How about an honest answer...F-75 and Explorer users..

[DFX-SE Gregg]

My frustration with not getting deep hits is about to boil over... I can find clad all the time...it does not seem to matter where I am...even if I see people hunting...I can follow them and find more.... But my question comes from some surprising results... I have seen Explorer users...who seem to say the F-75 is as deep! Some even have changed over.... But then I see posts that question the construction of the Fisher F-75...and also faulty coils...

Well my main question is... how deep can you honestly expect targets to be found...lets be more specific ...coins to be found..with your F-75 or Explorer...

I know soil conditions play a role...but I mean in general if you hit a park...just what do you expect depth wise...thanks in advance, good chance I may see another detector in my hands next year....

 

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[robert roy]

You might get some answers if you post this on the Fisher forum found on this website.

RR

 

[erikk]

12 inches + either machine

 

[mastereagle22]

10-12 inches or more with the Explorer, don't know about the F-75

 

[hollowpointred]

yeah 10 to 12 on a coin with the explorer. now granted, i dont get a lot of super deep hits, most stuff is in the 4 to 6 inch range, but the explorer will detect deep targets. one thing though, your DFX ought to have no trouble getting pretty deep either. perhaps it needs to be tweaked a little.

 

[WheatbackDigger]

One thing to remember, you have to know what a deep coin signal sounds like. You won't get a text book signal, but with the Explorer, I have dug a few indians at 10-11 inch range. Dimes I have dug in the 7-8 inch range. I dug one Walker everybit of 13 inches (the deepest coin I have dug). I wouldn't get to hung up on depth, most good finds are in the 6-8 inch range. I think technique and target separation is the "key" to finding good finds. The EXPII excels in target separation (along with decent depth) and this is what makes this machine what it is. Run no discrimination and a slow sweep and you will hear those Mercs between the pull tabs and rusty nails. Dont know a thing about F-75

 

[DFX-SE Gregg]

yeah 10 to 12 on a coin with the explorer. now granted, i dont get a lot of super deep hits, most stuff is in the 4 to 6 inch range, but the explorer will detect deep targets. one thing though, your DFX ought to have no trouble getting pretty deep either. perhaps it needs to be tweaked a little.

Unfortunately....I have been talking with several former dfx users who said they have tried the programs...I am going to run through some of the programs and give them a shot... I have been tweaking ever since I hit my goal... I do like a few of the changes...but still no depth....

 

[DFX-SE Gregg]

One thing to remember, you have to know what a deep coin signal sounds like. You won't get a text book signal, but with the Explorer, I have dug a few indians at 10-11 inch range. Dimes I have dug in the 7-8 inch range. I dug one Walker everybit of 13 inches (the deepest coin I have dug). I wouldn't get to hung up on depth, most good finds are in the 6-8 inch range. I think technique and target separation is the "key" to finding good finds. The EXPII excels in target separation (along with decent depth) and this is what makes this machine what it is. Run no discrimination and a slow sweep and you will hear those Mercs between the pull tabs and rusty nails. Dont know a thing about F-75

Thanks for the reply...I may just be coming up a little short...I want to see a couple targets properly id'ed at 8.0 At this point not even getting a signal that deep.... Several have said it will be hard to do consistently....

 

[DFX-SE Gregg]

10-12 inches or more with the Explorer, don't know about the F-75

Wow that would take care of my problems!

 

[DFX-SE Gregg]

12 inches + either machine

Erikk thanks for the info on the other forum....

 

[weasel606]

i can honestly say Gregg that since i got the se i am digging deeper more often for coins , i started out with bounty hunters and still have them , got the xterra 70 and still have it , but its pretty common for me with the se to dig deeper on the average for coins , wheats and dimes that my lesche digger is halfway up on the red handle deep, i find myself digging more then i'm swinging and i dont cover as much area as i used to. i havent found anything great as of yet but i have found more wheats with it, so might just be my area since its been pounded hard over the years but i'm still looking for the great stuff, i still find the surface coins good but those soft sounding deeper on the scale coin signals always makes me stop and dig awhile

 

[Jack(IN)]

Gregg, I've pulled coins at the 9-10 inch range and no doubt think(THINK) I can go a little deeper. Most coins are usually in the 5-7 inch range as far as many older coins. I think I need to give you my friends number and let you talk to him about that DFX. He is going deep, and in dry he has dug coins at 8 inches. He is constantly checking, switching, and tweaking to see how depth is affected on many deep targets. I don't know much about the F-75, but have heard good things concerning depth!! I think you need to adjust your approach to how your hunting. You've been swinging to hit 10,000 that you've hit a pattern and might have to stop and change direction. Check maps as to where activity areas in your older Parks, then concentrate on those areas, if you find a Barber coin, find time to do some gridding and dig everything DEEP!! I'm saying it now, I've dug deep silver that sure didn't sound silver and if I had gone by my screen I wouldn't have dug. Check those deep "blips" and see if you can pin point it. I personally didn't like the DFX, but have seen too many great old finds to discount it!! The Explorer will go deep, and I don't think its got a hard learning curve if you don't treat it like it was a DFX. Its a different beast and and it won't sound like your other detectors. I had the XLT and when I figured I wasn't swinging the XLT, I started finding coins and other goodies. Go to a dealer and see if he will take you out and test either of those two. Find someone in your area who might have either machine and might give you some tips. Sorry for the long response!

 

[diggerfororo]

Hi Gregg:

The first rule to finding deep coins is "They have to be there" you can't find what aint. The second rule is that you have to swing your coil over them. The next rule is that coins will sound different under different conditions. Weather. soil conditions, and soil mineralization level can change the way your detector "sees' a target. You need to evaluate each site and determine what deep coins will sound like on your detector. Whites have a hard time classifing targets at extreme depths(most machines do also) If you run any iron descrimination, you won't get those really deep targets. Sweep speed is a big factor in missing deep signals. When a target is at your detectors max depth, and your sweep speed is to fast, the target will I.D. as low as iron or foil. If you check some of those soft iron or foil signals with a very slow sweep, some will come up to coin signals. It is hard to tell someone what signals to listen for so you will have to experiment in the field. Remember, try this at a site where you have good deep top soil. I hope this helps.

Les

 

[RaptorSE]

Hi Greg , I read all your posts at all forums. (You get around haha)

I had this exact same doubt not long after getting my DFX. Thinking I was not
getting deep enough , afraid I was missing goodies. Well, I was, but not because
the DFX didnt see them, but that I didnt know what I was listening and looking for.

Try this once or twice and see if it doesnt help change your mind. It really did for me.

Sweep Speed 1 ( and go nice , slow and deliberate)
Recovery 10-15
Hot Rock Reject 20
BottleCap reject 1
Accept ALL from like neg.70 to +93
And get the PreAmp to 4 if possible
AC 75-80 DC 40-50 ( back down AC if erratic behavior no lower than 70)
Ground Balance thoroughly, twice to be sure.. over clean ground.
ToneID ON Filters 4 (play with these, important part of deep hunting)

The rest to preference mostly. Using this setup, search an area like you
"know" there is 10 inch deep coins. When you hear a high tone, investigate it.
Pinpoint that sucker in DC mode, and see if its coin sized and how deep.

I find quite a few deep wheats and silvers that sound like crap... but I didnt know
before, that they would sound like crap ! With those settings , when you hear
a high tone, even mixed in occasionally with other tones and nulls - check it out
if its 5+ inches. Just the other day, I had the worst sounding hunk of crap signal
ever, only 5 inches. Didnt barely register on the Signagraph, crackled and nulled
50% the passes... but every other pass, I got that sweet chirp. Dug it up and there
she was, a nice Merc... only 5 inches deep. Yet the next signal I got was 7 inches,
and blaring an 80 on the meter , plain as day easy signal, and it was a Wheat penny.

I determined the dry ground, powerlines above me, and some iron/trash debri in the
area was skewing my signal, and almost fooled me on that dime.

Trust me, I know the Explorer guys get deep coins ! But just ask them, if that 10" deep
mercury dime, came in loud and clear LOL... it most likely was not even close to a
great signal, but they knew what to listen for anyway.

Also, yes people find stuff 12" down. I gotta laugh even thinking about it though. I have
rarely, barely ever, detected a spot where after 7-8 inches, the ground stayed even diggable.
I detect 100 year old homes all the time, and 8 inches down, hit original base clay dirt from
when the dang house was built ! Maybe farmer fields and battle grounds etc I could find
deeper stuff, but 100 years or so old coins in my neck of the woods, are all 4-6 inches. Eight
inches is friggen deep !!

Sorry about this long book I wrote LOL. Just hate to see you switch , and then find the same
exact scenario. My problem, same as yours I believe, was that I was so used to finding clad
so easily, and it sounds so good ALL the time, that I thought a 7 inch silver dime would sound
as good,and sweet. It absolutely "wont". But once you know what it really does sound like
when deep, its just as sweet predicting a good find, with non-traditional sounds and readings.

For example... have you ever swung 20 times over one target, and got Null null null..chirp, null
null, null, null chirp. No Signagraph reading barely at all, with an intermittent random number ID ?
I do all the time. I pinpoint, see coin size, and 5+ inch, and dig. Occasionally its an old
nail or random thing, but alot of times, its the real deal... keeper Thats just how it is I figure !
In any case, I detected it, dug it, and found it, with the DFX. It didnt jump out and say "1902 Barber
here", but did enough to let me get it.

Dont give up yet At least try one, or compare. If I do and find better results , then I will probably
change brands too, but I see no reason to currently. The Explorers just have a neat way of
picking out keepers that are masked by iron or trash easier. I think thats why they find alot
in hunted areas... not so much the depth involved, but nabbing the ID from a masked target. All
those are still sitting around all over the world, because other machines didnt distinguish the good
target sitting by a chunk of iron. BTW, the DFX can be setup to seperate targets very well in trashy areas. I sacrifice depth hunting all the time, and pick out good stuff sitting in 20 million pull tabs.

Good luck in whatever you do, and keep us posted. Let us know if you try the above settings and how
you liked it. Cya !

 

[rebelLT]

Gregg. I am not a complicated person. I like to find silver coins. I hunted with an XLT for years and bought a DFX when they came out. I used it about a year and sold it because I didnt notice an improvement over the XLT on SILVER coins. Yes, I ran the XLT and DFX with modifications. I considered a 6 or 7 inch coins iffy and a good deep find. I bought an EX II earlier this year more out of curriosity than anything else. I had heard that they were deep machines. I started hunting in the factory preset which kinda P!ssed me off a bit, as I didnt really see a big increase in depth. I did some research on the net and played with the settings. I wont get into the settings, if you buy one I will be glad to share, as will most of the guys who use an explorer. I run with the EXII on the edge of instability with almost no threshold. I dont carry a measuring tape around with me when I hunt nor do I videotape my finds to prove the depth of them. Like I said, I am simple and like to find silver. I do, however, make it a general rule to poke the lesche down into the hole after recovering the coins to see how deep they are ( funny someone else does the same thing). After reading your post I broke down and took a measuring tape to the lesche and found that I have found silver dimes down to about 9 inches with a fairly good target ID. After 9 inches the signal on a silver dime will "bounce" (again, I can help you with that if you buy an explorer). The deepest dime I have found is only about 10.5 inches deep. I've found two quarters in the past week (1898 and ? SLQ) that burried the lesche down to the end of the handle, by my measurement about 11.5 inches, and they sounded sweet at that depth, so I dont know how much deeper a quarter will hit. That measurement would be to ground level and not take into account the inch or so of grass on top of that. I dont know for sure because I scrub the ground pretty close with my coil. I have taken both a dfx and xlt and checked the deep signals from the minelab. They both both hit on the targets though the signal was broken and ID was WAYYY off. I would not have dug these targets with either machine. Though that is another advantage of the Explorer. It has a target depth indicator on screen at all times so you can see the aprox. depth of a target as you sweep it. I dont know a thing about the f75 as I have only held one for a few seconds. It is VERY light and IF it can find coins as well as the minelab I would probably switch to that because the minelab is HEAVY, especially when you throw on a pinpointer, which is a MUST with this machine, though the pinpoint capability has improved on the SE. My finds today with the explorer were an IH at about 6, a silver rosie at about 6, a barber dime at about 7 or 8. and a wheat at about 9. Whatever you decide to do there will be plenty of help here on the forum. GOOD LUCK!

 

[DFX-SE Gregg]

Gregg, I've pulled coins at the 9-10 inch range and no doubt think(THINK) I can go a little deeper. Most coins are usually in the 5-7 inch range as far as many older coins. I think I need to give you my friends number and let you talk to him about that DFX. He is going deep, and in dry he has dug coins at 8 inches. He is constantly checking, switching, and tweaking to see how depth is affected on many deep targets. I don't know much about the F-75, but have heard good things concerning depth!! I think you need to adjust your approach to how your hunting. You've been swinging to hit 10,000 that you've hit a pattern and might have to stop and change direction. Check maps as to where activity areas in your older Parks, then concentrate on those areas, if you find a Barber coin, find time to do some gridding and dig everything DEEP!! I'm saying it now, I've dug deep silver that sure didn't sound silver and if I had gone by my screen I wouldn't have dug. Check those deep "blips" and see if you can pin point it. I personally didn't like the DFX, but have seen too many great old finds to discount it!! The Explorer will go deep, and I don't think its got a hard learning curve if you don't treat it like it was a DFX. Its a different beast and and it won't sound like your other detectors. I had the XLT and when I figured I wasn't swinging the XLT, I started finding coins and other goodies. Go to a dealer and see if he will take you out and test either of those two. Find someone in your area who might have either machine and might give you some tips. Sorry for the long response!

Thanks Jack I took my stuff out of car after a good tot lot hunt this morning.... I am going to run some simple air tests...but I have a feeling I know the results...Up to 6.5... Thanks and I may take you up on that offer(calling your friend)....will let you know.... Yesterday I hit a very old park and once again nothing deep... Jack I hit a ton of coins this year... I could count the signals deeper than 7.0 on one hand....

 

[DFX-SE Gregg]

Hi Gregg:

The first rule to finding deep coins is "They have to be there" you can't find what aint. The second rule is that you have to swing your coil over them. The next rule is that coins will sound different under different conditions. Weather. soil conditions, and soil mineralization level can change the way your detector "sees' a target. You need to evaluate each site and determine what deep coins will sound like on your detector. Whites have a hard time classifing targets at extreme depths(most machines do also) If you run any iron descrimination, you won't get those really deep targets. Sweep speed is a big factor in missing deep signals. When a target is at your detectors max depth, and your sweep speed is to fast, the target will I.D. as low as iron or foil. If you check some of those soft iron or foil signals with a very slow sweep, some will come up to coin signals. It is hard to tell someone what signals to listen for so you will have to experiment in the field. Remember, try this at a site where you have good deep top soil. I hope this helps.

Les

Thanks Les...the dfx does have adjustable sweep speed and I am working on an adjustment and working with a slower swing.... Along with my air tests...I am also going to do some garden tests... I know about not having a halo effect...but will be interested to see where my dfx stops picking up...have a strong feeling...6.5...

 

[DFX-SE Gregg]

Hi Greg , I read all your posts at all forums. (You get around haha)

I had this exact same doubt not long after getting my DFX. Thinking I was not
getting deep enough , afraid I was missing goodies. Well, I was, but not because
the DFX didnt see them, but that I didnt know what I was listening and looking for.

Try this once or twice and see if it doesnt help change your mind. It really did for me.

Sweep Speed 1 ( and go nice , slow and deliberate)
Recovery 10-15
Hot Rock Reject 20
BottleCap reject 1
Accept ALL from like neg.70 to +93
And get the PreAmp to 4 if possible
AC 75-80 DC 40-50 ( back down AC if erratic behavior no lower than 70)
Ground Balance thoroughly, twice to be sure.. over clean ground.
ToneID ON Filters 4 (play with these, important part of deep hunting)

The rest to preference mostly. Using this setup, search an area like you
"know" there is 10 inch deep coins. When you hear a high tone, investigate it.
Pinpoint that sucker in DC mode, and see if its coin sized and how deep.

I find quite a few deep wheats and silvers that sound like crap... but I didnt know
before, that they would sound like crap ! With those settings , when you hear
a high tone, even mixed in occasionally with other tones and nulls - check it out
if its 5+ inches. Just the other day, I had the worst sounding hunk of crap signal
ever, only 5 inches. Didnt barely register on the Signagraph, crackled and nulled
50% the passes... but every other pass, I got that sweet chirp. Dug it up and there
she was, a nice Merc... only 5 inches deep. Yet the next signal I got was 7 inches,
and blaring an 80 on the meter , plain as day easy signal, and it was a Wheat penny.

I determined the dry ground, powerlines above me, and some iron/trash debri in the
area was skewing my signal, and almost fooled me on that dime.

Trust me, I know the Explorer guys get deep coins ! But just ask them, if that 10" deep
mercury dime, came in loud and clear LOL... it most likely was not even close to a
great signal, but they knew what to listen for anyway.

Also, yes people find stuff 12" down. I gotta laugh even thinking about it though. I have
rarely, barely ever, detected a spot where after 7-8 inches, the ground stayed even diggable.
I detect 100 year old homes all the time, and 8 inches down, hit original base clay dirt from
when the dang house was built ! Maybe farmer fields and battle grounds etc I could find
deeper stuff, but 100 years or so old coins in my neck of the woods, are all 4-6 inches. Eight
inches is friggen deep !!

Sorry about this long book I wrote LOL. Just hate to see you switch , and then find the same
exact scenario. My problem, same as yours I believe, was that I was so used to finding clad
so easily, and it sounds so good ALL the time, that I thought a 7 inch silver dime would sound
as good,and sweet. It absolutely "wont". But once you know what it really does sound like
when deep, its just as sweet predicting a good find, with non-traditional sounds and readings.

For example... have you ever swung 20 times over one target, and got Null null null..chirp, null
null, null, null chirp. No Signagraph reading barely at all, with an intermittent random number ID ?
I do all the time. I pinpoint, see coin size, and 5+ inch, and dig. Occasionally its an old
nail or random thing, but alot of times, its the real deal... keeper Thats just how it is I figure !
In any case, I detected it, dug it, and found it, with the DFX. It didnt jump out and say "1902 Barber
here", but did enough to let me get it.

Dont give up yet At least try one, or compare. If I do and find better results , then I will probably
change brands too, but I see no reason to currently. The Explorers just have a neat way of
picking out keepers that are masked by iron or trash easier. I think thats why they find alot
in hunted areas... not so much the depth involved, but nabbing the ID from a masked target. All
those are still sitting around all over the world, because other machines didnt distinguish the good
target sitting by a chunk of iron. BTW, the DFX can be setup to seperate targets very well in trashy areas. I sacrifice depth hunting all the time, and pick out good stuff sitting in 20 million pull tabs.

Good luck in whatever you do, and keep us posted. Let us know if you try the above settings and how
you liked it. Cya !

Thanks I will try the settings.. For the last month I have been doing aot of experimenting...some spots gain at 4 works...others too many overloads... Same with ac sens. sometimes mid to high 70's work...sometimes 68-70... I do realize and like the way the coin signals can be sepatated from trash....that is how I find 70% of my coins...right in the trash....

But one question....what lately after pinpointing has been the deepest depth reading you have seen on your meter? I have not seen past 6.5...unless in woodchips or sand for a long time....to long.... This is what makes me think the F-75 or an Explorer (any Explorer from what I hear) will take care of the depth problem...

 

[DFX-SE Gregg]

Gregg. I am not a complicated person. I like to find silver coins. I hunted with an XLT for years and bought a DFX when they came out. I used it about a year and sold it because I didnt notice an improvement over the XLT on SILVER coins. Yes, I ran the XLT and DFX with modifications. I considered a 6 or 7 inch coins iffy and a good deep find. I bought an EX II earlier this year more out of curriosity than anything else. I had heard that they were deep machines. I started hunting in the factory preset which kinda P!ssed me off a bit, as I didnt really see a big increase in depth. I did some research on the net and played with the settings. I wont get into the settings, if you buy one I will be glad to share, as will most of the guys who use an explorer. I run with the EXII on the edge of instability with almost no threshold. I dont carry a measuring tape around with me when I hunt nor do I videotape my finds to prove the depth of them. Like I said, I am simple and like to find silver. I do, however, make it a general rule to poke the lesche down into the hole after recovering the coins to see how deep they are ( funny someone else does the same thing). After reading your post I broke down and took a measuring tape to the lesche and found that I have found silver dimes down to about 9 inches with a fairly good target ID. After 9 inches the signal on a silver dime will "bounce" (again, I can help you with that if you buy an explorer). The deepest dime I have found is only about 10.5 inches deep. I've found two quarters in the past week (1898 and ? SLQ) that burried the lesche down to the end of the handle, by my measurement about 11.5 inches, and they sounded sweet at that depth, so I dont know how much deeper a quarter will hit. That measurement would be to ground level and not take into account the inch or so of grass on top of that. I dont know for sure because I scrub the ground pretty close with my coil. I have taken both a dfx and xlt and checked the deep signals from the minelab. They both both hit on the targets though the signal was broken and ID was WAYYY off. I would not have dug these targets with either machine. Though that is another advantage of the Explorer. It has a target depth indicator on screen at all times so you can see the aprox. depth of a target as you sweep it. I dont know a thing about the f75 as I have only held one for a few seconds. It is VERY light and IF it can find coins as well as the minelab I would probably switch to that because the minelab is HEAVY, especially when you throw on a pinpointer, which is a MUST with this machine, though the pinpoint capability has improved on the SE. My finds today with the explorer were an IH at about 6, a silver rosie at about 6, a barber dime at about 7 or 8. and a wheat at about 9. Whatever you decide to do there will be plenty of help here on the forum. GOOD LUCK!

Thanks I think your last sentence says it all coins ...good coins from 6 to 9 inches...that is what I am not finding....

 

[birdman]

Rebel thats good stuff! I think it is well known that the explorer is one of the deepest for sure. Deep on the wallet also but I have seen some good deals here and there. Good post.