Hope this is in the correct forum, if not, sorry folks!

[stilpony]

I just purchased a new F5, my first ever, and I'll finally be able to use it this Friday. Anyway, F5's are no good in the water, so I'm wondering if there is a good waterproof unit out there that can still be effective on land. I only plan to wade in lakes, so the detector would be fine if only waterproof rated to 10 feet. The catch is, I want one that can be used on land when it's raining out, too. I know a lot of these detectors tend to be pretty heavy to swing on land, so I'm trying avoid that type and focus on something lighter on land, yet still effective on land and water. (does this animal exist???)

I may have the chance to buy a Fisher 1280x for about $275, and it's in great shape, but I've read that it's a beast on land as far as weight, and that it's not a great detector on land, but very good in the water.

Also, not looking to spend a ton of money on this unit, but then that could really limit my choices, but my wife will limit my life if I get too carried away.

Now the question: Which detector fills the bill here?

Thanks everyone!

HH
Jake

 

[GTzer]

From many threads I read here-check out an AT Pro.

 

[coiner]

The ATPro is a great machine on land and water. I have heard conflicting reports on using one in salt water so do more research depending on where you live. Good luck.

 

[Water wizard]

I have got an Excalibur, it is excellent everywhere, but they are not cheap. My first detector was a whites surf master, it didn't cost much, you could go underwater up to 30 meters, it was super light, and if you learnt the tones you could tell iron and junk from the rest of the targets. I still dug loads of ring pulls, but then I still do now with my Excalibur, you gotta to get to the gold. I bet you could pick one up very cheap, and although I only used it on the beach and in the sea, I am told that as a fresh water machine they are very good. Good,jack with what ever you get. I recommend a decent sand scoop, thats as important as your detector, and a pin pointer if you are doing lots on land happy hunting

 

[jyt2017]

I think she is good to go on dry sand...but not sure on wet sand or salt water. I will second this tho...great machine...and on a budget. You could get at gold or pro. Excal more $ but is one of best water machines. Waterproofing a gt is easy. Fisher cz 21. Those are the machines I know of.

The ATPro is a great machine on land and water. I have heard conflicting reports on using one in salt water so do more research depending on where you live. Good luck.

 

[stilpony]

I'm getting lots of "AT Pro" suggestions, and that does seem like a nice machine! Currently have my F5 that will be going on it's maiden run Friday, and I do have th Garrett Pro Pointer for the land stuff.

Water Wizard - I've heard the same thing on the scoops, JUST AS IMPORTANT AS DETECTOR! I know I'll be throwing about over $100 on a decent scoop, but you have recommendations on which one, there are only about 200 of them on the market (200 is when I stopped counting)
Aluminum or Stainless? Aluminum is lighter, but is it as durable as stainless?

Thanks again guys, great info!!!!!

HH
Jake

 

[Water wizard]

Well I have tried a few different scoops, and I like mine the best. It is called a metal jacket. It is a pipe shape, with the bottom of the pipe sticking out further than the top, so you dig in with it. The best technique I have come up with means that I take a 'plug' out of the sand (if its wet) rather than digging horizontally through the target I dig straight down over the top of it, and then lift the 'plug' of sand out. It looks l Iooks like a core sample. First I pinpoint the target by xing it, hen I put the scoop directly on top of the centre of the target, and stand on the back of the scoop. This pushes the scoop down around the target. The scoop handle is nearly horizontal, it looks a bit silly, I'm holding the scoop thane with 1 hand, and 1 eg is counterbalancing me facing horizontally backwards. I wiggle the scoop down till its nearly all the way in, then gentle null the handle back up to vertical. Hen igglesden it from side to IDE to break the suction, and the scoop pops out with a 'plug' of sand. If you pinpointed well the target will be in the plug of sand. It's proved to be the quickest and easiest way I've found of recovering targets on wet sand. Let me know if you understand my technique, if not I'll try and post a video showing it. It works very well for me. Good luck

 

[tvr]

If you are doing mostly lakes, fresh water lakes, then the 1280X will do well for you. Check it over carefully and if all is well, the price you mention is not a bad price.

My two cents; use the F5 where it works best and use the 1280X, if you get it, for your water hunts. If you have both types of hunts on one trip, take both detectors and appropriate equipment for both types of hunting.
tvr

 

[Water wizard]

Sorry about the typing errors in my last post, I was writing while being driven in.my car! Here' s a picture of my scoop and the' straight down' recovery technique. Just get the target right in the middle and then step your weight on to the scoop so it sinks around the target, and then you wiggle the handle back to pointing up, then lift it straight out like a core sample. You can also do a second scoop straight down from the first one. My girlfriend is modelling the scoop, it's a bit bent now after a couple of years of use, but it still gets me all my gold! Good luck WW

 

[stilpony]

Love the theatrical pose!

If I'm going to be using that technique in the water, I'm sure not going to be doing it with an F5 around my neck; we'll all be swimming! LOL

Thanks so much for all the advice!!!! My wife was "kind enough" to explain that I'll be hunting with my F5 for a while first, THEN we'll discuss the water detector.
(that won't stop me from asking questions, though!)

Thanks again for all the input! I love this forum!

HH

Jake

 

[Water wizard]

Ha ha! No worries mate, I'm sure your wife knows best, I know my girlfriend does! Good luck with the F5