dewcon4414

For those of you who know Keith Southern i believe you will find this an interesting test of the MDT.   He used a dime placed under 2 of his area clay bricks.   Bricks in most cases ... old brick, were made from the local soil...... so his are pretty hot with iron.   For relic hunter around old homes this could grab you some missed targets. 

Scuffing the sand with the coil may cause false signals in disc or mixed mode .... but in AM its more very distinguished pops off surface iron..... targets are easily IDed.   I prefer this method to the point of wearing out a coil cover or two over attempting to keep my coil at a certain height.   Most who do that tend to raise their coil on both ends of their swing.....that too can cause falsing and missed targets.   Every one hunts a differently........ 2 inches above the sand or even a 1/2 to me mean something i could miss and i often slow hunt for tiny missed gold.....you have to get the coil down to do that.   Ive had the machine since Feb as well.  

Carloina ..... you know youd be using that 12" coil in the water too lol.   Whats an inch right?   Do away with a couple of those cross overs might reduce the drag to be about the same as the standard coil.  

It appears as thou headphones were NOT used...... the pig tail is attached but covered.   So this was an external speaker hunt.   My ole ears are much better on weak targets with a good pair of headphones.   BUT.... that said who would complain about that hunt.  That gold ring was sweeeeeet.  It looked high K too.

Just curious what you think about Tom mentioning a LARGER coil coming?  

Carl also predicted ....... Dec.... then Feb or Mar.   Here we are.    With the current situation in China...... that could hinder anything coming from there.  Im also getting the feeling the first run is going to be small..... and maybe just in the US if things dont get worked out for EU.   Will Amazon be the BIG distributor on this one?  

I dont know if it would make a difference to change the shape ...maybe help clean up the TID some.    IF.... if i had a wish...... mine would be thinner middle and lower shaft.   It can be a lot to push around out there if the water is rough or swift.   The shaft size is between the Nox and CTX..... so it can displace a lot of water.  Light as heck out of the water...... but in the water you notice it when trying to push it around.   He sure make a machine to last thou.   Im hoping the next one is a tad more waterproof as well..... just for peace of mind.

Thanks Gerry.  This is year seems to be totally different than last.   The wind here just wont go away long enough to allow us much time in the water where we need to be.   Every changing directions too bringing a constant for of light correlated sand filling any low areas fast.   Im hopeful for March..... thou today it was swift out there you couldnt do much to effectively hunt.   I did get a rather thick large silver today waist deep.   Id bet you it was a can lid..... big o sound and after 3 scoops i finally got it out.... shank and the ring.   I was so surprised i went back and checked the hole and area around it.   I like this machine for depth.  

I found this video on u-tube yesterday.  Not sure who shot it.   Everyone can nit pick a video but .. i think for the most part this was a pretty fair comparison on how people run the machine.   Note the Nox is in beach 1, recovery 2 and sensitivity at 22..... everything else looked pretty good i didnt see any glaring things that might give more depth.   The MDT .... couple of things i would have done..... ran threshold at 0 AND in the wet sand i run in 12 or 18 khz.... there another 1 1/2" gain to be had there.   Here in my sand a nickel at about 11" on the Nox changes to read IRON.  The MDT will have a bouncy screen..... but it will give you mixed reading and you WILL check that target.   Tom said he could get a nickel at 17"  ..... hes got mad skills...... but this shows i think that most might get a nickel at 15" and more once they have a little more time on it.   Im not bad with both these machines and i dont think my results would have been much different....... based on how i hunt with these machines.   Me and another guy did testing on a 3 gram 10k gold ring....... in those same conditions at the surf edge..... MDT was 14" the Nox 12".   We didnt under or over run either machine ...... because we wanted to know just which machine was better for our use on our beaches.   Here ya go take a look.

I certainly wasnt trying to be negative...... but rarely is that secret sauce ever determined.    Im the worst at wanting to know.....million questions guy here.   I do push those button and i learn a little info from all the real Gurus on these sites..... but it still comes down to my conditions and playing around with the machine.   Ive got to TEACH ME.... and its been said you dont know what you dont know.   Hard to tell how many out there are using their machines subpar.    I get guys all the time come up to me on the beach with questions.   I look at their settings and wonder .... my god how are you finding anything..... seriously.    Its a lot like those with that golf swing.  We develop bad habits and just because we find something ... sometimes we think all is well.   My suggestions is ..... test especially on those deep targets.... im many cases that means dig more targets.   Also ..... the Nox manual is perhaps the BEST one ive ever read.  I dont know who wrote it but they knew the machine.  

We can beat this dead horse all day....... but at the end of that day does it matter?   You know what you are looking for...... be it gold relic or what ever...... so based on all those using the machine whats the results...... and does it fit your needs?   as a multi use machine it has other advantages as well.   Will it out perform what you are using?   Thus far many are finding it does.   That should be your answer....... testing will give you the best method for adjusting it.

Every machine..... even when dirt hunting i use a nylon piece to cover the speaker.  I dont use it and even on the MDT requested it NOT be there as a water machine.   Just have to be careful rinsing a machine.   I cant tell you how many people i know who have flooded even an Xcal by using a water hose on the wrong setting to close to the machine.   Its a coin flip i guess.   Ive not had an issue and when using mine its IN the salt water and under water most of the time.   The price is good on this machine........BUT there are issues with the machine that this 3 year warranty has made life much easier.   A lesser warranty....... and people might be singing a much different tune about the Nox.   Im waiting to see when those warranties run out how its handled and the cost.

Cal..... i sold a lot of gold when it got to like $1900.   I sound about $3000 just awhile back.   BUT.... that was just easy to let go gold to pay for one of those AQ if we ever see one.    Ive still got a pretty good stash.... and everything with a stone, chains, crosses i think.   Those are hard to let go of..... especially when you get um appraised for like $18,000 and the guy offers you $3500 .... as he says all day long.    No different than when i dirt hunted..... ive still got all the old silver and relics.   Likely junk to my kids lol.   I know ARA will melt your gold and send you bars or round balls of gold if thats the way you want it rather than money...... you just pay for the melting.  

Paul it really has.   Ive been impressed with it..... you just dont get the feeling you are loosing depth the longer you hunt like some machines.    Funny thing is id been hunting a beach lately that had a LOT of round iron pushed up and wanted to do a quick hunt there when i didnt have to do a lot of time consuming TID.   So i grabbed the Xcal since it hates iron.   I have to admit it took me some time to retrain my ear in PP mode.  Ive been using the MDT so long now it seemed noisy if you can believe that.    Last few months have been strange..... Dec one gold..... then Jan i did very well..... here we are in Feb again one gold thus far.   The beaches are target quiet..... except for the pushed up iron for some reason.   Last hunt i got 1 penny, 2 pull tabs, NO foil, and a SS ring.  My hunting buddy did no better that day.   This was a long beach we hit hard for a good 5 hours.   IF its there the machine does well finding it.   I have no regrets buying this machine at all.    THOU .... i have made some suggestions on what id like to have changed.  Problem with that is ....... this isnt just a beach machine..... dirt and beach guys tend to have a different WISH list lol.

I had to edit this today..... why because gold just hit $1633.  Thats a real increase over the past 3 years or so.   Its something to watch for those of you with piles of yellow.   Many missed out on the last surge to nearly $1900.  What it did do..... it increased beach hunters.   We have seen an interest in beach machine...... like the Nox and MDT.   We know Fisher is still working on the AQ.   Beach hunting maybe a niche........ but id dare say with these machines now coming or out and increased gold prices more companies may move toward salt water machines..... rather than machine that CAN work in the water.  

Mines worked ok and i didnt epoxy it either.  I guess its going to depend on the product used to make them in the printer.   You might talk to ChrisMD over on friendly forum.   Hes doing them quite cheap ... to free for those who cant afford them.    Ive got him making some for the MDT to that i can hand out to some of the guys.  

For me i could go either way on a larger coil.   Id assume it would get not only coverage but depth..... and maybe even better TID.   BUT..... in the water the shaft size is in between the Nox and CTX ..... so its a little larger than i want.   IF there was a larger coil...... id have to have that shaft reduced in size...... it really displaces a LOT of water.   When you get a long shore current going..... its gets tuff to move.  I personally would like to see a thinner single lower shaft up to the control shaft....... a two piece.

Man how would you like to work that area.   Or better yet if that a swimming are there are a LOT of things to stub a toe on.    How about that spade?   absolutely the right tool for the job.   He got some nice stuff....... very unusual plastic over SS ring.... ive not seen one of those.   BUT...... ive heard they are making solid plastic like ones now that are getting popular.  Thanks for the video Steve

The MDT has the depth and doesnt seem to retain its depth both in and out of the water.....thats a big deal to me.    LOVE the Xcal, but you know the problems i have with repairs on them....... constant.    I dont believe the Nox is getting anymore depth on the Xcal when in PP mode....... and the Xcal runs quieter out there.   The Nox does have a FAST..... very fast recovery, but sometimes to me the tones are just to short especially for a near target.    Lets face it thou ........ if any of the machines get over an 8" target its going to hit it.   So ..... both of us are looking at the AQ for more depth........ but its still going to have to give enough disc for us to put down the MDT or Xcal.   Ive got a couple of beaches here that has suddenly become small iron ridden....... just really happened this year.    The Nox does well with it but  there seems to be a lot of mineral concentration as well....... maybe some of that GRAY heavily mineralzed mud is making up the hard pan.    So ...... the Nox is chatty.    The MDT when you are out there neck deep can be time consuming to check if its an iron target.   So im thinking of grabbing up my Xcal for this beach...... its still got a good recovery in PP and a lot of depth ..... AND runs fairly quiet.   Its nice to have choices ...... before it was the  Xcal or CZ.    As long as we have been using the Xcal and now my MDT i dont seem to much problem in figuring out ..... WHERE the AQ will fit......IF it will fit.    I dont have nearly the hard pan you have and you said you can get a heavy gold ring at over a foot.........mine is more the depth of the sand..... even with the AQ will i get to the targets and will it be a time waster trying to ID them?    IF ML would revamp the Xcal....... you know we both would use them.  I just love the simplicity of it in PP mode.   BUT..... if seems they are more into multi use now than niche.   I still dont think many of the companies are making water machines......... they are making machines that can work in the salt water..... not the same.  Maybe the AQ will change that.

There are various styles of water hunting.   But it can come down to time vs pay off.   During recent drop times here in Fl most want to cover as much water as possible thus a VLF.... but in the winter that can all change.   Extreme high and low tides GATHER targets or sand is moved which can release a  concentration targets.   Working an area at that point can be more productive.   Some just like digging every target..... but the amount of trash might dictate VLF or PI.   Kind of like the Nox....... some just dont want to dig micro/small gold.  Thats where a deeper machine could be very useful especially with disc.   A few inches can be huge and add a lot of gold for your yearly total.    Then ..... there is the cherry picker..... who just digs what he THINKS is gold..... how they do that is beyond me.   This machine could give them a problem ....... as well as back problems lol.  I think a lot of the good hunters will know even before the purchase of this machine where it might work.   The surprise may come IF its disc with great depth over what we are currently using........ then it could become more useful as a daily user than a niche machine.

I dont really need anyones verification...... its working for me pretty well and i post most of my gold which shows size, weight and K.   I agree thou and im skeptical about any new machine....... but jumped at the Nox because i knew it would turn out to be a very good beach machine.   Your ground makes your choices very important...... so does the salt water for me.   I spoke to Demitar in fact yesterday ..... and the first question i asked was........ is there any improvement that coil might give me.   Apparently not.    I attempt to give an honest appraisal of the machines i use and im a bit obsessive about knowing what i get before i buy one.    Anyone thats followed me with the Nox or the AQ knows that....... i try not to be rude, but i sure like information.   Not sure th AQ is going to be the one you want....... the Terra maybe a better choice and it seems they are going to get that one out not long after the AQ...... well hopefully.  

Ive not heard a lot of negative chatter about the MDT......  DanielTn had one got rid of it.... but bought another and is using it as his full time machine now.  Ive been impressed by his posts.  

I think everyone believes that im selling the too lol.   I happen to know NASA Tom since he lives on the other side of the island so to speak.  I have absolutely no stake in this except like you i like to see new machines that work promoted.   That keeps the hobby progressing forward.  Im a little baffled as to why more Fl guys arent jumping on this machine...... well unless they are waiting on the new Fisher AQ.   A couple of inches in depth is pretty significant.   That equals or exceeds most PIs except the TDI and this machine has good TID and disc most just dont.    Most of us have progressed from the Xcal , which we modified at an addition cost of nearly $400+, to the CTX...... and we know what that costs and even the AquaSound which new was $3300 ... coils were $500 and battery change $400..... and for the most part wont work well out of Fl.   This machines cost only shocks us because of the NOX.   Otherwise we wouldnt blink.  I knew that guy was blowing smoke at $4000..... my assumption was he was trying to IMPRESS.   They pay for themselves if you beach hunt.   Interesting you mentioned a unique coil...... i know Demitar had spoken of it.  

Interesting read and finds.  

Unfortunately Steve you know how that goes..... seems fewer and fewer are willing to post anything anymore.   I hesitate myself..... with two clubs in the area and a couple of S. Fl FB pages.  On line sites like Ring Finders can get more looking at your finds as well.   It hurts to have a give back..... since many dont seem to appreciate it.  Like most i like the single life out there lol.   Not that i mind other people showing me the gold that day.... well as long as they dont tell me i walked over it lol.    I posted most of my gold finds last year.   I have no dog in the sale of these machines....... i just like the machine where i use it.   Couldnt tell ya a thing about how it works in the dirt. .... only how i might run it.    Even Demitar has told me this isnt a perfect machine...... but which one is?   We just find a good machine..... the wring the best out of it.    I had mentioned i had an increase of 7% over last year with Dec only bringing in 1 gold.    BUT..... i forgot i didnt get the machine until the 24th of Jan....... so that percentage likely is close to 10%.   Im good with any machine that gives me 10%.   I cant wait to see how you do with the new AQ since you know PIs best.   Ill definitely be watching your every post.

Heres a little better picture of the stones on that dangle.    This is why i like keeping that coil low and digging the small gold.... and why i keep trying to find that perfect water machine that gets smaller gold in the water. 

Thought id post my finds from Jan.    Dec was a bust for me ... just one gold which was odd compared to other years.   Normally Oct, Nov or Dec id have one good month with a high count of gold.   Could be the cooler weather.... because its not been warm enough for people to want to get in the water.    Some good stuff to test a machine on...... tiny earring,  that 18K ..... size 2 small ring, and the open peace ring.   I seem to be dialing in pretty good on what a target is now.    To me in AM almost no iffy targets...... weak but i can tell its a target over just a mineral pop which is very fast... but might be longer on other machines giving that iffy signal.   Running so hot i get a lot more jumpy digits.... you almost have to hold the detector on the target with a brief wiggle.   But im more concerned about is it a tone lower than a high tone.   DEEP pulls ..... say in the 8" range often upscale .... as high as 26 digit... a quarter reads 21.    Iron on the surface or big iron can wrap around ...... 27 to 30ish.   In all honesty i could pass most high pings.    Ive only seen one ring come in at 12..... a penny reads 13 air testing.  Most machines on a cross or a broken ring like that peace ring might have a broken tone.   Not on this machine in AM...... them may sound smaller.

Glabelle......... some real nice suggestions even for storage.

Tony I’m curious.... if the ring was buried at a specific depth did you keep moving to get the depth of each?    I ask that because if a target is buried say at 10” just raising the coil doesn’t  necessarily equal depth.