What in your opinion is the deepest (in average soil) Coin Shooter out there

[gallileo60]

I know some of you guys have used a bunch of different detectors...I also know this is a hard question to answer with all the variables, but lets just talk average conditions, low mineralization, and strictly for coin shooting...Thanks in advance, Tom

 

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[mainer]

I'll tell you my experience and let you judge for yourself. The deepest machine I have used is the explorer II. Next would be the Whites XLT. Then I would say that it would be a close call between the garrett 2500 and 550 gtax. These are the machines that I have used and what is deepest for me might not be for you or the guy down the road. Good luck with finding an answer, and choosing a machine.

Mainer

 

[gallileo60]

It is so hard to choose the right machine...there are so many, and they all cost alot of money... I've had a bunch of different ones, and still it is hard to choose...thanks for your reply, Tom

 

[extractor]

Remember the size of the coil plays one big part in the whole depth thing.

 

[cheese]

If you want to save money and buy used, a Fisher CZ will detect as deep or deeper than most machines made today. For that reason and others, CZs are a bit hard to come by. I hear the explorers go really deep too, but I haven't gotten the chance to use one yet. I think they had a considerable learning curve though.

 

[LuckyLarry]

Contact Keith Wills at east Texas Metal Detectors:

http://www.brokendetector.com/prodserv.htm

He can advise you better than anyone here can.

Keith is the man responsible for the good depth on A-L-L metal detectors since the late 70's. He now repairs them and is also the tech who was involved in the development of DD coils, at Compass Electronics. He will know which ones work best in Texas, and I mean B-E-S-T.

The reason I say this is because Texas soil is pretty tame and iron-free. Soil like yours does not require the ground-cancelling abilities that Fishers, Whites, and Minelabs have.

If a detector gets good air depth it will also get good ground depth in your soil.

LL
AKA "EasyMoney"

 

[mainer]

It is so hard to choose the right machine...there are so many, and they all cost alot of money... I've had a bunch of different ones, and still it is hard to choose...thanks for your reply, Tom

It can be hard to pick the right machine. I guess thats why I have had so many. But after talking to people on the forum when I was ready to upgrade, I decided on the explorer, only had it since September I think, but really love it and wish I would have just bought it from the start. Take your time an choose the machine you think is best for you, good luck.

Mainer

 

[cheese]

Read as much as you can. Take phrases that express your interests and search them (like "deep seeking detector" and "detects deep coins") and articles will pop up. Read them and see what machines they are talking about. Eventually, you will fixate on one or two machines that you've decided you'd really like to have. That's how I did it and I've never regretted my pick of detectors. But what's important in a detector to me may not be to you, so don't let us tell you what machine to buy. If you do, you'll always wonder if you should have bought "brand x" detector instead of the one you got.

 

[gallileo60]

Read as much as you can. Take phrases that express your interests and search them (like "deep seeking detector" and "detects deep coins") and articles will pop up. Read them and see what machines they are talking about. Eventually, you will fixate on one or two machines that you've decided you'd really like to have. That's how I did it and I've never regretted my pick of detectors. But what's important in a detector to me may not be to you, so don't let us tell you what machine to buy. If you do, you'll always wonder if you should have bought "brand x" detector instead of the one you got.

Oh no, I will buy what I like, BUT, I know some of these guys detect everyday, and have had quite a few different machines.....If there is one thing, I know about TNet, there are some real brains on here...I just want to hear what others think...I have been trying to make up my mind for a year now, so I am in no hurry....I am the worlds worst about second guessing myself tho....Thanks to all once again..I am always open to hear your story's, Tom Shaw

 

[U.K. Brian]

I would go with the old technology of the Nautilus DMC as you say average soil. You could try a Nexus (with smaller coin hunting coil) which can be really deep but it does have soils it doesn't like.

 

[LuckyLarry]

If you want opinions then you are going to get nothing but opinions, including the ones coming from (especially) Minelab owners who think that their machines walk on water.

If a man buys a Mercedes that cost $80,000 he will tell you that it is perfect, regardless of whether it's sitting in the garage broken down or needs $20,000 worth of repairs, or running perfectly. I've actually seen this happen and yes, with Mercedes owners too.

Many people think that the more they pay for a detector the better it is. Not true. The deepest detectors I've ever seen was my old (original) Garrett Deepseeker running at a rediculously low Freq of around 5 Khz, AND the old super low freq Fisher 440's and 550's. Those were killers and nothing yet can beat them in average soil (in all-metal) if they are in good working condition. Notice I said "average".

A really experienced detectorists seldom ever uses discrimination because he or she does not need to. They are not only perfectionists that know their machine well, they are also demanding of the finest equipment and know fully well that that can all change overnight or any day. They are open to new equipment and new designs and detectors. The others are merely stuck in a rut of having their blinders on, just like a few are still with Obama and crew and not being able to see past their own nose..

Now if you are an old salt like me, or MB or Sandman you are going to get a completely different story than with someone who uses mostly one and only one detector, like many do here. The truth is, that success depends somewhat on your soil, somewhat on your area, somewhat on what coins you search for, interference problems, and somewhat on how patient or intelligent you are. There are as you say, many variables, but to say "this one" or "that one" is best.. is a lot of horse pxxxy. it aint so. There is no "best detector"..

I've had an $80 machine in my hand while hunting next to someone who had a $1500 one in theirs and found an $800 rose gold ring or old coin when the spendy one wouldn't even make a peep on it while it was in the ground. Somewhere else though it might have been a different story. I've been at this since the early 70's, built my own detectors, repaired countless other ones, used hundreds of others, repaired and designed even more, and the truth is, that one detector does not service well in every location or at any task. To say otherwise is still more organic barnyard fertilizer.

So the best thing to do is to ask those who make them or design them, or use them in your area, and ONLY in your area. After all, isn't that where you will be hunting?

The rule of thumb is always; "try before you buy"

LL
AKA "EsayMoney"

 

[mikewaz]

I was in the same boat and it took me a year to make up my mind, but heck, it's a pretty big investment so I wanted to be sure. I was leaning towards a few different machines like the Explorer 2, Etrac, etc.., and finally got the F75. I'm very happy with my decision.
Mike

 

[gallileo60]

I was in the same boat and it took me a year to make up my mind, but heck, it's a pretty big investment so I wanted to be sure. I was leaning towards a few different machines like the Explorer 2, Etrac, etc.., and finally got the F75. I'm very happy with my decision.
Mike

I kinda like the looks of the F-75...I've heard good things about it...what is the learning curve like? Are you pretty happy with it, and is it easy to use? YES, for me this is a VERY BIG investment.....I have been saving for a long time now.....Thanks for your reply......Also LuckyLarry, thanks for your input...Tom

 

[mikewaz]

Hi Tom,
I found mine on Ebay and got a great deal. It had only around 10 hours on it, looked like it just left the factory, and paid 650.00 so that helped quite a bit.

The first time I used one was when my buddy offered to let me try his out for a hunt. I had about an hour the night before to read up on it and then try to remember everything the next morning. Piece of cake. I ended up finding silver that day the first time using it. I decided right then I wanted one.

I came home from work one day and there was a big box. My wife said "I think it's empty" because it was so light. I tore it open, put it together, gave the manual a quick read and hit my backyard. First coin I dug was a silver Washington. This was after I pounded my yard with the 1266 with the 8", 3" and 5" coils so I was impressed.

It's a breeze to change settings on the fly which makes it easy to try different settings and see the results. I have to go back to a lot of spots I hit early on because I learned so much by the end of the season, and I'm sure I'm gonna get some more eduction this coming year.

Mike

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

I kinda like the looks of the F-75...I've heard good things about it...what is the learning curve like? Are you pretty happy with it, and is it easy to use? YES, for me this is a VERY BIG investment.....I have been saving for a long time now.....Thanks for your reply......Also LuckyLarry, thanks for your input...Tom

I agree with what MikeWaz said. I got my F75 back in the spring of 2007 and had used a Minelab Musketeer for five or so years prior to that. I played around in the yard in my test garden (in the dark) and the next day I took it to work. On my lunch hour (after reading the manual all morning on the company's dime) I took it to a nearby well-hunted park.

In 45 minutes I dug one ring tab, one aluminum bottle/carton lid, two quarters, a nickel, a dime and three cents. Also a "cheapie" gold ring. Now that may not sound like much, but I was happy, happy because up to then it would have taken me a few dozen bottle caps and pull-tabs to find that much coin in that area of the park. This was my first attempt at notching. So, my point, the F75 has a large learning curve. It is hyper-sensitive and you have to work at that as hard as ground-balancing (more-so than the three seconds it takes using the FASTGRAB, in fact). I still learn new tricks whenever I play around with her, but it is always easy to reset and start at the factory defaults. Takes half-a-minute to thumb through all the menus and options to tweak her as desired thereafter. Or just run the defaults if you're lazy. At that park where I spend lunchbreaks I have had many coin-only days (no trash dug and 15 or 20 coins) but the oppostunity cost is that to run discrimination and notch will be missed jewelry. I also believe the more discrimination you select the more your depth is hindered (most detectors, not just the F75). I usually run with only iron discriminated out and dig anything that sounds relatively good for that reason.

The F75 will frustrate the bejezus out of you if you crank the sensitivity or try air-testing (especally indoors). And stay out of Jewelery mode for the first three months. It goes ape near EMI, but keeping the coil down and setting the sensitivity low (or even switching frequencies) helps a tremendous amount. Set a coin on the ground to practice; or better still bury a test garden in your yard to practice at. When you get good and know some of it's responses set the discrimination to 4 and up the sensitivity with single or two tones and go dig deep coins (using the TID and sound quality/confidence meter to interpret trash).

My Musky is deep seeking, but loves aluminum and foil. The F75 goes deeper, probably because it responds faster and likely targets bring me back to check from several angles. I have coins and musket balls buried to 12" in my test garden ans side-by-side the F75 gives better tones (sometimes to silence from the Musky) in all conditions. And the Musky has a reputation of being a deep relic machine.

Is it "the deepest coin shooter?" I don't know. In it's price bracket it holds it's own. A good Explorer II driver could probably dust me, but at 30% more investment. I've hit silver quarters an honest foot down, a croatal bell 2" deeper than that and more than one dime at 8". Depends on the soil and how much trash or soil mineralization is present. I can say I hunt areas successfully the M6 and MXT/DFX users avoid . . . and in fact two of those users in my local club bought F75s after trying mine. It also pulls coins from beside and under iron or foil that nulls a lot of other detectors. You won't dig what you can't see or hear.

Depth usually comes from knowing your machine and being willing to dig the faint "iffy" signals.

 

[Deepdiger60]

I use a DFX with a SEF 10x12 coil and a custom deep coin program until i put that program in i was finding silver coins all over my property on a average of 4 to 6 inches my house was built in 1890 i thought the yards were hunted out then i changed coils and then that custom program iam hitting more coins and old relics now 9 to 11 inches inches sometimes it just takes time to get it just right , i just ordered a Sov. Gt with a 15 inch WOT coil then ill see whats left in the property plus do some beach hunting .

 

[gallileo60]

Hey Charlie, I am for sure the lazy type...i have never been good at ground balancing for some reason...I had an old Garrett Deepseeker, and a Whites 5900, and always had trouble ground balancing..Even my BH Land Star gives me trouble..It is just me, I know...Can you use the F-75 without the ground Balance?? I see it has a fast track option.....Thanks to all of you for giving me your opinions....It is really helping...So many detectors, and so little money.........How well does it perform in the preset mode, and what kind of depth do you lose...The soil where I am at is pretty mild........BTW, you guys really make some nice finds...I work 6 days a week, so I only have Sunday to detect...Once again, thanks to all, and feel free to throw in your 2 cents on this subject..Also, what do you NOT like about this unit?..Tom Shaw

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

You can - there is a default setting. But the better news is that to ground balance you push the trigger forward and pump the coil up and down from 1" to about 4" over the soil until the "Can't GB" message goes away. Takes three seconds. It's called FASTGRAB (for that reason). It is not a true autonatic balancing, but more an automatic when requested balancing. I do it every 15 minutes or so just to keep up with any soil changes. The catch is you need to find a spot clear of any metal.

In the All Metals mode is a much more involved but more conventional balancing routine that involves interpreting the audio signal as the coil is pumped. This is needed in wet sand or some nasty-bad mineralized areas.

What don't I like about the F75 (SE)? The open coil design snags twigs and tufts of grass. It tips over when you set it down. Some of the early ones were chatterboxes.

The solutions: Switch coils or be careful (I bought a 6.5" elliptical that is great for poking around in cellar holes and trashy spots). I made a simple little stand to keep it upright when I use my FX-1 SunRay probe. Mine never had the chattering problem and I believe it has been conquered. But it is possible a used F75 may be a problem (some were user induced - do not bother air-testing indoors. Set things on the ground outdoors to test it).

 

[ziphius]

Tom,

Hard question to answer. I have used two of what most people consider 'elite' machines in the past year: Fisher F75 and Minelab E-Trac. I have A LOT more hours on the F75 at this point because I've owned it for a over a year, while I'm quite new to the E-Trac. This is only my opinion (meaning I have not done a head-to-head test of the two machines on the same buried targets), but I think that they are probably equal in depth capabilities on a coin in discrimination mode. My sense is that the F75 might be deeper in all-metal mode. Again, this is just opinion based on a little field experience with the E-Trac. The deal breaker for me with the F75 is that it isn't built all that rugged and I've had headset jack and battery spring issues with it already. Fisher apparently fixed the battery spring issue last year. But, if I were to buy a brand new F75 and a new E-Trac today, I'd bet money that the E-Trac would be a more reliable machine in the long run. Again, just an opinion, which I realize I might get a little bashing over. - Jim

 

[gallileo60]

Tom,

Hard question to answer. I have used two of what most people consider 'elite' machines in the past year: Fisher F75 and Minelab E-Trac. I have A LOT more hours on the F75 at this point because I've owned it for a over a year, while I'm quite new to the E-Trac. This is only my opinion (meaning I have not done a head-to-head test of the two machines on the same buried targets), but I think that they are probably equal in depth capabilities on a coin in discrimination mode. My sense is that the F75 might be deeper in all-metal mode. Again, this is just opinion based on a little field experience with the E-Trac. The deal breaker for me with the F75 is that it isn't built all that rugged and I've had headset jack and battery spring issues with it already. Fisher apparently fixed the battery spring issue last year. But, if I were to buy a brand new F75 and a new E-Trac today, I'd bet money that the E-Trac would be a more reliable machine in the long run. Again, just an opinion, which I realize I might get a little bashing over. - Jim

I have heard good things about the e-trac...I will probably use it in disc mode....I wonder in that mode how much better it is than the Ace 250, or the Garrett 1350?? Thanks for your input..You guys are a great help...i like to know what people do not like about their detectors..I know it is hard to admit there are problems with a machine you pay a lot of money for, but for me my 1350 was a big let down....I'm not saying it is not a good machine, but I really like the Ace better..Just want more depth...Once again, Thanks to all for your input..How do you like the display on the e-trac?....Tom Shaw


BTW, if I can answer any question about any of the 3 detectors I have please feel free to ask.......