre sounds pretty good!

It really is good,Somtimes when I look at my tape measure and pull it out to the 8 inch mark and think,man that’s pretty deep.I know 99 percent of my best finds weren’t anywhere near that deep,maybe six inches at best.I guess that’s why I think depth is really overrated.And then I watch videos,and guys are pulling these outstanding old coins out,and I look at the hole and it’s like 6 inches deep at best.i know it’s not just me then.
 
Thank you for your reply I know it was only $160 and the post was all over (sorry) but I bought this detector as a simpler and lighter machine than my garrett ace 400 I know it's a beginners detector I was under the impression from other users of this detector that I spoke to that the depth results would be better I had the discrimination knob set to all metals what really has me concerned is it only detected that gold pendant up to 4" perhaps it's because most of the pendant is hallow and only a small part solid maybe the results would be different if it were solid ?

You'll need to remember there are no "absolutes". Soils can make a difference, and while I tend not to believe the whole "weak-hot" stuff, I do believe factory adjustments (like ground balancing) can "fit" one area better than another.

If a detector happens to land (sold/delivered) in an area it was better suited (adjusted) for, then it will run better. Ditto goes for the opposite. This lends some to believe there's some "special" detectors out there that got an extra sprinkle of TFD (Tesoro Fairy Dust).

Best thing to do, use it. It's a great detector, and well worth its price.
 
I have a whole bunch of top of the line metal detectors and most of my finds hardly ever exceed 5 or 6 inches deep no matter which detector that I'm using. The Compadre will find targets in the 1 to 5-inch range that other detectors will miss, especially silver and gold chains. I sold my Compadre and replaced it with the Mojave because I got the same type of performance as I did with the Compadre but with a little more depth added. Win, win, win.

beephead
 
1. Don't go by air tests...you can get a baseline but there are variables like where you test.
If you did this test in or just outside your home EMI interference like Wi-Fi and other things can affect depth.

2. Yea...hollow gold will react differently than solid gold.

3. The Compadre with the 8" coil can find the coins you tested a bit deeper than that...sometimes.
Not all detectors are calibrated exactly the same in the factory...you might think they are but nope.
It is pretty well known that buying Tesoros new you have an equal chance of getting one of three kinds...weak, medium or normal and there are some that are extra hot.
Most are medium and yours is close, from what I have read most will act like yours or go about an inch further or so out of the box with that 8" coil.
Some owners got further than that.

There is an adjustment inside that will enable you to turn up the sense a bit higher and maybe get a bit more depth and it is pretty easy but you can seriously screw up your detector if you don't know what you are doing.

My 7" coil Compadre had this adjustment and I am getting close to your results with that smaller coil.


What to do...

First take it out and hunt with it in real world conditions.
You might be getting further than you think out there in the open away from high EMI and you might be worried about nothing.

Second call Tesoro and talk to them about it.
Yea, they are having some issues right now but the repair people are still there and might offer some help.
Who knows, they might want you to send it in so they can recalibrate it for you if they think there is an issue but yours seems to be acting pretty normally IMO.

Third, you can turn up the sense, there are tons of info on how to do that and what to adjust all over the internet.

Fourth, 95% of the treasure we look for is usually at about 5-6" or less in depth, most of mine has been, anyway, and you are hitting that region.
If you are expecting to consistently find tons of targets way further I got news for you...you didn't buy the right tool for that task.


My Compadre cost me $130 used and I am the third owner, minimum.
Mine pretty much hits the depth yours does, I have never worried about it, and I have found over 10X's what it cost me in coins, silver and gold over the years using it part time.
It has provided me with hours upon hours of thrills, fun and joy, there is still nothing on the market even today that can match it for what it can do vs what it cost pound per pound.
It finds coins easily, can find targets laying closer to big metal than most any other detector out there and it has the ability to sniff out all chains and jewelry including silver and gold like it is a religion with this thing.

Quit worrying about it...just go out and hunt.


https://metaldetectingforum.com/showthread.php?t=87892

Thank you so much for the detailed explanations this helps a lot going to take it out this weekend and see how it does
 
I have a whole bunch of top of the line metal detectors and most of my finds hardly ever exceed 5 or 6 inches deep no matter which detector that I'm using. The Compadre will find targets in the 1 to 5-inch range that other detectors will miss, especially silver and gold chains. I sold my Compadre and replaced it with the Mojave because I got the same type of performance as I did with the Compadre but with a little more depth added. Win, win, win.

beephead

How does the compadre do detecting gold and silver chains it is my understanding that it is very hard to detect gold chains if there not pretty much at the serfice will the compadre find a gold chain say buried at 3 inches I know my Garrett is not good with chains
 
I’ve been using two 8” compadres for a few years maybe 4. I really like them and feel like they do a good job especially on gold. I have had some times, in some parks, where the nickels don’t sound as clean a target as I felt they should have (maybe depth or the soil composition), and also sometimes at the ocean beaches where deep green quarters (possibly in moist sand) don’t sound super sharp, so in both those instances I will dig the more iffy signals. Especially at the beach, or especially if a coin comes up from the park from a less that BAM! signal.

I sometimes do wonder if a larger coil would help go deeper, or a newer machine like the Nox6/800. One day I hope to get one, but until then, having fun with my Compadres!

All but one of my golds all Compadre finds.
 

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I’ve been using two 8” compadres for a few years maybe 4. I really like them and feel like they do a good job especially on gold. I have had some times, in some parks, where the nickels don’t sound as clean a target as I felt they should have (maybe depth or the soil composition), and also sometimes at the ocean beaches where deep green quarters (possibly in moist sand) don’t sound super sharp, so in both those instances I will dig the more iffy signals. Especially at the beach, or especially if a coin comes up from the park from a less that BAM! signal.

I sometimes do wonder if a larger coil would help go deeper, or a newer machine like the Nox6/800. One day I hope to get one, but until then, having fun with my Compadres!

All but one of my golds all Compadre finds.
Here at finds how deep was the chain
 
You'll need to remember there are no "absolutes". Soils can make a difference, and while I tend not to believe the whole "weak-hot" stuff, I do believe factory adjustments (like ground balancing) can "fit" one area better than another.

If a detector happens to land (sold/delivered) in an area it was better suited (adjusted) for, then it will run better. Ditto goes for the opposite. This lends some to believe there's some "special" detectors out there that got an extra sprinkle of TFD (Tesoro Fairy Dust).

Best thing to do, use it. It's a great detector, and well worth its price.

Thank you your help is appreciated
 
If a detector happens to land (sold/delivered) in an area it was better suited (adjusted) for, then it will run better. Ditto goes for the opposite. This lends some to believe there's some "special" detectors out there that got an extra sprinkle of TFD (Tesoro Fairy Dust).


Soil type definitely affects performance, I know this well because I have hunted in some of the best dirt in the country and also in some of the worst.

However there is another reason this good, better, best out of the factory thing is believed by many.
It is not when comparing one model against another by two hunters in different areas but because of a more scientific sampling...two of the same models used by the same hunter in the same dirt at different times.
I have read several dozen comments over the years of owners that had a certain model Tesoro, sold it, years later bought another one and lamented that it's performance was lacking compared to the first one...It was very noticeable.
The words "I never should have sold that first one" always seem to pop up in those posts.
These were not just a couple of comments by a few but many comments from veteran hunters that had enough hours in to know those machines.
I can say for sure I have read Keith Southern say he definitely believes there were some of the earlier Compadres that were definitely hotter than their counterparts that came out a bit later even though they looked the same.
I have also noticed the same thing being mentioned about other models including the Vaquero...I tend to notice those more because the Compadre and Vaquero are the two I have the most experience with.

The same can be said for other brands, the Los Banos Fisher models were sometimes thought to be different than the newer ones I have read in the past, plus the same thing on more modern models of different companies but far and away this sort of comparison usually has the Tesoro brand as the main subject.

Everyone can believe what they want but after reading many thousands upon thousands of posts over the years I have noticed I am not the only one that believes this stuff is true...there are many.

If indeed this stuff is true it is not really that big if a deal, anyway, even the lowest level performance out of a Tesoro still seems to work pretty darn well.
 
Sounds about right. I had a silver Umax that was good to about 4-6" and I had a Vaquero that was good to about 6-7". Sold them both but wished I kept the silver Umax. Though it lacked depth it was still a fun machine to use. I don't miss the Vaquero.
 
How does the compadre do detecting gold and silver chains it is my understanding that it is very hard to detect gold chains if there not pretty much at the serfice will the compadre find a gold chain say buried at 3 inches I know my Garrett is not good with chains

It depends on the chain link size, clasp size, metal content, and the pendant if there's one. One good thing, small chains don't sink very deep in dirt. My best find ever was with a Tesoro Mojave, a gold coin pendant.

beephead
 
I’ve been using two 8” compadres for a few years maybe 4. I really like them and feel like they do a good job especially on gold. I have had some times, in some parks, where the nickels don’t sound as clean a target as I felt they should have (maybe depth or the soil composition), and also sometimes at the ocean beaches where deep green quarters (possibly in moist sand) don’t sound super sharp, so in both those instances I will dig the more iffy signals. Especially at the beach, or especially if a coin comes up from the park from a less that BAM! signal.

I sometimes do wonder if a larger coil would help go deeper, or a newer machine like the Nox6/800. One day I hope to get one, but until then, having fun with my Compadres!

All but one of my golds all Compadre finds.

That’s a lot of gold!
 
Soil type definitely affects performance, I know this well because I have hunted in some of the best dirt in the country and also in some of the worst.

However there is another reason this good, better, best out of the factory thing is believed by many.
It is not when comparing one model against another by two hunters in different areas but because of a more scientific sampling...two of the same models used by the same hunter in the same dirt at different times.
I have read several dozen comments over the years of owners that had a certain model Tesoro, sold it, years later bought another one and lamented that it's performance was lacking compared to the first one...It was very noticeable.
The words "I never should have sold that first one" always seem to pop up in those posts.
These were not just a couple of comments by a few but many comments from veteran hunters that had enough hours in to know those machines.
I can say for sure I have read Keith Southern say he definitely believes there were some of the earlier Compadres that were definitely hotter than their counterparts that came out a bit later even though they looked the same.
I have also noticed the same thing being mentioned about other models including the Vaquero...I tend to notice those more because the Compadre and Vaquero are the two I have the most experience with.

The same can be said for other brands, the Los Banos Fisher models were sometimes thought to be different than the newer ones I have read in the past, plus the same thing on more modern models of different companies but far and away this sort of comparison usually has the Tesoro brand as the main subject.

Everyone can believe what they want but after reading many thousands upon thousands of posts over the years I have noticed I am not the only one that believes this stuff is true...there are many.

If indeed this stuff is true it is not really that big if a deal, anyway, even the lowest level performance out of a Tesoro still seems to work pretty darn well.

So are you talking actual model changes, or identical "off the line" detectors with identical parts?

Because #1, sure, I can see that.

#2, that lends more credence to what I'd posted earlier.
 
So are you talking actual model changes, or identical "off the line" detectors with identical parts?

Because #1, sure, I can see that.

#2, that lends more credence to what I'd posted earlier.

Same exact models, different manufacturing times.
Could be due to a change in parts suppliers, one company's electronic parts and specifications might not be exactly the same as another's if they change over but detector companies won't tell us about that even if they knew for sure there was a change in behavior.
Could be a change in testing methods or the way they calibrated at the factory before shipping.
I often thought this is a flawed process, I don't care how many oscilloscopes or top of the line equipment companies use to calibrate there is still a human being involved in the process...probably more than one.
Human beings are not machines so things change slightly for us over time no matter what task we are doing.

I used an F2 for a long time, I started one of the largest and most viewed threads on this or any forum about them and many different owners came on and we talked about settings and many other things for years.
I read posts in this thread and many others on different forums over the years about specific numbers for common coins and in many instances they were not the same as mine.
Close, but one or two numbers off of what I got most of the time.
I just chalked it up to different soils in different parts of the country.
Then I went hunting a few times with a couple of members of my club two different times that also bought F2's because they noticed how much I was finding with mine.
These were new units bought about 2 years after I bought mine.
One guy's F2 seemed to be exactly the same as mine regarding the numbers we got over coins in the ground or in air testing.
A few weeks later I was giving the second guy some lessons on using his and I noticed something different...every number we got over coins was constantly and consistently two numbers higher than what was normal for mine.
Every time, same dirt, same conditions, same targets but with slightly different behavior.
Not a big deal, if I used his or started with his unit I would have adapted easily.
One set of numbers or another it didn't matter as long as I learned them for the unit I was standing behind.
That is when I realized not every detector that came out the Fisher factory was an exact clone of each other and that was probably true for most detector brands.
Not much is perfect in this world and that includes metal detector manufacturing.

As far as testing for other behavior like different depths in exactly the same dirt between the two similar units I never did that.
There might have been some differences in other areas besides just the VDI numbers for all I know, or maybe not, but there was always that possibility just using logic.

After that experience it wasn't real hard for me to believe posts from others that believed the cool, warm and hot theory about similar Tesoro models or on other brands even though I never had an experience like that using Tesoros myself.

Like I said not a huge deal, I don't believe there is a huge difference between different units in the grand scope of things, but if there are these kind of slight differences in the same model and if I had a choice I would much prefer the hottest specimen I could get if that were even possible.
Who wouldn't?
 
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