Best of the best

[MIG73]

I know that this question may cause some serious debate, but I am still curious about the answers, so here goes:
Of all of the "reasonably" price machines out there, say $500 to $1000 or so, which machine is the best performing when it comes to coinshooting and relic hunting (beaches being a possible exception). I hear a few names floated quite frequently but feel free to add anything NOT on this list as well if its worthy. The ones I hear about being the Monsters right now are:
Shadow X-5
Shadow X-3
Tesoro Tejon
Whites MXT
and Various Minelabs

Whats everyones opinion on the best of the best and why?
Thanks guys!
MIG73

 

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[Lowbatts]

I'm a Fisher fan so excuse my bias. I cite durability, ease of operation, battery life, weight, target depth/separation and configuration for my choices. I don't like NiCad or NMh batts and worrying about charge considerations, though batt technology is greatly ahead of where it was just a few years ago.

As always I maintain I have outhunted all the other major makers using my Fisher units, and have likewise been outhunted. It's a matter of discipline and swinging the coil over an actual target. I see a majority of CZ-20's down at the lakefront when I go, hands down the favorite. But Lake Michigan is freshwater as are all bodies of water here in the midwest so I cannot state a saltwater preference.

Some anecdotal evidence: When I got my CZ-7, I went straight to the park and put the batteries in and in 10 minutes I recovered a 1923 buffalo at eight inches.
I once used my CZ-5 to determine that a target was a nail very close to a wheat cent at about 9". A whites user there told me it was trash. It was actually a 1919 wheatie at almost 11", about one inch from a good size nail.

While I do intend to try out a few other makes someday, I do stick with what I know and if it works, why not? Are you considering getting a new machine for Christmas?

 

[MIG73]

Not Exactly...

I am more curious than anything. I have gone through 4 different detectors in about a months time (trading up) and was curious about where to go next. according to the UPS website, I will have a Whites XLT waiting for me on my porch when I get home. I have been leaning towards Either a Tejon, an X-5 or an MXT but wanted more opinions in case I didnt know the whole story...

 

[Fred]

This is not first hand info but just what I have seen here,and that is that several people in here prefered the MXT to the XLT. I don't recall the whys and wherefores,just the debate in general. That probably doesn't help much,huh! Fred

 

[Lowbatts]

I know a few people who own an XLT and they get excellent results. Take your time to learn the machine and stick with it until you know you can do better with another machine or are comfortable with what you have.

 

[southernbandit]

I have walked a few area's in Alabama for almost 20 years using a whites
6000 DI. Then 2 year's ago I got me a whites XLT and walking a lot of the same ground with the XLT and I have found 3 times more. I think it's a great detector. But if "LOWBATTS" found a buffalo at 8 inches, That's pretty darn good.
Try your XLT out, give it some time and you'll like it.
Southernbandit

 

[scotty]

My, My, My, such problems, too many brands and models to choose from to settle down and get to know one real good before trading it off for a supposedly better one. I have metal detected for close to 40 yrs. and have observed the increase in new brands and models, and great claims of each brand claiming to be the best, the deepest, the easiest, the most accurate, the lightest, the best balanced, the prettiest, the cheapest, the oldest, etc. and I have read a lot of forums and I have used most of the major name brands and I have decided that most all of them are good capable detectors, each has a few little differences in features, but basically all are comparable so close to each other, the differences in performance is minimal. If a person is interested in only going out and finding coins or relics and don't care if the machine gives him a plethora of information or not, then one of the turn on and go detectors with auto ground balance and just knobs for sensitivity, and disc. and maybe freq. change is all you need. Forget the meters, belltones, tone id, VDI numbers, icons , 99 freq. those are just extras that are not really required for finding targets. Buy a good reputable detector,( I don;t care which brand ) and keep it long enough to learn it thoroughly and you will have success in your hunting. I don't believe " the best of the best" has been made yet. But there are some good ones out there that sure is an improvement over what I started with. I use a XLT Spectrum and have had it for 3 years and am very satisfied with its performance, and I still don't know all there is to know about this machine, I'm still just using the factory coin and factory coin/jewelry programs, I have experimented with some custom programs, but usually return to the factory settings which work very good. I'm not in a depth contest when detecting, I don't like to dig over 8 to 10 inches for a possible coin, not in this Missouri rocky ground here where I live. Just to mention my wife hunts also and on our excursions, she will find as much as I do in face value of the coins found, and she uses a Whites Classic II, I offered to get her a upgrade to a IDX or ID that has the target ID on them but she said "no" she is satisfied with the one she learned on and it does alright for her, which it does.
I hope you like the XLT, You didn't mention the 4 other kinds of detectors you had tried so I can give you no comparison there. The only important thing is, if you like it, your the one paying for it, and its your time and energy your using when out there hunting, and there hasn't been a detector made that can make no mistakes, it still comes down to the discriminator in your hand, namely your digging tool, and your thinking cap. HH. Scotty

 

[boomer]

Scotty

you said it all, i give you an a-man brother.

 

[lab rat]

It all comes down to: Do you like Ford, Chevy, Honda, Toyota, or BMW? Do you want a car, truck, or SUV? Different machines will get you where you're going, and getting there is a matter of preference, I think. I drive an old, beat-up, ugly jeep wanna-be that nobody wants, but it suits me fine! Wait-- we were talking detectors... same story. Each machine can get you where you want to go. Some go deeper, but then you dig deeper holes for trash, too, which takes time. There is a trade-off no matter what you do, and often the 'luck' factor entails personality and mood as much as equipment. I know a fellow who got one of each model he was interested in, played with them all, and later sold the ones that he liked the least. A more expensive way to go about it, but he could afford it and he got all the knowledge he wanted to make the decision he was most happy with. To each his own...

 

[SCdigger]

As long as you're detector jumping, you're not going to find one you truely like, or completely feel comfortable with...you've got to learn the machine your using...all the machines listed are good...they all do what they're suppposed to...detect metal...but has it's own individual pros and cons...too many to say one's better than the other...of the one's listed...the X3 is the easiest to use...turn on and go, but still has the power of a Shadow...I'd find one that's comfortable then learn to use it.

My humbe $.02 worth...you're in the right state for digging relics...get out there and learn that sucker.

Greg