ironman200081
Active member
I would like to wish a happy four-year anniversary to Chloe, my CTX. She came to me the day after Memorial Day in 2012, shipped from Oklahoma by forum sponsor Big Boy’s Hobbies. After unboxing and assembly (I had previously read the manual thanks to the magic of the Interwebs), I took it out in my yard and promptly found a silver dime. It was love at first beep.
The past four years have had their share of challenges. I had to send it in to Minelab for warranty repair twice for the same issue, the machine would not power up. Minelab did not repair the issue the correctly the first time, and I had to send her right back in. It was a frustrating four weeks being without a machine. After the warranty period, I experienced some water damage to the screen after water hunting. I suspect Minelab didn’t tighten the screen bolts all the way after the last warranty repair. I am also annoyed by the lack of programming and software updates.
The Li-Ion battery crapped out after 2.5 years, but I was successful in repacking the battery with high-quality Li-Ion batteries by following the instructions on a post in this forum. The skid plate on my coil mostly died, but I repaired it with some spray-plastic stuff. The rubbery cover thing broke off my WM-10. I protected the screen with the helicopter rotor coating stuff from day one, thus saving it from many scratches and a few direct hits from my digging tool.
So the bad times were frustrating, but the good times have made it worthwhile. The volume of finds I have made with the CTX dwarf those from my E-Trac days. The target ID accuracy, especially at depth, cannot be beat. Arm fatigue is a thing of the past. I have absolutely no regrets at all about buying the CTX, and I believe that it is the best machine for me and my detecting style.
With the CTX, I have watched my relic collection grow from a few bullets to hundreds of lead, iron, and brass items from the Civil War. I have nailed “bucket list” coins, including finding American half-dimes at 8 inches! I pulled a .69 Minie ball at 14 inches, and an artillery fragment at over a foot and a half. The many programming mode options allow me to develop a search mode for every site I have encountered thus far. This forum has been a wealth of knowledge (who woulda thought that switching to Seawater mode would stabilize the machine in tough soil??)
The attached photos are from hunts in April at a Civil War site I had previously written off as “hunted out” at the time I got my CTX four years ago. In fact, it was the first place other than my yard that I had taken my CTX. Back then, I found some bullets and a few buttons, but that was it. I had not yet learned how to use the CTX as a lethal metal-finding weapon. I had forgotten the site and made up excuses not to go back – too trashy, dirt is too hard, hay is too high, EMI is wonky at times. But, as you can see from the pictures, I am glad I went back!
Pictured are a smorgasbord of Civil War bullets of many types and calibers, with the majority being fired pistol balls of .36 and .44 caliber. I was surprised to find my first volcanic and tranter bullets at this site. I was impressed at how well the CTX could pick up on the smaller caliber bullets at depth. I was really happy with the brass items and coins that were hiding in the dirt as well!
The CTX is not a coinshooting machine. It is not a relic machine. Neither is it a water hunting machine. The CTX is a “whatever you want it to be” machine. Another detector may do “X” slightly better, others beat the CTX with “Y” and others still may edge the CTX at “Z.” But the CTX, especially in the hands of an experienced operator, will do X, Y, and Z better than any other rig out there. I am glad I pulled the trigger four years ago, and I am excited to make many more memorable finds with my CTX.
The past four years have had their share of challenges. I had to send it in to Minelab for warranty repair twice for the same issue, the machine would not power up. Minelab did not repair the issue the correctly the first time, and I had to send her right back in. It was a frustrating four weeks being without a machine. After the warranty period, I experienced some water damage to the screen after water hunting. I suspect Minelab didn’t tighten the screen bolts all the way after the last warranty repair. I am also annoyed by the lack of programming and software updates.
The Li-Ion battery crapped out after 2.5 years, but I was successful in repacking the battery with high-quality Li-Ion batteries by following the instructions on a post in this forum. The skid plate on my coil mostly died, but I repaired it with some spray-plastic stuff. The rubbery cover thing broke off my WM-10. I protected the screen with the helicopter rotor coating stuff from day one, thus saving it from many scratches and a few direct hits from my digging tool.
So the bad times were frustrating, but the good times have made it worthwhile. The volume of finds I have made with the CTX dwarf those from my E-Trac days. The target ID accuracy, especially at depth, cannot be beat. Arm fatigue is a thing of the past. I have absolutely no regrets at all about buying the CTX, and I believe that it is the best machine for me and my detecting style.
With the CTX, I have watched my relic collection grow from a few bullets to hundreds of lead, iron, and brass items from the Civil War. I have nailed “bucket list” coins, including finding American half-dimes at 8 inches! I pulled a .69 Minie ball at 14 inches, and an artillery fragment at over a foot and a half. The many programming mode options allow me to develop a search mode for every site I have encountered thus far. This forum has been a wealth of knowledge (who woulda thought that switching to Seawater mode would stabilize the machine in tough soil??)
The attached photos are from hunts in April at a Civil War site I had previously written off as “hunted out” at the time I got my CTX four years ago. In fact, it was the first place other than my yard that I had taken my CTX. Back then, I found some bullets and a few buttons, but that was it. I had not yet learned how to use the CTX as a lethal metal-finding weapon. I had forgotten the site and made up excuses not to go back – too trashy, dirt is too hard, hay is too high, EMI is wonky at times. But, as you can see from the pictures, I am glad I went back!
Pictured are a smorgasbord of Civil War bullets of many types and calibers, with the majority being fired pistol balls of .36 and .44 caliber. I was surprised to find my first volcanic and tranter bullets at this site. I was impressed at how well the CTX could pick up on the smaller caliber bullets at depth. I was really happy with the brass items and coins that were hiding in the dirt as well!
The CTX is not a coinshooting machine. It is not a relic machine. Neither is it a water hunting machine. The CTX is a “whatever you want it to be” machine. Another detector may do “X” slightly better, others beat the CTX with “Y” and others still may edge the CTX at “Z.” But the CTX, especially in the hands of an experienced operator, will do X, Y, and Z better than any other rig out there. I am glad I pulled the trigger four years ago, and I am excited to make many more memorable finds with my CTX.
