What are the best machines

[Vox veritas]

An intriguing question: In your opinion and experience, what are the best machines (metal detector, EM system, etc.) to locate depth buried metal masses. No matter the price.

 

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[Terry Soloman]

A helicopter with a mag!

 

[Vox veritas]

Hi Terry. But if you search por non ferrous like gold or silver?

 

[Tom_in_CA]

Vox, Terry is just ribbing you a little, because this is the age old "Ford vs Chevy" debate

We need to know size of "metal masses", and suspected depths. Eg.: coin sized objects ? Jar sized ? Toaster-oven size? Automobile size ? 6 inch deep ? 1 ft ? 1 meter ? 3 meters ? And how junky is the site ? Eg.: lots of prior habitation would introduce iron scrap etc.... to deal with.

 

[Vox veritas]

Vox, Terry is just ribbing you a little, because this is the age old "Ford vs Chevy" debate

We need to know size of "metal masses", and suspected depths. Eg.: coin sized objects ? Jar sized ? Toaster-oven size? Automobile size ? 6 inch deep ? 1 ft ? 1 meter ? 3 meters ? And how junky is the site ? Eg.: lots of prior habitation would introduce iron scrap etc.... to deal with.

Small, medium and large targets.

 

[DeepseekerADS]

Here is the pure fact!

The best detector is the one in the hands of a user with hundreds of hours using that machine. I've been detecting off and on for 35 years, love the sound machines, and picked up a CTX a couple years ago - but still have less than 100 hours of use on it. My hunting buddy has an older Tesoro mid range machine with thousands of hours on it. He ALWAYS nearly doubles my finds. It's always the user, and not always the machine.

 

[Sandman]

I too have used many detectors because I enjoy learning them. Deepseeker is right. You must learn your detector.

 

[Terry Soloman]

If you are asking about hand held machines, then the Minelab GPZ 7000 is the KING. Nothing deeper or more sensitive. In the right hands, you can find a one-ounce gold nugget at 36"+ deep. Don't believe it? I've seen it with my own eyes.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

Small, medium and large targets.

haha, whenever I post this "it depends on such & such" answer, I often times add the following: "... And don't say "all the above". I didn't add that this time. And sure enough, that's your answer.

So to give an illustration: If you were to ask: what's the best motor vehicle to buy? And someone answered : "It depends on what you want it for. If you want to 0 to 140 real quick, consider a Corvette. If you want to shuttle kids to soccer practice, consider a mini-van. If you want to haul boulders to the quarry, consider a 10-wheeler truck. If you want gas economy, consider a mini-cooper", etc....

And the person answering says "I want to do all of the above, so which is best?" .

See, it doesn't work that way. You might need multiple machines. And even within your answer is ambiguity. For example, when you say "small", are you talking pin-head nuggets? Or did you mean coin-size ?

And as for Terry's answer: Sure, you "won't miss anything" with that 7000. But heaven help you if you show up at a ghost-townsy ruinsy type site with a machine that "rings the bells of notre dame" over every fleck, staple, pushpin, etc.... Not that it wouldn't be great for some applications, but .... just saying, it depends on where a person is hunting, and if they need iron disc, etc.....

 

[Tom Slick]

A map with an X and an Excavator. Seriously.

 

[SouthFLdigger]

I believe having several detectors each specifically suited for different tasks is far better than one "great" do it all machine. Having say 3 detectors for the different hunting environments you anticipate to be in is far more practical. Furthermore one should rotate each machine and use them all regularly to become proficient. All the machines i own are low end machines but i know them well and have been very effective for me in the right environment tailored for each unit.

 

[Doodle Bug]

I'm going to have to say the Teknetics Delta 4000.
It's light compared to an adult elephant.
It is waterproof if you don't get it wet.
It is perfectly balanced if you locate the balance point.
It is very inexpensive compared to the cost of a new mansion.
It sounds amazing from down the street.
It can tell me what is under the ground before I dig, it might not be right but it can tell me.
It has VDI numbers and that sounds like a cool feature if it had a numeric value translator.
It has a built in pinpointer that has a real hard time finding a vertically buried pin.
It has a depth display in case I want to dig less than 6 inches an hope that I get the depth correct in the first attempt.
It has sensitivity in case I want to talk about my feelings.
For these reasons I pick the Teknetics Delta 4000 as the clear winner!

 

[Tom_in_CA]

I believe having several detectors each specifically suited for different tasks is far better than one "great" do it all machine....

So let me guess: You're probably also gonna be a kill-joy, and say that Corvette's are not recommended motor vehicle for hauling gravel to the quarry ?

 

[SouthFLdigger]

So let me guess: You're probably also gonna be a kill-joy, and say that Corvette's are not recommended motor vehicle for hauling gravel to the quarry ?

Assume much? You can use whatever you'd like for any task. Is it the most appropriate, i think not. I stated my opinion quite simply. I don't think there is a best do it all machine out there although some come close. I think the poster above mentioned the GPZ7000 and for specific tasks it is the best.

 

[geffy]

subscribed, this seems like a very interesting thread

 

[Tom_in_CA]

..... I don't think there is a best do it all machine out there ....

Yes, and my post was just "in jest" jokingly agreeing with you. That just as there's no one motor vehicle that "does it all", so too is there no one detector that does it all either.

 

[TerryC]

If you are asking about hand held machines, then the Minelab GPZ 7000 is the KING. Nothing deeper or more sensitive. In the right hands, you can find a one-ounce gold nugget at 36"+ deep. Don't believe it? I've seen it with my own eyes.

Hmm, Terry. Your statement is flawed. Tell me how to see something with anyone else's eyes!! (yuk, yuk!) TTC