Tesoro Cortés Metal Detector
The Cortés represents the best combination
of current and new technologies that Tesoro has to offer. When Jack
Gifford and Vince Gifford set out to create a new target ID machine
they each brought with
them different experience. Jack has over twenty-five years experience
designing some of the best analog detectors that have been on the
market. Vince brought with him a decade of computer systems experience.
Together, they have been creating new technology that gives our
detectors superior performance and keeps them easy to use. Various parts of this technology
have been finding it's way into Tesoro detectors since the introduction
of the Golden µMax. The new Cortés represents all phases
of our new microprocessor technology combined with our tried and
true analog circuits to create a detector that has all of the high
end features our customers have asked for with user friendly Tesoro
controls.
The first thing that you will notice is the control
box and battery holder configuration. The µMax housing
was just not big enough to hold the new circuit board so we moved
the batteries down under the arm
bracket and increased the size of the box slightly. This allows
us to use a 12 volt system to work with
the demands of the target ID circuitry. It also gave us the ability
to put a 2¼" speaker on the Cortés.
This will give better and louder target signals in the field.
The Cortés' 2x16 character LCD display
will catch your eye as well. This area is the information center
of the detector. The top row is an alpha/numeric display that gives
a broad indication of your possible
target. One of five different categories are displayed. Also if
the target is overdriving the circuits, the
display will tell you to lift the coil for a more accurate reading.
The alpha/numeric and bar graph section
of the display will remain blank until the coil passes over a target.
After the detectorist has decided to
dig or ignore the target the display will clear itself after six
seconds of not receiving a signal. The display
works in all modes, regardless of the discrimination setting. By
clearing the display after six seconds
the user is able to tell if has passed over a new target that may
have been discriminated out. The
detector may not produce an audio signal, but the display will show
a target reading. The detectorist
then has the choice to either go back and check the target or ignore
it.
 The
bottom half of the display contains the real nuts and bolts information
that will help you to work the Cortés to its fullest extent.
The far right hand part of the display is a battery level indicator.
This gives an accurate measure of your current battery level. On
the far left-hand side is the probable depth indicator. The Cortés
uses the phase shift of the target to determine the probable target
and then looks at the amplitude of the signal to determine the depth.
For example: a nickel and a quarter are in the ground and the quarter
is deeper than the nickel; if we just went off of amplitude change,
the detector may read the two targets as being the same depth. However,
the Cortés would show the quarter as being deeper because its phase shift response is different than that of the nickel.
In the center of the lower display is a nine segment
bar graph display. The different segments represent the following
possible targets: iron; foil: nickel; round tab; square tab; zinc
penny; copper penny and dime; quarter; half and dollar. The graph
shows what the coil saw during the entire sweep of the coil. The
targets metal composition and orientation in the ground can cause
"smearing" or possible indication in more than one graph
segment. For example: pull tabs usually will not respond in a single
segment but give signals in two or three segments. To help the detectorist
decide on the target, we have also included an ID Number display
next to the bar graph.
The ID Number takes the largest part of the signal
and converts it to a two digit number. When Vince put together the scale for the ID Number, he decided to put the
most resolution in the middle range of targets. This is the area where nickels, pull tabs and gold rings
lie. We know that iron will always be on the low end of the scale and silver coins and jewelry will always
be on the high end. So iron targets will always give a reading of 0 and silver will always give a reading
of 95. The Cortés now gives you the ability to decide what you want to dig. One of the hardest parts
of designing detectors is the fact that pull tabs can vary from place to place. But a hunter working in
the same area can use the ID Number to learn the characteristics of the local pull tabs and effectively
ignore them.
For those detectorists that prefer a notch filter
discrimination, we have also added a simple flip switch to activate either a narrow or wide notch window. When the display
is blanked, two "N"s or three "W"s will appear on the screen. The N will indicate a narrow notch window
and will be in the round tab and square tab portion of the graph segments. The wide notch window will cause
a W to be in the round tab, square tab and zinc penny segments. These indications are an easy way to
check what part of the scale is being notched out. The notch indicators will only show when there
is no target under the coil. When there is a target signal, no matter if the target has been discriminated
or not, the display will show the information of the target.
The Sum mode is another feature to help identify
targets. While the detector is in either the Discriminate or All Metal mode, the display shows the target information from
the entire sweep of the coil. Each time the coil passes over the target the microprocessor generates a new
target ID reading. While this is nice for general searching, it can be confusing while pinpointing. This
is where the Sum mode becomes
useful. Pushing the springloaded switch into the Sum mode causes
the detector to start a multi-tone ID
and averages all of the coil passes over the target. The tone ID
has nine different tones and relates
directly to the bar graph segments. The higher up on the graph the
target is, the higher the pitch of the
audio signal. Averaging the coil passes over the target gives the
detectorist the ability to get rid of most
of the signal noise that prevents making an accurate target identification.
Here's how it works: when the
detectorist gets a target signal that he wishes to check out, he
pushes and holds the Mode switch in
the Sum position. Shortening his coil sweep to only a two or four
inch sweep he passes the coil over the
target three to seven times. The short multiple sweeps give the
microprocessor the chance to sum the
passes and average them. During the sweeps the audio ID will start
at the lowest signal and will get
progressively higher in pitch until there is no more change. When
this happens the detector is giving the
most accurate ID possible. Then the user can decide if he wants
to dig or ignore the target.
All of these new features are complimented by
Tesoro's easy to use controls. No touch pads or scroll
through menus. Set the detector how you like it by adjusting the
knobs on the front of the machine. The
Cortés features an On/Off Sensitivity knob; a Discriminate
Level knob; a Manual Ground Balance knob;
a Mode Switch with All Metal, Discriminate and Sum mode settings;
a Notch Width switch with Off,
Narrow and Wide settings and a Light switch to control the LCD backlight
with a High, Low, and Off
positions.
The Cortés fits into a package that weighs
just less than three pounds (including the batteries!) and is
covered under Tesoro's Lifetime Warranty. The Tesoro Cortés
makes target ID easy and fun. Contact
your local dealer or the factory for more information.
SPECIFICATIONS
Operating Frequency ...................................
10 kHz
Searchcoil Type ................................... Concentric
Searchcoil Size ................................... 9 x 8
Cable Length ................................... Approx. 3’
Audio Frequency Target ID Tones ...................................
Approx. 350 to 800 Hz
Audio Frequency All Metal VCO ...................................
Approx. 350 to 950 Hz
Audio Output ................................... 2 ¼”
speaker and headphone jack
Headphone Compatibility ................................... ¼”
stereo plug
Weight (may vary slightly) ................................... 2.98
lbs.
Battery Requirement ................................... Eight AA
(alkaline)
Battery Life (typical) ................................... 10 to
20 hours
Optimum Temperature Range ................................... 30°
to 100° F
Optimum Humidity ................................... 0 to 75% R.H.
Operating Modes ................................... No Motion All
Metal
................................... Silent Search Discriminate
................................... Sum
................................... Notch Narrow/Wide
LIFETIME WARRANTY
|
