This is again an age old problem, which seems to just be worse now that Ancestry has made its 'improvements'.
It has always been advised when doing BMD searches to work on the 'less is more ' priniciple. And then add a little more information on each subesquent search. ie
1: John Smith 1818 (2 years +/-) Kent this will bring up your first selection
2: John Smith 1818 (1 year +/-) Kent will reduce the number even more
3: John Smith 1818, if not a 1817 or last quarter 1818 birth make it the year exactly. This will produce by far the fewest results.
And if you know the registration area, then you can tie your search down even further.
I know that if I put in my year of birth etc., nothing comes up. But if I just put in my name and year +/- 1 year, I can find it far easier.
May seem like I am teaching my gran to suck eggs, but we do sometimes forget some of the basics when we are searching.
Good luck
