Is this old detector any good? First Texas...

[jorge del norte]

first texas....treasure tracker

 

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[Ed in SoDak]

Re: Is this old detector any good?

I have a slightly later model, the DX-8500. Not worth much at all as a detector, worth more as a collector item. Maybe the older tech in this machine worked better than mine. This one looks better-built at least. I paid $179 through Fingerhut for it back in the early 1980's. It does function, but depth suffers and with the single "blatt" tone you seldom know what you dig. Set it as best you can, using test targets to accept a nickle and reject a pulltab with a broken tone. If you do hit a good signal, crank up the disc while scanning. It the signal hangs in there, it's probably good or something large like a tin can. Lift the coil off the ground. If it fades fast, it's smaller, so could be a coin.

It does serve as a meteorite-hunting machine. Since it's sensitive to ground changes it can be used to air- test samples for stony meteorites. See my website on this: http://members.aol.com/whiteriverlabs/meteor.html

So, while it works, it's very old, low-end tech. You'd be better off with any current model Bounty Hunter.

-Ed

 

[jorge del norte]

Re: Is this old detector any good?

mine, has intermittant controls, because of age.........tough to discriminate. I tried contact cleaner that helped, for the power switch i had to make a secondary switch, ground balancing is also a problem, switches again......i have found some coins with it though, my father wants to go find a meteorite that he found as a kid, but it was to heavy to carry, but that was over fifty years ago off a service road in the woods...needle in a hay stack.........g

 

[jorge del norte]

Re: Is this old detector any good?

The "Blaattt-Bleeettt" tone can be gotten use to. I can recognize coins, just by sound, depth sucks, mineralized soil kills all fun to be had........but It found my first silver coin, silver jewelry and also a gold ring, it helped me understand how to hunt, and what the controls do, most of all it got me into MD'ing at a very low cost........I have now gave it to my kids, it's tough as rock.

Here is a pic, Old detector by First Texas, now known as Bounty Hunter. I have no idea what model?

 

[Jandor9]

It is so funny to see this...I have an even older one, the DX3000. It only has 2 controls, ground cancel and a combo power/sensitivity switch. And MAN! is it LOUD! It still does work...as well as it can. As mentioned, very low end-low tech. It did get me interested in MD though :>)

The model number is under the eagle. Take a look.

 

[jmfolcik]

That DX3000 is the same one I just grabbed from my parents house that I had as a kid. Anyone know when it was sold? Probably came out of the Sears Christmas Catalog I'm guessing. Battery door missing, I remember it was really poorly designed for a battery door, the latching mechanism was a slide or something and it broke I think. Still works! Never figured out how to use the ground cancel very well. Now that I'm going to try doing this at beaches and other places I think I'll use this detector for a while since it does just fine if you plan on digging every thing it picks up.