Fisher 1266-X, 1266-XB User Manual

1266-X & 1266-XB

Deep Search Metal Detector

Operating Manual

FISHER RESEARCH LABORATORY

CONTENTS

About Your 1266-X .................................................................pg. 1

Condensed Operating Instructions ..................................... pg. 2

Setting Up ................................................................................ pg. 3

Control Housing ..................................................................... pg. 5

Discrimination Points ............................................................. pg. 6

Dual Discrimination ............................................................... pg. 9

Searching ...............................................................................pg. 10

Pinpointing..............................................................................pg. 12

Target Recovery .................................................................... pg. 13

Recovery Tools ...................................................................... pg. 14

Operating Tips ........................................................................ pg. 14

False Signals ........................................................................... pg. 16

Battery Replacement ............................................................pg. 18

Battery Recharging ............................................................... pg. 18

Maintenance ......................................................................... pg. 20

Treasure Hunter’s Code of Ethics ......................................... pg. 20

Where to Hunt in the U.S ........................................................ pg. 21

Specifications ........................................................................ pg. 22

ABOUT YOUR DETECTOR

The 1266-X was designed to excel in three ways: depth,
discrimination and simplicity. It offers a better combination of
these three characteristics than any other metal detector
we’ve ever built. And we’ve been building metal detectors
since 1931.

Depth. Engineered to go deep in mineralized soil at high levels
of discrimination. If you’re an experienced detector operator,
you’ll find yourself recovering good targets at depths you
never reached before. And you’ll really appreciate the loud,
clear audio response you get from those deep targets.

Discrimination. Detect all metals or ignore trash as you detect
valuable targets. Twin discrimination modes allow you to
switch instantly back and forth between any two levels of
discrimination. If you’ve found target ID meters confusing or
inaccurate, you’ll like this quick and simple way to help tell the
cash from the trash.

Simplicity. This is the kind of uncomplicated detector you
would expect from the company that pioneered automatic
turn-on-and-go metal detectors. No meter, no tuner, no
ground adjust. Just pick it up, set your controls once and start
searching. It’s light, balanced, comfortable and the open
center Spider coil makes pinpointing a snap.

Read this instruction manual from cover to cover and treat
your 1266-X as you would any expensive, high quality precision
instrument. Drop us a line if you have any questions,
comments, or exciting 1266-X stories. In the meantime...

Happy Hunting!
Fisher Research Laboratory

1

CONDENSED OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS

The 1266-X is basically a turn-on-and-go metal detector. It
doesn’t take an engineer to operate it but you’ll have more
fun and a better chance of making that BIG find if you have a
complete understanding of what you’re doing. That’s why we
strongly recommend that you read the entire manual. But if
you just can’t wait any longer and you’ve already used a
Fisher “X” detector, here’s some quick instructions to get you
going.

1. Set the controls as follows:
DISC 1 = 4 (small nail discrimination)
DISC 2 = 7 (Pull tab discrimination)
SENSITIVITY = Pull and turn 3/4 clockwise
OFF/VOL = Full clockwise

2. As soon as you turn the detector on, it is

automatically tuned and ground adjusted in the
DISC 1 search mode.

3. DISC 1 and DISC 2 are motion modes. The

search coil must be at least slightly in motion to
detect a target.

4. When you locate a target, push and hold the

TRIGGER SWITCH for further target identification in
DISC 2. If your target still sounds good, dig it.

5. With practice, you should be able to pinpoint in

either of the DISC modes by moving the coil
slowly backwards and forwards and left to right
and finally stopping over the area of the
strongest target response. The target should be
approximately centered beneath the search coil.

6. To use the Zero-Motion Pinpointing mode,

simply place the coil on the ground (away from
the target), pull and hold the trigger, lift the coil
about a half inch and bring it back over the
target area as you would in a DISC mode. The
differences being that you don’t have to keep
the coil in motion to get a response.

7. HAPPY HUNTING!

1. If you’re using headphones, reduce the volume of the headphones
to a comfortable level when passing the search coil over a large,

shallow target.

1

2

SETTING UP

Your 1266-X is just about ready to use. The only adjustment
required is the angle of the search coil and the length of the
stem. Take a look at Figure 1 and familiarize yourself with the
parts of the 1266-X before proceeding.

1. Unpack it carefully. You may want to save the
carton and inserts for future storage or shipment.

2. Depress the spring lock on the lower stem and
slip the lower stem into the upper stem. Connect
the search coil cable to the control housing.

3. The stem length is adjusted by loosening the
lock nut and allowing the spring lock to snap into
one of the holes in the upper stem.

4. The search coil angle is adjusted by loosening
the nylon wing nut on top of the search coil.

5. Adjust the stem length and the coil angle so
the search coil rests flat on the ground about 6
inches in front of, and slightly to the right of your
right foot (to the left of your left foot for left
handers). Your arm should be straight and
relaxed, the grip held loosely.

Search-Coil Cable Connector

and Battery Recharge Jack on

Control Housing

Foam Hand Grip

Padded Arm Rest

Battery End Cap

Open-Center 8-inch Spider Coil

Rear of Housing

Injection-Molded

Lower Stem

Wing Nut

Lower Lock Nut

Spring Lock

Search Coil Cable

Upper Lock Nut

Upper Stem

Battery Housing

Built-In Detector Stand

Figure 1. Fisher M-Scope 1266-X.

3

SETTING UP

REMEMBER • THE LONGER THE SHAFT, THE MORE
YOU WILL HAVE TO BEND YOUR ELBOW AND THE
SOONER YOUR ARM WILL GET TIRED. THE 1266-X IS
BALANCED FOR COMFORTABLE SEARCHING IN A
TIGHT SEMICIRCLE AROUND THE FRONT OF THE
OPERATOR.

6. With the stem length properly adjusted, tighten
the lock nut and search coil wing nut. CAUTION:
Never use a pliers or anything other than your
hand to tighten the lock nut or wing nut.

7. Disconnect the search coil cable from the
control housing and wrap it around the stem. A
loose cable near the search coil may cause false
signals, but don’t wrap it so tight that it pulls
against the housing or the coil. Reconnect the
loop cable to the housing.

8. With the shaft length and coil angle properly
adjusted, you should be able to move into your
“search” position by leaning forward very slightly
raising your arm (still straight) until the search coil
is about 1 inch above the ground and 12 inches
in front of your foot. The search coil should be
parallel to the ground and may have to be

slightly readjusted at this point.

9. If the armrest is too wide or
too narrow, you may bend it
slightly inward or outward to
meet your exact requirements.

Figure 2.
Search Position

4

CONTROL HOUSING

1. DISC 1: DISCRIMINATE 1 is the search mode.

The 1266-X automatically operates in DISC 1
unless the TRIGGER-SWITCH is pushed and held or
pulled and held. DISC 1 is a full range
discrimination mode. All types of metal are
detected at the zero level and most small pieces
of trash are rejected at the maximum level of ten.

2. DISC 2: DISCRIMINATE 2 is similar to DISC 1
except that it operates only when the TRIGGER
SWITCH is pushed and held. DISC 2 is used for
target identification and/or pinpointing.

3. STEREO HEADPHONE JACK: Accepts most
stereo and mono headphones with one-quarter
inch diameter plugs. When used, the speaker is
automatically disconnected. A headphone can
be very helpful when hunting in noisy areas or
detecting faint signals.

4. SENSITIVITY: This is a dual range, push-pull knob
that controls sensitivity to targets and soil
minerals. Pull and rotate clockwise for normal
operation in mineralized soil. Push and rotate
clockwise for even more sensitivity in
non-mineralized, non-conductive soil. It should
be noted that faint erratic circuit noise is audible
at the full clockwise position.

5. BATTERY CHECK: Fully charged batteries will
give a loud tone when this button is pushed.
Weak batteries will give a weak signal and dead

1

2

5

4

6

3

5

CONROL HOUSING

or weak batteries will give no tone. Batteries do
not have to be replaced as long as you can hear
a tone. As a general rule, you’ll be able to
operate your 1266-X for an hour or two after the
tone goes silent.

6. OFF/VOL: Power on-off and volume control.
This control turns the power off at the full counter
clockwise position and adjusts volume to
maximum at full clockwise.

7. TRIGGER SWITCH: This spring loaded trigger has
three-positions:

1. Relaxed position: Maintains the 1266-X in the
DISC 1 search mode.

2. Forward position: When pushed and held,
the 1266-X automatically switches into the DISC
2 mode.

3. Rear position: When pulled and held the
1266-X automatically switches into the Zero­Motion Pinpointing mode.

8. RECHARGE JACK: Located on the rear of the
control housing, this jack is to be used only with
the optional 1266-X recharge kit. Nicad batteries
may be recharged from a 110-volt wall outlet or
an auto cigarette lighter socket (12 volt,
negative ground) without removing the batteries
from the control housing.

DISCRIMINATION POINTS

By adjusting DISC 1 and DISC 2 you will be able to ignore (or
“reject”) small pieces of metallic trash and ground minerals
while detecting valuable targets. The lowest setting at which
an object is rejected is referred to as the object’s
“discrimination point”. Discrimination points are determined by
such factors as size, shape, depth, type of metal and ground
mineralization.

1. Scatter some sample targets such as coins, pull­tabs and small pieces of foil on the ground 1 to 2
feet apart.

6