Detection Hints; Pinpointing A Target - Radio Shack 63-3013 Owner's Manual

63-3013.fm Page 10 Wednesday, July 26, 2000 9:42 AM

DETECTION HINTS

No detector is 100 percent accurate. Various
conditions influence metal detection. The de-
tector's reaction depends on a number of
factors:
• the angle at which the object rests in the
ground
• the depth of the object
• the amount of iron in the object
• the size of the object

PINPOINTING A TARGET

Accurately pinpointing a target makes dig-
ging it up easier. This takes practice, and we
suggest you practice finding and digging up
small metal objects on your own property be-
fore you search other locations.
Sometimes, targets are difficult to accurately
locate due to the sweep direction. Try chang-
ing your sweep direction to pinpoint a target.
1. When the detector locates a buried tar-
get, continue sweeping the search coil
over the target, in a narrowing side-to-
side motion.
2. Make a visual note of the exact spot on
the ground where the detector beeps.
3. Stop the search coil directly over this
spot on the ground. Then move the
search coil straight away from you and
straight back toward you a couple of
times.
4. Make a visual note of the exact spot on
the ground where the detector beeps.
5. Repeat Steps 1–3 at a right angle to the
original searchline, making an "X" pat-
tern. The target will be directly below the
"X" at the point of the loudest response.
10
Notes:
• If trash in an area is so heavy that you
get false signals, slow your sweep
speed and use shorter sweeps.
• Recently buried coins might not respond
the same as coins buried for a long
period of time because of oxidation.
• Some nails, nuts, bolts, and other iron
objects (such as old bottle caps) oxidize
and create a "halo" effect. A halo effect
is caused by a mixture of natural ele-
ments in the ground and the oxidation
created by different metals. Because of
the metal mixtures, target signals might
not be in a "fixed" position. This effect
makes these objects very hard to detect
accurately. (See "Fine-Tuning the Detec-
tor" on Page 9.)
Operation