MontAmmie

1 hour ago, Chase Goldman said:

I would just get one (or more) $10, 10000 mah portable power bank.  It's cheaper (when you account for the alkaline battery cost), less weight per mah, can give you the necessary current, and you are giving the environment a break.  (Each alkaline AA battery cell has about 2500 mah capacity).

E.g. Aibocn Power Bank 10,000mAh External Battery Charger with Backup Flashlight https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013HIR1Q2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_w2rAAbNKAEE5J

Not trying to burst a bubble (and I too am interested from an academic standpoint in what Steve finds out as to how much of a recharge he can get from the AA power bank gizmo).

All I am saying is that the state of Li Ion and Li Polymer technology has gotten to the point that using single use AA or even rechargeable AA batteries for applications where you are not constrained to using a legacy AA battery compartment is neither cost effective nor efficient from a weight, volume, energy, or power standpoint.  Heck, I use a Li Ion battery pack the size of a paperback book to jumpstart my car!

Time to overcome collective fears of being stuck in the middle of the desert with a dead Equinox battery and having nothing but a pocket full of AA spares you originally purchased for your AT Pro.  Just get one of these inexpensive rechargeable power banks to keep your depleted Equinox going and you can use its flashlight to get you back to your vehicle after detecting for 16 hours straight.  

If you do have a boatload of spare AA's sitting around, though, because you got rid of your AT Max or whatever to get an Equinox.  Steve's little battery pack is a GREAT way to put them back to work for you in a pinch. 

I do already have a boatload of rechargeables that I run my camera flashes on.  What would REALLY be great would be a way to use a solar panel to recharge.

I'm interested in the outcome of this experiment, Steve.  Some of the places we go in Montana are 50 miles from the nearest light pole.  We do have a generator, but Hubby likes to charge the RV batteries while I'm out playing in the dirt. 

Being able to juice up some rechargeables and have them for backup power would be awesome. 

I'm going to need a new pin pointer since I'm guessing that Sunray DX-1 on my DFX won't work with my new EQ 800. 

Which of you dealers wants to make me an awesome deal on a Teknetics or a Fisher PI unit?  I'll order from Kelly (when they get them in stock) if no one PM's me.  But I'd rather "keep it in the family" (in my best Al Pacino voice, which isn't very good).  

10 minutes ago, canslawhero said:

the same price in USD ('the peg') would then translate into more aussie $. they don't need to do anything...

I believe there is a MAP price for dealers, nothing to say they can't ask for more, just not less (advertised).

take a hot new car for example. you think the dealer will take sticker for it if there's a line outside?

some pricks will try to price gouge on ebay once folks actually have them in hand, just wait, lol

 

I won't be putting my 800 on EBay, but it will be for sale sometime in February for the purely amazing and rock-bottom price of only $1999.99.  Plus tax and shipping, of course.   

Yeah, I was a subscriber to his channel and I tried to enter his contest.  Yes, it has been "cold" here in Brevard county this January and I've been watching metal detecting videos on Youtube.  Anyway, he put a note under my comment saying "Draw is only for subs".  What the heck?  I was subbed long before I entered his contest.  Did he maybe forget to mention it was for guys only or perhaps 53 year old grannies need not apply?  Needless to say, I'm not subbed to his channel now!  

I've had 3 detectors (so far).  Every one has paid for itself within a year or two in finds.  When I started the hobby, I was a fat, middle-aged, pre-diabetic housewife/nurse.  I've lost 40 pounds since then and I'm in better physical shape now than when I was 40.  Would I have done that with an expensive gym membership or a treadmill?  No way.  I'm lazy and I can think of every excuse in the book not to move my butt.  But on that beach swinging my detector?  Oh man, that's a whole different ball game!  "I've been out here 5 hours, covered 3 miles of beach twice, and I'm bone-tired, but oh look at that cut over there!  I just gotta hit that before I leave!"

The money I've saved in medical costs alone has probably paid for my detectors and equipment many times over.   Not to mention the years of good health it has added to my life.  My metal detecting equipment is truly priceless.

C'mon Minelab, it's January already!  JK.  Sort of.  

9 hours ago, mn90403 said:

 

I would pay Steve for lessons on the 800 if he offered them.  (When is your first class Steve?)

 

Sign me up too.  My house is on wheels.

7 hours ago, GB_Amateur said:

What was that for, does your husband read this forum?    (My wife doesn't and that's fine by me.)

For a saltwater hunter who travels to gold country, I would think the Eqx 800 (maybe even the 600) is a great addition.  And you still have the Infinium for the nasty mineralization areas.  Can't wait to see your new finds.

Him?  Read a metal detecting forum?  

I think he finally got tired of hearing "Minelab, blah blah blah........5 frequencies! blah, blah......Equinox blah, blah blah" and told me to just order the damn thing already.  And be sure and get near the top of somebody's list so I can get it like yesterday and go out and play with it and give his ears a rest. 

I can't wait to see what ALL of us find with it!

I've had my DFX for 15 years and I was way overdue for an upgrade.

I decided that 26 probably wasn't going to be my lucky number.  So I contacted another dealer and put down a big deposit on one.  Number 6 sounds waaayyy better than number 26 and he says he's supposed to get more than that in the first shipment.  Keeping my fingers crossed.

I'm number 26 on the list, but it's a non-deposit dealer, so I'm thinking some people may back out.

Jonathon, might I be so bold as to ask how far you had to chisel down in that hard pan to liberate those tiny little relics?  The hole in that last photo looks to be about 3 or 4 inches deep.  You don't have to come right out and tell us, just post some smiley faces in a row and we'll count.  

We're leaving Indian Harbour Beach on April 1st.  I'd like to have my 800 a couple of weeks before that so we "can get acquainted properly".  It should be an interesting summer.  I'll be detecting some of the touristy beaches south of here like Ft. Lauderdale, then over to the Gulf coast for a week or so, then on to some freshwater lakes and rivers in Mississippi and Alabama, then some dirt fishing in Tennessee, then finally west to Montana to see if the EQ and my Infinium can find me some gold nuggets.  Some folks are telling me I should do a you-tube channel!    But if I did I'm afraid detecting would then become like my photography "hobby".  Medstockphotos is a good second income, but honestly it has drained every ounce of joy out of what used to be pure fun and relaxation.  

Does anyone know if a VA card will work?  I'm about ready to pre-order an 800 (for Hubby).  The only thing I worry about is if I pre-pay for one then for some reason Dealer #1 doesn't get enough on the first shipment and I have to wait for mine.  Meanwhile, Dealer #2 gets a whole pallet-load of them, only I can't get one because Dealer #1 has my cash tied up. 

So I'll be getting an 800 in my hot little hands on March, 20 2018.  Gee, thanks for clearing that up guys.  

5 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

Do you own a cell phone? Do you worry about how many times you can charge it? Do you know how long the battery will last and how to replace it? Do you check dates on other rechargeable items you might buy to make sure they have not been on the shelf too long? If none of these things are huge concerns, then there is no reason to make it so with a metal detector. 

 

My husband's cell phone battery died about 6 months ago.  There is a Cell Phone store 1.5 miles from our house and it took them about 10 minutes to install a new one.  So, no, I don't worry about cell phone batteries. 

A metal detector, which will probably need to be mailed to a service center for who-knows-how-long, after 2 or 3 years of use, actually is a concern to me.

"DUG THAT OFFICIAL MINELAB EQUINOX 800-600 GROUP"  I don't know who runs it, but they must be at least affiliated with Minelab in some way or Minelab would make them remove the "official" part, right?

Looks like I'm getting some haters on the FB page for pointing out that Li-on batteries are usually only good for 2-3 years, at best.  

If this is the direction that Minelab wants to go with the EQ, then that is, of course, their prerogative to do so.  However, I just hope they will be completely upfront with consumers about the lifespan of the battery, and the exact procedure which will be necessary when the battery degrades.

Those of us purchasing an EQ off the shelf need to check the date of manufacture.  Apparently the battery will start to degrade on day one, whether it is being used or not.  Also we need to be careful about leaving it in the car trunk in July as heat seems to cause them to degrade faster.

2 minutes ago, Ridge Runner said:

Sherry

That’s my only dislike on the Equinox I can find. I wish you could pop it out and replace it with a regular battery if the need be.

Chuck

Why can't they just use some rechargeable AA's like my Infinium and my DFX?  Easy to find, recharge and replace as needed.  I know it has to be waterproof and all that, but it shouldn't be that hard to make a waterproof battery compartment!

Hey Steve!  I had a question that I posted on the official Facebook Equinox page, that no one seems to be able to answer (officially anyway).  Maybe you can shed some light on this?

"I have a question about the built-in lithium battery. I know they last a long time and can be re-charged hundreds of times. But what happens when the battery wears out? Will you have to send it to Minelab to be replaced? I plan to use my Equinox for many years! Thanks!"

Sherry

24 minutes ago, Swampstomper Al said:

Spot on, Mitchel..

It's right at two months since Irma hit and I've yet to be able to decently work the low tide dropoff shelves that form during periods of higher-surf seas with steeper-sloped no-cut beaches.. I seriously doubt anyone has been able to do so.. It's simply been too rough a go in the zone to stay at it very long if at all.. With the beaches proper being virtually barren and the tides continuing to run abnormally high, the hunt remains a waiting game for the moment..

I can only hope whatever got pulled into the water and whatever got churned beachward from the deep during Irma has remained trapped in the low-tide meeting points this entire time rather than working themselves outward and downward, which under normal conditions following a storm is usually the case..

Swamp

I've been in "the trenches" few times since the hurricane.  I didn't find much except lead fishing weights.  The upper beaches were stripped bare of targets during the fall storms,  nothing but seaweed and pieces of canslaw.  The hunting is dismal here in Melbourne and even I'm starting to get discouraged.  No gold or silver for 3 weeks (unless you count yard sales) and even the clad is scarce.  

23 hours ago, inthemountains said:

Oh by the way. No one can turn a detector on in the above photo because it is off limits. Just like to think what could be here and what a cool place !

I think I know where this is.  Looks like one of the old houses in Coolidge, Montana that we visited a couple of years ago.  Yeah, I was just itching to fire up the DFX, but I think that might have been frowned upon. 

4 hours ago, Swampstomper Al said:

Something else on the sweetly repeatable 'hit' parade that sounds off just slightly below condiment packs is this thinner pog-type inner safety seal being "cardboard" one side w/ tightly attached metallic flip.. I assume they must belong to a new(er) drink product that comes in a wide-mouth glass bottle.. They started showing up on the beach right at two years ago..

 

OMG I hate those things.  They are a perfect 08 from every direction on the DFX.  Just like Hubby's 14 K wedding ring.

You guys are making me cold.  It's gonna be a bone-chilling 66 degrees at 7 am tomorrow, but I'll be putting on my sweatpants and long sleeves and hitting that low tide anyway!  

23 hours ago, Swampstomper Al said:

I came across this the other day and it seems fitting for the thread..
It isn't the vid itself per se but rather what the sharp-eyed will see during the first 4 seconds and what's said & seen from 0:36 - 0:45 or so: Swamp

Let's see, he's swinging that DFX really fast and it looks like the coil is about a foot off the sand.   I've never been blessed with a bigfoot, so maybe it will still find stuff like that, I dunno.  I know mine wouldn't with a stock coil.  Regardless, I hope I can still swing mine at 89 years old.