Thomas Dankowski's Metal Detecting Forum

Would you say, ATLC running at sensitivity of 18,would hit sub gram gold,better than AT DEEP running sensitivity 20...
I cannot run ATLC any higher GREY SAND,IN THE WATER..
the equinox I could run beach 1 sensitivity 18..
11 inch coil..M8 not available here in Mediterranean country...thanks mike.

Two evils in detecting, iron and salt. Advancements and tweaks that can help both. As strong as the 40khz hit on the chain is I just wonder if we might have a shot. Just asking why no video showing the hopelessness of it.
SF is higher power and available in both gold and AT modes…

au ........ Your ATLC w/Sens 18.............. VS..............Your AT DEEP w/Sens 20 , . , . , . , . comes out to nearly identical performance on tiny low conductors. Now............ when you add saltwater/wet-sand............the BEACH Modes will win......due to PROPER salt phase-angle compensation (((assuming you Ground Balance to the wet-salt))).

Barry........yes. I DREAM OF using a 40-Khz non-salt mode in the wet-salt/sand!!! But....... the extreme high-conductivity of wet-salt poses blowback/flyback/feedback that is fatally insurmountable. AND (to make it worse) tiny gold jewelry ID's in the exact same ID range as saltwater! Sooooooo......... this is to say: ALL of the gold stud earrings that are lost at the beach.....are stacking up upon each other.......and are undetectable.
There's a reason "WHY" single-freq options are NOT available whilst in any of the Beach Modes.

This thread should have been included/placed on: the Manticore thread.......for consolidation purposes!

Thanks Tom for taking time to answer, I put ATLC by mistake,I ment BEACH LC 18 vs BEACH DEEP..20,
what I don't understand is why it runs sensitivity no better than EQUINOX..this beach has very low wave action, but I believe it has a extremely high salt content,maybe 15% more than Atlantic ocean..

au........ Is this with the M11 coil?
What are your Grnd Bal numbers??
Can you bob/Grnd Balance the unit with about 1/8" of actual water under the coil?

Tom... I ground balance near the water's edge here on the Gulf side of Fl. Averaging around a #13. Beach LC. The sand is dense and lacking any shells. As I walk up the slope, I start to encounter layers of shells etc. and a GB can be as high as the 30's. Because of this I have been using the auto tracking GB. I have yet to GB out any tiny bits of metal which is good. Do you think this is an acceptable situation using the auto?
In the water I have been alternating between the M8 and M9, with a difference of about 2 sensitivity points between the two. I can run at 24-25 with the 8 and 22-23 with the 9. This is using the surf and seawater mode with your other recommended settings. I like the extra coverage of the 9 and possible depth advantage or do you think the 8 is achieving roughly the same depth and also better sensitivity to the smaller gold? Or is it all a trade off? Thanks

Yesthis is with 11 inch coil I tried the ground balance before I enter the water,but it becomes unstable after 5 mins,so I ground balance in 1m of water every 30mins,then it becomes very stable, Its a bay beach that I can walk out 100m..
Ground balance numbers in BEACH DEEP 52..

okara...... your GB numbers sound correct. And............. since your slope is fairly steep.,.,.,., this accounts for better stability in auto-ground-track. I'm still a bit leary of tracking out weak signals whilst in auto-ground-track. Medium & Strong signals ....will not track-out.,.,.,even though the targets may be very small; yet, I have concern of the weak signals.
With the 2-point allowable Sensitivity increase using the M8 coil. , . , . , this makes up for the loss-of-depth to the M9 coil....on coin/ring sized targets; BUT....... the M8 coil will remain more sensitive to smaller gold items! (((You may not want this..... unless you have a good scoop to capture/captivate the tiny targets in the water))).

au...... If you are in a bay whereby ... the water is not crashing; yes!....Ground Balance IN the water. That is your best (most ideal) condition! ((Although a Ground Balance of 52....sure seems high))!!!

Thanks for your input, Tom! When I used the Equinox for 5 years, I never used auto tracking on the sand but occasionally did in the water. And when gold hunting out West, I never used auto tracking no matter how hot the ground was as I couldn't take a chance of tuning out the faint targets. Anxious to get back at it tomorrow1

I used the M8 today in the saltwater and was running sensitivity around 23 / 24. Good target on this 18k open earring, weighing 1.7 grams.
The M8 certainly likes the small stuff. Trying to size things to be accepted on the forum