I want it all.

[kleinerschmitter]

Okay, so I just got through my first year of detecting, been using the Ace 250, it's a coin magnet, but when it comes down to it, I didn't find much silver and in the trashy areas discrimination is dang near impossible.

I'm looking to upgrade with a machine in the $500-700 range that can work in a lot of terrain. I live in Central Texas with many freshwater lakes and streams around me and it's a 3 hr drive to the beach so I would like a detector that can go freshwater, saltwater, sand and do fairly well on the playgrounds and tot lots. I do not plan on going in water above waist deep with it. Wet sand isn't a must but would be nice.

I have been looking at the AT Pro, it seems like a pretty diverse machine. Are there are others out there anyone knows about? If so, what are your thoughts and the pros/cons of each vs. the AT Pro?

[Sandman]

You'll like the AT PRO for everything but the saltwater beach as it might be unstable. But you said you are 3 hours away. There are other better detectors but they cost more.

[kleinerschmitter]

Yes sir, I'll only be able to make a couple of trips to the saltwater beach each year, it will be minor hunting in comparison to the other areas.

[treasurehound]

I would think you can get a very nice used DFX in that price range. It does well at the beaches wet or dry and is a good all round machine. I am sure there are other machines as well. Good luck with your upgrade. You may want to contact Woodland Detectors on this site as he can answer a lot of your questions and may have a machine for you as well.

[chukers]

I would say a good used Whites DFX too... I just saw one go for 600 on Feebay... Garrett has the Ace 350 and the AT Pro but they are not what I think you need... I am in central Texas also, sound like you do the same kind of hunting I do... I started my hunting buddy on an Ace 250 in a little over a year he is ready to get a better detector... He upgraded tot eh Whites V3x its more of a machine than you are looking for but he loves it! Now that is my opinion on Whites and Garrett there are other brands but those two are great brands and have great customer service.


Good Luck

Chukers

[kleinerschmitter]

Hey Chukers,

I see you're from Eastland, I'm from Lexington and in 2007 I ran against a kid from Eastland in the 800M at State, I think his name was Bryce Williamson if I remember correctly. Thanks for your input about using machines in Texas, I think my hunting variations are going to be similar to yours and you're right, the V3x is too much of a machine for me right now. I'll keep my eyes peered and see if I can find a DFX for the right price.

[chukers]

Hey Chukers,

I see you're from Eastland, I'm from Lexington and in 2007 I ran against a kid from Eastland in the 800M at State, I think his name was Bryce Williamson if I remember correctly. Thanks for your input about using machines in Texas, I think my hunting variations are going to be similar to yours and you're right, the V3x is too much of a machine for me right now. I'll keep my eyes peered and see if I can find a DFX for the right price.

good deal... I bet you'd like it... If I had one I'd let you test drive it. were about 4 hours away... Hey we otta get a Texas thing going come spring or something get all the Texas Hunters together and go make a day of it... well at least those who would come.

Chukers

[kleinerschmitter]

Sounds good to me, I'd love to get some of the Texas hunters together, I'm sure I could learn just as much from all you guys as I've learned in a whole year of detecting by myself.

[kleinerschmitter]

So correct me if I'm wrong, a lot of the places I've been detecting are really trashy. It seems like the DFX would have a clear advantage here over the AT Pro in that the multi-frequency capabilities of the DFX can cause better discrimination? How deep can the DFX go in the water in case I were to drop it?

[chukers]

The DFX is NOT a water detector... you can get the coil wet but DO NOT get anything else wet... that would be very bad for the DFX LOL VERY VERY BAD! AT Pro is a water detector and is a great relic machine great for trashy areas.

Chukers

[LuckyLarry]

Here are some things to think about:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5Izy...eature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0sHX...endscreen&NR=1

www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WS1TBWulxg

www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1QmzpMBygE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwqaD...eature=related

www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPzSIxUzotg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUd93...eature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISRC9...eature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPzSI...layer_embedded

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4q_ls...eature=related

This is the cheap version of the old Compasses, not as good as the GS Pro, R&C, CS Pro's, but still not too bad for an ancient machine:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MluQb..._order&list=UL

An interesting test between two detectors:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkcZJtO27_s

There are no nail board tests for the DFX, and there is a very good reason for that too. I'll let you do the math, but it has to do with the slow processors used in both the DFX (and) in the ML Explorers too. Whites main factory is 1/2 mile from my home and I visit there often so that I can stay up with the new technology in engineering. The DFX does (ok) on salt beaches or black sand beaches, but it's no depth demon (neither is the AT Pro), and ESPECIALLY not when both sodium and Fe are present. The G2, Omega, the Gamma, and Gold Bug Pro not only have tighter discrimination than the DFX, they also go deeper, are cheaper, do better on small gold, are better cherry-pickers, are faster, (and are lighter), regardless of what type of soil they are used in, all the way from wood chips to heavy magnetite/salt soil. The DFX is now old technology and so are the Explorers, but the CZ3D does better on salt beaches than either. I know because I've used all three of them there and still own the CZ. I may have a little edge living in some of the nastiest soil on earth - combined with tot lots that have absolutely nothing but sawdust in them, but why haven't my fellow old-time TH'ers told him about all this yet, they should know that, and he needs their wisdom and personal experience, right?

Hope this helps in your decision-making Herr Kleinerschmitter..

LL

[Bart@Big Boys Hobbies]

Okay, so I just got through my first year of detecting, been using the Ace 250, it's a coin magnet, but when it comes down to it, I didn't find much silver and in the trashy areas discriminations is dang near impossible.

I'm looking to upgrade with a machine in the $500-700 range that can work in a lot of terrain. I live in Central Texas with many freshwater lakes and streams around me and it's a 3 hr drive to the beach so I would like a detector that can go freshwater, saltwater, sand and do fairly well on the playgrounds and tot lots. I do not plan on going in water above waist deep with it. Wet sand isn't a must but would be nice.

I have been looking at the AT Pro, it seems like a pretty diverse machine. Are there are others out there anyone knows about? If so, what are your thoughts and the pros/cons of each vs. the AT Pro?

Feel free to give me a call or pm. I'll make you a great deal on an AT Pro and help you with questions. I would chose it givin your conditions.

[U.K. Brian]

There's several nail board tests for the DFX on the web the problem is that those that have carried them out can't use the detector.

If you type Norfolk Wolf DFX field test into any search engine it will come up with another of his rubbish tests. As with the XLT he doesn't use the right programmes, sweep speeds and does not adjust the recovery speeds. Thus he can make Whites look bad and other machines like the XP's very good. Better to ignore the video's and read the comments posted below from those who have not got an axe to grind.

As for older detectors like the Cz's and a few Compass models they still have their place for a few tasks but in the main have been surpassed and most won't want the worry of getting repairs/spares.

[LuckyLarry]

Right Brian, the Compasses are old and heavy. Still functional though. In about a year I will have a partial remedy for some of the older machine's problems, but not right now, I have to go through a lot of designing and then come the patent applications.

Please excuse my compulsive/obsessive writing, it's inherent, a family trait.

I have been through the DFX fad and the Sov and Explorer fad, and the Garrett 2500, 2000, and 1350 craze too. Those are all relics now. There are new faces on the block, and they outperform the above rather unabashedly too. The AT Pro is a marked improvement over the older high-end Garretts, and the Nautiluses got owned by first the Tejon and then the F-75 in the GNRS, and I agree completely, Norfolk Wolf doesn't seem to have a clue as to how differently the soils are in other parts of the world, so he basically just turns the things on and runs with it and makes his uncommonly entertaining claims, especially the one about the F-75's not losing depth in soil. Amusing as heck.

I toss these videos out now and then if I see someone new who needs to view a broader perspective - than a few simple 10 word sentences. Everything helps when making a good choice in costly detectors. I witnessed a friend wrapping his new Whites detector around a parking meter when I found a rose gold 18 kt (3/4 oz) un-enscribed man's signature ring (worth about $1000), me armed with a cheap Bounty Hunter, and I did it while walking in his footsteps. Then he stabbed his detector with his Italian Army bayonette "right through the ten-ringer" and sent it back to Whites with a note saying "I killed it". They gave him a different type detector.

On a personal note I have detected next to some of the very best of the best of metal detector users, most of them detector shop owners, and my claims are absolutely personal about the usability of DFX's, MXT's, various Minelabs, Fishers, and others in various soils. There is no one single (brand) that out-performs all the way around, but some specific ones within a brand name do an overall better job than similar type ones in other brands. Minelab seems to be KING of PI salt beaches and large nugget hunting, and most of us agree, and the GB Pro and G2 own the tiny-nugget spotlight hands down. It's not about brands, it's about actual on-hands experience, end of story. There is however still hanging on a casino's wall (and this is funny) in Las Vegas somewhere a 4.5" chunk of quartz found with a Compass GoldScanner Pro with a little tiny nugget about the size of the dot on this "i". Two inches for a tiny spot of gold that size is quite remarkable, and my own Compass R&C finds #8 shot at 6". Even a GB Pro has a hard time doing that, and an MXT? Forget it, I've tried it.

For my own use and especially in high salt or high black sand I'll pass on the DFX AND the AT Pro because they don't run deep enough, and the same goes for an Explorer. On the West coast beaches of America I get the best depth and performance out of my CZ-70 with no notches piped in. The DFX basically sucks there and word travels fast. The MXT is a far better choice in really harsh soil and it's heads above the DFX for depth and smallish nugget hunting too. This is gold country here and people learn very fast, the local detex shop here pushes Whites and Minelabs because of the high markup, but in the field here and in Arizona they use Fisher GB Pro's.

The AT Pro though is as deep or deeper in mild soil than a DFX, and it's lighter too.

HH all,

LL

[Keppy]

Well... LL & UK... One thing about you two you always give us honest and true information on the detectors we use........................No BS from you Guys.............

[LuckyLarry]

The same goes for you too Keppy. Straight up and no BS.

LL

[U.K. Brian]

Funny that you mentioned about his saying that the F75 doesn't lose depth "in ground" as one of out other self styled experts who charges to give tuition) says the same of the T2. His test is to dig a hole, drop a coin in and test without any infilling. I had a guy thinking his new T2 was faulty out of the box as it didn't match his air test results.

Wonder if I should put up a video showing more in ground depth then remove the target to show that the detector is in fact picking up the effects of the hole thats been dug ?

[LuckyLarry]

Brian, alongside of being a decent scientists you also have a rather clever and admirable sense of humor...

Mr Wolf reminds me of these jokers at the sites below too, especially the second one done by a man who quite obviously is a shill for Minelab. Both seem to be somewhat dilusional though. I guess it doesn't matter which one...

www.waynesthisandthat.com/metaldetecting.html#my detector

www.staffsmetaldetectors.co.uk/depth_test.htm

Would you consider the hole situation a part of the classic electron movement "hole theory" too? lol.

Oh, and I'M not convinced that would be a great idea Brian, many people ABSOLUTELY THRIVE in a fantasy, pseudo-science world.

LL, AKA "EasyMoney"

[Phillip_in_NM]

Get an M6 with a 4x6 coil. Then you will have it all. Best coinshooter out there IMHO.