Whites TDI user coin hunting and other Tips!

[Moxie]

When coin hunting with the TDI we all know using the GEB around 1.5 will drown out anything that isn't silver or copper but with a good loss of depth.
If you take the GEB and crank it up to about 3.75 or 4 in High conductivity PD=10us you might get some small nails that will fool you but if Iron is masking a target like a silver dime from other detectors you will find it with the GEB at 4 or just under. Also Brass will come in alittle bit so you can dig some relics. When in HIGH mode you wont ever hear low conductors such as nickle, small gold (coins below $5). If you come across a signal and it sounds good one way step 90 degrees
and try it from a different direction and if it repeats with the same sound its about 90% chance that its silver or copper coin. If it jumps or is longer or shorter
it is most likely wire, trash, or silver chain and so on.

For nickles and small gold coins you need to use low conductive which most people when coin hunting don't like to do since more trash can fool you in the Low setting.
If you set the GEB at or around 8 or 9 PD= around 10us with the conductivity in low you won't pick up most iron so you can first hunt for those silver coins and then for the nickles and gold coins in this low setting. You'll also pick up some small tacks or wire sometimes but most of the signals of trash are very jumpy or don't repeat with a smooth tone.

If you follow these settings you are sure to find things where most VLF's wont find them. As a reminder this is just for coin hunting and not for relics which I use different settings and dig more iron.

Also the biggest thing with the TDI is to move with a slow swing speed and your sure to get anything with in detector range. Another thing is if your using the 12in DF coil the inner coil is what you want to focus on when gridding. Make sure your overlapping your swing about 50% of the coils diameter.

[Moxie]

Whites TDI Pro (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38qI7Xz2BBo#)

I know I'm wearing sandals and socks lol, I hurried out the door to make this video when I found a Merc dime under a nail. I have done the In ground demo but my camera ran out of space so I didn't post it. It works the same way though.

[del]

good video Moxie unfortunately the SL i've been using doesn't have some of the features the pro has and because of this i don't think it discriminates the iron as well .

[Moxie]

good video Moxie unfortunately the SL i've been using doesn't have some of the features the pro has and because of this i don't think it discriminates the iron as well .


It should work the same way just try your SL on PD=10 GB at 2 toggle in High take an iron nail swing it infront of the coil then swing a dime or quarter in front. It should null out the iron and accept all copper and silver.

Another thing I have found that the TDI pro dosen't like very well is Ike dollar coins due to all the nickel coating the copper it makes for a hard signal.

[del]

It should work the same way just try your SL on PD=10 GB at 2 toggle in High take an iron nail swing it infront of the coil then swing a dime or quarter in front. It should null out the iron and accept all copper and silver.

Another thing I have found that the TDI pro dosen't like very well is Ike dollar coins due to all the nickel coating the copper it makes for a hard signal.


does that only work in high Moxie?? you can't get the same results in all ?? i found out that i could null out some iron when testing it on top of the ground but it did not react the same for burried iron as i was still picking up very well , probably because of the moisture in the ground.

Dan

[Moxie]

I find that anything below 4 GEB with the toggle in High will give you a low tone on a coin and a high tone on most iron. There are some nails and such that might fool you alittle I just put the GEB down to 3 in trashy areas unless I have alot of time then I just dig everything. As for being in all mode I do that sometimes so I know there's a low conductor if I pass one over but I usually check it with the GEB on 9 and if it still rings low then its something good.

Same concepts should work on your SL

[del]

I find that anything below 4 GEB with the toggle in High will give you a low tone on a coin and a high tone on most iron. There are some nails and such that might fool you alittle I just put the GEB down to 3 in trashy areas unless I have alot of time then I just dig everything. As for being in all mode I do that sometimes so I know there's a low conductor if I pass one over but I usually check it with the GEB on 9 and if it still rings low then its something good.

Same concepts should work on your SL


hey Moxie thanks , i used these tactics today at my regular volunteer archaeological hunts (they want all targets :usaflag:ged and dug ). i heard the difference as i used your tips , i maybe have about 20 hours on this machine and it is really a different beast from the vlf machines but i'm starting to feel very comfortable with it . thanks again

Dan

[Moxie]

A good tip for depth with the TDI series is to increase your GB to the 8-10 range. If you can't GB this high or at all at 10 us just take the PD and crank it up a little to 15 or so and try and get your GB in the 8-10 range for more depth. Just remember most Iron will sound alot like a silver coin. These settings are more for relic hunting since most low conductors will sound in a high tone and most iron wont.

Another thing I have found out about the TDI that is amazing is aluminum bottle tops that sound like a coin to any VLF are quiet when using PD=10 GEB=3.5 to 4 makes it more fun to hunt in trashy areas for coins.

[del]

thanks Ian , your tips have helped immensely these last few weeks at the Pequot indian sites and i plan to use these at some of the cellar sites that i know have some very deep targets , just have to find the time . the thing that drives me crazy is i'm constantly bumping the threashold knob up :hairpulling: lol lol .

Dan

[Moxie]

thanks Ian , your tips have helped immensely these last few weeks at the Pequot indian sites and i plan to use these at some of the cellar sites that i know have some very deep targets , just have to find the time . the thing that drives me crazy is i'm constantly bumping the threashold knob up :hairpulling: lol lol .

Dan

I'm glad they have helped you
I usually hold the threshold steady, the only time I hear it change is when the battery is dying. If your getting alot of background noise turn the gain down to around 6 or 7 in high mineralization so you don't get alot of flutter over the threshold and have to adjust it all the time.

[del]

I'm glad they have helped you
I usually hold the threshold steady, the only time I hear it change is when the battery is dying. If your getting alot of background noise turn the gain down to around 6 or 7 in high mineralization so you don't get alot of flutter over the threshold and have to adjust it all the time.


the only time i hear the threashold vary some is when i start to swing the coil a little on the fast side , it will waver a little almost like i'm going over a target but when i slow it some and go back over it will sound smooth . other than that the sl is an incredibly smooth machine , no chatter at all . it is hard for me to tell if the target is a very tiny one or deep , like those small .22 or smaller bullets , i know the bigger targets on top will make the machine sound like its overloading but the deep shotgun shells and the shallow on top .22's sound about the same to me . the objects i searching for the Archaeologists are musket ball from about .30 calibur to .75
http://i486.photobucket.com/albums/rr228/del1786/Pequot%20Indian%20Museum%20hunt%20pictures/musketball1frompequothunt9-25-10s.jpg
http://i486.photobucket.com/albums/rr228/del1786/Pequot%20Indian%20Museum%20hunt%20pictures/Gsmusketball9-25-10s.jpg

and very thin (almost like razor thin) brass arrow points
http://i486.photobucket.com/albums/rr228/del1786/Pequot%20Indian%20Museum%20hunt%20pictures/Georges1stbrasspointenlarged1.jpg
http://i486.photobucket.com/albums/rr228/del1786/Pequot%20Indian%20Museum%20hunt%20pictures/Georgessecondbrasspoint1.jpg
http://i486.photobucket.com/albums/rr228/del1786/Pequot%20Indian%20Museum%20hunt%20pictures/pictureofbrasspointsfortsite.jpg

plus miscellaneous iron (pieces of armor , or weapons )

with your help i have had my best last two days (friday and saturday) as i've recovered 4 musket ball (2- .30 calibur and a .40 and .50) a possible 1637 button and two period brass items ( native american jewelry pieces one has been confirmed) . both great days and better than anyone else detecting , i'm very happy to say i' earning my keep lol lol and representing our detecting club well. these are areas that have been already detected by the Archeaology team first by the way so they have shown alot of respect to us and are amazed at how capable we are with these machines. the areas were at is very difficult to detect as there is rough terrain , wild briars everywhere fallen trees ,limbs , mineralization is giving the other machines alot of problems , plus most of the sites have been littered with iron from more modern times ( 1800's mill and quarrying of stone).
http://i486.photobucket.com/albums/rr228/del1786/Pequot%20Indian%20Museum%20hunt%20pictures/masonsstreamstoparea.jpg
http://i486.photobucket.com/albums/rr228/del1786/Pequot%20Indian%20Museum%20hunt%20pictures/Masonsstreamstoparea3.jpg

boy i'll tell you what Ian that tdi can sure eat a charge out of those batteries quick huh??
Dan

[Moxie]

Yeah I always carry another battery I use razorback coils battery packs there alittle more expensive but you'll get another 2-3 hours out of them.
I'm amazed at what you have found and I feel the same way my TDI will find more stuff deeper than my minelab any day.
You could always get a smaller coil for getting in between rocks an trees. I use a razzorback Beachhog 22x4 to get better coverage in the fields and on the beach wile being able to fit between rocks and tree stumps. They make other coils that are made for relic hunting too.

[del]

Yeah I always carry another battery I use razorback coils battery packs there alittle more expensive but you'll get another 2-3 hours out of them.
I'm amazed at what you have found and I feel the same way my TDI will find more stuff deeper than my minelab any day.
You could always get a smaller coil for getting in between rocks an trees. I use a razzorback Beachhog 22x4 to get better coverage in the fields and on the beach wile being able to fit between rocks and tree stumps. They make other coils that are made for relic hunting too.



yeah i've been using a new rechargeable battery pack ( AW-2200 Li-ion) and i can easily get a full days worth of detecting (10 hours or more) .hey Moxie whats the deepest item you've gotten with that 22x4 coil?? i would like to get that 8.5x11 inch coil by razor back and that 5 incher too for the super trashy spots .

[Moxie]

Its about the same as the DF stock coil but you just get alot more coverage. The deepest I have found is a copper buckle in a tilled field at about 24 inches with the Beach Hog.

[jrmat1]

Hello,

I followed the instructions in this post in order to discriminate most metals except silver
and copper and I'm still getting strong signals on trash. I took the detector to the park
with those settings and I recieved several signals that sounded identical to silver. I even
tried raising the coil and the signal remained constant. I just want to make sure I'm not
missing anything before I sell this detector. I'm mainly interested in coin shooting and not
digging up multiple pieces of trash. I just wanted to give this detector a shot before buying
something else. I appreciate any advice that anybody can give me on this.

Thanks,
JR

[del]

hello Jrmat1 , how long have you had the tdi ?? i'll tell you what distinguishing silver and copper from iron targets is probably the hardest to do on this machine . it takes a good amount of time to tell the two apart. but with some practice you will be able to hear a difference between a round target like a coin and say a iron nail trash target. what size coil are you using and which machines specifically?? welcome to the forum by the way.

Dan

[midas]

The TDI like most detectors react differently - air test vs in ground conditions. Set the machine as described elsewhere to disc iron. Air test - perfect. In ground - not so perfect. With the TDI you will hear lots of sounds. (like the ETrac lol). A coin vs iron vs coin mixed with iron will sound almost the same, but not quite. When you get a signal, scan completely around it from all sides. Most time, a nail will not give a consistent sound. A coin will. The tricky part is when a coin is mixed in with multiple iron targets. The machine will read the coin, tho the sound may be clipped in certain directions because of the iron. That's when experience comes in to play.
For coinshooting, once learned, I found the TDI to be excellent EXCEPT with no inline pinpointer available for it, it was too much work digging up multiple nails out of the hole before I got to the coin. The handheld pinpointers do not disc, so for me were kinda useless.
Despite what you read, the TDI requires a learning experience that takes lots of time and a keen ear.

[jrmat1]

I really appreciate your advice. I have had the detector for a few months now so I'm sure I
have a lot of learning to do. My main focus when hitting the fields is finding old coins and want the best detector out there for that regardless of cost. From what I have read so far there are many different opinions and what the best is. I have been looking at detectors that actual give a visual ID of what's underground, but just want to make sure I'm getting the right one for coinshooting. I'm deploying to Guam next month and have been looking Excalibur 2 for scuba diving and detecting for coins in the water. I hear it's a good one for discriminating other metals. So, back to the TDI. I have the TDI Pro and really trying to figure out if it's worth keeping for coinshooting. From what I'm hearing I just need a little more practice in distinguishing one noise from the next. I have an ACE 250 which does the pinpointing for me and does a great job of letting me know if I'm fixing to dig up a coin or trash by symbol on screen. It just doesn't detect very deep. Once again, thanks for all your help and anymore advice or opinion is greatly appreciated. I'm really looking at getting into underwater detecting so any advice there is appreciate as well. Thanks again

[del]

well Jrmat1 . first the tdi pro is a very noisey machine (a deep one but some what chattery and erratic) compared to the original and sl models so i would give it a much more learning time because of it characteristics. what coil is on the end of that machine ?? the 12 inch whites ?? not a good coil for begginers just starting out in the P.I. machines. the regular and pro models have the longer sounding target sounds than the sl model so i'll try to help as much as i can. try not to listen in the normal ferrous mode , what i mean is theres a ferrous low sound and a non-ferrous high sound for low conductors. theres also a a few other tones that are not as noticeable until you get to really know the machine better. for instance small iron can sound like non-ferrous , i've noticed and nail bits about 3/4 of an inch in length or less can sound like a non-ferrous target . just as some iron can sound somewhat like copper or silver but istead of listening to the low whaaa that iron and silver tones share on this machine , listen to the roundness sound . what i mean is the iron will have the warble or more of the deep whaaaa while the coin will have the sharper more consistant shorter sounding wooooge sound . believe me its hard to really describe it , i recommend making a test garden and listening to the subtle tones. i went from using a dfx to this machine and in the first two to three weeks i was ready to chuck this tdi sl in a lake ( because it was so frustrating and had no bells and whistles) but i stuck with it and its a machine i have a great respect for now and is super sensitive to small non-ferrous targets. i'm here if you need anyone to ask some questions .

Dan

[jrmat1]

Thanks Dan, I'll just have to play around with it more to determine the difference in sounds it
makes. I believe it is the 12'' coil. I'll measure it when I get home. I didn't want to get rid of
the detector and then regret it because of something I find out later. It sounds like a great
machine after you learn the tones well. Thanks again for you help.