can anyone review the MINELAB EXPLORER 2?

[hollowpointred]

there recently were some excellent reviews written in another post about the GARRETT GTI vs the WHITES XLT and i wanted to ask if anyone could comment and review the MINELAB EXPLORER 2 as well.

 

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[jeff of pa]

I received the EXPLORER 2 on MONDAY.

I'v only Been out with it about 4 times so far,
So a Complete Review at this time would be PreMature.

I had the Explorer XS in the Past, But Sold it & Switched back to My SOVEREIGN due to
it Being Too Complicated.

Funny thing, After Getting Rid of it, My Mind started Working & now the EXPLORER 2 seems
Like an old Friend, with a little more Bells & Whistles of course.

Knowing I needed to Have it Prove its Worth to me, The First time I used it, I went to a Local
Park, & took it to an Area I couldn't find anything any more with My SOVEREIGN/WOT Combo.
After a Few Very Tiny pieces of Metal, I had a Very HARD time Pinpointing (I'm used to My S-1 Probe,
on My Sovereign) I got a Very High Tone. (The Explorer has so many Different tones, it sounds like a Coliapie"Spelling? when in trashy areas) I dug about 10 inches & pulled out a Wheat. I Re-checked the Hole & the Signal was still There. Out came another wheat, & after that , another out the same hole.
Later at another HUNTED OUT Park I pulled out a Wheat at 8"

Total take in Extremely hunted out areas that first day only 1910, 1914, 19?1 & 1948 wheats.
but considering how many times I hit these spots. I was impressed.

I spent About 2 Hours that day & only got maby a Dozen Targets Dug. Took me that long to Pinpoint.



That Night My Brain started Churning on HOW to add a Pinpointer , without going out & ordering one.
Sinse I had the SOVEREIGN & S1 PROBE, I invented a SOVEREIGN PROBE, to attach to the Explorer.

Sinse then, I havn't found any Old Coins, the Last 3 Times out, But My Pinpointing is getting Better.

It may Be my Sensativity Setting, But I'm finding alot of TINY B.B. size targets.

It's an AWSOME DETECTOR, no Doubt about it.

Just needs some getting used to.

 

[tehya]

The Explorer II is a high end detector that has some amazing features like iron mask, smart find, digital, learn, and edit modes. ?When you first turn it on you will be in the factory preset coin mode with the smart firnd screen. ?This is a screen that uses a square box with cross hairs inside the box that will hit on a specific location on the screen when you go over a target. ?

The target ID is defined by the location of the cross hairs on the screen, the more to the left the greater the possibility that it is iron, the more to the right the greater the possibilty it is silver. More targer information can be acheived by the location of the cross hairs pertaining to the cross hairs being at the top of the screen or the bottom of the screen, for example a dime will show the cross hairs at the top right corner of the screen.

One of the interesting features of the EX 2 is that you can set it on learn mode and scan coins accross the ?coil, then save it and when you use your saved program it will only find coins or targets that have the same id as the coins that you learned it to hunt. this can really help when you are hunting in high trash areas.

You can also use the Learn mode ignore targes, I like to start hunting with very little DISC and learn the EX 2 to ignore specific unwanted targets as I find them, and in some cases only look for specific desirable targets like old silver coins. I have used the learn mode to only find gold jewerly at areas where sporting events are held.

I think there are 32 menues on the EX 2 and I have only touched on a few, there is the iron mask mode, the digital mode that asigns two sets of numbers to the target under the coil, I know alot of people switch between modes to help id targets. You will need to spend some time to learn and understand how to use all of the different functions, but there are DVD's and books that can shorten the learning curve alot.

Tom

 

[hollowpointred]

thank you both for your reviews. i am seriously considering one of these and your reviews are very helpfull.

 

[gldhntr]

agravating to get to know, but well worth the effort.....located several revolutionary war musket balls and also some gun parts, and a continental army uniform button from a known campsite,,,,average depth was 11-12 inches,,,,1 was about 16 inches deep...........once you figure out all the sounds and features you are on your way though................gldhntr

 

[bill1959]

The learning curve on this machine is HUGE (notice the capital letters?). Good luck trying to make sense out of the carnival of sound it throws at you. Ever hear one of the cheap plastic flutes like kids used to use? The kind where you'd pull the end to make it give a higher and lower pitch? That's the Minelab. And talk about heavy! It's like swinging a sewer lid at the end of a broom handle. I had one a week and sold it. I'm not saying it doesn't perform (I didn't keep it long enough to find out). I'm saying it is WAY too complicated and heavy. Weight is everything when metal detecting, and the Minelab handles like a truck. Sorry kids... two thumbs down.

 

[npaisnel]

Bought mine a few weeks ago, only had an old C-Scope before that. Until I started reading that it was a heavy piece of equipment, I had never even considered that it was heavy. Not had experience with many other machines (probably 3 in total over the past 10 or so years).
If you are thinking of buying one do not let this issue put you off. I have been out with mine constanly every day for the past week or so, 4-5 hours at a time, no problems with the weight.

If you did find it a problem, I believe there are slings available to help support it.

Neil P

 

[Gabbit]

I am rather new to the explorer, and I am not what you would call experienced with metal detectors. I have had my ex2 for roughly 2 weeks now. I have found some pretty deep coins with the machine. I went to hunt an area I went over about 10 times with my ace250. I was able to find quite a few more coins that I had gone over with the ACE time and time again. I have dug some trash with this machine, but not near as much as with my ace. Pinpointing can be a bit tough with the stock 10.5 in but with the 8 inch it is very accurate. To some the machine may be heavy, but I am 29 and have no problem swinging it for a few hours at a time. This machine does go deep if that is what you are looking for.

 

[Born2Dtect]

The Explorer II is a top of the line detector. It is complicated but then it is not a toy. I could understand it but the cost was high. So I went with the Quattro MP. The Explorers little brother. It has a lot of the features of the Explorer II, excellent depth, 29 frequencies, ground and interference cancelling, but less settings and about $500 less. It is a heavier than my other detector so I bought "Doc's" Swingy Thingy, an adjustable bungee cord with a harness , from www.kamakazi.com. About $35. I find a lot of small metal items (rivets, necklace links, BB,s) at very good depth to 14 inches. The Swingy Thingy is great, it makes my sweep uniform and flat, while letting me barely grip the handle. I have gone 8 hours and had no wrist soarness at all. Also it kept the detector off the ground and within reach if I got up with out picking up the detector. After I got over looking like more of a geek, I have concluded that the Swingy Thingy is well worth the money. Try the Quattro MP if you are just too intimidated by the Explorer II.

Ed Donovan

 

[gldhntr]

i never have even noticed the weight issue many people mention with the ex2, and have swung it many hours with the 10.5 inch coil and a very bad back problem.....as for depth i do not think it can be beat. i dug a 6 inch iron pot shard and also a small hatchet head at two ft plus. over the hatchet head it sounded like a horse shoe at 2 inches.......it is great for those places that are known to be detectored to death and dug out.........the more i use mine the closer we get !!.......gldhntr

 

[AK in KY]

If the sensitivity is set too high the EX11 will sound off with a great deal of sounds and tones, the same as any detector which is running unstable. One of the biggest advantages of the EX11 is ground minerals have no effect on the machine. Being a previous DFX user, I feel the EX11 is EASIER to learn and there is no question the depth is far better. Down side is it is heavy but you get used to it.

AK in KY

 

[Born2Dtect]

AK, Your sensitivty statement is right on the nose.


Ed Donovan

 

[Cladius]

I think the EX II is only as difficult as you make it. If you stay close to the factory settings and remember to ground balance (noise cancil) each time out it is very easy to learn. I also find using the pinpoint function makes it an extreamly accurate pin pointer. I have not found the weight to be an issue. I also have Garret machines and find this was no harder to learn My .02 Cladius.

 

[Max]

I have had my Explorer for about five days now. Been out every day. This is the first MD that I have owned or used.
I am definately hooked. Today was my worst day so far. 1 penny & 1 lead bullet in 3 hours. I went to an old homestead that I thought would be really good. Boy was I wrong. There was so much junk I was lost, and I think the Explorer was freaking out to. I felt more in control the first day than I did today. Today I kept getting a quick signal in the "good range", but then I could not find it again, no matter how long I tried. Anyone got any tips. I went home with a head ache and an empty bag.
Not dampened though, like I said I'm hooked.
Anyone recommend any books on the Explorer?

 

[neilo]

Andy Sabisch has put out good books on minelab machines he has one called Mastering the Minelab Explorer Xs and S whilst this covers the earlier models the basic content of the book also applies to the EXplorer2 as well . You said about losing your target, it is being rejected,If a target is good you will get a signal consistently. If a target only sounds from one direction and not the other forget it . If you want find the rejected item put your machine in pin point mode and then you will hear it.
SEEya Neilo

 

[Gabbit]

Max -- are you hunting in auto? You might want to try manual in that area and turn it down a bit. Go very slow in the trashy areas. If you have a 8 or 5" coil you might also give that a shot -- helps to separate the targets. Are you hunting in iron mask? Some times when I am in a very trashy area I will turn it off so I am not getting to much information from the machine. Try isolating your targets by pinpointing them and then doing the "minelab wiggle" to see if they are giving you a good reading.

I still have the fusterating days myself, but those are the days where you are learning the most. Don't give up on that homestead site -- dig the junk if you have to!

 

[AK in KY]

Max - One day soon it will all come together and you will understand what the machine is trying to tell you. There will be no question when you pass the coil over a coin. If you can stand the tones I use the following;
Ferrous sounds, Audio 1, Manual sens, sens as high as you can go and remain stable, Deep and Fast off, gain 7, variability 10, and a wide open screen no discrimination.

Good Luck

AK in KY

 

[Visionquest]

I agree with that. I run almost the exact same settings but usually in deep mode. Never any discrim and usually showing the digital screen. After a while I started paying much more attention to the sound and use the numbers more secondary. Seems to work the best for me. Coins are definately obvious when you hit them.

 

[Gabbit]

I use standard audio deep / fast on -- starting to learn to go by sound only myself -- although sound only hasn't helped with some of the lower tones such as gold and nickels -- going to have to set up a jewlery / coin program this winter! Brrr

 

[Max]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I have not had the chance to try them yet, but I did order the Sabisch book.
We went exploring today, looking for an old Chinese workers camp, from when the railroad was built here,(1895 - 1915 ish)
They camped out, along the rail line as it was being built, in makeshift leanto's or caves if they could find them. They reportedly stayed well away from towns as there was a lot of prejudice back then and they were pretty much considered fair game. Well we did find the spot that I have been hearing about for years. The only sign was depressions in the ground, but when we started really looking, we found several old bottles (broken or damaged) lots of tin cans that that had originally been sealed with lead, (so that had to be from before they knew better), and various scraps of iron and tin that had almost disappeared. Unfortunately, we had hiked in several miles, and I had opted to leave the MD in the truck until I knew for sure that I could find it. O'Well, it just adds to the anticipation.
I probably have only a few weeks left to hunt before the frost, but have tons of research planned to keep me busy through the winter.
Had a few fun finds so far, but nothing of real value.
I'll keep you posted on my Explorer problems and progress.
Thanks
Max