V3 vs. F75

[kybowhunter]

Can anyone that has used both give me a comparison between the v3 vs. the F75 and which one you choose and why?

 

[RacerX]

I just bought an F75 LTD. Just got the fisher last night so I can't give a hunt comparison but I have friends who have them and they seem to do well with them. One nice thing about the fisher is it's lightning speed. It's almost too fast - A great choice if your hunting areas that are iron infested.

Both do well in highly mineralized soil with maybe the fisher having a slight edge.

Both have similar EMI issues - as do all powerful/sensative machines with DD coils.

The V gives much more target info. This can be both good and bad. On one hand it's nice to have the V's info, on the other hand it;s not ALWAYS right. Digging more targets will always increase good finds regardless of the machine you use.

One blaring difference between the 2 is quality. The V is MUCH better built. If I understand correctly the Fisher has been repriced to the $1400 range? I bought new in the $1000 area and even at that price I'm disapointed in quality. A high end detector should be built like whites machines. That said I have no idea how the fishewr will hold up over time. It may be fine.

Oh. and the fisher is much lighter but the V is better balanced and almost feels lighter in hand.

Hope this helps. I should be able to give a hunt review by the end of the week.

 

[kybowhunter]

Thanks, I'll be looking for your first field review.

 

[RacerX]

Just dropping a note to let you know I haven't forgotten about you. For some reason I can't log in on my home computer. I'm replying now on my smart phone. I do have test results but its too much to type with just my thumbs.

 

[RacerX]

Oh, and I'll post review no later than Monday.

 

[RacerX]

Okay, heres my thoughts.... Please keep in mind that this is coming from a LONG time whites user - though I belive unbiased opinion. I like all brands or I wouldn't have bought the dang thing. Also, some of this is based on my observations and conversations with my friend who co-owns the F75 with me. He is WELL versed with many different machines. My definition of expert detectorist.

For the most part I was not impressed until I really cranked this thing up. BP (boost process) mode with sens set at 90 or better.

What I liked: It's fast, lightning fast. It excels in heavy trash areas. It's light - you can hunt longer with less fatigue. It will run deep - maybe even deeper than the V in the right hands.

What I didn't like: It's fast (ya, I know in both categories). The detection field/patern coming of of the stock loop is more like a blade and you get a very short zip as you pass a target. If you run this thing wide open for shear depth it gets chattery (the V does too) and it's very hard to distinguish chatter from a real signal whereas the V gives a longer signal and calls your attention to a target better. Some practice and slowing down helped but it's hard to cover any ground thuroughly. While the F75 LTD will run deep, at the deeper depths the VDI is really bouncy and the audio is marginal at best. My friend commented that the first 2 deep coins he pulled were the result of testing the machine to see what it was telling him and that he wouldn't have dug such a signal with another detector. You'd have to roll the dice more often.

Quality: Is as stated in my first post. It's my opinion that any machine in the $1,000+ plus range should be built better. I'm not a fan of so much plastic. Maybe the idea here is less weight but how much more could a metal arm cuff and metal handle weigh? Even the coil plug seems cheasy and awkward to fit. I also don't think the F75 is water resistant (I could be wrong) and since a little rain won't stop me it's a big deal.

Bottom line: The F75 LTD is a great machine and runs deep but I really don't think it's in the same class as the V and yet the prices (of the LTD anyway) are getting up there with the V. Now maybe if you found some steller deal at half the cost of the V I would think it was a viable option.


NOTE: Since you are asking about the F75 and not the LTD specifically - the above may not count for much. There were some complaints with the standard F75 and lots and lots of people jumped ship on the standard F75 and went to the LTD. Honestly I don't know for sure but I'd guess there would be an even bigger difference between the standard F75 and the V.

 

[tab-nabit]

The last detector I bought was the Vision, and the one before that is the F-75. Problem is, I haven't put enough time on both to give a honest opinion except I like both. The other problem, I use other machines too, so all my hunt time hasn't been focused on just the Vision & F-75. But I will say I do like both and have no regrets yet. I also got smaller coils for both as I use small coils most times. Good machines so far.

 

[jbow]

They are both good machines, they are just different and one may out perform the other at a given site. No machine is the best under every condition. I love them both and use them both but neither is quite as good, IMO, as the E-TRAC... however that does not mean I am going to sell either the V-3 or the F-75, they both have their place.

It is good to have an arsenal of good detectors and coils. It is just like having different coils sometimes a different coil will perform better... sometimes a different machine will perform better.

Julien

 

[Cal_Cobra]

Quality: Is as stated in my first post. It's my opinion that any machine in the $1,000+ plus range should be built better. I'm not a fan of so much plastic. Maybe the idea here is less weight but how much more could a metal arm cuff and metal handle weigh? Even the coil plug seems cheasy and awkward to fit. I also don't think the F75 is water resistant (I could be wrong) and since a little rain won't stop me it's a big deal.

Good review, a couple of points to add. Although the F75 LTD arm cuff may appear to be plastic, it's metal. You can bend it to the contour of your arm. Actually if I'm not mistaken only the lower rod is plastic (for obvious reasons), and the control housing/battery housing, which is probably for weight reduction. The F75 LTD has weather seals for light rain, and comes with control housing and battery housing covers gratis for hunting in heavy rain. I've hunted in light rain with the LTD without the covers and it performed fine. It's MSRP is $1199 and that includes both the 11" bi-axle DD coil and round 5" DD coil.

The tones in boost mode are greatly improved over the DE (default) mode, but I can't compare them to the V as I've never used one, yet.

 

[TheMarshall]

The V gives much more target info. [size=large][size=x-large]This can be both good and bad. On one hand it's nice to have the V's info, on the other hand it;s not ALWAYS right.[/size][/size] Digging more targets will always increase good finds regardless of the machine you use.

*******************************************

I cannot understand how anyone can justify. "It's not always right"

Just because you can't fathom out why, doesn't make it wrong.

How in the name of good reasoning can you make that assessment?

What exactly is wrong, when it isn't 'right'......????????

I challenge you to be as specific in your explanation, as you are in the original statement..


The mistake you are making, is due to not being able to comprehend how various factors in the detector's "field of view" all summate to form the 'picture' depicted in the 3 frequency galleries.

Often, silly color pallets for different VDI ranges, cause confusion rather than clarifying matters.

So my advice is to new V3 owner is "KEEP IT SWEET and SIMPLE". .......KISS



A metal detector is a 'scientific' instrument. The Whites Spectra is a superb example of such.

Now, the question is." Are you educated well enough in the sciences involved in the processes of detecting metals by the method of alternating current induction, to make such statements?"

I am not intending to be offensively critical if you don't understand the complexities, but it is of concern when you promote an incorrect opinion base on a lack of understanding.

The Spectra, 'Tells it as it sees it'. Now, you have to dig it, check also for what you may have left behind, monitor the ground conditions,and then TRY and rationalise any quandary.

Some things/situations are just too complex to fully explain, but don't blame your detector until you have first realised your own limitations in resolving matters.


Having done plenty of fiddling with settings, I'm now I'm settling down to making my Spectra personally functionable, and informative.......TheMarshall.

p.s. When I read of anyone cranking the sensitivities above the 90's etc......I just switch to another post.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

 

[RacerX]

Good review, a couple of points to add. Although the F75 LTD arm cuff may appear to be plastic, it's metal. You can bend it to the contour of your arm. Actually if I'm not mistaken only the lower rod is plastic (for obvious reasons), and the control housing/battery housing, which is probably for weight reduction.

Hmmm, what about the plastic thats clamped onto the main rod (the handle you hold while detecing)? I can grab the screen box and twist/flex it easily. You can't do that with whites. Nice to know the cuff is metal. It sure looks plastic - does it have some sort of coating on it?

Just to be clear again, I'm not sure the plastic on this thing would ever be a problem. Just sayin...... .

It's MSRP is $1199 and that includes both the 11" bi-axle DD coil and round 5" DD coil.

Good point about the 5" coil coming with it. I had forgetten to mention that.

I read a post that some retailers were adding to MSRP do to supply and demand but now I do see Kellyco is selling at MSRP. Thats great...... but still, $1200 is what I would consider getting up there with the V's $1500 MSRP. The V does so much more for another $300. Stuff like holding so many custom programs and the ability to adjust things like recovery speed, filters etc. to say nothing of processing 3 freq.


Don't get me wrong - The F75 is a great and formidable machine in the right hands . Yours was running nice and deep the day we hunted the scout camp. Maybe even deeper than the V with the settings I was using - though I did dig my deepest coin ever. That last wheat I found was about 12". I don't think it would have run that deep down near the river where we first started though.

 

[RacerX]

Marshall, sorry, I'm trying to understand your post to give reply.

The Spectra, 'Tells it as it sees it'. Now, you have to dig it, check also for what you may have left behind, monitor the ground conditions,and then TRY and rationalise any quandary.

This is my point. The only way to know for absolute certain what is in the ground is to dig it. Let me give you a couple of examples.

I've had............

Wheats that VDI at 54 (or so) and pinpoint with the 7.5 freq (red) dominant. A wheat SHOULD VDI in the low 70's and be dominat in the 2.5. freq.

Barber dime VDI at 64, pinpoint in 2.5 (as it should) but later when showing somone how cool the dominant freq thing worked it showed 7.5 as dominant. Talk about embarrassing.

It's VERY common (infact it's the norm) in my soil for deep silver or copper (over 6") to VDI over 90 - Period.

Deep silver will sometimes pinpoint dominant in 22.5 (blue).

It's also the norm for the tongue of a pulltab or a complete pulltab to to VDI in the 90's when it's deep.

Analyze mode is marginally usefull on a 6" coin and completely useless on anything over 8"

Now overall the extra information is nice to have but if you rely on it 100% you WILL miss keeper coins.

And since you challenged me - let me challenge you. I challenge you to come to my soil, find a 8" deep silver dime (I promise to take you to a park that has them) that VDI's anywhere between 75-85 , with perfect humps in analyze mode and pinpoints dominant in 2.5. If you look for, and only dig coins that meet that criteria I can guarantee you will go home coinless.

So, in summary the V gives you all of this info. To the beginner, or even the experienced detectorist it can't always be relied upon. Ths fisher doesn;t give you all of that. It forces you to dig to see exactly whats in the ground. If you do that (dig more stuff) you will find more keepers - period.

p.s. When I read of anyone cranking the sensitivities above the 90's etc......I just switch to another post.

I wish you would have done just that! Do you even own an F75? Threshold doesn't even kick in until the Sens is set to 88 and the machine is damn stable in the 90's.

 

[Southwind]

I would like to add that a good 80% of what I find is 6" or less. Yes the information becomes less reliable the deeper a target is on the V3, but that is only on a small percent of what I find. If the depth says 6" or more I know not to rely as much on the VDI, and that goes for pretty much any detector.

 

[nw1886]

Siol condition DO effect the surface of a coin. If a silver coin pops out a white silvery color, the soils have leached out the more fragile copper/tin. This can leave the coin registering differently in the ground. Copper that has been in the ground in active soil can have VDI's that skew lower. I've had wheats register down in the teens around ornamental berry bushes. Just using one coin as an example can skew perceptions. I work in a coin shop and we run across US coins that have a mis-mix, struck on foreign planchets etc... all the time. Just saying that variables exist and you need to ask why this occurred? I have two Kennedy Halves that show up as low quarter max and are starting to show signs of opening up like a "clam shell" due to bad bonding between the clad layering. That machine is reporting what it sees, most likely, either due to a tweak or an existing condition with the coin itself.

 

[Cal_Cobra]

Good review, a couple of points to add. Although the F75 LTD arm cuff may appear to be plastic, it's metal. You can bend it to the contour of your arm. Actually if I'm not mistaken only the lower rod is plastic (for obvious reasons), and the control housing/battery housing, which is probably for weight reduction.

Hmmm, what about the plastic thats clamped onto the main rod (the handle you hold while detecing)? I can grab the screen box and twist/flex it easily. You can't do that with whites. Nice to know the cuff is metal. It sure looks plastic - does it have some sort of coating on it?

Just to be clear again, I'm not sure the plastic on this thing would ever be a problem. Just sayin......

I believe the control housing/screen has some play/flex so it won't break if twisted too much. I know what your saying though, the White's and pre- First Texas Fishers are built like tanks and will probably last forever, unfortunately there's a price for tank build quality - excess weight. The hobby manager of First Texas used to work for Minelab and was always trying to get ML to reduce the weight of their machines after hearing all the field reports on the problems the heavy Explorers were causing their customers. I think he really took it to heart and given the chance at First Texas made it a priority to make their new models both reduced in weigh as well as more ergonomic then the older Fisher models. For that I give them kudos, swinging those older design heavy machines can take its toll on both reduced hunt time, as well as some peoples physical health.

Rich you up for a hunt ? I'm starting to get silver withdrawals

 

[Cal_Cobra]

The V gives much more target info. [size=large][size=x-large]This can be both good and bad. On one hand it's nice to have the V's info, on the other hand it;s not ALWAYS right.[/size][/size] Digging more targets will always increase good finds regardless of the machine you use.

*******************************************

I cannot understand how anyone can justify. "It's not always right"

Just because you can't fathom out why, doesn't make it wrong.

How in the name of good reasoning can you make that assessment?

What exactly is wrong, when it isn't 'right'......????????

I challenge you to be as specific in your explanation, as you are in the original statement..


The mistake you are making, is due to not being able to comprehend how various factors in the detector's "field of view" all summate to form the 'picture' depicted in the 3 frequency galleries.

Often, silly color pallets for different VDI ranges, cause confusion rather than clarifying matters.

So my advice is to new V3 owner is "KEEP IT SWEET and SIMPLE". .......KISS



A metal detector is a 'scientific' instrument. The Whites Spectra is a superb example of such.

Now, the question is." Are you educated well enough in the sciences involved in the processes of detecting metals by the method of alternating current induction, to make such statements?"

I am not intending to be offensively critical if you don't understand the complexities, but it is of concern when you promote an incorrect opinion base on a lack of understanding.

The Spectra, 'Tells it as it sees it'. Now, you have to dig it, check also for what you may have left behind, monitor the ground conditions,and then TRY and rationalise any quandary.

Some things/situations are just too complex to fully explain, but don't blame your detector until you have first realised your own limitations in resolving matters.


Having done plenty of fiddling with settings, I'm now I'm settling down to making my Spectra personally functionable, and informative.......TheMarshall.

p.s. When I read of anyone cranking the sensitivities above the 90's etc......I just switch to another post.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

Bold statements for someone who probably hasn't a clue as to the complex mineralized nature of Northern California soil and how it affects TID processing, add to that the depths that we typically need to obtain to detect older coins and text book perfect detecting scenarios can be thrown out.

 

[Larry (IL)]

We are drifting more and more away from the V3..............this is the V3 forum guys, if you want to talk F75, there is a forum for those too.

 

[njgreg]

The V gives much more target info. [size=large][size=x-large]This can be both good and bad. On one hand it's nice to have the V's info, on the other hand it;s not ALWAYS right.[/size][/size] Digging more targets will always increase good finds regardless of the machine you use.

*******************************************

I cannot understand how anyone can justify. "It's not always right"

Just because you can't fathom out why, doesn't make it wrong.

How in the name of good reasoning can you make that assessment?

What exactly is wrong, when it isn't 'right'......????????

I challenge you to be as specific in your explanation, as you are in the original statement..


The mistake you are making, is due to not being able to comprehend how various factors in the detector's "field of view" all summate to form the 'picture' depicted in the 3 frequency galleries.

Often, silly color pallets for different VDI ranges, cause confusion rather than clarifying matters.

So my advice is to new V3 owner is "KEEP IT SWEET and SIMPLE". .......KISS



A metal detector is a 'scientific' instrument. The Whites Spectra is a superb example of such.

Now, the question is." Are you educated well enough in the sciences involved in the processes of detecting metals by the method of alternating current induction, to make such statements?"

I am not intending to be offensively critical if you don't understand the complexities, but it is of concern when you promote an incorrect opinion base on a lack of understanding.

The Spectra, 'Tells it as it sees it'. Now, you have to dig it, check also for what you may have left behind, monitor the ground conditions,and then TRY and rationalise any quandary.

Some things/situations are just too complex to fully explain, but don't blame your detector until you have first realised your own limitations in resolving matters.


Having done plenty of fiddling with settings, I'm now I'm settling down to making my Spectra personally functionable, and informative.......TheMarshall.

p.s. When I read of anyone cranking the sensitivities above the 90's etc......I just switch to another post.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~​

Bold statements for someone who probably hasn't a clue as to the complex mineralized nature of Northern California soil and how it affects TID processing, add to that the depths that we typically need to obtain to detect older coins and text book perfect detecting scenarios can be thrown out.

The only text book detecting can be done in your coin garden if you have one other then that you don't know until you dig.. I wonder if some of the people on these forums go out and use a detector.

 

[Rob (IL)]

I don't know how the last 5 or so posts will help us with our v"s? I think this post has run it's course. If you want to dig each other there are PM's or get each others e mail address. Lets post some good V info, please. Rob