How good is the F70?

[Overvoltage]

I have been thinking about adding the F75se to my detector arsenal but have noticed that it appears more people own or prefer the F70 based on the posts in this forum. I have been impressed with what the F70 operators have been posting. Does the F70 provide more bang for the buck? Is the F75 good enough to justify the difference in cost? It appears both are capable of going as deep as I would be willing to dig. I mostly coin hunt at ball fields, tot lots and old houses. Ground here is not very mineralized, I run my CTX at sensitivity 28 of 30 most of the time. F-Operators, what are your thoughts?

 

[Ayeti65]

I personally have never owned an F75 so I couldn't speak for it, my detecting buddy does have a T2 which is similar, and in my opinion the F70 will stand right there with them. Its just as deep, it just doesn't have all the different modes, but what it does have is a Threshold adjustment which will help you customize the machine to where ever you are hunting. Its completely versatile, you can hunt anywhere, trash, no trash, and did I mention it DEEP? I have personally dug quarters at the 12-13 inch range in wet sand. If the F75 is better, I couldn't imagine if the F75 is indeed deeper what kind of shovel you would need or what you would even find at those depths, maybe Chinese money perhaps... lol

 

[shadowulf]

How is your tolerance to chatter?

Looking over your stable, the F75SE or LTD would fit right in.
Manual adjustment of GB and more preset programs are the primary differences between the newer F75s and the F70.

I've found the F70 to be more of a stripped-down F75.
All the horsepower is there, with less "options" to mess with.

For coins, follow mudpuppy's posts on his "super sweeper" setup and use.

The 11" coil, sens under 50, discrim at 4 or 20 (slight boost in these settings), thresh around -3( quiets the chatter without loosing much depth/range), default scanning with either dp or 4h for tones, and no notch or notch at 1.

save Sp scanning for clean and deep searching, At (all metal) for extra depth or prospecting.


Just remember that being a highly sensitive machine, EMI and trash will get it to bark a lot.
The 11" supposedly doesn't ID bottle caps well. Many will have other opinions on that.

I'm sure others will chime in. Its a good machine, if you have the patience to learn it.

 

[sprchng]

Most every poster that mentions both are trying to get the 70 to be a 75ltd---nuff said.

 

[PostalTwo]

Most every poster that mentions both are trying to get the 70 to be a 75ltd---nuff said.

i think ppl are just trying to justify the extra cost there is quite the difference between the two cost wise. a person has to ask themselves if they can afford it? and are the extra features worth the extra cost?

 

[shadowulf]

Most every poster that mentions both are trying to get the 70 to be a 75ltd---nuff said.

i think ppl are just trying to justify the extra cost there is quite the difference between the two cost wise. a person has to ask themselves if they can afford it? and are the extra features worth the extra cost?[/quote]

Agreed.

The F70 popped up on my radar while trying to bid on 2 other machines. As it was, it surprised me to win it at such a low bid.

When it comes right down to it, if you NEED the F75se or ltd features, you better buy an F75se or ltd.
If you want the about 80% of the features and can live without those that are not included, get an F70 and a extra coil.

The F75 is the flagshiop, the F70 is the workhorse.

The fact that we F70 owners try and make it do as well as an F75 is that, with the right conditions and settings, it can.
But the F75s just makes it easier.

And that the F70 cost less is just icing on the cake.

 

[zeekeys]

I went with the F70 instead of the F75. The F70 is simple, lighter, the batteries last longer, it isn't as noisy, they use the same coils and the F70 is cheaper. This is just little stuff. If you really are into the deep stuff maybe the F75 has some other whistles that may help when needed. If you are like, goofy me, just a coin guy that enjoys picking up lots of coins each hunt. Don't really care if they are old, gold or silver coins/jewelry. It is just getting out and having fun. I picked the F70. It is your call. Hope this helps.... Happy Trails......Z

 

[Overvoltage]

Shadowolf - you asked how was my tolerance for chatter? Are you implying the F70 or F75 or both chatter? Also, if I were to get say the F75, how are the stock coils? What are the aftermarket coil preferences? I did a search for mudpuppy "sweeper setup" but could not find it.

Ayeti65- you mentioned digging a quarter deep in wet sand. Was this salt beach wet sand?

I guess what I am looking for is a machine that fits between the CTX3030 and the Infinium LS. It needs to be light weight, reasonably deep detecting, good discriminating, fast processing. The CTX and the Infinium are both great machines and I am very confident in them. However, I feel like there are situations where a different tool would do the job better. The CTX is really good in trash, low and slow. I do open field hunt with it but I feel that the F75 or F70 would be better suited for this due to its light weight and fast processing. The Infinium is my wet salt beach and surf machine. Very powerful, doesn't miss anything. Again heavy, slow sweep speeds and not the level of discrimination I'm looking for.
I also like to hunt into the evening so the backlight on the F75 would be a good option.

 

[Ayeti65]

Fresh water beach, with 11dd coil

 

[shadowulf]

Both machines have a reputation for being chatty. Fisher set the default sensitivity pretty high. And they do let you know when power lines are nearby.
The stock coil for the F70 is a 10" elliptical concentric. In mild ground it does pretty well. It IDs and picks up on targets quickly.
Unfortunately, my ground and interests tend to favor a DD coil. The 11" elliptical DD is the stock coil for the F75. Many people swear by it for the F70 in more mineralized ground.
Fisher also has a round 5" DD, a 5x10 elliptical DD and a 6.5" elliptical coil.
SEF and NEL both offer aftermarket coils that have their fans.
Mud's "super sweeper" setup uses a 26.5" optional lower shafts that gives him about a 5' swath when searching. He also uses the 11" elliptical DD and lowers his sensitivity to around 40. He is a clad stabbing specialist.
I plan on getting a 26.5 lower soon to use with my 5x10.

You may want to look into REVIER's F70 experience if coin and jewelry is your thing.

 

[REVIER]

Most every poster that mentions both are trying to get the 70 to be a 75ltd---nuff said.

I really don't, and I don't see a whole lot of others that regularly post about their F70 mention anything like that, either.
I love the F70 just the way it is.
Mine goes super deep, on high settings can be chatty but gets down and dirty and stable over targets, I can quiet it down to nothing and still get deep, I can use even the big DD coil on lower settings and still pluck goodies from super trashy sites and even though I don't have a huge amount of hours with it that thing has found me a ton and amazes me on almost every hunt.
I can't ask any more of it than what I have already seen, and I am just beginning my journey with it.

Is the F75 worth it at the higher price?
I would say yes, there are some pretty cool extra adjustments that are neat like the back light, audio adjust, the ability to manual adjust the GB and greater adjustments to notch settings and more if you are into those things and I can see that some hunters in some areas and sites could take advantage of them more than I ever would.
If money is no object then going for the whole enchilada makes sense and the route most would probably go, but money is an object for many and for some that price difference could be a deal breaker.
I could well afford the F75, but the deal on the F70 came along that was too good to pass up and at this point I am so glad it did and thrilled that a unit this performance oriented even exists at this price point.
Do I really need all these extras as cool as they are...nope, not for me, the way I hunt and at the type of sites I hunt in and I don't miss them at all, but I never had them in the first place on my other detectors so it is hard to miss something you never had.

Of course I wouldn't turn down and F75 if it were offered to me, who would, and I am a techie sort of guy and love experimenting and playing with settings to see what they will do, but the amount of settings available on the F70 is just blowing my mind with what I already have to work with and tweak and will keep me experimenting entertained, not bored and happy to my heart's content and for quite awhile I think.
There are so many that the extra ones I could play with on the F75 would probably overload me to the point of a nervous breakdown so for me the F70 is like the temp of the porridge in that fairy tale...just right.

Woof said it...the marketing guys don't ever want to let on how good the F70 really is and anybody that owns one should never need to feel that they are missing something as cool as the flagship model is with all the extra features.
We who hunt with them and love them for exactly what they are tend to agree.

 

[bhouck2011]

Good info . Thnx.

 

[WhatTheBeep]

I agree with the others. I've had my F70 a little over a month though don't have enough experience with it yet to say a lot other than I'm really liking it and still have plenty to learn. It's chatty when in SL speed and with sensitivity turned way up especially, and my ground has a good bit of mineralization which I believe makes it a bit more so. Anywhere near a power line makes it chatter a lot also as was said. I got mine because I wanted something more powerful and that would ground balance (first detector was an F2) as well as with plenty of settings, and man, there are so many combinations of settings it was a bit overwhelming at first. I could have gotten an F75LTD only IF I could have gotten it past my funding committee (wife) without too much complaining, but she complained about the price of the F2 and ProPointer so I didn't even bother.

That said, get the F75 LTD if money isn't an issue. It has more options and more power. I believe the manual lists the detection depth of the F75LTD as 15-16" on US coins under good condtions whereas it lists the depth on the F70 as 13-14".

On a final note, both the F70 and F75 will take some time to fully learn and get accustomed to if you're trying to get the most out of them (finding deep stuff) if you've not had experience with them. It's pretty confusing when you get lots of chatter/falsing from EMI, trash, or flakes of iron in the ground if you're used to a quieter machine, and I think that's why a lot of people buy them and then move on to something else. It's easy enough to silence the chatter with the sensitivity and threshhold settings (not sure if the F75 has threshhold in Disc) as well as not using SL speed on the F70 or Boost Process on the F75 , but then in the back of your mind you know you've lost some depth at least.

 

[Steve O]

Awe, here we go again...............The f-75 is way way..............waaaay better than the f-70........beat that!

 

[shadowulf]

Awe, here we go again...............The f-75 is way way..............waaaay better than the f-70........beat that!

Oh ya!

 

[sprchng]

We can't post a link to his forum but here's what Tom D. said about the two--- "The 'sl' mode of the F70 ..... brings its performance level up to the level of a standard/old F75.

The F75 SE is yet ANOTHER boost in performance ABOVE the standard F75. If you have time.......... all of your EMI questions/concerns are answered on this forum in the thread titled: "Rcpt Ack of F75 LTD Proto". "

This would be a great time for Dave J. to chime in since my understanding is that both are his babies.
It's not unusual to want to move the next step. For example , I don't know any Ace250 or 350 owners who didn't want to move up to an ATpro. You can always move UP from the 70 but you can't move up from the 75ltd and stay in the Fisher line which is another question all together when you consider their non transferable warranty and low resale value but that's another thread. If you have a CTX and Infinium it's hard to imagine that cost is a limiting factor so go for the gusto as you can always turn the power down on 75 ltd if you feel it gives an unfair advantage.

 

[mudpuppy]

Overvoltage,

If you are looking for a machine to "fit between your 3030 and Infinium, and it has to be light", then the 75 or 70 would be PERFECT! I can see why you are interested, imagine a big field/yard, with little time to hunt it, and you need to find the "hot zone" or pattern to it in a hurry, thats where either of these F units will allow you to fly through there and hit the lanes of targets. They will let you know immediately if its a burn pit area, or clothesline area, or old camp....whatever, with extreme comfort, accuracy, and speed...then you can fire up the 3030 and work it for old glory if you wish...

You have a great set of gear at the moment, but there is a "hole" in it that an F rig would fill admirably..like sprchng said, you got top shelf gear now, so go top shelf on the Fisher too...thats the 75ltd...
Mud

 

[Steve O]

Kidding aside, the above posts have plenty of meat for you to make a decision. I have an original 75 and a LTD. I hunt with a buddy who has an f-70. He does just as well as I do on a hunt using the 11" coil.
Sometimes I edge him out because of more experience or I was lucky to swing my coil over a good target. I think if we swapped units, there would be little difference at the end of the day.

 

[REVIER]

Kidding aside, the above posts have plenty of meat for you to make a decision. I have an original 75 and a LTD. I hunt with a buddy who has an f-70. He does just as well as I do on a hunt using the 11" coil.
Sometimes I edge him out because of more experience or I was lucky to swing my coil over a good target. I think if we swapped units, there would be little difference at the end of the day.

I believe I find a bit more with my F70 than a few others in my MD club have with their F75's because I am so good looking.
I have been accused of being delusional many times in the past, however.

 

[Overvoltage]

Mud, the example you gave is exactly the situation I had in mind. F75 to hit it hard and fast. If it is promising go back over it slow with the CTX and clean it out.