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DeepTech

Tejon and Nautilus

M

Michigan Badger

New member
I think the best land hunting detector made today is the Tesoro Tejon.

But I also have a lot of respect for the Tejon competitor, the Nautilus IIb.

I personally think Tesoro makes a better product but that's my opinion.

I have a considerable amount of experience with both machines.

But I was wondering if others here have owned both and would be willing to share your opinions. That is, how do these two detectors compare (you may also use the IIBa).

In your opinion is one deeper and/or better at target separation than the other?

What about durability, weight, basic construction?

What do you think?

Badger
 
I have had both.

I didn't keep the Nautilus to long because my friend who I hunted with (USMC Grunt) had a Whites and he was finding things and I was fiddling with knobs, knobs everywhere. One odd thing that happened was that there were four 9v batteries located on the underside of the detector. One of the batteries fell out and I didn't even realize it until we got back to the car. The Nautilus ran on three batteries.

As for the Tejon. Much much deeper than my DFX. I think the Tejon is probably the best detector out there for the money and the best detector period for relic hunting.
 
Too many problems with Nautilus, especially coils, resulting in send backs and expensive repair bills.

The Tejon, when learned is the better machine IMO, and if it needs repair it's free. That alone makes Tesoro stand out.
 
Jerry Ga. said:
Too many problems with Nautilus, especially coils, resulting in send backs and expensive repair bills.

The Tejon, when learned is the better machine IMO, and if it needs repair it's free. That alone makes Tesoro stand out.
Click to expand...

to repair coils off warranty.

They just raised the price of thier machines too.

I got a price quote on a new IIb and it was nearly $750. Almost $200 more than a Tejon as I recall.

Badger
 
jhettel said:
I have had both.

I didn't keep the Nautilus to long because my friend who I hunted with (USMC Grunt) had a Whites and he was finding things and I was fiddling with knobs, knobs everywhere. One odd thing that happened was that there were four 9v batteries located on the underside of the detector. One of the batteries fell out and I didn't even realize it until we got back to the car. The Nautilus ran on three batteries.

As for the Tejon. Much much deeper than my DFX. I think the Tejon is probably the best detector out there for the money and the best detector period for relic hunting.
Click to expand...
 
sell out?

Maybe new owners will upgrade the IIb and IIba?

Hey, maybe they could just get Tesoro to make that new upgrade for them (just kidding) :thumbup:
 
Yes the Tejon is very deep and at about 17 kHz too is what is amazing about it!! (Higher frequencies usually have less depth but are more sensitive to smaller objects and also to gold and iron BUT less sensitvity to silver and copper.)

To bad it was not a dual fequency detector with a second frequency of 3 or 5 kHz added on as well. If it did it would then be very close to the deepest single frequency VLF on the market if not the deepest of any VLF. (Lower frequencies are deeper and also less sensitive to gold and iron BUT more sensitive to silver and copper.)

The 5 kHz Minelab Musketter Advantage has comparable depth to the 17 kHz Tejon, but the Tejon is more sensitive to iron and aluminum because of its frequency picking up trash better but it also will pick up small gold and iron relics better. But the Musky is less sensitive to trash because of its frequency and better on silver and copper.

The All-Metal Mode is much better on the Tejon than on the Musky, therefor the Tejon is a much better relic and gold nugget hunter.

I do not know much about the sweep speed on the Tejon? Does anyone know? I know the Musky is lighting fast just as the manual does explain it on page 2 I think, a rapid speed hunter with no loss of depth. A couple of people told me the Vaquero had a slower sweep speed.

Sorry, yes I know I am off track about the Nautilus but I have never used one before and I go not know about them, except a fellow from N. Carolina who came to pick up my 6" Dahlke dredge to take it up to Alaska showed me his Nautilus and he seemed to like it. He also had an MXT to take up there and he said it worked as good as a PI at Ganes Creek, Alaska with low mineralization I think.

It took me alot of work to type this so do not dismiss me please.
 
I've used both the Tejon and the Nautilus IIB. Looking back now, because I sold both of them. I didn't realize until after I sold it how deep that Tejon went. I've since bought and sold 2 more Tejon's and 2 Vaquero's. I now have a new Vaquero, and will have a new Tejon by the Fall. As far as the Tejon,I love the weight, and the depth. With the Nautilus I was always tweaking it, its very stable once you get use to tuning it. I will say, It's a very deep machine too, built like, and as heavy as a tank.
 
I own and use both. Each machine has it's strong suits. It depends on the ground conditions as to which machine I use. If I am in a rough plowed field or a field with crop stubble, then I use the 2B with the 15" coil as it will still hit deep while swinging several inches above ground. Same for heavy cover in the woods but with a smaller coil. The Tejon is light to carry and once you learn it's language is very accurate and just plain fun to use. Battery life in the Tejon is great too. I still favor the 2B because I mainly relic hunt and with the White's rod conversion I can swing it for many hours. I have the rechargeable batteries in the 2B and have had no issues with them falling out or not holding charge for 12 or more hours. Most of the spots that I hunt are sandy and the relics are very deep. The Tejon will find some of them but the 2B will find more. Given the choice I grab the 2B first but I would not hesitate to use the Tejon either. My 2B was recently in the shop for more than 2 months. The folks at Nautilus have had some illnesses and were behind with repairs. I do think they should hire another tech and they trying to do so. This is a small operation that still hand builds each machine. I had 2 15" coils rebalanced and the machine tuned up for $68.00. Not expensive. It works better than ever. Sure the machine is bulky and heavier than alot of newer machines but for serious relic hunters it still beats the competition. They have won the GNRS several years in a row and all of these competitors are serious relic hunters with the best machines represented. So... long story short, use which machine you are most comfortable with. I can adjust the 2B in less than a minute and rarely have to do more than adjust the coil if the temperature changes drastically. GB on the Tejon is done is seconds. Either of these are fine relic machines. BTW... I also have a F75 that usually stays in the car unless I am in heavy iron or want visual target id.
HH!
Mike
 
like $85. This was just for one 10" coil.

I think this was most likely due to the need for help at Nautilus.

I do believe Nautilus has excellent potential and sure wish something could be done to upgrade the system.

Badger
 
rod mod it's much better but still not a Tejon.

An upgraded Nautilus IIb and IIba would be a hot seller.

I have always thought they blew it with the IIba. They added the auto coil balance which was a pretty good idea for new owners but they blew it by leaving off 2 important knobs.

What Nautilus needs is a total retooling. They should keep the basic concept of DMC but produce a new light weight version of the IIba and put those 2 knobs back on. In all this the coil needs to be brought up to 2009 in dependable construction but at the same time maintain the old coil's performance.

Other issues such as changing from those obsolete 9 volts to internally mounted rechargeable AAs would be nice too. Did I mention a new ON/OFF switch that doesn't turn on while the detector is in the trunk? Retooling!

But with such a small company I don't see that happening anytime soon. The question is, will the competition (and raised prices) kill them before they can make their move?

Wish I had the money to buy them out. That would be a goldmine purchase due to thousands who basically worship that brand.

Badger
 
That must have been for shipping included. I got my 10" coil re-tuned last Summer and it was $35.00. Mind you, I only live about 40 minutes from Coats so I just drive over when I need something done.
Mike
 
There is a circuit board in the coils. They either needed repairing or replacing. I never even thought about a board in the coils.
Mike
 
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