Coinstrike info in bullet format:
(Thanks and credit goes to Fisher Labs and the users of the CS that have posted their findings. With exception of Fisher, all bullets reflect personal, real world experience and may not work in all areas the same way).
Factory set points:
o Iron Disc = 99; Threshold = 0; Sensitivity = 7; Salt Mode OFF; Volume = 10; Notch Disc: Eliminate Foil and Tabs.
o If unstable may want to start out with Threshold at 10 to 25.
o If fast track on set Threshold to 5 to 10 at a minimum and a Sensitivity of 4 or lower.
No arm band with unit, Whites strap fits perfectly.
Not balanced, front weighted which increases with 10" coil.
Glare on screen may be a problem; use filter over the display or wear Polaroids.
Back light display outstanding.
Sensitive to power lines; buried grounded pipes; move away or lower Sens / Thres.
Beer and twist caps register as coin but numbers often bounce and sound can differentiate with practice.
FP (Factory Preset) may be to hot, do not hesitate to lower Thresh to 25 or more and Sens to 1 or 2.
GB in all metal. If unstable, move and GB again. If GB near power lines or grounded pipes TIDs will be unstable.
Some find All Metal mode TIDs well and use as default mode.
Auto Tracking on/off doesnt seem to hurt response.
Initially seems very forgiving WRT sweep speeds.
If PP to large detune by repressing the PP button.
No problem with battery drain noted; be careful you dont accidentally turn on backlight during daylight hours.
It can identify targets in the "all metal" mode also, which is a blessing for high mineralized ground.
If you start with the factory settings and the unit is unstable, turn the threshold down to about 6 and work it back up gradually, decreasing the sensitivity and working that back up as you increase the Threshold each notch.
Once stable, experiment with ONE setting at a time, keep good notes.
When you find a setup that works great for you, save it in one of the 3 memory banks.
You want to run with sensitivity and threshold as high as possible.
Threshold has a MUCH greater impact on depth. Turn down sensitivity for stable operation and try to keep the threshold at 0.
If you are working a really trashy area and want less chatter then turn the threshold down, even at -20 and sensitivity at 7 and pulled coins up to 4 inches down.
If your numbers are jumping around but you think your setting are good then you probably performed your ground balance too close to some metal. Find a clean spot and try again.
I believe the auto ground tracking system can cause weak, deep signals to disappear on the second or third pass if you are using a slow sweep speed. (not sure, not reported by anyone else).
I am starting to think that to help control the small size
of the target you detect the threshold setting will help you
detect the larger coin size targets.
I decided to try out an area with a lot of junk targets.
o Threshold -20 sensitivity +2 volume 10 notch foil out
discm -90 gb done then track off.
If coin on edge, may PP in web vice center and VID may be lower but steady.
CS on averaging gave the least jumping around and although a little out of range readout on edge pennies 30 and 31 no other numbers just jumped between those numbers only and would lock on either for several swings over the targets. On the pennies I found that were flat the numbers were in the normal range. (normal range: zinc 20-22 and copper 28-30)
Stable means jumping < +/- 8.
On deep targets over 12". They gave off a good signal, but the ID was screwy. ID's on these started at 73 like a hot rock. After a few inches of dirt were pushed away it dropped to 53. When the hole was deeper, then 36. You must understand the coil was never closer to the minie ball, the hole just had less dirt. Finally the ball was dug and rung in at 22.
The pewter finial was about the same way. Most of the signals started out in the high numbers on these very deep objects that were non-ferrous.
If averaging on and target near trash, may average up or down depending on the trash reading.
Good results in the black sand, sens@10, Threshold@ -15, SALT OFF, AVERAGING OFF, AND TRACKING ON. Key was to keep some air between the coil and ground. 1 TO 2 INCHES. The wet sand did great with all these setting except, salt was on and tracking was off. All metal mode showed me that the coil needed to be kept a little above the ground or it would roar all the time.
Gold can ID anywhere from 2 34. In general, the smaller the gold the lower the number but Kt also has an affect.
Bulk of the falses can be eliminated simply by turning 90 degrees to the target and rescanning. Those that continue to false generally will shift their TID number a great deal (i.e. a 25 becomes a 6 or something similar). Others give very erratic readings.
Coins on edge may give a fast double hit on a single swing both in disc and PP. Dig in the middle between points.
To ID if target is good or old cap/screw cap: Initial reading = 32-34. Raise coil 4-5" and coins will stay high at 24 or better, cap will drop to 20 or below.
Posted By: Jake <a_jake@msn.com> (65.128.214.12)
Date: Tuesday, 26 November 2002, at 7:11 p.m.
Start loosing depth at threshold 25 but even at threshold 50 targets have been brought up from 7". Good results have been reported in heavy trash with sens 4 and thresh 40.
If you have a strong signal but difficult lock, raise coil during sweep.
TID numbers fall lower the deeper the coin. (though one report saw higher numbers?)
Auto-ground balance correctly is very important. In rare instances where ground balancing can't be done, work from the preset and have the tracking on, as this will adjust ground balance to maintain decent performance. If after you GB you pump the coil up and down it should be silent, if you get noise then GB again in a different area.
Properly adapt the sensitivity and threshold (remembering that there are areas that will require very low settings for these controls).
The threshold adjustment is very useful for hunting near power lines (again, do not be afraid to use low threshold and sensitivity settings! You will be amazed at what you are able to find with a sensitivity setting of 1 or 0 with the Coinstrike, if the environment requires it!).
If unstable may require auto-track and averaging both on while lowering sens and/or thresh. This does not appear to hurt depth significantly. If all else fails, try salt mode even if not near the beach. (This last was a Fisher recommendation to someone who was have real difficulty in their area. It turned out to not be necessary but still an option.)
CS is not a supped up CZ. Consensus seems to be that it is not terribly difficult to set up but there is a fairly long learning curve due to lack of general info on a new detector.
Many coin size targets were over the 10" mark.
The unit is excellent at target separation and hunting in iron infested areas.
Hunted a river bank. Sens 6 Thres -10. Got a jumpy signal.34,38.28,30.No minus numbers. Was able to pp.Out came a 1826 lg.cent.Out of the hole it gave a solid 34.Went back to the hole. Same jumpy numbers. Couldn't pp. Dug a crater. Nothing.
CS has conflicting reports on bad ground, some find it runs better than the CZs but there is one report from Alaska that found CS did not handle ground there well.
CS is great in black sand and red clay.
CS is sensitive to battery voltage. 9V will quickly drop to 8, then 7. CS will work at 7 but need fresh batteries at 6. Plain view 9 volt batteries will constantly produce 9v readings until they are drained (about 11 hours).
When going from averaging on to off, or vice versa, you will see "A" prior to shifting to "A1" or "A0" depending if you turning on or off. Dont stop at "A" or the machine will revert to starting point setting. Hold button until completely shifted.
Not verified: If your CS goes crazy for no apparent
reason and turning it off and back on does not correct the situation, turn
it on and pull the batteries out. After a minute or so reinstall and turn
on.
Some notes from the forums:
New FRL settings. (LONG)
Posted By: Bonez <bonez@yahoo.com> (64.252.64.80)
Date: Wednesday, 13 November 2002, at 7:30 p.m.
I first tried the all metal pinpointing. I experienced no background noise when I Ground Balanced, switching it to All Metal mode, and bobbing the coil up and down. I searched about 5 feet and again the unit was erratic. Next I turned the Averaging on and re-Ground Balanced. I shied away from this in the past thinking I would miss good targets that were near iron. It did settle the unit down a little but not what I would consider stable. I turned Averaging off and activated the Auto Trac. I then re-Ground Balanced and the unit ran more stable than I had seen it since the summer with minimal bouncing on the TID. Daniel at Fisher said it will not sacrifice depth and after trying these settings I trust him. I turned the Auto Trac off and went to Salt mode. Not the right choice, short blipping everywhere. I turned Salt off, Auto Trac back on, activated the Averaging function, then re-Ground Balanced. The CS did not peep for about 15 feet. It then ID'd a target repeatedly at 9-10. I dug a 1960 nickel out of the mud at about 4" with the Lesche. I then turned the CS off and headed inside to clean up. I am going to call Daniel back tomorrow and thank him. I will work with these settings saved in memory and adjust the Threshold and Sens up this weekend to see how to maximize depth while maintaining stability. If the averaging fools me into not digging some targets it is still far better than being too frustrated to use the unit. I am going to recommend that FRL either expound upon the functions descriptions or add a section on adapting the unit to difficult ground conditions. I am thrilled with the results. I just wish that the weather here was better and that FRL weren't so backlogged in their e-mail Dept. Today I think we with stability issues may have made a HUGE step. More to follow...
Important Note I failed to Mention Before
Posted By: Bonez <bonez@yahoo.com> (64.252.64.80)
Date: Wednesday, 13 November 2002, at 9:11 p.m.
In Response To: Great News! (Chuck(VT))
I asked Daniel at FRL about detuning and he stated that though you can detune with the CS as well as the CZ the CS may lose the target if you detune. I also pointed out that as the manual states, the averaging read A0 or A on my machine when turning it off or on but that I had seen in the manual it said A or A1. Daniel also said the machine should say A or A1. After experimenting it actually reads A1-A-A1-A0 when turning it off and AO-A-AO-A1 when turning it on. The manual only states A or A1!. I will mention this to Daniel tomorrow as it really needs to be fixed in the manual. I thought that I had turned the averaging off and on 3x when I was having difficulty with stability but it was off the whole time as I was taking A to mean it was on when it really means that the unit is about to change the setting to A1! or AO!!! Be very careful of this as the manual is incorrect!!
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Tracking is something that you should leave off if your threshold is 0 or more. The machine tracks poorly at positive threshold settings.
Tim
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I'm glad it seems to be working out. I also tried the salt mode this afternoon just before dark. I didn't have enough time to get the settings right. It was high tone falsing on iron. Bobbing in all metal mode showed that the GB was way to negative. The soil in my test garden is real good and salt mode may not work there. Tracking and averaging on with a -15 threshold and 10 sens did give me tighter lock ons on the coins over the same settings with them off.
Kevin NC
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I asked FRL if this was a good way to deal with hunting an extremely trashy site where ground balancing is impossible. They replied that in rare instances where ground balancing can't be done, work from the preset and have the tracking on, as this would adjust ground balance to maintain decent performance. This is very good news! Now if I am hunting very trashy sites, I can work them efficiently without worrying that I can't do a good ground balance. Thanks FRL!
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FRS answered the questions as to whether you start from the ground and lift 6" or start in the air and goto ground. They said either way works, it only matters that the CS gets a sample in the air and on the ground, sequence is unimportant.
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I just came out of the test gardens with the CS and the 10.5 coil.
Posted By: Kevin[NC] <kbj@clis.com> (209.137.111.54)
Date: Saturday, 16 November 2002, at 8:13 a.m.
This coil has better depth on target lock ons. In fact it locked on every coin I have buried, even the ones too close to the power lines. Near the power lines, I had to cut the threshold back to -35 to get it stable. I have found a better method for setting it up to hunt near power lines. Put in All metal and hold the coil out in front of you off the ground. Cut the Threshold back a little at a time until the chattering stops. I have coins buried up to 8 inches deep and now I'm going to have to bury some deeper. I wasn't just getting a signal on the deepest ones. I was getting good lock ons and could tell the dimes and quarters apart. The real deep nickels still are reading high like a dime. I could hit the 8 inch coins with the coil 4 0r 5 inches over the ground.
The only bad thing I can say about the coil, is it is heavy. The lower rod that came with it is longer than the stock one and I can't push it in far enough to keep my arm straight.
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Posted By: Jake <a_jake@msn.com> (65.129.58.157)
Date: Tuesday, 26 November 2002, at 7:36 p.m.
I had asked fisher about not being able to see iron in salt mode. There answer:
"Yes, it is normal for the Coin Strike to reject small iron targets when operated in the Salt Mode on low mineralized beaches."
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Posted By: Terry in Hawaii
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hh, keep the coil to the soil !
-=john=-
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