CTX 3030 OR E-TRAC

darktower007

Sr. Member
Feb 21, 2017
455
854
Chattanooga Tennessee
Detector(s) used
Xp Deus/Vaquero/At Max/fisher f70/carrot pen pointer
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I have an Etrac and love it. Bought it used. Mine labs are excellent machines but in old house sites with iron.. I struggle even in TTF (two tone Ferrous) BUT if your looking for silver they can't be beat in my book.


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Ammoman

Bronze Member
Oct 12, 2015
2,211
5,348
NC
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
XP Deus, Nokta Impact, Tesoro Compadre..
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
3030 used with warranty still left on it. Its transferable.
 

SD51

Silver Member
Aug 24, 2016
4,832
9,957
MI
Detector(s) used
E-TRAC
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Love my E-TRAC but can't get the controls wet. You can submerge the CTX if that is something you plan to do!
 

AlienLifeForm

Bronze Member
Jan 31, 2010
1,589
2,337
DFW Texas
Detector(s) used
Minelab E-TRAC, Garrett ProPointer, Lesche Digger
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
$1000 difference, when I got my Etrac the CTX didn't yet exist but I don't think I would pay that much more for a waterproof machine.
 

OP
OP
TORRERO

TORRERO

30+ YEARS, XP DEUS I & II ARE MY GO TO MACHINES
Nov 17, 2004
1,684
1,091
NC
Detector(s) used
XP DEUS I & II
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
3030 used with warranty still left on it. Its transferable.

Im probably going to have to finance this, but you live pretty close, it would be nice to see one up close.

Also, I would not dive with it, but I did some surf hunting before and it was actually pretty interesting... albeit a pain to find the targets ...
used a Tesoro Sand Shark for that
 

DeepseekerADS

Gold Member
Mar 3, 2013
14,880
21,725
SW, VA - Bull Mountain
Detector(s) used
CTX, Excal II, EQ800, Fisher 1260X, Tesoro Royal Sabre, Tejon, Garrett ADSIII, Carrot, Stealth 920iX, Keene A52
Primary Interest:
Other
I had the Etrac before I purchased the CTX. The Etrac really messed with my elbow = painful after just a bit.

The CTX I can swing all day. The extra cost was and is worth that to me. Same technology but just a few other "enhancements" I don't use anyway. For me it was all about the ergonomics.
 

fistfulladirt

Gold Member
Feb 21, 2008
12,204
4,918
Great Lakes State
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
dirtfishing
Primary Interest:
Other
Minelab Explorer 2, used, $500. Out performs my Etrac, and one-quarter the price of the 3030.
Great deal if you're a land-lubber.
 

Kurios1

Silver Member
Feb 25, 2017
3,766
7,383
FEMA REGION 5 North Central Illinois
Detector(s) used
Nokta Impact Whites DFX 300 & M6 Matrix, Minelab Explorer II (2), Makro Red Racer & Racer 2, Garrett AT Pro.
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Minelab Explorer 2, used, $500. Out performs my Etrac, and one-quarter the price of the 3030.
Great deal if you're a land-lubber.

That's why I keep my two Explorer 2's. Although I am liking my lighter weight Makro Racer machines I know these old workhorses love deep silver. I have scored quite a few used units for great deals on E-bay and put them in other folks hands. A great machine with that multi frequency technology. Go slow and find the good stuff.
 

trdking

Gold Member
Feb 28, 2015
5,139
7,923
Fullerton CA
Detector(s) used
Minelab CTX 3030
AT Pro
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I love my CTX 3030 It is a deep seeker, works great in wet sand. All the iron signals I dig really are Iron (I dig everything) It is however a very complex machine with a big learning curve. I have it down pretty well now but it took a long while playing with it. I still of course don't know it all. It has so many different settings.

I still would not trade it for anything. I can walk behind someone MDing and pull targets they miss.
 

RustyGold

Gold Member
Aug 16, 2013
9,372
10,901
Southern California
Detector(s) used
XP Deus I & II
Xterra Pro
Primary Interest:
Other
The 3030 can be had for about 1999.99 from supporting vendors so I would avoid "used" unless you got a smokin deal.
When I had my CTX it was much easier on my wrists, elbow and shoulders to swing than my Explorer.
Just before I sold the 3030 I took it for a spin one more time around the backyard and found a 1941 silver quarter. Lol!
 

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