Who Has A Test Bed At Home?

[bigtim1973]

I have not always had a test bed but, the past 6 years or so I have made a few.

I made a fairly large one back in 2018 with all types of targets in it. However, we got hit by a tornado and our woodland home site became an open prairie in less than a minute. 

So after a few months when we were able to get the backyard cleaned up some, I was able to go locate my silver coins I had in there.

Then I made a new test bed with only a couple of targets in there. I did not realize that I put it in an area that we had a stump ground out after the storm clean up. The area started sinking deeper and deeper. Also fire ants and an armadillo decided they wanted to rearrange the terrain there too.

So I dug up those few items and started a new one today in a completely didffent part of my yard where no trees were before the storm ever hit. 

I think a test bed is very good for learning what your detector can do well or what it struggles with. 

Who else has one?

[GB_Amateur]

Below describes one I built (still in service) back in 2019.  It has settled a bit since then but is still pretty useful, IMO.  One thing I learned was to be extra careful ridding the neighboring ground of targets.  Earlier this year I found a trash pocket from when the house was built (1969) about a foot to the right of my 'shotgun'.  It contained a lot of trashy iron (mostly nails, but not all, and even some non-ferrous targets).  When swinging left to right over my intended target located in the tube I was picking up this trash.  It was in the 7-10 inch depth range; I think (hope) I got all of it.  Getting as much extraneous trash out of the test bed area is important for a controlled system.  I get that in the field real (intended) targets are often near secondary (unintended) targets and being able to test in those conditions has value.  But unless you place that trash there yourself (certainly a possibility) you are basically not in control.

Oh, I've also added an 8 inch deep clad quarter nearby as another calibration target to accompany the 5 inch deep 95% copper cent and 6" deep USA 'nickel'.

 

[locator]

1 hour ago, bigtim1973 said:

I have not always had a test bed but, the past 6 years or so I have made a few.

I made a fairly large one back in 2018 with all types of targets in it. However, we got hit by a tornado and our woodland home site became an open prairie in less than a minute. 

So after a few months when we were able to get the backyard cleaned up some, I was able to go locate my silver coins I had in there.

Then I made a new test bed with only a couple of targets in there. I did not realize that I put it in an area that we had a stump ground out after the storm clean up. The area started sinking deeper and deeper. Also fire ants and an armadillo decided they wanted to rearrange the terrain there too.

So I dug up those few items and started a new one today in a completely didffent part of my yard where no trees were before the storm ever hit. 

I think a test bed is very good for learning what your detector can do well or what it struggles with. 

Who else has one?

Hi @bigtim1973. Sorry to hear you was hit by a tornado.

Yes, I had and still have a test setup. The first one I built was similar to yours, with various coins at different depths. Like yours, the ground wasn't as stable as I'd hoped, so the targets shifted or disappeared over the years. The new one, which I set up a few years ago on better ground, only has three targets, and they aren't coins. These new objects are at depths of 4, 6, and 8 inches. They are precious metals, and for me, the only important thing is that a detector can locate them while filtering out iron. This way I can test the different metal detectors under identical conditions (hopefully) and know whether they are suitable for my purposes. For me, a machine doesn't need to go very deep, as I don't want to dig up pennies from a depth of 20 inches or more. After all, I'm not getting any younger.😉🤭

All the best & Have Fun 😄🤞🍀

[bigtim1973]

I put in 8 targets today

1. 6" Buffalo Nickle

2. Silver dime on edge at 4"

3. 5" clad quarter

4. 3" Aluminum screw cap 

5. 4" musket ball between a large square nail and a large broken piece of iron chain link

6. Copper penny 4"

7. Zinc penny 4"

8. 8" fired 58 caliber civil war bullet

I am looking through my junk target stuff and I want to ad an old rusty bottle cap, pull tabs and a square tab. Once I find those 3 things I think I will stop.

I try to place the targets in a situation that I have actually found and recovered similar type of targets at. For example I have never dug a dime at 12" so I will not put one in that deep.

I am surprised at how much better some targets act on single frequency vs multi or SMF frequencies.

[UT Dave]

I have one.  Originally setup to test with my XLT.  Planted it in 2008 I believe.  Some tree growth and sinkage have moved some of the targets both up, down and sideways.

When, after a lengthy hiatus, I picked up the old XLT again, I was alarmed to find that I could not hit on all of the targets in my test garden.  Borrowed a barely used Nox 800 from a friend and easily hit on all of them.  Ordered an 800 immediately.

- Dave

[EL NINO77]

I made my "4x4" test field - where 4 different large targets at border.. depths - in my garden behind the house.. on, let's say, moderate terrain.. which was reasonably cleaned of iron and other small non-ferrous targets.. although some iron still remains deposited in the terrain, let's say between the targets.
The smallest target of 0.05 gram gold is placed at a depth of 10cm, a small 14mm silver earring at a depth of 20cm, a small silver 13.5 mm - 0.5 gram hammered coin at a depth of 23cm, and finally a 50 euro cent coin at a depth of 39cm..

This low mineralized field allows you to achieve good depth results..for various detectors..provided that you set up the detector correctly....but deeply placed targets allow you to further see the possibilities and shortcomings of each tested detector..

Later I added a depth to my test field. A test pit of up to 60 cm depth.in which I place the tested targets into the side of the pit so that the salt eliminates the airtest effect.. entries for coins at depths of 40cm, 44cm and 50 cm, prove well to test the capabilities of each detector and coil.. but I also test the possible response of the detector to various iron that I place at these depths..

This year I added a test field to my test garden with 35 coin targets.. purposefully placed between the iron.. so that I could find out how older and newer detectors compare with these 35 given separation targets... the depth of the placed coins is between 5cm and 15cm.. depending on how quickly the iron around the coin can mask the coin in depth..

*The position of the coin placement and the depth of the coin placement.. between the iron was checked with the reference detector for separation XP Deus 2 and the Fast program..

[EL NINO77]

Test field "4x4"

 Test Pit 60cm deep..

Target N3

Target n1

 

Preparation of 35 targets for Test field 3D low conductors and high conductors...

    

   Now the separation targets "Silver Dime" are going to the line of high conductors ..                                 

 

Target control using Deus2 program Fast

     

Target control using Deus2 Fast program

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3 Llnes of 3D separation test - total of 35 targets 3D between iron...

[JCR]

 I think a test garden/bed is key in learning about how a detector performs, and in turn, how you can improve that performance and yourself.   That must be why I have 4!    The oldest / largest is in mild soil with 25 targets that are each challenging in some way but still realistic.   Another test bed is special built with the high mineralization red dirt I often hunt in.  I have a deep target “track” to test my hunting technique and detector alertness.  The least used is one in very bad iron trashy ground. It needs to be re worked to be more useful.

On almost all of my long term permissions I have test targets buried for a check and to help me set up for the current conditions.

[locator]

When I saw the pictures of @EL NINO77, I realized I'd forgotten to mention that I also test new coils with the detectors. After all, what's the point of a new coil if it doesn't improve the results? That was probably a senior moment.🙄

...what's up??...😄

All the Best