F75 LTD First Impressions...

I just couldn't wait any longer! 6 weeks ahead of my Chiro's advice, me & my better half hopped in the car at 6:30 Mon. morn. to go swinging in my old fav. school yard that I've dug literally thousands of coins, several ounces of silver & a little jewelry out of over the years with my White's units. First thing I noticed is the playground had been TOTALLY re-done. Several acres of FILL DIRT had been brought in covering my once productive spot in 6+ inches of pea sized gravel. CRAP!
I wanted to try out the 5" coil but knew at this point I needed the 11"er but I just wanted to dig some targets & show my fiance that this funny looking thing really could find some goodies!
My first impression of the machines performance (Sens. 90 - Disc. 4 - 4 Tone) was that I couldn't seem to get it GB'd? No matter what I did, I kept getting a loud beep when I raised & lowered the coil (Yes, Fastgrab) & finally had to just deal with not knowing if the unit was properly GB'd. (Came in at 81)
Trash targets were EVERYWHERE!! Can slaw, pieces of chain link fencing etc... I also could never get a repeatable TID # on anything! The #'s were all over the place with every target which quickly made me remember the "good ole days" with my White's 6000 Di Pro SL which ID AMAZINGLY! This MIGHT have meant that ALL the signals I heard were simply TRASH?
I also changed frequencies but noticed NO difference whatsoever in chatter? After increasing the Disc. to 15 & going to 2 Tone which was MUCH more tolerable, I settled in to digging some targets.
To my utter amazement, I was picking up junk targets at 8+" depths with this hockey puck coil & could even RAISE the coil several inches above the ground & get a strong signal! Good ole can slaw EVERYWHERE!! After only an hour or so of this, wouldn't ya know it. John Law pulls into the parking lot & watches us for a few minutes & as I started to walk in his direction he got out of his car and actually asked "What are you doing?" Being a great respecter of law enforcement kept me from coming back with a smarta$$ answer. (Hadn't this guy EVER seen a Metal Detector before? - Geez !!) He asked for my ID. - checked me out & said "Well I'm not gonna ask you to leave but it sure would make me feel better if you did!"
Seems there were scumbags stealing Copper pipes etc... from schools & as I stood there with my PREGNANT wife I came to the conclusion that this guy loved his job so much (You know what I mean?) that there was no reason trying to use any logic or common sense with him so we promptly loaded up & left as ANOTHER police car pulled in!
Life in the big city right?!
So, THIS was my FIRST experience with the Fisher F75 LTD! NOT the best of first impressions! Any thoughts on my GB'ing issue?? Sorry to ramble (Vent) & thanks for reading!

Been swingin' a White's since the 70's - 5 machines, Currently an XLT & Fisher F75 LE - 50,000 finds, 30,000 (or so) keepers. Published in the White's catalog. Always looking for good/decent hunting buds! Get in touch!

You couldn't GB because you couldn't find any clean ground. I'd manually set the ground balance to 60 and start hunting.

With the coil away from the ground.............pull the pinpoint trigger..........and lower the coil to the ground. Sweep a small/local area to find a clear spot ... to be utilized for Grnd Bal purposes. Fast-Grab in that specific spot......and see if the unit will Grnd Bal.

I did sweep with factory settings 'till I found a clean spot to GB in. NO Joy! (I like that Tom) I also used the Pinpoint mode as you suggest. Again, No joy! It's 95 degrees here so may be a while before I get back out but NO, I'm not soured on my new unit yet! That would be foolish after one short outing! I am seriously bummed that my old fav. hunting ground is now "Off-limits!" I'll work on "fixing" that too!

Been swingin' a White's since the 70's - 5 machines, Currently an XLT & Fisher F75 LE - 50,000 finds, 30,000 (or so) keepers. Published in the White's catalog. Always looking for good/decent hunting buds! Get in touch!

Well, not to stir the pot, but is it 'illegal' to detect the school? Or was it the officers 'opinion' you shouldn't. I would go to the police dept, ask if it is legal. Then explain what happened. Nicely. Then inform them that by you detecting there, you are a set of eyes & ears and will immediately call them if you see anything suspicious or illegal on the school grounds. Your are there for hours....a officer can only be there for minutes.

Nope, not illegal! I'd been 'tectin there for over TWENTY years with no prob. This cop just wanted to show his "Authoriti" but I plan on doing just what you suggested TD. We think alike!

Been swingin' a White's since the 70's - 5 machines, Currently an XLT & Fisher F75 LE - 50,000 finds, 30,000 (or so) keepers. Published in the White's catalog. Always looking for good/decent hunting buds! Get in touch!

Homeland Security has had an impact on a lot of laws in the past few years. One suggestion is to never hunt if anyone is present at the school. Always on the weekends when no other activities are going on. Pickup any trash that is on the surface of the ground as you pass by. Also stay away from the buildings and where AC units are located. These are prime targets for copper thieves. If you should find items like keys , return them to the school. Try to build a good
reputation but remember , it only takes one person to scew it up for everyone.

Tom in SC

I agree it only takes one to screw it up...........but in this case its not a detectorist causing the problem. It's thieves. Why does the detectorist have to take it in the neck? Does the officer chase away people wanting to play a game of baseball or touch football. Probably not. I have the greatest respect for law enforcement, but not every decision a officer makes is fair or correct. I would still contest it as outlined in my first post.
I have gone to city governments to contest this type of arbitrary discriminatory behavior in the past. I am not giving up my rights at the drop of a hat. If Pirate can't use the school grounds for recreation, then nobody else should either. Or else its............DISCRIMINATION..which is illegal.......and there is nothing in Homeland Security regarding the hobby of metal detecting. The only caveat is do not use a knife to dig......use a dedicated digging tool. Like my Predator digger........which is imprinted with 'digging tool' in the blade.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/01/2011 08:17PM by TerraDigger.

Being a retired Pa. State Police Trooper been on both sides and a lot depends on both individuals in question as being a gentleman is required on both sides...Unfortunately vandalism, beer and pot parties, driving on grass and a host of other incidents may or may not affect an officers judgement along with the demeanor and neatness of the detectorist coming into play..In most instances its not illegal but is illegal to damage property and digging holes surely can be construed to doing damage so my advice be neat and courteous as it can go a long way..In our outfit every complaint had to be investigated and if I came upon a beligerent messy detectorist it would certainly affect my judgement what damaging is and of course vice versa..In addendum there are good and bad cops and detectorists for that matter so act accordingly on both sides. Yep my day has been ruined as a detectorist and as a police officer had better things to do than answer misc. complaints from nosy neighbors and always the next schoolyard or tree line to hunt comes to mind....

Cant believe you didnt go somewhere you can test it. I got a 8000 used and I couldnt turn it over 2/3s of its sens without it falsing. Tried 5 different parts of town and all the same. Was able to return because I had tested it and all the day after I got it. Is it new or used?

I completely agree with the need for both parties acting in a 'gentlemanly' manner..........there is nothing more stupid/dangerous than acting like a jerk towards an officer of the law. Pirate did the correct thing by leaving. As obeying a officers instructions, whether one agrees or not, is the prudent thing to do. He can take the issue up at a later time if he so desires. I used to work with law enforcement in the past. Most officers are good people both on & off duty. Occasionaly there is one that wouldn't even give a break to Jesus.....lol.
I'll say it one last time...I greatly admire law enforcement as a whole. As I do the military/veterans.

@ Dan-Pa - The policeman told me that no one complained, he just happened to be driving through & saw our car. I was EXTREMELY respectful & used humor & told him I understood his situation (I lied a little there!) I did everything I could to be a "good guy" - Keep in mind, this guy told me he'd been a cop for 6 years and he'd NEVER seen anyone with a metal detector before! I was dressed well & was with MY PREGNANT WIFE for heavens sake! Yea, we looked like the Bonnie & Clyde of copper thieves! OK, I better stop, now I AM getting irritated! LOL

Been swingin' a White's since the 70's - 5 machines, Currently an XLT & Fisher F75 LE - 50,000 finds, 30,000 (or so) keepers. Published in the White's catalog. Always looking for good/decent hunting buds! Get in touch!

Hi,, For starters I would definitely drop the sensitivity down for now....As far as the policeman goes I have never ever had a problem with them around here....Sometimes I will flag them over and ask them to read the inside of a ring or to confirm that I got an Indian Head penny etc....They are happy to help out and sometimes they come and see if I found anything good yet..Yeah you guessed it,, I can't see real good with out my reading glasses..Best of luck....JJ