Jump to content

Leaderboard

Popular Content

Showing content with the highest reputation on 11/30/2019 in all areas

  1. Went out for a bit earlier today and found these. The quarter was shallow on edge of what was a small orchard. The locket hinge still works but the photo has disolved away. Locket was pretty deep under a good size rock. Think it was silver plated at one time. Grounds starting to freeze so might be getting close to the end of the season. I'll call it a day when my digger makes a clank sound and I can't dig.
    3 points
  2. Hi, all! I just wanted to mention that in the spirit of the Holidays, Steve's Detector Rods will be giving away one carbon-fiber complete Equinox shaft (upper shaft and lower rod), AND one carbon-fiber Equinox lower rod, to two lucky U.S. winners. Two separate drawings will be held on Dec. 18, one for the complete shaft, and a second for the lower rod. Entry into the drawings is completely free, with no purchase required -- and the entry period is open from now, through 11:59 PM on Sunday, Dec. 15. Additionally, ALL entrants into either drawing will qualify to receive 10% off of any item purchased through Steve's, for the entire month of December. For additional information, including details and eligibility, please visit Steve's Facebook page, at https://www.facebook.com/stevesdetectorrods Thanks! Steve
    2 points
  3. Tried a new area for metal detecting last week, Nothing AZ, it lived up to its name. Spent 5 days and came up with Nothing. Lots of quarts, black sand looks good but no gold.
    2 points
  4. Thanks for the tips Chase! I do actually have a second detector, a lobo supertrak with a DD and a concentric coil. Don't know if it would do any better, but if I make it back there I'll take it along and try everything.
    2 points
  5. Was in a field that was an orchard way back, had the Tejon cranked on sensitivity so it would just stop chattering. Going along and not even a peep for a while. Hit the all metal and nothing! Turned it off then on again and no signal! Figured I forgot to charge the lithium batteries as I usually do and of course I took the spares out of my pouch. Went home charged the batteries and they recharged really quick (usually take 2 hours from fully drained). Tossed them in, powered the machine up and Nothing!!! My heart sank. Checked to see if the headphones were ok and it turned out to be the inline audio volume switch was off. My guess is the switch would rub against my jacket and work its way off as I swung. All working good, taped the switch so it doesn't move 🙂
    2 points
  6. I know this doesn't help most Equinox users, but when iron gets really bad, I usually just switch over to my Deus (or the less expensive ORX which works just as well) and a smaller coil. This is is why I have been saying for months, that the two detectors compliment each other. I love them both and would not be without both in my truck for any detecting situation. But here are some iron site tips for Equinox/Vanquish users because they can still get the job done: Make sure any ground noise is cancelled out by properly ground balancing your detector for each mode you plan to use. You don't need ground noise (in all metal) pounding your head in addition to all the ferrous hits. You should check this over clean ground, obviously, but that is sometimes hard at thick iron sites. I like using the new F2 iron bias at or near the default setting of 6 (4 to 7 seems to be the sweet spot to preclude masking). Use whatever setting works best on Vanquish-suspect Vanquish uses the new F2-like iron bias filter. Iron bias set too high tends to mitigate the advantage of higher recovery speeds causing non ferrous masking, so it is a delicate balancing act to find the Goldilocks (just right) iron bias setting. Use a higher recovery speed setting if the target density is high. For Vanquish, this means coin mode. Unlike Equinox, Vanquish has basically one Multi IQ mode and the other "modes" (coin, relic, jewelry) are merely differentiated by default recovery speed, tone breakpoint, and discrimination settings. See this post for more info. Unless you are going to remove ALL the iron as you go (impractical for most detecting situations), try using a lower sensitivity to "sift" through the iron and look for shallower non-ferrous finds. The lower sensitivity helps keep the deeper, big iron and shallower iron from overloading and overwhelming the detector. It is counterintuitive and takes some discipline, but lowering sensitivity can be a powerful tool. The threshold feature will alert you to ferrous targets if you have ferrous discriminated out as it blanks when you pass the coil over discriminated iron targets. So if you are seeking out or seeking to avoid the iron patches, using threshold can be useful. Use the horseshoe button to interrogate high tone hits to see if there are iron tones mixed in. Problem is, it could be a single iron target or multiple mixed targets so... Use the pinpointer (not available on the V340) to ascertain whether you have multiple targets in the hole or a single target. And since pinpoint is a non-motion mode, you can trace the outline footprint of the target to tell whether you are swinging over a coin-sized object or a larger iron or aluminum target such as a can or actual horseshoe which can ring up high. If you have an Equinox 800, sometimes I find Gold mode to be useful in thick iron situations as either a primary search mode or something to quickly switch to to interrogate an iffy signal as the VCO-like audio can work similar to pinpoint in revealing target strength or multiple adjacent small targets (though you can't target footprint trace because it is a motion mode) with the added benefit of visual target ID. If target density is high, try using the smaller available coils (e g , 6 inch round for Equinox). Yes depth will be slightly less, but fewer targets under the coil simultaneously helps with reducing coil overload and you might be able to use a higher sensitivity and lower recovery speed. Note also, that if you use a different sized coil, your sweet spot iron bias settings might also change. Final tip, don't be afraid to wade into the iron patches. Since most low recovery speed detectors have trouble there, it is perhaps your best bet to find a shallower keeper that has been masked all these years. It takes patience and use/honing of the skills above plus you WILL be digging a lot of iron regardless (and getting it out of your way), but the reward for that can be huge. Even if you get a 99% probable iron signal the only way to know for sure is to dig it and see what else might be in that hole. Hope these help and give you some ideas how to attack an iron site with your Equinox/Vanquish.
    2 points
  7. The hollow support pieces are filled in with shoe goo, and the solid part has marine epoxy applied. The Groovy part...….the coil cover can still be snapped on. Dave
    2 points
  8. Very cool ring that was found 2016: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7691793/Amateur-metal-detectorist-finds-gold-Medieval-ring-tipped-fetch-50-000-auction.html
    2 points
  9. I'm quite pitiful. First ever for me. I dreamed I had the AQ. Craziest dream, I could see the controls and all the features. The whole time (in my dream) I was wondering why I had one. When I woke up I was even more puzzled. In the 20+ years of using metal detectors I've not one time dreamed about any of them. Strange. Must be a SUBCONCIOUS thing I guess. Even though I'm very interested in the machine, I don't think I would ever purchase one just to use one week out of a year but you never know. I'm more interested in the land version to replace my TDI but what goes on behind the scenes "subconscious" is an unknown thing. Still has be puzzled and at times confused as to WHY I would have a dream like that.
    2 points
  10. he is in production // finally .. I find it amazing that your dealer does not speak a French seller already takes pre-orders without delivery date .... price announce France / Europe 2490 euros 2020 Edit: The Impulse AQ has been revealed - see details here
    1 point
  11. The Fisher Impulse AQ Ltd is a new pulse induction (PI) metal detector that saw limited release beginning in June 2020. Production is to be limited to 99 units, with about 30 made by December 2020. The Fisher Impulse AQ is the first of a planned series of new pulse induction detectors from Fisher Research. The AQ (AQua) is a waterproof model intended for beach and water hunting. Pulse induction technology offers extreme performance on highly mineralized beaches that inhibit the depths attainable with VLF metal detectors. The Impulse AQ has been released first as a limited production model (less than 100 units will be manufactured), the Impulse AQ Limited. This machine has a depth rating of three feet and a NiMH battery with running time of up to 3.5 hours. The battery is attached by an exposed cable that is the main cause for the 3 foot depth rating, and which must be handled with care. The Fisher Impulse AQ Limited is being offered for a short time to enthusiasts who understand and accept these limitations, at a very attractive price. Development will continue on a future release with a deeper waterproof rating and longer battery life in a more robust physical package, but at a higher price. New Fisher Impulse AQ Ltd pulse induction metal detector The Fisher Impulse AQ offers excellent depth and superb sensitivity to gold jewelry - the machine is highly optimized for finding gold rings in particular. The most anticipated feature is discrimination better than that currently offered on any other pulse induction metal detector. The discrimination is focused more on high value gold rings than coins, and may actually exclude many coins if enabled. This is not considered a problem for many serious beach hunters as a lot of time is wasted recovering coins under difficult conditions when gold rings are actually the desired target. The compact waterproof design and relatively light weight is also attracting attention. Other Impulse models are expected to be aimed at gold prospectors and possibly even the relic/coin detecting market. Fisher Impulse AQ Ltd metal detector Threads on this websites First Texas Forum are tracking the latest developments. Information will be added here periodically. Fisher Impulse AQ Limited Specifications Latest pulse induction technology Tested waterproof to 1 meter / 3 feet for up to four hours Ergonomic balanced design Detachable NiMH battery Standard battery run time 3 - 3.5 hours depending on mode (All metal has shortest battery life) Time to charge fully depleted battery 5 hours Battery may be swapped out with an optional fully charged battery for more run time 12.5” Mono Coil, weighs 400 grams or 14.1 ounces 8” coil accessory coil will be available Yoke type lower rod for extra coil stability in water Knob controls for easy control location and use in low visibility conditions Detector complete with battery approximately 4.2 lbs Weight of detector without battery approximately 3.2 lbs Length 43" - 48" adjustable Warranty 2 years parts & labor non-transferable Limited Edition Price $1499 Controls: Volume 1 - 9 Threshold 1 - 9 Sensitivity 1 - 9 Auto Tune Speed (ATS) 1 - 10 Reject (Iron Mask) 1 - 12 Pulse Delay / Frequency Adjust (Noise Cancel) 7 uS - 15 uS Mode Switch: Power On/Off Battery Test / Frequency Adjust (EMI Noise Cancel) All Metal (Monotone) Tone (Two Tones, Ferrous and Non-Ferrous) Mute (Block the Ferrous Tone) Volcanic Sand Battery Check LED First Texas - Bounty Hunter, Fisher & Teknetics Metal Detector Forum Fisher Impulse AQ Ltd Color Flyer Fisher Impulse AQ Ltd User Guide Fisher Impulse AQ Essential Information Fisher Impulse AQ Ltd controls
    1 point
  12. I find myself also using the Orx more and more. I'm finding it pretty equal with the Equinox. The Orx is better hunting gold jewelry in Gold modes. Gold Kruzer 2nd for gold jewelry. Equinox 3rd. It doesn't false either. Better in iron. It's becoming my main detector. Detectors I have: Equinox 800 w/ 11" and 6" coils XP Orx w/ 9" hf coil Gold Kruzer w/ 9.5x5.5 concentric, 9.5x5 dd, 4x7.5 dd coils Lobo STmodded w/ 8" and 5.75" concentric coils
    1 point
  13. Hit a local school lot twice the past few days, no silver, but the Equinox is a quarter finding machine ... And to boot nabbed a Sacagawea dollar ... Only old place I have permission on had the old home bulldozed and there is scrap literally everywhere and Im not experienced enough yet to detect this environment. Had lots of fun, got dirty and needed advil afterwards..LOL Cheers Brian
    1 point
  14. Back to the old hobo camps along the river with my whites mxt and 10x5 detech coil , got a solid nickel signal in relic mode. I knew it would be a coin but did not expect this nice 1906 v nickel. I have included photo of where the coin was found and one looking across the valley.
    1 point
  15. Iffy Signals Nov 29, 2019 - Minelab Vanquish 540 Depth & Recovery Test with 8" Coil
    1 point
  16. Gold found! A 102.3g nugget found with a metal detector and drilling to come. https://stockhead.com.au/resources/lefroy-hits-visible-gold-in-maiden-drilling-at-hang-glider-hill/
    1 point
  17. Yeah well this is a Minelab forum and you Nokta/Makro fanboys should just stay over on your own forum! My feeling about Vanquish is it nailed it's design goal - choice between Garrett Ace and Vanquish is a no-brainer. Between Vanquish and Simplex I choose Equinox, best of both worlds. Minelab Vanquish 540 vs Garrett Ace 400
    1 point
  18. Not so fast... Not necessarily a universal sentiment. I like the Equinox but of the two value machines, personally prefer the Simplex because, unlike the Vanquish, it is different than the Equinox which I already own. The case could be different for someone who doesn't already have an Equinox. Of course, neither are it's equal. Apples and oranges. [For clarity regarding the referenced quote above - Note that Steve is quoting "iffy signals" so I am referring to the iffy signals' quote which may or may not have anything to do with how Steve feels about Vanquish]
    1 point
  19. No Facebooking for me but I “like” you anyway Steve
    1 point
  20. The highly mineralized soil part of your equation is going to make this tougher on you VS someone else that is just wanting to eliminate iron. Any detector has trouble dividing the ground minerals from iron and then again to divide the iron from non iron...particularly in ground where the mineralization IS a form of iron ore. What typically happens is that the non iron targets will start to "read" as iron on most machines, or at least the ID is dragged down into the iron range (or up, depending on how you look at the iron scale). Now, for nails and such...that is hard to say too. It depends on what metal the nails are made of to start with, and what degree of decompose they are in. I have been in several sites and encountered nails that MUST have had some kind of copperish metal applied to them or something, because they read well on most any machine. I agree with Steve though...play around with the newer iron bias settings. You can set it aggressive and that will cut out a lot of the iron falses but you will also lose some depth. I tend to go the opposite direction and try to find a good balance of depth but not to the point that I start getting into a lot of iron that fools me. That number will vary so it does take some experimenting while out in the field. I can set my Equinox up in the test garden and especially with the new FE adjustments, can make it sound off perfectly on a 12 inch minie ball. The original iron bias settings couldn't make it do that...it was a mixed signal, mostly iron sounding. The catch to that is, that a lot of the deeper iron will also now start to make a good tone at that setting.
    1 point
  21. NASA Tom has eluded to this on his forum and I have experienced it myself with the Equinox in particular. That being, just because the detector is quiet...i.e. not erratic or pulsing...does not mean that it is safe guarded from emi. It is called silent EMI, and sometimes it is hard to pick up on it. The Equinox seems to be more prone to it than a lot of other machines and in most of my documented cases, a depth reduction of 2-3 inches seems to be the average (compared to the same settings in a non emi area). Tom says the Fisher CZ series is the least prone to emi of any machine he has used; but the CZs do a terrible job in the soil where I'm at. So even in that regard, an emi hindered Equinox will do better for me than a non hindered CZ.
    1 point
  22. I use the same stuff....... locktite marine epoxy on my cover. You can spread it with your finger just like peanut butter..... hard hard stuff. But ..... i have to re-apply every couple of weeks..... i wear the stuff off. Id love to hunt without a coil cover..... but i KNOW id be paying for another coil in short order..... covers are cheaper than coils.
    1 point
  23. I have had the same problem at times, the 25 was even worse. It's not consistent with the 35, I had no problem my last time out. I turn it off and on when it happens and that seams to take care of it.
    1 point
  24. Hello, I used the F11 for 3 years and was very happy with it. It was a simple, easy to use and solid machine. I made a lot of finds with it and had less problems with iron like now with an advanced detector. After some months I upgraded it with a NEL Tornado coil and the depth performance was amazing good. Best Regards Jacza
    1 point
  25. I sold my Nox 800 after I got my ORX but I reconsidered going Nox-free and bought the equinox 600 w/ 6” coil package. So now these are my main detectors. As a relic hunter I think these two make a good pair. I’ve had more experience on the equinox but while I have made some great finds in highly detected spots, I need more experience on the ORX avoid the wide array of junk targets that give a good consistent high tone.
    1 point
  26. South East a few miles will put you on free milling gold.
    1 point
  27. No big deal! I spent two weeks at a time and couldn’t carry out all the trash I found. But every target could have been a nugget. That’s why I’m not driving the thousand miles and staying home coin hunting. Oh boy how do I miss it. Nothing like a gold nugget coming out of the ground and you the first to ever see that nugget you now hold in your hand . The problem people are dropping coins out of their pockets everyday but that nugget is never replaced by another. Chuck
    1 point
  28. Sometimes you come home with your pockets empty..Sometimes you come home smiling... (Seeker)
    1 point
  29. all the places I detected for nuggets should be calles "NOTHING" not just in AZ but I'm not giving up.....comes next March I will be going back to AZ together with my friend Joe from CA. Hoping to find the spot called "EVERYTHING" (everything we dig is Gold!!!!!!!!!!!!!) We are hoping for some help from the nice people at Stanton Camp and others who might read this and want to help a German nugget hunter to find his first piece of gold. AU2U all.
    1 point
  30. 1 point
  31. Yesterday which was Sunday November 24th while everyone else was watching football I was underground detecting for pockets of crystallized gold 🙂
    1 point
  32. Heat treating should be done last as once it is heated again you lose the temper and can't get it back. I cold form the parts from annealed and normalized. stock so it is easy to work with, then weld then heat treat. For the tip shape this model is intended for groomed grass. The spade point makes it easier to pop out the plug or cut a flap with fewest passes. spade point makes it easier to scoop the dirt out. Something I found the bayonet style a little annoying to do. I am working on a larger model for field and relic which will have a narrower blade, etc. I'm just waiting on the pat office to finish up and hopefully there won't be any silly gov shutdowns to slow the works so were talking Jan/Feb. For orders outside USA I think Amazon can handle that the easiest. For USA sales I hope to find a dealer.
    1 point
  33. Worth the watch, good information for you Detector Prospectors! Lesson 1 - Where Does Gold Come From? Lesson 2 - How To Find Lode Gold Deposits
    1 point
  34. This is the 2nd video from Nov 24th, this shows the before and after pictures of how the gold looks with a light cleaning and the water gun process to get them clean! https://youtu.be/WRD_STVYsSU
    1 point
  35. I don't have much experience with horseshoes as I've only encountered a few. Large targets close to the surface reveal themselves by the longer (not sharp) drawn-out tones, and especially in pinpoint mode. Deep targets get sharper (and quieter) and are thus more difficult to reject as they sound more like desirable small targets. Nails on the other hand -- every old site I've ever been to has those, and typically a lot of them. Square nails in particular seem to be problematic for most everyone, regardless of detector being used. Bent modern (that is, round cross section) nails can also be an issue. Another problem nail is the roofing nail because its head gives a 22-23 signal on the Eqx. Depending upon its orientiation you may not get any iron grunt, and even under best orientation you are going to get both and have to decide if it's a roofing nail or a desirable target very close to a nail. Even modern nails with small heads that aren't bent will sound good if they are oriented very close to vertical. (Try an air test with one oriented parallel to the coil axis = perpendicular to the coil plane.) Iron bias setting, recovery speed setting, and even cross checking in certain single frequency modes will probably help some. IMO you are going to have to put in the hours with the Equinox, listening carefully to the tones and digging a lot of junk targets to tune your brain on what to listen for. Even then you likely never will be 100% sure of the dig / no dig decision in the more difficult situations. The perfect discriminating metal detector doesn't exist. The only detectorists who never dig any nails are either in sites where none exist or are leaving good targets in the ground.
    1 point
  36. There may have been some misunderstanding of what I posted. I do realize that frequency adjust is a local, not global setting. My point was that in some cases a change in microfrequency (via the noise cancel) can take a mode from extremely noisy to quiet. I've never seen this before in 450+ hours of operating the Eqx 800. Usually it's a small effect, if any. That is, when in a quiet environment it doesn't matter what microfrequency you are in -- they are all quiet. But in a (broad band) noisy environment it also matters little as you can't quiet things down by simply doing a noise cancel. At least you can't with my unit -- I can't speak for others.
    1 point
  37. I'm not showing off ...... But it really works once you tune your ears well !!!!!!!...... I pick limited trash, the sounds and woof woofs are evident to trash and gold ..... I do pick up some lead bullets once in a while ..... Congratulations on the nuggets !!!!!
    1 point
  38. If you are starting out stay simple. Jumping into 50 tones or anything you are not comfortable with will just make your life harder. Why 50 tones? More audio information for those that hunt by ear. More information overload for those that may not need it. If all you want to do is dig non-ferrous there is nothing wrong with two tones. I am a proponent of the default stock modes for beginners. Beach detecting? Beach 1 for dry beach, Beach 2 for water. Adjust sensitivity as high as is possible while keeping the detector stable. For hunting iron make sure you have the latest update so you can access the new Iron Bias 'F2' settings, which have an improved capability to reject a much wider range of difficult iron targets, including bottle caps. I prefer Park 1. Use the defaults and lower sensitivity and adjust the F2 setting to get the degree of quietness on iron you prefer. There is no numbers for settings I can give you as I adjust differently for every situation I am in. I adjust to get the machine to act like I want depending where I am and the settings just end up wherever they need to be to make that happen.
    1 point
  39. I am not really looking for a new detector to add to my arsenal. I think my Deus, Equinox, and GPX cover the bases pretty well. I keep an MXT and F75 DST around mainly for nostalgic reasons (like a guitarist collects guitars) and because they were classic designs in their day with solid performance, features, design, and ergonomics bar none in the case of the F75. I laso keep my Tek Delta around because it was the detector with which I really learned how to detect and helped me form a passion for the hobby. Plus they all support concentric coils which are advantageous under certain conditions. So why was I still drawn to the two new low cost offerings by Makro and Minelab? There is always something refreshing about a stripped down, back to basics detector design that incorporates the latest tech and capabilities (e.g., Multi IQ for Vanquish, straight forward single frequency detecting with decent all metal capability, and a waterproof package for the Simplex). Why get another detector, when my main arsenal seemingly consists of detectors that should easily outperform either Vanquish or Simplex? The answer is simple, performance diversity. Hitting a site with a different detectors of diverse capabilities, features, performance usually pays of if you have the luxury of time and access. Last week, at several different types of CW relic sites in Virginia I was able to use the diverse capabilities of the three detectors I mentioned in the second sentence of my post and each delivered with keeper finds under the conditions to which they typically excel. The GPX penetrated deep into highly mineralized soils of those Virginia fields to snag a number of deep non-ferrous brass and lead targets including my first US Cavalry bit boss - a "bucket lister" for me. The Equinox with its Multi IQ capabilities and diverse modes (including gold mode) was able to ID and lock onto shallower no-ferrous targets in the mineralized muck of multiple non-ferrous and ferrous targets which enabled me to ultimately pull several non-ferrous keepers out of a single hole. And the Deus gave my tired arm a break while deftly navigating between huge chunks of big iron in pitch mode that enabled me to literally visualize the large target footprint of these big iron targets and as a result snagged some actual ferrous CW relics including stove leg and some antique door hinges and other unique ferrous keepers. So what does this have to do with Vanquish and Simplex? The Vanquish is a very capable entry level detector with some high-end features (Multi IQ) and a cool coil selection and neat stem design but, not surprisingly, very limited setting customization options and missing features that appropriately put in a couple of notches below the even the Equinox 600. Some of the missing features are quite frankly head scratching as far as I am concerned (e.g., not fully waterproof housing, lack of user firmware update capability, no single frequency mode option, and while the coil selection is compelling, those coils are not also compatible with Equinox - a missed opportunity IMO - confirmed with me in person by Debbie S of Minelab at last week's dig). Sometimes manufacturers tease higher end features into their new lower-end offerings that are otherwise not available in their mid or high level offerings. Other than the decent coil selection, there is no such situation here. The Equinox envelopes the Vanquish completely. Bottom line, the Vanquish is solid and provides "multifrequency for the masses" but brings nothing to the table for Equinox users. That is not slam, it is a fact and frankly is not unexpected. If the coils were cross compatible with Equinox, I might seriously consider picking up a Vanquish solely for the opportunity to use the coils on Equinox while getting a fairly decent emergency backup or grab n go machine in the process. But with the coils solely married to the less capable Vanquish and without the capability to wring the most out of them, it is a pass for me. The Simplex on the other hand is limited to single frequency and the emphasis is on solid basic performance and ease of use. Yet Nokta has packed it with some high end features such as fully waterproof, wireless ready (and cheaper than the wireless variant of the Vanquish), firmware updates (updates and bug fixes have already been released), and the promise of some decent accessory coils consistent with the Nokta track record on their other recent detector designs. So there are slight feature advantages that in the Simplex design that provide something a little more compelling in the "basics" than Vanquish, though Vanquish does have Multi IQ going for it. Since I do not own a Nokta or Makro detector, the Simplex provides the performance diversity that the Vanquish does not, IN MY CASE. This would not necessarily be true of those who might own a Kruzer, Anfibio or Impact. For those folks, the Simplex probably looks to them the same way the Vanquish looks to me or the typical Equinox owner. At this price point, the performance diversity is worth it. I get Nokta's signal processing which is lacking in my arsenal, a decent VCO all metal mode (which I prefer over the processed discrete tones of the Equinox in the non-gold modes) and the prospect of decent accessory coil choices with user upgrade-able firmware in a waterproof package. It is still entry level and fairly basic, but compelling to me from a performance diversity standpoint, nevertheless. Remember, this is only my opinion and is applicable to my particular situation based on the detectors I already own and the type of detecting I like to do (primarily CW and Colonial relic hunting). It should not be misconstrued as Simplex is better than Vanquish or that these detectors can outperform their more expensive and capable cousins. So do you find either the Simplex and/or Vanquish compelling even if you do own higher end detectors already? Discuss your thoughts below.
    1 point
  40. I had a F22 and now a F44 and they are virtually the same machine performance wise with the same size coil. F44 just has Gb and a few other things. I expect they will give them new paint jobs and lower the price below Simplex on the F44. With the 7.69? frequency they are really hot on coins. I mostly hunt playgrounds and don't need a machine to pick up targets 8-12" deep.
    1 point
  41. F44 may be “recycled” tech but is still a very capable machine. My buddies girlfriend uses one and when we all hunt together it keeps up with other machines him and I use that are supposed to have much more “horsepower”. Just reaffirms the reality of VLF tech being maxed out long ago and knowing your machine is far more important than how new it is!!
    1 point
  42. The BEST cover for the beach is NO cover. Zero sand, water, black sand.
    1 point
  43. Plasti-dip.........end of story. Apply several layers, whatever colour you want. Very tough and provides a rubberised barrier against anything. It can be cut and peeled off if you ever need to. Buy it in the half litre TIN and paint it on....avoid the aerosol spray version as too much gets wasted. Tony Yellow is my colour of choice.
    1 point
  44. On a plain sand beach it'll be totally ok I think. We have some beaches with more than hand big stones here and there... Hunting mostly in the dark, I sometimes hit such a stone accidentally, and I'm pretty sure that the cover prevented some wear & tear..
    1 point
  45. A hunting buddy of mine does that and with no apparent issues...thus far. However, since I hunt exclusively and frequently on beaches, I've seen sand wear down any surface with ease and fairly quickly so I've always avoided swinging a naked coil on the beach--just my personal preference. If it works for you, go for it. As I always say, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" 😉
    1 point
  46. I hunt almost every day year round for 2 to 3 hours when the weather isn't below 25F or above 100F. It's good exercise, my dog gets to go too, and I get to detect!!!! I change up the pattern sometimes but 90% of the time I am hunting for coins and jewelry with my Equinox 600 with 11" coil or my Fisher F19 with Detech Ultimate 13" coil. Usually my Nox is in Park 1 or Park 2 discriminating -9 to +4 and my F19 is in disc mode, iron volume 11, tone break at 55, discrimination 35. Today, like most days I was concentrating on the pull tab, ring tab/beaver tail, zinc penny range looking for gold jewelry. That's roughly +6 to +23 on the Nox and 50 to 80 on the F19. If I am feeling pretty good I will dig anything in that range. I live in suburban Denver so no shovels, only screwdriver coin popping. It is really hot and dry here at the moment too, so I was only willing to dig shallow surface to 4" targets today so I wouldn't destroy the turf in the park I was going to. I was planning to dig lots of pull tabs, ring tabs, beaver tails and zinc pennies. If I dug a nickel, copper penny, dime or quarter in the mean time: Great! That definitely happened. I skipped over a few pull tabs/ring tabs and dug 41. Dug 11 pennies. So roughly 50 possible gold targets in 1 hour and 30 minutes. Amazingly enough before I recovered the 8 gram 14K gold ring ($240 melt value ?) the first thing in the hole was a beaver tail. It was actually on my screw driver - perfect bull's eye. I was NOT thinking "#$%%^^ another tab! I did what I usually do and rechecked the hole with my handheld pinpointer. The original target ID on my F19 with the Ultimate coil (thank you phrunt for constantly recommending it!) was a really steady 70 to 72 at 2 inches, so I was a little surprised with the beaver tail ring tab. Usually the numbers jump a little more just because of all the varying surfaces on the target when the beaver tail is still attached to the pull ring. So, I wasn't surprised that there was a second target (I was thinking maybe a zinc penny) but I was really happy that my remembering and practicing three important things payed off with a great ring. I don't find gold rings every time I hunt. I do find rings (junk and bling) at least 3 times a week along with earrings, chains, pendants etc. Some are gold or silver, most are bling. I would say that the ratio I experience between trash and jewelry is about 50 to 1. This hunt was right in line with that ratio. DIG PULL TABS/BEAVER TAILS DIG ZINC PENNIES RECHECK THE HOLE FOR OTHER TARGETS Jeff
    1 point
×
×
  • Create New...