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The Etrac failed the trashy park test
- Thread starter Bugalooob
- Start date
Do you have anyone local that could join you on a hunt and help you get on track?
Couple hours with an experienced e-trac user and you'll be picking silver out of trash with a smile on your face.
Air tests are really crap, I remember when I first got my e-trac i did them and was disappointed.......but once I got out hunting in the real world I was quickly impressed and totally amazed in some cases!!
I'm not brand loyal and I did an immense amount of study before committing to minelab and the e-trac and that price tag.......approx 90% feedback is very positive, about 7% is ex-explorer guys that can't 'convert', and the last 3% are people that need some hands-on lessons to 'help it all click!'
I hope you come to grips with the e-trac or you find a detector that suits your detecting style.
Cheers,
Greg
Couple hours with an experienced e-trac user and you'll be picking silver out of trash with a smile on your face.
Air tests are really crap, I remember when I first got my e-trac i did them and was disappointed.......but once I got out hunting in the real world I was quickly impressed and totally amazed in some cases!!
I'm not brand loyal and I did an immense amount of study before committing to minelab and the e-trac and that price tag.......approx 90% feedback is very positive, about 7% is ex-explorer guys that can't 'convert', and the last 3% are people that need some hands-on lessons to 'help it all click!'
I hope you come to grips with the e-trac or you find a detector that suits your detecting style.
Cheers,
Greg
dreamweaver43
New member
LOL.....you'll get a good $$ for the etrac on Ebay. Maybe with the money you could buy a top of the line bounty hunter and play around with it in your house. Either way you'll probably find the same amount of stuff in the house for like a $1200 less in machine costs, so I can understand why you're so dissapointed about missing that clad dime under the pull tab in your living room. Maybe you should try a magnet or something???
If you put as much effort at a park as you spending swinging in the house, maybe you'd figure out how to find stuff in the ground?
Brad.....aka "screwed etrac user"
If you put as much effort at a park as you spending swinging in the house, maybe you'd figure out how to find stuff in the ground?
Brad.....aka "screwed etrac user"
There's one used E-trac on Ebay right now. It's got a bid on it for $900 with 3 days left to go. The owner said he only had it out of the box for one hour and decided it "was too much machine for me." I've only seen a used one on there one other time. It sold for $1200. That's an excellent resale value on a used detector.
OK, I'll post the Contrarian view.
I totally disagree with the folks who dismiss in-ground testing of deep or masked targets ( read ==> TESTBED). You can't compare differenet techniques, different settings, different machines or different coils if you really don't know what's in the ground. Consequently I use my testbed with lots of different known samples to fine tune my machine and my methods. I find it essential with a new piece of equipment and I always practice there before going out for the real hunt. You can't sit in the same place in a public park for 15 minutes while you fiddle with settings, change coils or swap detectors out. At least I never could.
Bug has created a test in which most detectors will perform poorly, or at least will perform to a level that doesn't meet the users expectations, especially when he/she knows what the target is. I expect that Bug will find that all detectors will fail this test to his satisfaction, bar none. Even my Fisher F75, with one of the fastest recovery speeds on the market, fails a similar test with the stock coil. It is just an inherent weakness using current technology, no matter what that technology costs.
Most folks that do not have a test bed have never (with certainty) experienced the effects of iron masking or silent masking because they don't know what really is under their coil in the field. Can't blame them beacause they hear nothing good from their detector and never know what they missed! Tom Dankowski did an excellent job describing the masking effect in his Inland Coinshooting video. It's well worth the $25.
I'll bet that Bug's Minelab Etrac is just like all the others. It just is what it is.
I totally disagree with the folks who dismiss in-ground testing of deep or masked targets ( read ==> TESTBED). You can't compare differenet techniques, different settings, different machines or different coils if you really don't know what's in the ground. Consequently I use my testbed with lots of different known samples to fine tune my machine and my methods. I find it essential with a new piece of equipment and I always practice there before going out for the real hunt. You can't sit in the same place in a public park for 15 minutes while you fiddle with settings, change coils or swap detectors out. At least I never could.
Bug has created a test in which most detectors will perform poorly, or at least will perform to a level that doesn't meet the users expectations, especially when he/she knows what the target is. I expect that Bug will find that all detectors will fail this test to his satisfaction, bar none. Even my Fisher F75, with one of the fastest recovery speeds on the market, fails a similar test with the stock coil. It is just an inherent weakness using current technology, no matter what that technology costs.
Most folks that do not have a test bed have never (with certainty) experienced the effects of iron masking or silent masking because they don't know what really is under their coil in the field. Can't blame them beacause they hear nothing good from their detector and never know what they missed! Tom Dankowski did an excellent job describing the masking effect in his Inland Coinshooting video. It's well worth the $25.
I'll bet that Bug's Minelab Etrac is just like all the others. It just is what it is.
I put a square tab on a 3.75" glass and a dime 8" away. I had the stock coil on. Felt that I needed to discrim the tab out, so I opened up the north east corner of the screen. I didn't have any trouble picking up the dime from any direction. I had some iron in the slab floor and the A/C unit was running 12" away (Louisiana).
gibsondan said:There's one used E-trac on Ebay right now. It's got a bid on it for $900 with 3 days left to go. The owner said he only had it out of the box for one hour and decided it "was too much machine for me." I've only seen a used one on there one other time. It sold for $1200. That's an excellent resale value on a used detector.
3 days to go alot will change....
Bugalooob said:At 8 inches mine nulls out passing over the square pulltab first then the dime, it also nulls when I immediately swing back over the dime first then the square pulltab...Are you doing the test right?
Yes, my F75 nulls both ways too using the big, stock coil. But my scenario is a little different because both samples are in the ground, my nail is bigger than the pulltab and my dime is deeper.
Still... same effect.
Andy Sabisch
Active member
As many have already posted, the E-Trac excels in the conditions you mention that yoy bought it to hunt. One thing I have not seen is what detector(s) you used previously. If they were not Minelab's, especially FBS detectors, there is a learning curve that is steep for some - especially if you have extensive experience with the other brands . . .sweep speed, response to multiple targets, adjusting functions with "Aussie" names all play into this.
Several posters on the Findmall site such as Ray (MO), Bryce and others have made amazing finds in super trashy locations with the FBS units. Was it easy? No - but starting out with a new detector in the trashiets section you can find is a sure fire receipe for failure and frustration. Try hunting some cleaner sites and see what you learn . . . then migrate to the more challanging sites. Eeven with 1,000's of hours on FBS detectors since 1999 I still can find myself throwing in the towel if my mindset is not right in really trashy sites . . . coming back when I can focus on what it is telling me and am willing to dig some trash to get the good stuff.
With that said, there are some that never connect with their FBS detector . . . nothing wrong with that just a statement of fact. I have tried some other high-end detectors that work great for others but they were not my "cup of tea". I have a number of different brands and models that fit my needs and each requires a different technique to get the most out of . . . . . find what works for you and use it.
The E-Trac is worth the money as many can attest to . . . . . but if all you get is frustrated every time you use it, the investment was not worth it.
Andy
Several posters on the Findmall site such as Ray (MO), Bryce and others have made amazing finds in super trashy locations with the FBS units. Was it easy? No - but starting out with a new detector in the trashiets section you can find is a sure fire receipe for failure and frustration. Try hunting some cleaner sites and see what you learn . . . then migrate to the more challanging sites. Eeven with 1,000's of hours on FBS detectors since 1999 I still can find myself throwing in the towel if my mindset is not right in really trashy sites . . . coming back when I can focus on what it is telling me and am willing to dig some trash to get the good stuff.
With that said, there are some that never connect with their FBS detector . . . nothing wrong with that just a statement of fact. I have tried some other high-end detectors that work great for others but they were not my "cup of tea". I have a number of different brands and models that fit my needs and each requires a different technique to get the most out of . . . . . find what works for you and use it.
The E-Trac is worth the money as many can attest to . . . . . but if all you get is frustrated every time you use it, the investment was not worth it.
Andy
The Explorers/E-TRAC definitely have a learning curve and as you mentioned it can take years to fully appreciate what the detector is try to tell you... It is obvious with many targets, the detector simply tells you what is in the ground BUT when adjacent targets, soil conditions and/or depth is a factor on finding the target, then it comes to the operator being able to interrupt what the detector is trying to say. This is true of all detectors but the E-TRAC has some unique ways of telling you.... I had a customer who bought a DFX,(from another dealer, first detector ever), "not any good" . In his mind, that statement was true but in all reality he wasn't willing to take the time to learn the machine. I sold him an MXT and he is tickled to death.... Bottom line, is that 75% of a detectors success rate is, in fact, the operator and not the detector.. I personally love the E-TRAC especially relic hunting but when it comes to an occasional coin hunt, I go for the Safari... Why ? I am, at this point in time, feeling considerably more confident with the Safaro.
Another factor is that sometimes there may be a problem with the machine, especially in the coil, that can give some erratic results.... a lose/broken wire or winding can play havoc on trying to hunt with machine....been there and done that...
Yet another reason is that you buy a machine and for some reason, your mindset/feelings for the machine are not there...just got "off on the wrong foot" The detector is
capable but the viewpoint means that you might as well get another detector....not always but in a lot of cases it is...
Best to all and may you next target be Silver, Richard
Another factor is that sometimes there may be a problem with the machine, especially in the coil, that can give some erratic results.... a lose/broken wire or winding can play havoc on trying to hunt with machine....been there and done that...
Yet another reason is that you buy a machine and for some reason, your mindset/feelings for the machine are not there...just got "off on the wrong foot" The detector is
capable but the viewpoint means that you might as well get another detector....not always but in a lot of cases it is...
Best to all and may you next target be Silver, Richard
I did your test out in my yard. I put a dime 3 inches down in the soil and covered it with dirt. Then i placed a small piece of paper over it so i would know its location. Then a square tab 9 inches away on the surface. My e-trac hit both items fine with a small sweep or long sweep or even a sweep that didn't move off the targets. I then placed the tab at 6 inches and still was able to hit both just fine. Now at 3 inches the dime went silent most of the time. Then i changed from normal audio to long and the dime came back out but the tab and dime tones ran together but it still told me a dime was there with a tab. So then i tried 2 inches with long and still got the dime to sound off. I didn't test any closer than that cause i had to leave for some doc appointment for the wife. I did take a small video of first test and i will try to get it up here later.
The whites can probably do the test just as good so it makes me think your minelab may have a problem.
I posted this on the whites v3 forum also under your post there.
The whites can probably do the test just as good so it makes me think your minelab may have a problem.
I posted this on the whites v3 forum also under your post there.
In my original test i did not disc out the tab. I used my coin pat. that i maid. I leave tabs in cause of rings and nickels hiting so near that spot. I did go back out when i got home and tried a very tight disc pattern. Its actually the pattern i downloaded from the beep goes on. But even with that tight disc i was able to hit the dime with long turned on. Its kinda strange cause the dime will only hit in long and when its hits its on the side of the coil. But the dime did hit good at 3 inches down and 2/3 inches away from the tab on the surface.
How can i get vids up here? do i have to put them on you tube and then hot link them to the forum?
oh almost forgot i was using the stock pro coil.
Also when the sense was lower than 20 i didnt hit the dime even in long but when i cranked up the sense to about 22 or 23 or higher the dime would hit again wile running the audio in long.
How can i get vids up here? do i have to put them on you tube and then hot link them to the forum?
oh almost forgot i was using the stock pro coil.
Also when the sense was lower than 20 i didnt hit the dime even in long but when i cranked up the sense to about 22 or 23 or higher the dime would hit again wile running the audio in long.
rbholt80 said:I did go back out when i got home and tried a very tight disc pattern..
It would be interesting to know if you can still see the dime with a slightly broader DISC setting around the tab... maybe something to disc out tabs in more varied ground conditions.