My First Bounty Hunter Ever! Time Ranger Pro

[GB_Amateur]

16 minutes ago, Steve Herschbach said:

Reality is probably not too many people care. How many people hunt all metal while eyeballing target id anyway? I’m probably a rare one there.

I can't say how rare it is, but I also prefer seeing target ID when in all-metal mode.  Fisher 'proved' they knew how to do that with the F75, which came out before the Gold Bug family.  In my case I got the GB Pro first so I wasn't as disappointed with the confirguration of the all-metal screen on the GB as you, but still....

I've found some limited value to the ground phase number for discrimination in All Metal mode.  Depending upon how much the ground phase numbers go down over a target it seems you can get a very rough indication of overall conductivity (that is, taking size & shape & intrinsic conductivity into account) but it's nothing like seeing accurate target ID number on the screen.

I've long speculated (FWIW) that the speedometer thing was a pet project of the engineers.  That is based upon the comments made by chief engineer Jorge Saad in his "The History of the New Gold Bug" story starting on page 11 here.  IMO it's just a low resolution facsimile of the numerical TID which the detector actually 'knows' to a higher precision, but keeps hidden.

 

[Steve Herschbach]

The big phase number started with the Gold Bug SE and no doubt was just a way to emphasize it was a “gold nugget” detector. Reality though is even as a prospector I don’t need to monitor ground phase every minute of the day. That being the case flipping it to the speedometer and making the big number target id just like in disc mode is actually form following function. Every target I am squinting at the speedometer and ignoring that big number. That is an interface error, plain and simple. Other than that quibble though I do like hunting in all metal. It’s of course the default nugget hunting mode but it has other applications, mainly where targets are sparse. If I was using the TRP in the U.K. for field hunting it would normally be in all metal unless I got into a dense target patch. All metal just opens up that detection field to fringe targets in a big way that will be missed entirely while in disc mode. The ones that really are interesting are the ones you can hear but which do not trigger a target id. Those are fringe targets that if you are in disc mode you would never know were there.

[JohnnyRox]

So Steve, what sort of hunting will you be using your new detector for?  Nugget?  Coin?  Jewelry?  Beach?  Parks?  

 

Cool video about the F19.

 

 

[Steve Herschbach]

I'm a gold guy so nuggets and jewelry, though I may putter around in some dense ferrous just for yucks. What people call relic hunting, but which I like to do just to play with the detector and hone my skills. Honestly not a detector I needed, just an impulse thing since I have a soft spot for the series and always wanted an F19 but never made it happen in a real way. It's just a grab and go fun detector. I admit I wanted a new toy to play with.

If I was being rational I would say my 24K is the better nugget detector. The Equinox easily the better coin detector and as good if not better for jewelry. And I have a V3i, clearly superior for jewelry. I don't really do relics, the one thing this detector and coil combo shines at. I'd seriously put it up against a Deus with the NEL coil with no fear in the densest ferrous. But again, that's about last on my things I really do list. So did I need it? No. Did I want it? Yes. Some things don't have to make much sense with me, they just have to be fun, and I have always had fun with the 19 kHz FT machines. 

Like Noah said, a nice unit to leave in my truck... just in case.

It's a fun dry beach small jewelry machine, but not something I do much of either. First place it will probably go is a tot lot to dig wadded aluminum foil. 

 

[JohnnyRox]

LOL at the last sentence.  Cool, enjoy!

[Steve Herschbach]

When it comes to gold prospecting or anything employing the true threshold based all metal mode*, there is not a bit of difference between a Gold Bug Pro, F19, or Time Ranger. Turn the combination power/gain control on and to far right - full sensitivity. Turn the other knob, the mode/threshold control, to the right until you get a faint threshold. Push and hold the GG button while lowering and lifting the coil about a foot above the ground. The audio may vary the first pump but by the second or third the threshold will go even, you are ground balanced, release the GG button.

If the detector will not properly ground balance, lower the gain a little, and repeat ground balance procedure. In extremely mineralized ground you may need to do this more than once to find the gain level that will allow the machine to properly ground balance. However, even while running a GBP in Australia in the worst ground I had almost no problem ground balancing this 19 kHz circuit.

Finally, I find the ground grab button to ground balance a hair neutral for my taste, and for me tapping just once on the + button after ground balancing adds that smidge of positive ground balance I prefer.

*Some detectors these days have an “all metal” setting that is just the discrimination mode with no items rejected. The electronic filtering is still in place but just set to 0. A true threshold based all metal mode completely disengages any discrimination filters and delivers the full power a metal detector is capable of. Some detectors, like the TRP, run the discrimination circuit in parallel and display the target id on the screen while the audio delivers the all metal results. This means you will sometimes hear a fringe target in the audio while getting no target id on the screen. These are faint targets that are not powerful enough to trigger the discrimination circuit, and which would be missed entirely if you are in a discrimination mode, even if no items are set to be rejected. This allows you to see and hear the genuine difference between a true threshold based all metal mode and a discrimination mode, and is referred to as Mixed Mode Processing.

The lesson here is beware detectors that offer “all metal” modes that are just a discrimination mode by another name. They are not the same thing as offered on detectors with a true non-discrimination based all metal mode.

For many applications I do like running this detector in all metal mode, and it takes me just seconds to be up and running. My threshold control stays where I want it, so just turn the power button to far right, quick ground balance, I’m good to go. I’ve used these machines far more in the all metal mode than the disc mode and in some respects it is what this detector is for me. A quick easy way to get access to a powerful and well behaved all metal detector with mixed mode processing (visual disc mode). The actual discrimination mode is very much a secondary aspect of the detector for most of my purposes.

Here is how I came to settle on the 19 kHz FT machines versus the competition. The article is a tad dated but holds up well seven years later. The situation has not changed much, though for straight up gold prospecting we now have quite a few more high frequency options that have blurred the question by adding extra coin and relic type discrimination features. It was more cut and dried seven years ago. At this time for straight up gold prospecting I would go White’s Goldmaster 24K. One reason I got the TRP was to see how the 24K does compared to the TRP on non-prospecting tasks, a bit of a shoot out if you will, 19 kHz vs 48 kHz. Obviously the 24K has the edge for tiny gold. But how does the 24K do for coin or relic detecting compared to the 19 kHz models? I intend to find out.

[Noah (FL)]

On 4/17/2020 at 9:07 PM, Steve Herschbach said:

I may putter around in some dense ferrous just for yucks. What people call relic hunting, but which I like to do just to play with the detector and hone my skills.

. First place it will probably go is a tot lot to dig wadded aluminum foil. 

That’s pretty much the way I look at relic hunting too Steve.  As long as the site is old enough to potentially have gold coins I have no problem “muckin’ around in the iron” for a few hours every now and then and if nothing else learning a bit more about the machine.  

As to the tot lot gold......or rather foil😂😂.......that’ll probably be what I use this for mostly. An alternative to my Mojave/Cleansweep combo for clearing parks, fields and playgrounds of foil and pulltabs 😂😂😂.   

All joking aside I did take it to the church playground down the road yesterday and dug this little chain. Not gold but still a nice test.....and I didn’t even break it👍👍.  The VCO on these machines is really nice for sizing targets.  

[Steve Herschbach]

The Impulse buy was not the Impulse but the Time Ranger Pro. Seriously. I have no real need for it at all. It’s not like I go detecting 24/7 so what am I supposed to do with all these detectors?  Right now it’s taking all my energy to get myself up at 4:30am to get up to Tahoe an hour away by 6am so I can get in 3-4 hours detecting before it gets too busy with people. Plus sneaking in a couple Tarsacci hunts. And when I put in some more hours in the day, I’d like to add my DFX/Bigfoot to the mix. When and where the TRP is going to fit in I just don't know. I need to stop with that kind of “I want one” buying and be more realistic about the time I have and what I’m going to grab. Right now I’m really going for jewelry, and so the Impulse/Equinox/DFX covers all I really need.

My thought with the TRP and small coil was hunting in dense ferrous, but honestly that’s near the last thing I am ever out doing.

[Joe D.]

    I'm going to add to (resurrect) this post now! Seeing how you all subliminally got me to buy a BH variant, G2+ (Camo Pinky) Today!🤣

    I'm excited about getting the G2+, and the opportunity to get some aftermarket coils finally! (ML dig)!  And i vaguely remember reading through this thread! Now it all makes sense!

     Even though this thread is several months old, your all's coil choices appear to be consistent with today's posts! Good job!

    And Steve, i guess Simon and the rest of us, will continue to wait for the "maiden voyage"?? of your TRP!!  In the meantime, I've got a few coils to acquire! For this, i blame you and Simon!! Who knew that you could catch this "illness" through the forum!! How about a warning on the home page, for god sakes!!🤣👍👍