Brian
The X-Terra30 is a very easy machine to learn and use. One of it's best assets, is it accurate discrimination. I spend a fair amount of time with an Ace250 as well, and the X-Terra really shines over it as far as discrimination goes. The X-Terra is also fairy good at telling you when you have a shallow screw cap under the coil (they have a louder pinpoint).
As far as weight goes, they are very light, although, if you are on the shorter side of average height, I'd shorten the lower stem for a much more comfortable swinging action. It's best to have the coil close to your feet as this reduces fatigue.
Reliability of the machine has been a bit of a sore point with my particular unit. So far I've had three malfunctions with it. One of the most common ones, is that the machine will shut down on it's own. The cause is that the battery springs compress if the batteries are dropped into it. Given the way in which the battery housing is located, you instinctively want to drop the batteries into it. If you resist the urge to do that and instead place the batteries in horizontally, you can ad void this common problem. The other problems I've had with my machine are not as common.
As far as depth goes, it comes down to the coil that you have attached to the machine. Most VLF detectors will give you the same depth if you have the same coil attached. If you want to relic hunt, then you would probably want to attach the 10in DD coil to it, as this will give you better ground coverage at depth.( The DD coils can't distinguish screw caps in pinpoint though)
One other asset that the X-Terra's have, is their audio.They would have to be the nicest sounding audio that I've heard on any detector. That's just a personal preference.
Whichever detector you choice, enjoy.
Mick Evans.
