Help me. Please

[kingingkunsan]

I need your wisdom. I have been detecting for about 15 years and need a new detector..... but which one?
My background is as follows. I mostly coin shoot. I enjoy the look/sound of silver. Though finding a mini ball or any other relic excites me too. I am military (over 15 years active duty) and plan to retire after 20 years. I have no affiliation with any detector brand. I repeat I DO NOT HAVE any affiliation with any brand. Next my past and current arsenal of detectors.

* Radio Shack ($120 version) 1999- present. Yes I still own it and it still works. Boy how far I have come in this hobby. It discriminates OK but depth is pathetic 1-3 inch max. I did find a woman's wedding/engagement set and sold it for $150. Paid for the machine with one find. WOOT

* Tesoro (Diablo i think) Got this in 2001-2003 to upgrade from Radio Shack. I got advice from a few members of a metal detecting club I was a member of. At first I hated having to ground balance every time I detected somewhere new or when soil content would vary. I got used to it and learned the machine well. Found several silver coins and other quality finds. But then "the day" happened. I was invited to detect at Saltair, an old swim/amusement type park in the Great Salt Lake. It burnt down and is now just a great place to go detecting. Anyway the group I went with asked what type of machine I would be using. I told them the Tesoro. They all said, Don't bother you will not have any luck. First I asked why. They all said black sand/mineralization would make the Tesoro erratic. I laughed and said I got this. I know my machine well and will be able to adjust it to run. And I will do great! Well lo and behold they were right. I did my best to balance the Tesoro and I tried everything. It still was beeping like crazy. So I asked why the one guy was having so much luck. He said it was because his machine used multiple frequencies and had built in processor to ground balance itself. I was like oh I want that. And then he proved how nice his machine was running. A smooth hum emitted from the headphones and then a clear flute sound emitted from when he went over a target. I turned on the Tesoro to see if I could detect the item. No luck just a bunch of indiscernible noise. He dug and pull out 1920 Merc Dime. I had never even seen one before this. He showed me about 10 other targets during the day and none of which I could detect with the Tesoro. I was mad. I decided to sell the Tesoro and get the same machine he had.

*Minelab Explore II 2003- present. OMG I love this machine. I can tell you what is in the ground with accuracy of 80-85%. Yes i dig junk. But mostly due to my stubbornness and hope that just this once the machine will be wrong. I have 10 years of finds to justify my love of this machine. Deep finds are expected and smooth as silk sound no matter the soil. Yes it has a learning curve. But for me it was the sounds more than anything. Not 1,2, or 3 tones but an immense amount that seems infinite. Yes digital ID too. OH yes I will tell anyone this machine rocks.

*Garrett Ace 250 2010-present. This is mainly my wife's machine. But I have used it and know it well enough. My wife really likes it but I do not like the limited sounds it omits. It also struggles in mineralization. We took it to ocean and it was erratic when it was used in the wet sand. In dry sand it did OK. I wonder how it would act at Saltair. I am guessing not well. My wife does not like the pinpoint on it and complains of excessive holes trying to find her treasure.

*Whites Classic 2012 XMAS-present. My oldest son uses this. Again I have used it and know it well enough. Not bad for a inexpensive machine. I would say a few steps above the Radio Shack. Good discrimination but limited depth. It only has on tone *blah*. And for such a simple machine why 8 AA batteries?

So why do I want a new machine if I am so satisfied with the Minelab Explorer II. Ha you think I only have positive things to say about it. WRONG
Here is the downside to the Minelab... it is HEAVY! I can swing it about 4 hours without getting too tired. I outlast my wife with her Ace 250 and my 18 y/o son with his Whites. But I will not be this strong and able for ever. Not to mention I will be retiring from military in 2017. Which means a lot more time to detect. I don't think I will be able to handle daily outings of 3-4 hours with the Minelab. And this brings me to my decision to get a new machine. But which one?

My desires= multi tone (target ID not important if this category is excellent), great in any soil type (I plan on using in many states/parks/beaches/etc conditions), under 3 pounds (2.5 pounds would cut Explorer weight almost in half). Cost? Not important. I spent over $1500 on the Explorer II and Sun Ray probe combo back in 2003. Please provide type of detector and why you are suggesting. I will do my homework/research on each type suggested.

 

[MNCoinhunter]

I am an Explorer user myself, and I can still swing it for a day without too much pain. And like you I can say with 80 to 85% accuracy what is under the coil. But I do know that the day will come when I can't swing it all day anymore. My other go-to detector is my Garrett AT Pro .. much lighter, and you also have the option of shallow water hunting. I have heard complaints that it doesn't go deep enough, but I have proven that wrong numerous times. I bought the 2-coil package .($700).. stock 8.5X11 DD and the 5X8 DD .. which is killer. Also hearing good things about Whites' new Coinmaster GT ... around $400 I think. Never tried one though ... good luck !

 

[Nauti]

The F75 orT2 are very good machines and provide you with most of what you require.The only thing these detectors fall down on is searching the wet sand on a saltwater beach......but this is true of all single frequency machines.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

Well, for starters, before I address your bigger question, I want to address the experience you had with your Tesoro verses the other fellows Explorer. Sure, he kicked your b*tt in that locale, for those targets, in that soil, etc... But rest assured, there are other type environments where your Tesoro would kick his b*tt. For example: there was a particular desert stage stop here in CA, that ........ at first ...... we took in our standard deep seeking power house machines, like the Explorers. And sure, we pulled a lot of targets (coins back to seateds, v nickels, IH's, etc....). But eventually, targets got thin, as the site got more and more worked. There was one particular large zone, where the most heaviest activity of the stage stop had been, that was just a giant sea of iron (nails, bailing wire, cast iron, etc...). So naturally, masking was very pronounced there. I was able to take in my Tesoro Silver Sabre (which might be like your diablo, perhaps, if it's a 2-filter machine), and pull hundreds more targets from amidst the iron. Yup, conductive targets right underneath nails, etc.... that the powerhouse machines would mask on.

So you see, perhaps the Salt Lake resort hunt was just one particular soil type, and where it was more recreational usage (hence less iron, nails, etc...as would be from a commercial/industrial/building site).

If you're so happy with the Explorer, and therefore the weight is the only issue, here's something you might consider: There is actually a hip-mount made for the Explorer (or at least there used to be). Not too many ever sold (so I'm not sure if they're still selling it), because truth-be-told, the explorer is already fairly well balanced, so not too many people complain about the weight. But even if the hip-mount kit is not sold anymore, there's nothing to stop you from making your own hipmount, if you're handy with cut, solder, able to fashion a pistol-grip, then put your box on a sling around your waist, etc....

 

[Sgt. Silverman]

First, thank you for your service!!! Second, I'd stick with the Explorer for every reason you mentioned. I had an XS for over 10 years, sold it, bought the V3i and realized I really missed the Explorer. I agree with Tom in CA about the weight too. Good luck to you, Happy Hunting and Godspeed!

Greg

 

[sparkster]

Tom in California. Where are you located? I am a CTX user, just got it. I live out by Palm Springs. Would like to hook up with some people in the desert area to detect with.I am retired and can go most anywhere at any time to detect.

 

[sparkster]

If you are a mine lab person and want a new detector you should check out the CTX 3030. Most of the explorer and e trac users are raving about it. I am a whites and Garrett user. I just purchased a CTX and the learning curve is a little more difficult for me than it would be for you. I can say after a week of owning the machine and using it three times, it is not as difficult to learn as some folks say. I say that because there are numerous pros with the CTX on this forum willing to help. With out them I would be lost.

Thank you to all who are helping us CTX dummies.

The way I see it, if I am going to spend this kind of time at a hobby, I want the best machine I can get that will give me the greatest opportunity to be successful and enjoy it.
At this time CTX 3030 is that technology.

Happy hunting. And. Good luck

 

[kingingkunsan]

Thank you everyone for the responses. I will look into the machines suggested. For Tom in CA; I never thought of that (mounting to hip or the like). You are right, the Explorer is balanced well. But like I said, after 4-6 hours non stop detecting 4.5 pounds gets heavy no matter how its balanced. While 2.5 pounds on the other hand would be significantly easier to manage. Maybe with what you said I will just get a Tesoro and use it when the conditions are right and keep the Minelab too (instead of just having one main detector). I know a lot of you have more than one machine for this very reason. So which Tesoro do you recommend? I no longer have the one I mentioned above. I was looking at the Cibola and Silver uMax but am up for suggestions. Thanks again

 

[GeorgeinSC]

I am surprised that you say you can only swing a coil for four hours. I am 72 years old and I can darn sure swing a coil for longer than four hours. There are days that I go to the beach shortly after sun up and stay till sun down. No I don't go at it like I was killing snakes but I stay busy all day swinging the coil and digging targets. On dry land I kneel down to dig targets and have dug over two hundred coins in a day. That's a lot of kneeling and then standing up. Does it make an Old man tired? You bet it does but I enjoy what I am doing and certainly need the exercise. I use a Minelab Sovereign GT which is not a lite weight machine. Oh By the Way I retired from the Navy almost 35 years ago.

 

[kingingkunsan]

Congratulations GeorgeinSC. But i do not see how that is relevant to my question. So in your 72 years you have only used one detector? I bet not. Then why the change? How old is the Minelab? Over 10 years? hmmm your post almost seems like cyberbullying and it is not welcome. Keep comments not related to the post out please.

 

[khouse]

The Minelab Xterra 705 seems to fit your needs? Although I haven't owned one but you may have also described the XP Deus. Chuck at Indian Nations can fix you up with either.

 

[DirtAngler]

I'd have to agree with other replies. If weight becomes an issue, the F75, T2, Xterra, or XP Deus are very good lightweight machines. However, none of these work well on salt water beaches. I have physical impairments from a severe electrical accident in '89. For that reason I have tried numerous machines. The F75 and T2 are great in the right soil conditions but were too chatty for me. I had an Xterra and it was a good machine also. I use the Deus for my main machine and it is a great fit for my condition.

 

[GeorgeinSC]

Hey Guy I did not mean to come off sounding like a bully. I was just puzzled by your statement of not being able to swing a coil for more than four hours and was only commenting on that portion of your post. . Sorry that I upset you by my comments. I am a relative newbie at this hobby. Purchased my first detector in July 2012. A Minelab Sovereign GT. I would not try to give you guidance on what detector would be best for your use as I do not have enough experience to even comment on that portion of your post.

Again I apologize.

George

 

[Tom_in_CA]

As to the question of which tesoro (when talking about JUST their 2-filter coin-hunter types that are good in ghost townsy/ruins type applications), there are several that are fairly similar to each other. And I'm not all that up on the differences between them. I know that when I researched it, when getting ready to buy my own, I settled on the Silver Sabre, given advice from Tesoro guys who had followed the evolution since the beginning of that brand.