Your valued opinion is requested!

[navychief1968]

All,

I am tired of being extremely carefull while wading the beaches, lakes and rivers that I sometimes hunt.? Currently, I am using my Minelab Sovereign Elite while wading in the water, but it's only a matter of time before I drop it in the drink (drink is navy slang for a body of water).? To prevent this from happening, I am now in the market for a water-proof metal detector.? I have narrowed my choices down to two models;? (1) the Fisher CZ-20 and (2) the Minelab Explorer 1000.? From all I understand, the explorer is basically a sovereign in a water-proof case. IS THIS TURE?? I sure love my sovereign, so I would be happy if this is true.? On the other hand, do I really want the same detector just in another form?? Has anyone used the Fisher CZ-20?? If so, what can you tell me about it??


Chris Reynolds
Chief Petty Officer, USN

 

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[billinstuart]

I have an Excalibur, works great. Not familiar with dry land model, but the more I use mine, the more familiar with it's operation and idiosyncracies. Seems to me you're pretty familiar with your unit, and changing brands requires a new learning curve. So, I'd say if you like Minelabs stick with them. The only difference between the 800 and 1000 is the size of the searchcoil.

 

[Doug-Iowa]

I am not sure what type of water you are hunting most often. If it is fresh water you really need to look at the Tesoro Tiger Shark. It is unriveled in fresh water. It is average in Salt water. For fresh water hunting there is no machine that will find the small gold items like the Tiger will.

If you mainly hunt the salt water beaches I would go with the CZ20. The Excaliber owners I know mostly own 2 of them. One to hunt with while the other is in the shop. Good machine but quality issues from what I have seen posted in numerous places.

Doug-Iowa
DJ's Detectors

 

[capela]

Hi, first i must do a correction in your statment, you called a Explorer 1000 instead or Excalibur 1000 !
Now..., Excalibur 1000 is your Soverign with a water-proof design, so if you choose this one you?ll not feel the diference !
Doug is right about the TShark, but the Excalibur is an all terrain machine and in Salt or Fresh water there are no obstacules !
I normally use my Sand Sark but as you know a is P.I machine(no discrimination), so i heard that Excalibur is a little bit heavy....!
Last month i found a good oportunity for a HeadHunter Wader, and now is my second Water machine, but if i see a TShark oportunity it will be mine ....!. I?m a Tesoro?s Fan but i?ve also tried several brand/models and i have several machines in my collection .
Hi Doug nice to find you here, i?m new here so it?s nice to find friends from other forums...!

capela.

 

[lab rat]

I use the Sovereign (10-inch coil) for beaches and parks. I also have a CZ-20 (8-inch coil) that I have used with good success for several years. The CZ is a bit worn out and needs a factory overhaul, but it is a good, solid, reliable waterproof machine. The discrimination operates differently but is almost as effective as the Sovereign. I think the Sovereign gets a little better depth on large targets and the CZ is more sensitive to fine chains, but this may be due to coil size.

 

[navychief1968]

To Doug, Bill, Capela, and Lab Rat:

Thanks for all the good information and yes I made a big mistake, it's the Excalibur I was talking about, not the Explorer. I also own a Tesoro detector (Silver Saber Plus). It's my favorite detector for relic hunting. It's a gem for relic hunting but the lack of target ID is a killer in high trash areas. I am going to take a good hard look at the Tiger Shark.
I also was not aware of the reliability issues with the Excalibur. Is it one common type of failure (i.e. water intrusion and such), or do the failures vary from unit to unit?
One other thing, right now I split my time pretty much down the middle between fresh and salt water hunting.

Chris Reynolds
Chief Petty Officer, USN

 

[sumo_wres]

Chris, I have seen allot and one of my buddy's shown me exactly what his Excalibur can do in Singapore. He hit Gold constantly in the water. This is a great machine. Presently I own three, Garrett 2500, Garrett Sea Hunter II, and Whites IDX Pro. I have to say I am a 100% Garrett fan. I think Minelab has allot to offer and after seeing a friend of mine pick up 14 rings all gold in 1 day. Almost sold me but the price is what turned me down. I will have to move up once I get used to the Sea Hunter. R/ Kevin

 

[wreckdiver1715]

Morning Chief, I have been using the Excalibur 1000 for about five years now and have had no problems with this machine at all. I?m in the USAF Combat Search and Rescue business, so needles to say I take my detector with me every place I go. This is a rugged machine, and as long as you take good care of it you can count on finding treasure. On the down side it?s a little heavy out of the water. However, I think that?s a small price to pay. I use it primarily for diving off my 33 foot Chris Craft Corinthian in the waters off Cape Canaveral Florida or on the beaches of the space and treasure coast.

 

[warthog steve]

Believe me,a water detector is worth its weight in gold-I had a Garrett cx2 I dropped in the water-cost me $175.00 to get it repaired-have a Whites Surfmaster2 underwater detector;good to 100 feet,only use it in fresh-water-water detecting opens up a whole new world of opportunities!!!

 

[Statenisland Keith]

I have a Soverign Elite. What i did was make a temporary waterproof box. I bought a G.S.I waterproof box got some straps one to hang around my neck and the other to wrap around my chest. Then i had some pipe insulation cut them up and stuck them inside the G.S.I box. I did this so the control box has a snug fit. Then I drilled two holes one for the coil and one for my head phone jack. This is where I ran into a problem i could not find the right sized rubber Gromets so i tried window insulation> I cut a 2 rectangular pieces (small) then put a small slit in them and stuck them inside the GSI box where I cut the holes. Now when i feed the wires through the hole and the slit i made the foam hugs the wire real tight.It works for me. I figure even if I fell in the water no way will any water get to my unit. How long would I be under? 3-4 seconds Max if that.

 

[navychief1968]

Keith,

What you did is awesome!? I have a friend who makes MD stands for minelab sovereigns and sovereign elite and markets them through Dixie Metal Detectors.? You should maybe think about doing something similar.? ?I think I'll give your water proof box a shot.? It should get me through until some of those "tax free zone" checks I'll get while in the Middle East start rolling in and I can afford a "proper" U/W metal detector.? Thanks for the pic's too.

Chris Reynolds
Chief Petty Officer, USN

 

[luke1049]

Wow, Keith's idea is slick; particularily for shallow water, surf and such. A year or so ago I faced the same choice you mentioned - the minelab or the fisher. After much online review, questions in forums, etc it boiled down to:

1. Minelab - better detecting capabilities but with significant customer complaints about shoddy construction, knobs stripping off, much downtime, and poor balance out of the water.

2. Fisher CZ-20 - very good detecting capability, bulletproof construction. Heavy, but a neck strap to hang the seperable main unit on is available.

I ended up with the CZ and a neckstrap and have greatly enjoyed using it.

Cheers

 

[jeff of pa]

MY UNDERSTANDING is MINELAB fixed that problem. ( THE KNOBS )