Best detector for finding deep silver coins?

[Bungyrich]

Hi I am looking to buy a new detector but can't decide which is the best for finding deep silver. I have used an AT Pro and a v3i all have disappointed me in finding a silver quarter at 12-14" I hear that lower frequency detectors are better for finding deeper higher conductivity targets. What are others experiences in a good detector that can handle this? I am looking to keep it under $700

 

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[atomicscott]

calm down? I'm calm. I think you are reading too much into my words. What I was saying was

1 - everyone has a different way of enjoying the hobby of metal detecting
2 - nobody should judge another because they only dig clad or because they use a $2500 detector to dig silver dimes
3 -jokingly said that the guys who dig gold on the beaches probably think the rest of us are crazy.

Now, to THIS post, you have become VERY condescending. "getting my panties in a wad"? So you attack my manhood and call me a woman... very mature. Calling me "so easily offended" when there was no offense other than the one you imagined is both demeaning and insulting. Again, thank for taking the high-road. "your sincerest apologies" when you truly apologize for nothing and is just another attempt as a cyber-slap in the face. Thanks for showing your true character.

I think you assumed I was judging people by my comment. I was merely stating my opinion & you kinda jumped on me. I have seen you respond to others in a condescending manner so I thought you meant the same toward me. I do apologize Jason & I should have better phrased my post. As I said before no offense intended.

 

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[atomicscott]

Please stop sniping at each other......

I look at it differently, I don't look at the cost of my detector I spent as lost money since I can get most of my money back on resale..... I find gold with my detectors, I never caught a fish worth several hundred dollars but found lot of rings that are worth it and every time I hunt there is the chance of finding something worth 10 times that. Never caught a fish with history in its belly, but found history when I dirt hunt...

There are plenty of hobbies that only cost with no financial return back, golf and fishing come to mind. I had several friends who called their boats "holes in the water they pour money in to"....Even with out a boat I spent a fair amount of money fishing. Golf is another hobby that costs lost of money with no financial return for 95% of the people playing......

Doesn't matter what it cost if you enjoy doing it, life is short... Minelab GPZ 7000 cost $10,000, but it helps gold hunters go deeper in hunted out gold fields to reach gold nuggets they couldn't reach before so good for them...

Aint that the truth! If it keeps you doing what you like, by all means spend it if you feel you need to. I have bicycles that I spent a lot of money on, but it keeps me motivated to ride & even the most expensive carbon fiber bike is cheaper than heart surgery, lol.

 

[dirtscratcher]

Best for deep silver= fbs. The last explorer I bought was $275. You don't have to spend a fortune. I frequently hunt with etracs and even a guy with a 3030 and the ex 11 will hang with them.

 

[NWMP]

You paid $1000 for your AT Pro, lol? CTX sells for nearly $3000.

Oh, I thought that they were around $2000.00, lol

 

[Randyg12]

If your budget is $700 and you have high mineralization I'd be looking for a used Explorer (explorer SE if you can find one that cheap but you can't wrong with any of them.) if it were me I'd save my money until I could get an E-trac. Got the E-Trac when it first came out and it will out perform the Explorers (I had them all). I swing the CTX now and love it.

As far as getting coins in the 12+ inch range I think your reaching for the moon, especially in areas with high mineralization. Most of your local parks have been beaten to death and most of the easy older coin finds have been found. Any remaining older coins are going to be mixed in with trash and iron. Most of them in my areas are 5- 10+ inches deep and come in with iffy numbers/tones, plus you have to work to find them.

Don't worry to much about depth. It takes lots of hours digging targets and learning the language of your detector. Learn any detector like the back of your hand, use great detecting technique, do your research to find good spots to detect and those older coins and artifacts will find there way into your pouch. Good Luck!

 

[fistfulladirt]

If your budget is $700 and you have high mineralization I'd be looking for a used Explorer (explorer SE if you can find one that cheap but you can't wrong with any of them.) if it were me I'd save my money until I could get an E-trac. Got the E-Trac when it first came out and it will out perform the Explorers (I had them all). I swing the CTX now and love it.

Is it true what I've read that some Etracs will out perform other Etracs, as they come from the factory set up "hotter" than other units? The reason I ask, is because, as an experienced Explorer user - six years - I've found that my Etrac cannot get the depth that my Explorer does, no matter how hot I set it up. I even borrowed an Etrac set up exactly as my unit, and had identical results. Could barely detect a dime buried 8" in an aged coin garden. Explorer, no problem.

 

[Jason in Enid]

Is it true what I've read that some Etracs will out perform other Etracs, as they come from the factory set up "hotter" than other units? The reason I ask, is because, as an experienced Explorer user - six years - I've found that my Etrac cannot get the depth that my Explorer does, no matter how hot I set it up. I even borrowed an Etrac set up exactly as my unit, and had identical results. Could barely detect a dime buried 8" in an aged coin garden. Explorer, no problem.

This is true for almost any metal detector made. There are tolerance levels to all the components and also to the final product. Two detectors can be totally within manufacturer specs and be noticeably different in performance. It sucks, but sometimes people get a weak detector and sometimes they get a hot one. Most don't know the difference.

This is why the guy known as "mr bill" used to do detector mods for certain models. He could tweek the settings and make sure everything was calibrated together to the best amount possible. I don't think thats even possible on the pure digital detectors like the E-Trac.

 

[huntsman53]

Sorry, thats complete rubish. Buy one and use it for a year before making comments. I used the E-Trac for 5 years, and I have had the CTX for almost 2 years. I speak from experience, not third-hand comments. Don't make your decisions based on what you see on a youtube video.

Also, depending upon the setting you use on the CTX 3030, it will pick up good targets such as Silver or Gold that is underneath or beside a piece of Iron or a Nail. Sometimes, all you need to do is slow down the swinging then swing back and forth one way, then change directions and pick up to good targets. With a good target underneath or beside a piece of Iron or a Nail, the CTX 3030 will null out on them but then there is a blip afterwards. This indicates a good target is hiding underneath or next to a piece of Iron on a Nail. There is a great Youtube video out showing this and if I can find it, I will post it.

Frank

 

[fistfulladirt]

Also, depending upon the setting you use on the CTX 3030, it will pick up good targets such as Silver or Gold that is underneath or beside a piece of Iron or a Nail. Sometimes, all you need to do is slow down the swinging then swing back and forth one way, then change directions and pick up to good targets. With a good target underneath or beside a piece of Iron or a Nail, the CTX 3030 will null out on them but then there is a blip afterwards. This indicates a good target is hiding underneath or next to a piece of Iron on a Nail. There is a great Youtube video out showing this and if I can find it, I will post it.

Frank

So will the Explorer 2, and that's 10 y.o. technology.

 

[Jason in Enid]

So will the Explorer 2, and that's 10 y.o. technology.

Thats because its the same basic technology in both. The explorer was a game changer, and the FBS detectors released after have been improvements but not drastic changes. It's like comparing the E-Trac to the CTX, they are mostly the same but the CTX is a little faster, a little deeper and a little more accurate. Until a new technology is created, all improvements will be in steps, not leaps.

 

[atomicscott]

This is true for almost any metal detector made. There are tolerance levels to all the components and also to the final product. Two detectors can be totally within manufacturer specs and be noticeably different in performance. It sucks, but sometimes people get a weak detector and sometimes they get a hot one. Most don't know the difference.

This is why the guy known as "mr bill" used to do detector mods for certain models. He could tweek the settings and make sure everything was calibrated together to the best amount possible. I don't think thats even possible on the pure digital detectors like the E-Trac.

I learned this the hard way. I watched numerous videos about a certain beep & dig, single tone detector that got amazing airtest depth, 13" or more on a quarter. After many recommendations, I bought said detector for $440 some odd dollars, & could never get anywhere near the depth (air or otherwise) that others stated. A few of my forum friends had the same problem. I was able to get nearly 12" after factory service but at such a high sensitivity, it was not usable in actual hunting conditions.

 

[huntsman53]

This is true for almost any metal detector made. There are tolerance levels to all the components and also to the final product. Two detectors can be totally within manufacturer specs and be noticeably different in performance. It sucks, but sometimes people get a weak detector and sometimes they get a hot one. Most don't know the difference.

This is why the guy known as "mr bill" used to do detector mods for certain models. He could tweek the settings and make sure everything was calibrated together to the best amount possible. I don't think thats even possible on the pure digital detectors like the E-Trac.

This statement is so, so true! My' very first metal detector was a White's 2000-D (I believe a Series 1 as there were no "Series" or "number" on it) that I purchased in 1979 at a once a year Flea Market in Key West. After having it 2 or 3 months and metal detecting with it, the sound (both external speaker and headphones) output went out on it. I sent it to the White's Factory in Sweet Home, Oregon detailing the problem and asked for a hot tune-up on it. Well, I did not know at the time but the White's repair technicians would go over every circuit and component in metal detectors sent in for repairs. They replaced the bad sound circuit but also found and replaced several weak circuits/components, replaced parts with upgrades that had been made for the units and gave it a hot tune as asked. When I got it back, I don't think there was a single metal detector in all of the Florida Keys that could match it in depth on targets. I could literally walk in other Detectorist's footsteps and find more coins and other items than they found on their pass across a beach or lot. I even found a 1953 (my' Birth Year) Frankin Half Dollar at over 3 feet deep on Sands Beach in Key West. When it came out of the salty sand, it appeared uncirculated and was probably dropped there the same day as the original owner got it from the Bank brand new from the Mint. It gave off a very faint signal due to the depth and while most folks would have probably given up after a foot or so, I did not as the signal got stronger and stronger the deeper I dug. I got a lot of help from folks at the beach that evening and by the time I finally retrieved the coin, the hole which was maintained with the help of others, who were helping me dig and trying to keep the water from the tidal action from washing in and collapsing the hole, it was at least 3 feet across in diameter. A couple of guys actually held me by my' belt so that I could lean down into the hole and retrieve the coin.

While the newer Digital Metal Detectors of today more than likely can not be tuned to the maximum potential, I believe that a few cleverly and expertly positioned signal amplifiers would really boost the capability of most of these.


Frank

 

[KELLYCO*SCUBA*CHRIS]

I have customers saying they are finding DEEP Silver using Minelab Safari with Detech 8x6 SEF Butterfly coil.

 

[Beavertail]

Thanks for all the informative responses. I have found a used X-Terra 705 for $400 and plan on getting a Coiltek WOT 15" 3kHz ($300) which should with adjustments get me close to 14" on a silver quarter. This detector has alot of adjustments and it's not as user friendly as others as far as telling you what the target might be other than a number I am assuming the higher the number the more conductive but have yet to figure out what coins lands where on it. Will have to do alot of experimenting to get used to it but I think so far it is a great machine from what i hear.

Nickel 10-12 quarter 40-42 dime 36 penny 32 half dollar 44 silver dollar 44

 

[hammer0419]

99% of finding silver is to hunt where the silver is!!! Many good Detectors out there. Location location location!

 

[Agent Green]

Jason in Enid is right... I just found a merc and rosie at 10+.... ctx is the way to go...

 

[JackalopeZL1]

the only machine I have found 2 silver dimes at a measured 10" is my CTX. Not saying that other won't do it but the CTX has proven it self to me. The biggest thing to me with the machine is it gives me confidence whaiole using it since it is so accurate with it't ID ability even deeper. I do not loose interest with it like I do when I run my other machines.

 

[mrwilburino]

+1 for the CTX. Amazingly accurate on deep, higher conductors.

 

[Honest Samuel]

And it is pretty doggone good exercise.

Not if you do not find single coins or buried treasures.