Unexpected results head to head comparison XP Deus, Equinox 600, Tesoro Tejon

smokeythecat

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I was out with several folks digging farm fields looking for colonial items from one spot and CW items from another spot. This is what I found with a side by side with the Tesoro Tejon, XP Deus and Equinox 600.

All will find relics. We stayed close to each other and would call the other guy over to "check out this signal" before digging, to find out what the other machine would or would not do.

The Tejon is the hardest hitting, deepest machine. Excellent machine for finding the target in the hole. Deus also rocks when locating a target in the hole. The Equinox struggled to locate the target. I do not know why, but this was a repeatable effect. It's meter got "confused" and read various numbers even going into the negative range on a mid range target. Most of the targets were brass and lead. No silver coins were found on any of our sites.

Deus and Equinox were about equal in depth, again, with the Tejon going the deepest and giving the cleanest signal. On more than one occasion the Deus would just chirp, indicating it did see the target, but not enough to get the VDI to engage. On a couple targets the Equinox did not see the target at all but on a couple occasions it would also do a little chirp like the Deus to indicate it had seen the target.

Discrimination win goes to the Deus, as it had no issues telling hot rocks from aluminum from iron from good stuff. The Equinox's meter jumped around a lot. Both sites have some iron, but not a huge amount. The CW site has very little iron, compared to the colonial spot. The Tejon has a dual discrimination circuit, but takes no time to switch between them, but came in about the same as the Equinox, as it could not ID a hot rock as readily as the other machines, but it was no slouch.

With both the Equinox and the Deus, a large hand forged iron item might show as a high tone, but this is a known habit of both machines, however, we occasionally get a cannon ball on our colonial sites so you still want to dig it. Same with the Tejon.

Effective use of the coil: The Tejon with the 11 x 8 coil would yell out with a solid signal as soon as the edge of the loop passed over the target. The same thing happens with the Deus. The Equinox for unknown reasons would just chirp or squeak once the coil passed over the edge of the target, sometimes very faintly, and on occasion not at all, and only when you got within 4" of the center of the coil would you get a solid hit. Effectively, this made over half the coil useless. It also had trouble locating some of the brass targets while out of the hole! I can't figure that one out.

Now for settings. For the Deus, we used Deus Fast with the HF elliptical coil and the 31 hkz setting on version 5.2.

On the Equinox we used factory presets and used both Field 1 and Field 2.

The Tejon is an analog machine, so forget setting it like the others.

The best items were found by the Tejon, CW breastplate, minies and some others.

The Deus found a Virginia coat button, minies, buckles and buttons.

The 600 found some flat buttons, and misc lead. I think the finds were mostly a matter of which machine got over them first.

Just an observation.
 

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DeepseekerADS

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Thanks Smokey!

And that's why I use the Tejon 90% of my hunts even though I have the CTX and the EQ800.

Another thing about it, with the Tejon it's faster than using the others. I spend more time with the CTX and EQ trying to "interpret" the target when with the Tejon, I'm on my knees almost immediately.
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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DeepseekerADS, I think I'm going to buy a 2nd one just for giggles. (I did buy it.) While they never break, I think I'll use the Tejon for wide open spaces hunting after the shallow targets have been removed. I was really surprised about its depth and speed. I guess computers on a stick aren't as great as they are cracked up to be, except in certain conditions.

I just got a new White's TSI SL PI machine, but it's for a really hunted out place!
 

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DeepseekerADS

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My last hunt was with Indian Steve, using his Compadre, while I tried the EQ again. Late 1800's farm house and the place was just slammed with trash. My EQ was almost crazy with noise and jumping numbers, and I ended up with nothing but trash. Steve plucked out 2 wheats and a Rosie.....

I'd have been better off using the Tejon.
 

Toecutter

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Great hear a review from someone not looking for subs and views (youtube)...
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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My camera has 4k capabilites, but I really don't have time for putting up a youtube video. I figure I can clean off mud from the truck, it will take awhile, and dig more or play on youtube. I'll dig. PLUS I found you really can't dig and do videography at the same time. AND some of my cameras are expensive (over $400), well, expensive to me. I do not want to get dirt in one.

I have used all of the major brands except the old Nautilus machines way back in the stone age of detectors and the newer Nokia machines. Been there done that, I am not a dealer, I'm getting too old and creaky to dig but keep going anyway. I won't blow smoke and I'm not brand loyal. Nuff said? I was really surprised the Tejon did as well as it did, especially with depth and speed, and really surprised the Equinox couldn't make up it's mind. I think my next dig will start with the Tejon, as we've hit most of the shallow targets, and I'll see what deep stuff lies there, then go to the new White's TDI SL PI machine for the REALLY deep stuff. No backhoe!
 

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devldog

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Smokey, Great post. I have always heard that the Tesoro Tejon was a killer on CW relics.
 

Megalodon

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Nice discussion without the too-common brand loyalty we often see. Smokey, how does your Cibola stack up to the Tejon for depth? I find that I dig the deepest pull tabs with my Cibola. But I don't have much for comparison.
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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Megalodon, I think it's ALMOST as deep. In the horrid red Virginia dirt, where magnetite crystals (iron ore crystals) are literally lying on top of the ground after a rain, the Cibola has found minie balls 9" deep as solid targets. I did snag another Tejon today, without a meter people think they are "toys", then I hand them one and they freak out with how solid it is and how deep it goes.
 

Opie

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Very Nice Smokey! And "Yes" hard to beat the well thought out and well set up old analog machines!
Stay Gold!
Opie
 

Megalodon

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Megalodon, I think it's ALMOST as deep. In the horrid red Virginia dirt, where magnetite crystals (iron ore crystals) are literally lying on top of the ground after a rain, the Cibola has found minie balls 9" deep as solid targets. I did snag another Tejon today, without a meter people think they are "toys", then I hand them one and they freak out with how solid it is and how deep it goes.

Thanks Smokey! And congrats on getting another Tejon. Looks like they won't be making them anymore.
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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Megalodon, you are correct. I got another one new in box if nothing else to cannibalize if necessary, although my daughter is a whiz at electronics and I'm sure she could repair any detector in existence. Once upon a time ago, when she was in high school, I came home from work to find my brand new cassette tape deck (1990's) in pieces on the dining room table with numerous wires running over to the computer. She's in there doing something and yells quite loudly "MOM, DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING!" Well, I didn't. She was 15 at the time. So later everything was put back together. A couple days later I'm at the computer console and make a typo and this deep, male voice comes on and loudly states "You can't do that!" She had programmed the computer to play one of several audio clips anytime a certain set of typos were made. She has a computer science degree today.
 

Megalodon

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That's a great story Smokey! And how useful to have her around if anything goes wrong with a Tesoro some day! (although I never had anything go wrong except for an ancient battery holder that was very cheap to replace) Maybe a business opportunity in Tesoro repairs if she wants.
 

A2coins

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Thanks Smokey good to see a review honest and not for hits or to promote one brand or another.Well done
 

Megalodon

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Smokey,
Were they Beatles lyrics transferred from cassette? (your daughter would be too young to remember them, but these things come back)

Can you believe that "You Can't Do That" is now 55 years old?
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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Meg, I don't know what she used, but probably something from a movie. Too many sites, not enough time.
 

bleeohio

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Great write up Smokey. The tejon is one of those you either get it or you don't machines. I have had more than a couple over the years and every time I let one go to try something else, I always regret it and buy another one.
 

DeepseekerADS

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(although I never had anything go wrong except for an ancient battery holder that was very cheap to replace)

You have the Golden Sabre, and I have the Royal Sabre. And, my only trouble with that was the battery holder. The holder fit into the housing too tightly, and eventually cracked and broke trying to insert it into the housing.
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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Bleeohio, are you me? I had a Tejon a few years ago, it did very well and soon after my local dealer showed me the Deus and I got it and sold the Tejon. I'm going to attempt to try NOT to sell any more detectors from my now enlarged stable.
 

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