Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Picking Out the Right Metal Detector

Metal detecting can be separated into two main areas: - gold prospecting and coin, jewelery & relic hunting, with a branch of this being underwater detecting.  Also, there are a couple of models that are purposely planned to be very versatile and can be utilized for either purpose.  In order to get the most dependable detector for anyone's demands, an individual needs to  see which area is most attracting.  In any event, after much research and deliberation, an individual will be able to buy a highly specialized detector, encompassing the necessary features within the overall design.

Even though gold prospecting detectors tend to have excellent ground balancing abilities and are often firmer in depth and sensitivity than the coin hunting models, gold prospecting detectors generally lack discrimination. Coin and treasure hunting detectors possess innovative and accurate discrimination and target identification abilities, but may not perform well in heavily mineralized ground. Consequently, there is a trade off in functioning and characteristics and the detector should have the abilities that may be functional for the intended area.

When researching different metal detector models for purchase there are four important characteristics that can be utilized to categorize how one detector equates with another: Depth; Sensitivity; Discrimination and Ground Balance.  Other factors that should be weighed are the size and types of coils available, types of batteries and hours of usage, and the most essential factor, the cost of the detector.

In regards to depth, it is the distance that a metal detector can penetrate and detect metal objects in the ground. Frequently, some detectors produce extraordinary distances when demonstrated in the air but are very unsatisfactory when the target is sunk in the ground.

The depth attained can be determined by elements such as the frequency of the detector's electro-magnetic field, sophistication of the circuitry, how well it will manage with mineralized soils, stablility and low-noise during detector operation, the size of the target, etc.  In addition, depth is often impacted by the frequency of the detector. Low frequencies will tend to provide better depths and high frequencies will normally improve sensitivity, but at less depth.

Sensitivity is important if gold prospecting is the preferable central point.  Since the frequency of the detector influences the sensitivity of the detector, this feature is highly essential for consideration.

The discrimination function defines the type of metal that has been detected before uncovering. Treasure hunters love this essential feature because it is a remarkable time saver.  In fact, notch discrimination enables the operator to cancel out unwanted metals while letting in desirable items. Most discrimination systems function by testing the conductivity level of the mark and produces an estimate of the identity of the target. Moreover, notch discrimination segments the full conduction range of metals, allowing the operator to accept just those segments that are desirable.  The more notches obtainable, the more precise the discrimination will be on the detector.

Discrimination is not advisable when searching for native gold nuggets, as impurities in gold, as well as concentrated minerals in the soil around the nugget may confuse the discriminator, resulting in a false reading. For this reason, most metal detectors designed for gold prospecting have limited discrimination ability.

For the most part, ground balance is perhaps the most important function on the metal detector for gold prospecting, however, this is one of the most neglected characteristic when comparing metal detector capabilities. The ground balancing setting compensates for the effects of minerals in the ground.  In Principle, this allows the detector to scan the ground and simply provides a signal when it passes over a target. If the ground balancing is not correctly prepared, the detector will make false noises from the ground, which makes it really tough to tell the difference between ground noise and a metal targets.

All metal detectors come with some variety of ground balance, many can be manually changed, some are factory pre-set and others are a true mechanical tracking where the detector is testing the ground effect continuously and alters the ground balance setting to suit. Metal detectors with true automatic tracking excel in highly mineralized soil arenas, as their ability to compensate every couple of seconds makes them so much easier to utilize and to a greater extent efficient.

In conclusion, consider the particular function for the metal detector such as gold prospecting, hunting coins in parks or searching for lost jewelry on the beach, then look at what every machine has to offer to suit that purpose and the features that will be essential.

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