Well........it happened again!!!!

[Ivan]

Well Barry...there is my point!! If you receive a "slight" hit on a coin or the hit isn't as solid......probably under real hunting conditions you wouldn't dig it. A small silver ring doesn't read.........................how is that a good thing? I still say the Mohave was outfitted with the so called new coil.......for marketing reasons. So the detector would appear....."new"!! Just as I'm stirring up this hornets nest I just got a call from a friend that swears the round brown coil is totally outperforming the so called new stock Mohave coil in the tough ground mineralized mode. So my advice ..I like the detector but if you get a Mohave dump the standard coil.

 

[Monte]

Just as I'm stirring up this hornets nest I just got a call from a friend that swears the round brown coil is totally outperforming the so called new stock Mohave coil in the tough ground mineralized mode. So my advice ..I like the detector but if you get a Mohave dump the standard coil.

Sometimes it can be interesting to 'stir up a hornets nest' with some topics.

I have 5 Tesoro's in my Regular-Use Detector Team including the Mojave. I also have 2 duplicate Tesoro models I'll sell or trade, but that gave me two more 8" brown Concentric coils to compare with. I switched coils around between my Mojave, Silver Sabre [size=small]micro[/size]MAX, original Bandido and Bandido II [size=small]micro[/size]MAX plus the two extras. That gave me the new 'Precision' 7" Concentric coil, 3 of the 6" Concentric coils, 4 of the brown and 1 of the white 8" Concentric coils to swap around and compare. I used my Nail Board, and several other 'test' scenarios, then used them to hunt an old house site with reasonably mineralized ground and a mix of ferrous and non-ferrous debris.

My goal was to try and determine which coils worked the best on which particular detector model for ME and the types of sites I generally hunt. The first thing I discovered was that there was no change or surprise for me to see a slight difference in behavior between similar coils. This is something I discovered decades ago when I was a first became a Tesoro Dealer in July of '83. I used to check all the detectors I ordered in to ensure all were working well before they went to a consumer, and also to make sure my personal-use detectors, and the demo models on display , were some of the 'hotter' specimens.

When evaluating the detectors and accessory coils, I also swapped like coils between units. An 8" for a different 8". A 7" for another 7". I became aware of how different detectors [size=small](their circuitry)[/size] and different search coils [size=small](their internal winding and configuration)[/size] could result is similar, or in obviously different, performance. As far as 'depth-of-detection', be it in an air-test or when compared afield on a few located targets, it could be about ½" to 1" difference between two of the same size/type search coils.

When I concluded all my current soil swapping and model-to-model evaluations, I ended up right back where I started. I found the new 7" coil to provide the best "general purpose" performance for me and for my search needs. On some tests, the 7" on the Mojave gave almost identical performance/responsiveness as two or three of the brown 8" Concentric coils. I also found that in some comparison tests, the new 7" worked better on the Mojave than at least one of the thin-profile 6" Concentric coils. The only real decisions I had to make was not what to mount on the Mojave, but trying all three of the 6" coils and each of the three detectors that would use them to try and find the most harmonious combination. The new 7" stays on my Mojave.

The Mojave is new and does have some improvements that I can sense in using it.

The 'Precision' 7" Concentric coil is also new and, for my uses, I found it to be a very good match with the Mojave.

The new Mojave is a great model decision from Tesoro. It can replace the Compadre and Silver [size=small]micro[/size]MAX offering both the ED-180 Disc. adjustment of one model and the Sensitivity control and Interchangeable Coil features of the other, plus augment the versatility with the dual-position preset GB toggle switch. But with all those features blended together, and with the performance it does offer, it is still a low-end, low-cost model that lacks things like a true, Threshold-based All Metal mode, and any other features, and possibly power and performance, that can come from a mid-to-higher dollar Tesoro offering. In short, it is-what-it-is, and I appreciate it for that.

All too often we hear of/read about folks trying to own only one detector and try to make it be the deepest-seeking unit, the best at handling high trash, best for dealing with abundant iron debris, and all sorts of other imagined possibilities. I don't look at things that way. I go back to the last half of the '60s when we mainly compared BFO's to BFO's and different coil sizes. Then in '71 came a time I compared TR's with TR's but also against BFO's.

They didn't all perform the same, and it was back in '71 when I started to establish a working detector battery of at least 2 detectors, and within a year or two I maintained 3 or 4 detectors, minimum, that could best fit certain hunt environments, different amounts and types of trash, and at times even give me a bit of an 'edge' in the depth department. They all complemented each other in different ways.

I believe anyone starting out today in this great sport, or those who have enjoyed it for a while but are restricted, or have restricted themselves, to owning only one metal detector can do OK with the Mojave and stock coil. There is no such thing as a 'perfect' metal detector, so my advise is to do the best we can do and have one versatile detector with an accessory coil or two, or better still own more than one detector so that they complement each other.

They do NOT have to be high-dollar detectors. There are many offerings on the market at very affordable prices, especially the past couple of years, and anyone who enjoys this hobby can easily find a way to enjoy owning more than one detector. Let's face it, the majority of those who get into this outdoor sport do it to go Coin & Jewelry Hunting. If they get out detecting as often as possible it will do them good because they can better familiarize themselves with the strengths and weakness of their detector and coil. They can also find more.

And the more you find the more $$$ you have to invest in building up a personal detector battery of at least two, or maybe three, detectors. If someone doesn't have the time or take the time to get out detecting very often, then they maybe ought to forget about just buying an extra coil, or better yet, maybe take up a different hobby. Don't try to make one low-end model a do-it-all magic machine 'cause it just isn't going to happen.

Monte

 

[Ivan]

As usual Monte always can be counted on to produce a well thought out logical reply.I agree totally that if you are a serious detectorist.....one detector can not do it all.Your first detector if you are serious........... is your "gateway" detector. Thought should be put into which detectors you own and why!! The latest detector is not always the best choice.