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CZ-20 vs CZ-21

T

ToadWhisperer

Member
There's a discussion going on at another forum about whether or not a CZ-21 will see a target as deep as the CZ-20 in discrimination mode "0" because of factory tuning. So far there's only one person making this claim but he is VERY reputable and even helped develop this detector line. I have yet to find anyone that uses a CZ-21 have anything but praise for it, at least not after the first few hit the streets with issues not related to depth. If anybody out there has both I sure would like to hear what you have to say on the matter. Maybe a side by side air test and some real world scenarios. I just got my 21 and am pretty pleased with it, but I'm fairly new to this so what do I know.

Joe
 
I am in the same boat as Joe. I'd like to know what some of the better hunters think or have experienced. Maybe Andy or CJC will chime in on this. jim
 
One CZ-20 I had was hot hot hot. It was got super depth. After they changed it to a CZ-21 and I had to send it back 3 times to get it right, It was still super hot. Then the 4th time I sent it in and got it back it just didn't seem to get the same amount of depth. I am still content with it but I KNOW it could be better because it was. Its VERY strange that after they fixed it the fourth time I never have to move the ground balance knob. It is always on 10. I am looking for another CZ-20 because I do want the edge I used to have back.

Anyway unfortunately even the same machines are actually different. One Excab can go deeper than another and same with the CZ's. Part of it has to do with the person tuning it I believe. Some are better than others. MY 2
 
I've got a CZ20 and I was gonna send it in next week for the 21 change due to a bad pinpoint switch, Imagine that! It too is really productive and I don't know whether to or not now, plus no warranty, so 300 bucks to fix. What to do? I've got nothing but bad luck.
My excal has a bad pot and it has to go back also. Guess I'll know soon enough if a 20 is better than 21.
 
scubadetector said:
One CZ-20 I had was hot hot hot. I
Click to expand...

I'm assuming you've had a couple but just the one went extra deep, did the other(s) perform more like the 21's and was the hot one from an earlier production date?
 
I decided to call Fisher and ask what the minimum depth the CZ-21 should air test at under warranty.
First off, no stupid machines, I got a person right away and everyone was polite and tried to be as helpful as possible. I asked about the depth under warranty and was told a dime over an 8" coil should get about 9+ inches in discrimination mode "0" with max sensitivity and 10-11 inches in auto-tune. He said they'd be happy to recalibrate it for me if I wanted to send it in.
I'm on the fence as to whether or not I want to send my detector in. I don't know if I want to risk loosing 3" of auto-tune to get 1" of discrimination. I still have 23 months to decide so I'll get out and use it for awhile first.

I want to thank Minelab for helping me feel good about my decision to get a CZ-21. I wanted to ask someone there the same questions about the Excalibur and after seven or eight attempts to speak to a technician I was finally transfered to someone in management and was told "there's no one here that can answer technical questions but I can put you in touch with one of our dealers".
The Excalibur may or may not have an edge over the Fisher but theres no way I'll buy from a company with such screwed up support.
 
Someone from Minelab called the fallowing day to talk with me about the Excalibur. Although they don't have a specific air test guide line, the person I spoke with was very informative and he gave me a somewhat reasonable explanation of why they don't quote air test results. Basically he stated there are to many variables for an air test to make valid assessment of a detectors capabilities. One point however, when he discussed the differences between the Excalibur and CZ-21 he stated the CZ was a single frequency, when I pointed out it was actually a dual-frequency he said oh ya, it was the CZ-20 that was a single and that he had one some time ago. Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't the CZ-20 always a multi-frequency detector? I'm not trying to be critical but it just struck me as odd. He did, however, compliment the 21's on their ground balancing ability.
Bottom line for me is that possibly in the future I may look at an Excalibur as a second water detector but it'll be after a long wait and see period before I'll feel I can trust Minelabs commitment to their customers and an improvement in turnaround time for repairs. This is based on quite a few recent posts from Minelab users.
 
one he would know BOTH have ALWAYS been Dual frequancy. CZ-20's were 5 and 15 also. SO if he had one he should have known. Toad, the one that seemed super hot was tuned by the TOP technician at Fisher BEFORE they sold to Bounty Hunter. And I am sorry but I just can't remember his name. None of my other units compared to it. BUT I love the stability and the QUIETNESS of the machines. The Excab sounds like a lawnmower in my opinion. Have you ever used one? Anyway, NO idea where you live but I would send your unit back in the winter if you have one. That way you can air test it and see if it is better before the next hunting season. BUT one other problem. TWO of mine leaked after I got them back. And had to be sent back. Some people on here remember my horror stories that I had when I first came to this site. I actually got booted!!!!

BUT, I won't change. I have loved the machines from the start. And my finds have spoke for themselves. I need the quiet so I can hear the boats that have NOOOO idea what a dive flag is. I have to hug the bottom at 5 - 6 ' untill they leave. Sorry I can't compare mine to the new ones. Mine are 2nd generation hybreds. The fist time they made them into CZ-21' they were horrible. Then they replaced everyting or so they say. UNFOURTUNATLY, you will NEVER know because you can't open them up. You just have to trust a BIG company. (Good luck with that)
 
The lower rod broke on my CZ20 a few weeks ago. I e-mailed Fisher asking if I had to send the detector back for repair. They siad no they'll just send me a lower rod. 2 weeks later the upper rod cracked while on vacation. I bought a hose clamp to hold it together until I got home. Send another e-mail and they just sent the upper rod to me. Seems like Fisher is coming around to please their customers. JMO
 
tractorman said:
I've got a CZ20 and I was gonna send it in next week for the 21 change due to a bad pinpoint switch, Imagine that! It too is really productive and I don't know whether to or not now, plus no warranty, so 300 bucks to fix. What to do? I've got nothing but bad luck.
My excal has a bad pot and it has to go back also. Guess I'll know soon enough if a 20 is better than 21.
Click to expand...

If you haven't already sent it in, it would be interesting to see some before and after air test results.
 
I picked up an older CZ-20 with the 8" white coil about a week ago. I've never had
a CZ-21, or have any experience with a CZ-20 before, but I will say that this 20
hits harder than any of the half a dozen or more detectors I've tested in the last
week or so. I have it posted for sale or trade, thinking I could get a 21 later, but
I'm starting to rethink this.
 
mazarelo said:
I picked up an older CZ-20 with the 8" white coil about a week ago. I've never had
a CZ-21, or have any experience with a CZ-20 before, but I will say that this 20
hits harder than any of the half a dozen or more detectors I've tested in the last
week or so. I have it posted for sale or trade, thinking I could get a 21 later, but
I'm starting to rethink this.
Click to expand...

In a air test, how much depth are you getting on a dime in mode "0" with sensitivity at 10 and in auto-tune with the threshold barely making a sound?
 
ToadWhisperer said:
mazarelo said:
I picked up an older CZ-20 with the 8" white coil about a week ago. I've never had
a CZ-21, or have any experience with a CZ-20 before, but I will say that this 20
hits harder than any of the half a dozen or more detectors I've tested in the last
week or so. I have it posted for sale or trade, thinking I could get a 21 later, but
I'm starting to rethink this.
Click to expand...

In a air test, how much depth are you getting on a dime in mode "0" with sensitivity at 10 and in auto-tune with the threshold barely making a sound?
Click to expand...


I just did this test. I get an honest 11.5" in discrimination mode 0, and 12.5" in auto-tune.
 
I'll be glad to do a before as a CZ-20 and after as a CZ21 test that someone else tells me what and how to do the test for them. I can do air or buried coin or ring, whatever you want just let me know. Felix at Fisher said a week or two and it would be back to me .
 
tractorman said:
I'll be glad to do a before as a CZ-20 and after as a CZ21 test that someone else tells me what and how to do the test for them. I can do air or buried coin or ring, whatever you want just let me know. Felix at Fisher said a week or two and it would be back to me .
Click to expand...

You should be away from anything that may cause interference like power lines or cell towers, even being to close to a house can throw things off. I did my tests at a park field. I used a all plastic bucket to rest the coil on and a non-metallic ruler and put the coins in a plastic nugget scoop.
I tested a clad dime, silver dime, clad quarter and a nickel in discrimination mode "0" / sensitivity 10 and gain in auto-tune with sensitivity set to where you can just start to hear the hum.
 
ToadWhisperer said:
mazarelo said:
I just did this test. I get an honest 11.5" in discrimination mode 0, and 12.5" in auto-tune.
Click to expand...

Ya, you better hang on to that one!
Click to expand...


I did list it for sale or trade before I did the test. Having second thoughts now. I have a Dual Field and a Sovereign
that I'll be taking to the beach the end of the month. I'm trying to convince myself to keep the CZ.
 
I'll test it tomorrow, silver quarter, nickel, clad quarter,1/2 oz 925 ring and a 18k ring. It goes to fisher on tues, looks like they change everything but the coil and headphones, comes back as a CZ21. I'm curious too.
 
it sometimes hits my BC and I have to find it and shut it off again. If I would have had the option I would have had them eliminate it
 
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