Upgrade from old Stingray II?

CanTops

Tenderfoot
Apr 7, 2016
8
6
Northeast
Detector(s) used
Tesoro Vaquero & SR II
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Hi all. A newbie here. Great site, lots of great info.

I pulled my old SRII out of mothballs and have been getting into swinging it around old abandoned parks and older home sites. (I originally bought it for freshwater beaches.) It seems to do alright but I can't help thinking that some of the newer model Tesoros would do better - even though the SR II has separate ground, threshold, sens., disc., and volume controls. I primarily hunt coins and most of the sites are overgrown weeds or woods and have lots of trash. (Unbelievable amount of can tops. I've got huge collection.)

Would I get much better performance from a Silver (with the 8" and 12x10) over the SRII (w/stock 8" concentric)?

I can't find anything negative on the forums about the latest Silver and it seems real easy to use. (Plus the price is right and it seems everyone on this forum recommends having one). I know it doesn't GB externally but I do like the tone of the SRII and from what I can tell from the forums the Silver has a similar tone.

I'm only interested in another Tesoro, if anything, so no need for recommendations of other brands.

Thanks
 

Terry Soloman

Gold Member
May 28, 2010
19,421
30,102
White Plains, New York
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Detector(s) used
Nokta Makro Legend// Pulsedive// Minelab GPZ 7000// Vanquish 540// Minelab Pro Find 35// Dune Kraken Sandscoop// Grave Digger Tools Tombstone shovel & Sidekick digger// Bunk's Hermit Pick
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
Can't go wrong with a new Tesoro machine! I would step up to the Vaquero, but if you can't afford it, the Silver uMax with the new 11" x 8" Widescan coil is a killer!
 

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OP
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CanTops

Tenderfoot
Apr 7, 2016
8
6
Northeast
Detector(s) used
Tesoro Vaquero & SR II
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Thanks Terry. It's all so confusing. I guess the real question is whether these machines are that much better than my SR II. It's roughly $400 for a stock Silver and an 11x8; $450 for a stock Vaq, or $550 for the three coil Outlaw package.

The Outlaw package seems great but I think it may be too much fine tuning for my taste. I'm more of a casual "cherry picker." Vaq seems to be the one everyone here has or wants. Maybe that is the way to go but is the HOT tech of the VAQ something completely different from the SR II such that I would be starting all over learning another Tesoro language?

I appreciate the advice.
 

steve1357

Hero Member
May 17, 2013
981
439
Arkansas
Detector(s) used
Tesoro Fisher Teknetics Garrett
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Thanks Terry. It's all so confusing. I guess the real question is whether these machines are that much better than my SR II. It's roughly $400 for a stock Silver and an 11x8; $450 for a stock Vaq, or $550 for the three coil Outlaw package.

The Outlaw package seems great but I think it may be too much fine tuning for my taste. I'm more of a casual "cherry picker." Vaq seems to be the one everyone here has or wants. Maybe that is the way to go but is the HOT tech of the VAQ something completely different from the SR II such that I would be starting all over learning another Tesoro language?

I appreciate the advice.

Terry knows his Tesoros, I would throw the Cibola with 11x8 into the mix ($380?). Just as deep as the Silver or Outlaw on coins, but the higher frequency really adds depth on gold rings.
 

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CanTops

Tenderfoot
Apr 7, 2016
8
6
Northeast
Detector(s) used
Tesoro Vaquero & SR II
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Great, Steve, pile on to the confusion why don't ya? .:dontknow: I think if I go Cibola, I'll kick myself eventually for not going with the Vaq.
 

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OP
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CanTops

Tenderfoot
Apr 7, 2016
8
6
Northeast
Detector(s) used
Tesoro Vaquero & SR II
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Terry - I saw your review of the "new" 11x8 widescan and it looks really impressive - even on the Silver. 4 - 8" coins is about all I'll need. (I hate having to dig deeper than 6" - especially when it turns out to be trash.)

If I go Vaq, do you recommended the 11x8 over the stock 9x8 - either option is available at purchase? I, too, am in White Plains area and seem to hunt mostly mild soil. Isn't a concentric better in mild soil, especially for trashy sites?
 

steve1357

Hero Member
May 17, 2013
981
439
Arkansas
Detector(s) used
Tesoro Fisher Teknetics Garrett
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Great, Steve, pile on to the confusion why don't ya? .:dontknow: I think if I go Cibola, I'll kick myself eventually for not going with the Vaq.

Exactly. If I could go back to the past, I'd get the Vaquero with 11x8 RSD coil and watch ebay for a used stock 9x8 coil for fifty bucks. That 11x8 coil isnt cheap by itself.
 

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