Should I Buy the Tiger Shark ?

[Joel-Winnipeg]

I recently sold my PI detector and thinking of purchasing Tiger Shark .
I've read good things about its performance in fresh water where it would be used.
I presently use two other water detectors so would like to put a third one in my lineup.
I presently have no Tesoros so this would be a first.
Any and all info is welcomed.

 

[dahut]

- - in fact if you can get a good price, run, don't walk, to get it.

To date, I have tried the Fisher 1280X, the Detector Pro models, the White's BHID and the Tiger Shark in fresh water.

- I rank the TS at the front of that pack, Numero Uno.
- I like the 1280X a lot and consider it a close second. Between these two, it is hard not to choose Fisher's Aquanaut.
- The Whites BHID was nice, and I liked it but for one thing - the one I used was equipped with a floating coil! Not at all good.
Get one with the neutral buoyancy coil and it ranks third in my book.
- The Detector Pro's didn't impress me and in truth, they are a license built Fisher "X series" circuit, anyway. I found the audio to be weak and while the concept is intriguing, the whole thing taken together wasn't robust enough to suit me.

The only other detector I would consider a good choice in fresh water is Fisher's CZ-20/21. But at more than twice the cost of these others, it isn't one I recommend for everyone. It offers the multi-frequency VLF option for salt water, though, so it may be a good choice for those who visit the seashore often enough. Ditto Minelabs Excalibur, which has a good record in the salt. However, many people swear their Excal swings like a brick without a special support harness. That don't sound so good, if you know what I mean...

Why not a PI? No reliable iron discrimination, that's why. Only Garrett's Infinium has made any strides towards that end, and it is hardly refined. It is also over $1,000USD, new.
In fresh water, iron discrimination is a major boon and easily possible with existing VLF technology - so it is an aid not to be lightly tossed aside.

Enter the Tiger Shark. It is essentially a waterproof Bandido, so it is sensitive, stable and offers good iron DISC. It also has a manual GB. The major controls, SENS, THRESH and VOL are inside the case, so they cannot be bumped out of whack. You set them for your locale and then forget them. I would prefer the first two be front-face adjustable, but I can live with it.
After all, in the water you have enough to do. Between hanging on to your scoop, keeping your footing and watching your float basket - not to mention the eye candy - having "set and forget" controls is a good thing.

NOTE: Be careful with the SENS. You can easily get it out of whack by cranking it up.... don't ask me how I know. And because it is inside the case, it is a major pain in the a$$ to adjust.
Therefore, any changes to factory SENS settings should be approached with caution. I recommend you leave it alone at first.
I DO recommend you bump the THRESH a little to sharpen up responses and turn the volume up near max.

Tesoros 'Shark is also built like a tank. Make sure the seal is clean so it seals well and you can pretty much forget about it. I prefer it below the hand in the standard rod mount position. I've tried it all ways and find it floats neutral in that spot.
I hate body mounting and the cuff position is awkward to me.

The Tiger Shark also offers interchangeable coils, something few others can match. Two sizes are all you need: 8" and 10."

IF I couldn't have my Tiger Shark, I'd have a 1280X. BUt that is not a choice I have to make at present. Get the TS. You'll like it.

 

[Joel-Winnipeg]

Thanks dahunt great information.

Anybody else can add on to thiswater detector TS !

 

[ToniSteve]

Hi Joel,
Here is a post that was done a few years back here on FindMall, the good stuff was written by Scully. Scully is GeneScullion of Badger Detectors in Madison, Wisconsin. He probably knows more about the Tiger Shark then anyone.

http://www.findmall.com/read.php?17,365846,367556#msg-367556

He also wrote the original field test which is on the Tesoro site, here is direct web link to it:

http://www.tesoro.com/info/fieldtests/current/tigershark/

I have no ties to him other than the way he treated me on the phone a few times, he took the time and shared a lot of great information about the TS with me. He lives his hobby!

I had my Tiger Shark out for a few minutes today getting used to the audio and using it in my lawn and my underwater test "aquagarden".

Kind Regards,
Steve

 

[Joel-Winnipeg]

Thanks for the good info Steve and the links.
I'll check them out carefully.

 

[ToniSteve]

Hi Joel,
Check out "grumpeyolman" ('s) posts here too, he has a Tiger now and he also has one very nice hookah set up! He went from an excal to a Tiger. Watch out though he is a true grump!
Best Regards,
Steve

Disclaimer "Just Kidding"

 

[Twinkies]

If you do decide to buy one I wish you luck in finding one since they havent been in production for around a year now. I got off the phone with Tesoro on Friday and they still dont even have the prototype yet of the connection they are waiting on and once they do receive one it will be at least 3 weeks from that point before they go back into production. Once production starts backorders will be filled first before stocking up the stores.

With all that said I literally made 50+ phone calls this week and finally found a new one at and ordered it right away and should arrive this week.

 

[ToniSteve]

Joel,
When you get your TS leave some of those HBC fur trade tokens and trade silver beavers in the river and lake for the rest of us, aye!

All the Best,
Steve

 

[Joel-Winnipeg]

Joel,
When you get your TS leave some of those HBC fur trade tokens and trade silver beavers in the river and lake for the rest of us, aye!

All the Best,
Steve

I'll do my best not to dig everthing.:Another 3 weeks and everthing will ice up here.

 

[Hombre]

It's one hell of a nice detector, just finds stuff, lifetime warenty, what more can ya ask for. It's nice and durable, no problems with mine for 9 yrs.,hundreds of hours, I know, it's been said before.

 

[grumpyolman]

I think I heard someone use my name! Steve is correct. Gave up the Excal, for a bunch of reasons that aren't important, and have used the TS and really like it. I had a straight shaft, actually for the Fisher 1280-X, and luckily, all the other lower rod stems slide right into that shaft. So when wading I hip mount the TS, the Fisher, and the Dual Field and use the straght shaft. (No! I don't use all three at the same time). I both dive and wade with a scoop. There are advantages and disadvantages to each method. When diving, I just pull the stem hooked to the coil out of the straight shaft and just use that short piece as a search handle. Works fine and I don't have to fuss with more stuff. I think my dry suit is going to see more of me now that the weather is changing. My hope is that by being able to search year around using the dry suit, will allow access to sites others are waiting for better weather. Jim

 

[Gerry]

Jim, I have posted on the site a question you might be able to answer for me. I have a friend in Montana who is looking for a land machine and a fresh water machine that can be used occasionally in salt water when on holiday. Would the Tiger Shark meet that bill, have you used yours in salt water, if you feel that the T/S is not the machine what do you recommend.
You input is appreciated!!!

Gerry Birch Bay WA.

 

[dahut]

Jim, I have posted on the site a question you might be able to answer for me. I have a friend in Montana who is looking for a land machine and a fresh water machine that can be used occasionally in salt water when on holiday. Would the Tiger Shark meet that bill, have you used yours in salt water, if you feel that the T/S is not the machine what do you recommend.
You input is appreciated!!!

Gerry Birch Bay WA.

Im not Jim, but I would recommend something else. In fact, I would recommend TWO detectors one for land and one for water use.
The water detector I would recommend has already been mentioned in my previous post. The land detector is your choice.

 

[Sven]

- - in fact if you can get a good price, run, don't walk, to get it.

To date, I have tried the Fisher 1280X, the Detector Pro models, the White's BHID and the Tiger Shark in fresh water.

- I rank the TS at the front of that pack, Numero Uno.............


IF I couldn't have my Tiger Shark, I'd have a 1280X. BUt that is not a choice I have to make at present. Get the TS. You'll like it.

Couldn't agree more. The Tigershark is the most sensitive detector especially to very small silver and gold. And as decent depth, just a bit noisy in iron infested
sites. I did hit a section of Wildwood beach in Canada that drove me crazy will aluminum slag washed up near shore. Still found a gold ring in the mess of it.

The 1280x I had was an older unit with the red headset actually seemed smoother in operation than the TS, had comparable depth, not as sensitive as the TS.

Then I got two used Detectopro Divers one for my wife and myself. Loved the concept of headphone electronics. Had to send both in because of headphone wire problems and so called cracked ear cups. I never spotted any cracks even under a UV light. Anyways cost me roughly $150.00 for repairs. Still cheaper than buying new. They worked great but, no better than then the 1280x. Eventually sold one Diver to get my wife a Blue Wader (fav. color). It also had problems, so it cost me another $75.00 to fix. To this day, not sure it preforms like it should, rarely gets anything deeper than 5-6" and it doesn't find the very small stuff like the TS. I would make an attempt to adjust the pots inside, if I knew what does what. No I will not send it back to Detectorpro for adjustments. One good thing about Tesoro is the warranty even if second owner, they take care of you. DD takes care of you fast too, if you are orig. owner or willing to pay DD mucho $$$ and postage.

If I were to get another fresh water detector, it would be a TS. One nice thing I liked about it is the white searchcoil you can see in murky water. You can also put your scoop right along side of the coil and it will not give a target signal and blow your ears off. It's not overpriced like.......and you will find stuff!!

I always set my TS sensitivity to the point just below falsing, set disc just to reject hair pins. Once the internal adjustments were preset. It was simple to turn on do a quick GB and go hunt.

By, the way, when you get water logged and cold, come back out onto the dry beach sand and hunt some more....This is one detector I remember actually finding quarters buried at 10" on the beach.

I have never used a CZ20, so can't comment on that one.

PS---Have to say of all the years metal detecting, the Tesoro's I owned always found the very small stuff.

 

[dahut]

If I were to get another fresh water detector, it would be a TS. One nice thing I liked about it is the white searchcoil you can see in murky water.
I always set my TS sensitivity to the point just below falsing, set disc just to reject hair pins. Once the internal adjustments were preset. It was simple to turn on do a quick GB and go hunt.

By, the way, when you get water logged and cold, come back out onto the dry beach sand and hunt some more....This is one detector I remember actually finding quarters buried at 10" on the beach.

PS---Have to say of all the years metal detecting, the Tesoro's I owned always found the very small stuff.

Some useful user comments, Sven.
I forgot about the white coil - that is a bonus in shallower water. It makes no difference in chest deep water that is even a little turbid.

Setting the SENS to "just below falsing" is good advice and is also tricky, since the adjust pot is inside the waterproof housing. You have to adjust it, seal 'er back up, test it and then if it needs further changes - you have to open up the can, tweak it and then close it all back up again.

During all this, you must ensure you get no sand or dirt on the silicone lubricated o-ring seal. This has to be done in the field under rough conditions, did we mention that? Once you do get it right, you wont be inclined to mess with it any more, I can assure you!
But once set, there is little need to fiddle with it.

NOTE: I am an inveterate fiddler, though, and still wish it was mounted outside the housing, along with the THRESH.

It is good on the dry beach, too, although a tad weighty for some. I keep it on the beach mostly and don't consider it a dry land detector, although that is more personal preference than anything else.

 

[Sven]

Yup, a bit tricky to first set-up and you must keep it all clean and dry when you work on it. I used to do underwater photography with similar housings with o-rings.
It is a bit bulky for land hunting, balances much better rear mounted under the forearm. This really better in the water too, with the armband around your forearm, you can release your hand from the detector and pick things out of your scoop, it will almost balance float for you and won't get away from you.

 

[Joel-Winnipeg]

Thanking you all for the info.
Another question I fogot to ask does the Tiger Shark have tones for the good targets and lower tones for the iron based signals ?

 

[Hombre]

Hi Joel

The Tiger Sharks is a mono-tone detector........but afer using it for awhile you will notice subtle differences in the tone of the signal. Iron tones are easy, as it clics over small nails,hairpins an other small iron bitsey's. If you never had the pleasure of using old fashoned analog audio before, you will be in for a real treat on the sound this machine makes on good targets. The tone of a good target is a higher pitched smooth audio signal, rather than a steel bottle caps that sounds kind of hard edged and crackley. Coins sound nice but gold sounds sweeter to me! Ya just gotta get out there a play with it some .............and you will master this machine in no time..Good luck with your choice I'm sure it will be the right one.

Hombre

 

[grumpyolman]

Dahut has given the suggestions I would have given. I have never used it in saltwater so I can't tell you what it might or might not do. I do know that some of the detectors that are supposed to be able to handle the mineraliztion of the salt beaches have a tough time doing it. So...I can't immagine a unit not specifically engineered for the salt water handling those conditions. It does have a salt mode on it but I wonder. It's just that there is no detecting around here in the salt water because the water is too cold year around. Gotta have people in the water to lose stuff.
If I moved to Florida or the Gulf Coast, I would use the Dual Field and if I needed a discriminating unit I'd probably try another Excalibur. If the TS would handle the salted beaches I'd forgo the Excal but I just don't have any experience with it.
I too think you need two units. One for the water and one for the land. The analogy is the amphibian aircraft. They are a monstrosity. They don't work as good in the water as a dedicated float plane and don't work as well on land as a dedicated wheeled aircraft. However, for specific applications they are the best machine for some people.
You can get a high end land detector and use it on the wet and dry salt water sand. It's just risky getting it wet. There is also the salt spray and fog that permeates anything around the surf line. Had a friend who lived 300 yards from the surf line. Anything in the house that wasn't wood, plastic, or stainless, would rust and start to grow fuzz. Kitchen appliances would look like heck just a few months after purchase. The salt in the air also raised havoc with the electrical stuff. After seeing that, I want it to be a nice warm sunny day before I take my E-Trac to the beach. That's where the waterproof machines really shine. Nothing gets inside the electronics and the salt air doesn't touch the plastic housings. Jim