My Xterra 30 Update

[SkiWhiz]

First off I want to thank each & everyone of you for replying to my posts. You are a great bunch of people. Special thank you to Digger - you are a very knowledgeable person and writes info in a way that makes alot of sense and is easy to understand. I learned a great deal on this forum thanks to you all and I will never foreget all your help.
Well for my X30 It made it back to my dealer today and he tested it out and it worked the way it was suppose to. So either it is not a machine for my environment or it is the operator (me). I assume responsability for most of it, because I think the Xterra needs to be operated in a way that I am not used to detecting. So if I shot off my mouth in a bad way to any of you or to Minelab in general - I am totaly sorry, I meant no offense, just a case of wanting something so bad,waiting so long costing quite a bit (with my budget) & not having it operate the way I thought it would.
I will not bad mouth Minelab or the Xterra's because I know many of you use them & they do a great job for you, it is they are just not for me.
I am getting a good deal from my dealer on a Fisher F4, so I am almost 100% sure I am going with it.
Thanks again, I wish you all good health,happiness & great finds! Steve.

 

[nugget71]

Well I'm sure we are all glad to hear that you have sorted it out mate. As far as what detector you use now and for the future as long as you feel comfortable with it and most importantly FIND things with it (And have FUN of course) then we wish you all the best! Goodluck mate.
Cheers!

 

[Digger]

I hate to see you give up on the X-Terra. But maybe the stock DD coil and manual GB on the F-4 will help a detector perform better in your soil. The X-30 and F-4 have a surprising number of similar features. I believe the F-4 has one less notch segment, and one more audio tone than the X-30. In addition to the stock DD coil, I think you probably got an 8-inch concentric with it, as they began including it with the detector in lieu of the 4-inch that was expected. So, you should have all your bases covered.

Although I haven't used an F-4, I have used a couple of Bounty Hunters with very similar features. I will give you 4 tips to take with you for the F-4. 1.Study the manual. 2.Practice in your test garden. 3.Sweep slower than you might of with the X-30. 4. Most importantly, have fun.

Thanks for the kind words.
HH Randy

 

[Monte]

"Good Luck" and report back to us all.

If you haven't spent the $$$, then consider this:

The Minelab X-Terra's can be very good detectors. naturally, the X-T 70 is the all-around best, however if you can swing the extra for the X-Terra 50, I am sure you will be well pleased with it.

I don't know who your dealer is, or where he/she is located, or how they "checked it out" but you can't use a X-Terra 30 around here with much success. This part of NW Oregon and adjacent Washington have some highly mineralized ground and the factory preset GB of the X-Terra 30 is just too low (negative) for "bad ground" and it's possible that was your problem. The X-Terra 50 lets you adjust the GB and give you more functionality as well.

If you're committed to the new (??) F4, then give it a go and report back here on this form so readers will know all is well for you. But don't, whatever you do, think the X-Terra's are not able machines. You just have to have fairly mellow ground to use an X-T 30.

Monte

 

[Shenandoah Digger]

n/t

 

[Elton]

Sir:
Is it a fact that the Fisher F4 is just a Bounty Hunter(Radio Shack)
3300??? I have a reason for asking but would rather not post why I ask
If you care you can e-mail me, or send a PM with your answer

 

[Shenandoah Digger]

and I've seen the F-4, the Kellyco Titan 3000, and the Discovery 3300 operate side by side. In my OPINION, they all operate about the same. I know for a FACT though, that the F-4 is better constructed. So if that's worth another couple hundred to you, get the F-4. I can state for a fact that my X-terra 30 blew the socks off the Discovery 3300, and it has a manual ground balance, well, a half turn ground balance anyway.

 

[SkiWhiz]

Here is the deal. The Fisher F4 is NOT a Bounty Hunter in anyway shape or form. The only Bounty Hunter feature at all is the "box" (case) the electronics is in. ALL the electronics are different than what's in a 3300. As Mr. Bill (I believe) said - one feel of the F4 and you will imediately see the quality over the 3300, The F4 blows the 3300 out of the water & he further states that there is NOT a B.H. made that can come close to the performance of the F4.

Believe me folks if the F4 had any & I mean any thing in common with a 3300 you would not be able to give me one let alone sell me one. I had a 3300 last summer - used it for an hour and it was junk so I took it back the same day. Steve.

 

[SkiWhiz]

[quote Shenandoah Digger]and I've seen the F-4, the Kellyco Titan 3000, and the Discovery 3300 operate side by side. In my OPINION, they all operate about the same. I know for a FACT though, that the F-4 is better constructed. So if that's worth another couple hundred to you, get the F-4. I can state for a fact that my X-terra 30 blew the socks off the Discovery 3300, and it has a manual ground balance, well, a half turn ground balance anyway.[/quote] You must of got alot better X30 than I did. No offense but the X30 I sent back (was not faulty - checked by the dealer) had no depth and irratic id. And I have had many machines that was factory set ground balance & all worked much better than the X30. I can't comment on the F4 yet as I have not received it yet. Steve.

 

[Shenandoah Digger]

Steve, I believe I did state that the F-4 was better constructed than the 3300. I hope you are happy with your new detector. But I take what others say in regard to a new detector with a grain of salt. From what I've seen myself the F-4 had no great advantage over the 3300. You'll just have to see yourself. And I know for sure that Bounty Hunter made a detector far superior to the F-4. It's called a T-2, which, in my opinion, is very similar in performance to the F-75. I'm sorry the Xterra 30 didn't meet your expectations. Maybe you should have ordered the Xterra 50 with adjustable ground balance. But my son did use the 30 at a hunt in Brandy Station, Va., the hottest ground you'll ever see. He more than held his own against 250 diggers who knew what they were doing. My son's been detecting about 6 months. Good luck with your purchase.

 

[SkiWhiz]

Thanks for the reply Shenandoah Digger, you have been a wealth of information and I greatly appreciate it. I haven't received the F4 yet but am hoping it will work out right for me. If it doesn't I can resell it get my money back - I got a really good deal on it. I would of tried the X50 but it was out of my budget. HH Steve.