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How To Use A Face Plate on a Metal Detector

Metal detectors can be a lot of fun as well as a source of profit. Getting outdoors and walking with a metal detector is a great way to exercise even if you never find anything of value. However, one of the benefits of having a metal detector is the possibility of finding "treasure" of one sort or another, anything from an old class ring to buried pirate loot. The face plate on a metal detector is the metal plate where the various controls for the detector are located. The number of controls on a detector's face place is determined by the brand of detector and the model and by the price and complexity of your particular unit.

Things You'll Need

Metal detector

Instructions

- 1
  Hold the detector in your hand as per the manufacturer's directions and look at the controls for the machine. The controls are located on a metal plate that is simply known as the face plate. The controls will be obvious and easy to see, somewhere close to your hand and in easy view.
- 2
  Switch the unit on with a toggle or twist knob on the face plate.
- 3
  The type and number of controls on the face plate of a metal detector varies widely depending on the manufacturer and the price range of your particular model. Two controls, however, are located on the face plate of almost all metal detectors: sensitivity and discrimination.
- 4
  Set the sensitivity of the detector using the twist knob marked "sensitivity" on the face plate. Normally this is a twist knob that allows you to set the sensitivity from 0 to 10. The sensitivity setting will help you determine whether you have found a coin or an old nail.
- 5
  Set the "discrimination" setting to eliminate such things as iron nails or foil or aluminum unless you wish to search for those items. The "discrimination" setting is a twist knob on most models, set in the face plate of the detector.

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