Tesoro Outlaw Impressions

[jfeeney]

I got my Outlaw that I bought through Rusty's Detectors. I'm still very new to MD so 53Silvers' impressions of the Outlaw are more informed than mine, so you can look at his first impressions of the Outlaw.



Here's my $0.02...

The unit feels incredible light but solid at the same time. I was shocked it's lighter than the Harbor Freight unit I was using.

The assembly of the unit was easy. The upper and lower shafts connected with problems at all.

The only issue I had was with attaching the coils to the lower shafts. You have to line up the holes so the mounting screw can secure the coil to the shaft. With the 10"x12" coil it was easiest because the cable was mounted in front of the mounting assembly. With the 5 3/4" coil it was a bit harder because the cable connected next to the mounting assembly but slightly offset so you could still look through and see when the holes aligned. With the 8 the cable was essentially aligned next to the mounting assembly making that coil the most difficult.
Scale 1 to 10 ( 1 being no problem - 10 being impossible ) : I'd give it a 3. Minor issues.



The only thing I would have done differently with what came stock with the unit is use slightly narrower and longer velcro straps for securing the cable to the pole. I may just replace the ones that came with the unit. Again minor nit-pick kind of thing. Scale of 1 to 10: I'd give that a 1.

I can't wait to do some tests with it and start searching my yard for anything I've missed with the HF unit I used. Thanks to Hurricane Sandy - we've had a couple of days of wind/rain/snow so the first I'll get to use it if Friday.

I will try and get some air tests done tomorrow, I'll post the results here.

 

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[Sandman]

Forget the Velcro straps and use electrical tape as it holds better. Soon you will get the hang of mounting the coils and they do come with the lower assembly so you only need to attach the coil on the shaft once for each coil.

 

[jfeeney]

Very true. If you didn't get the lower shafts for each of the coils it would be a pain to swap them. It's a snap to swap coils with what you do get..

 

[jfeeney]

I had to work late so I had less than 30 minutes before dark. Instead of doing an air test, I just searched in my yard. Found a nut, nail and scrap of metal. I may sneak out of work early tomorrow and hit a local park.

 

[Tee1up]

My Tesoro Outlaw - 10 Must Do's

Good for you JF!
I've only had the Outlaw (my first MD) for 3 months now but here is what I've learned so far:

1. The Outlaw is very sensitive and seems to react to stray EM chatter in the home. I was doing air tests in my basement and it was chirping like crazy and it was not until I killed the wifi and cordless phones that the unit did quiet down.

2. Don't underestimate the value of setting up a good test garden. I've been collecting all the junk and good stuff I've dug up and added it to a plot in my yard. Everything is labeled with what it is and depth. As I am pretty new, I hit this patch regularly and get to know the tone differences before I go out. Some of you won't need this but I am one of those people that needs repetition to make it stick.

3. My favorite coil is still the 8" concentric. The other two live in my car trunk but this one seems familiar and friendly some how.

4. I started digging with an old gardening shovel and a 10" crowbar. Big mistake. Fingers were raw after a day and I was almost avoiding targets that were not clearly solid coin type things. I picked up a Lesche digger and love it. I also have some of those mechanics (Kuny's) gloves now that really help you keep more bark on the digits after a day of hunting.

5. I've had pretty good success waving clumps of dirt over the coil but I have requested a Garrett Pro Pointer for xmas. With a side holster, I can see that this tool will double my recovery speed.

6. Headphones. Don't leave home without them. Make sure they have a volume control dial as well.

7. Spend just as much time researching potential dig areas as you do on the site. It helps to know what was there before.

8. Research local bylaws to see if you can get in trouble in public areas. I've only had one run-in with the constabulary and quoting local rules saved me some grief. Also, it helps to carry out and dispose of junk. I collect and take out everything I dig up. I keep a personal log of every day's experience in the hope that more experience will let me go back and read about where my head was that day.

9. Comb through these forums and make a note of anything you think will help you in the future. There is a thousand years of experience woven though these posts.

10. Take your coil scuff guards off from time to time and give everything a wipe down. My 8' was chirping unpredictably and after I took the cover off I found a nice collection of fine grit from a particularly dusty area. After I cleaned the coil and cover, all was good again.

...I have to again stress, this is my first detector so I don't want to suggest I am an authority.
These points are working for me so far and making this a hobby I am loving more every day.

Once again, my thanks to 53Silver - my inspiration.

***

I had to work late so I had less than 30 minutes before dark. Instead of doing an air test, I just searched in my yard. Found a nut, nail and scrap of metal. I may sneak out of work early tomorrow and hit a local park.

 

[Sandman]

Keeping a log of finds is part of the fun. I also used to place string tags on rings noting the where it was found, depth, date, etc. for later when you start to forget each item. I still sometimes remember a certain ring that I sold to ARA Refineries.

 

[jfeeney]

Thanks for the info and advice... I'll comment on each point below.

1. The Outlaw is very sensitive and seems to react to stray EM chatter... I noticed the same thing with my invisible dog fence last night.

2. Don't underestimate the value of setting up a good test garden... I hope to get something set up this weekend.

3. My favorite coil is still the 8" concentric... I'll check the other two coils out with the test garden. I agree the 8" just seems the right one to start with.

4. I started digging with an old gardening shovel and a 10" crowbar... I used gardening shovel at first too. I have a serrated trowel that I use now. A Lesche digging tool in on my Christmas list.

5. I've had pretty good success waving clumps of dirt over the coil but I have requested a Garrett Pro Pointer for xmas. With a side holster, I can see that this tool will double my recovery speed.... I picked up the cheap Cen-Tech pinpointer at Harbor Freight for under $15. It's not a Garrett Pro Pointer but it does help.

6. Headphones. Don't leave home without them. Make sure they have a volume control dial as well... I got a pair when I purchased the Outlaw.

7. Spend just as much time researching potential dig areas as you do on the site. It helps to know what was there before... I am doing that all ready. The problem so far is getting permission. I am thinking about going to the historical society for information and/or advice.

8. Research local bylaws to see if you can get in trouble in public areas... I keep a bag of junk with me when MDing in parks. Showing that to police and being friendly goes a long way to being left alone. As does filling in the holes and leaving no traces.

9. Comb through these forums and make a note of anything you think will help you in the future. There is a thousand years of experience woven though these posts. At least a 1000 years.

10. Take your coil scuff guards off from time to time and give everything a wipe down... Good advice thanks!

...I have to again stress, this is my first detector so I don't want to suggest I am an authority.
These points are working for me so far and making this a hobby I am loving more every day... No worries thanks for the advice. It's good to know I'm tracking with what others are doing.

 

[jfeeney]

I tried to get out and do a little MDing in a local park today. Unfortunately, I got in maybe 10 minutes before rain/sleet started and only found 2 pull tabs and part of a can. So I packed up and headed home where I did some air tests. I was able to replicate 53Silver's demonstration of how to discriminate a dime from a quarter by pushing the DIS level past Zn level.

 

[chakra22]

this looks very good
Tesoro Outlaw Recovery Speed & Super Pin-Pointing - '53Silver
Looking to buy my 1st one

 

[jfeeney]

I have a chance to hit a fresh water beach this weekend. Just wondering if this would be a good spot to try the 12" x 10" Spoked Wide Scan coil that came with my Outlaw? From reading the manual and other sites it seems like it would be worth a shot.

Any suggestions or advice? Thanks.