schoolofhardNox

Looks like we both got out early today. It wasn't as cold as your day, but still around 28 degrees F. When I turned on the Equinox it did it's normal starting sequence, and then was ready to detect but the screen was completely blank . About 4 seconds later it woke up and worked fine. I've had the E Trac, the CTX and the GPX in cold weather, but they were better at tolerating the cold, although the E Trac screen did not like it much. I beach hunt once a week all winter long, so I hope it stays warmer than 25 or I may only be using the GPX.

Nice job. The numbers they quote really depends on how old the site is. If it does not go back to the buffalo era (say the 50's taking into account and estimating how long buffalos stayed in circulation), then your numbers would reflect that. If you are hunting an area that was not hit before and went back to the 1900's, then your V and Buff count would definitely go up. Gold is a different story. It can be anywhere, from any era. In a hammered park, that ratio probably reflects the fact that a lot of buffalo nickels have been dug over the years and only a few may turn up from time to time. My ratio on the beach is lower than 200-250. But concentrating on a certain block of numbers can show you just how important it is to think outside the box. Lucky you tried that. That ring is a beauty!

LOL. That happens to me every time I go out. It hits the ground and bends or hits anything while in the trunk and bends. Needle nose pliers are your best friend. The easiest fix would be some kind of plastic protector cap that attaches on both ends of the cable and covers the ends pieces while in transit. They can just dangle, attached to the cable, when you are using the cable. Then put the caps back on and it should be good enough. No one is going to change the design unfortunately.

I see what you are getting at with your design. Skimming through a lot of post doesn't let me digest them all very well I originally envisioned your counter balance to look like a small tube with a small ball on the end of it. Now I realize that is a tube filled with weight (no ball on the end). So I can see why the extension length may be an issue. For some reason I just thought of how some digging trowels have that 1-2" ball on the end.

Oops. Sorry, it is a pocket knife. A very slim one. Probably a pretty sharp looking knife in it's day.

Steve, Thanks for the information. I did have one idea on the Equinox shafts you are designing. I think I read that one version will have a screw on counter balance weight on the end of the machine. Did you ever consider the counterweight should not be screwed on, but have a cam lock to be able to slide it on the shaft to change the balance point to accommodate all weights of coils. It would be nice to be able to adjust that weight to suit your detecting situations if needed. Maybe that won't work, but I figured I'd throw it out there.

This weeks beach hunt was split between the GPX and Equinox. The GPX scored 5 deep silvers, but this item is the reason I love the way the Equinox ID's targets. To some, they may not like the jumpy numbers on mixed metal targets, but I appreciate the added information, as I always like to be the one making the final decision to dig or not. The GPX would have read this as Iron, especially at the depth it was. But the Equinox read the copper content as well as the iron. Since I run with no discrimination, the detector sees both metals and reports them as such. That is a good thing. But I also like to run my iron volume on zero, that way I am not swayed by the iron sound to possibly not dig it. The iron numbers still flash to give me that information, I just prefer not to hear it. That makes these type of targets easier to examine. If you have not tried you Equinox that way, give it a try. For me it is one of those perks of a well designed machine.

What an adventure that turned out to be. Maybe they strung them coins as a savings and hung them somewhere inside their structure? Great hunt.

Oh yeah, top center. What's that like 18 or 19 notched out?

I'm not sure if park 1 has the #1 set as rejected so you do not find small foil or hot rocks. I haven't done much dirt detecting lately, but it may come that way. Maybe some park guys can fill us in on that notch .

I think the 6" is that way too. I'm kind of surprised that it did so well going that direction and not cutting across both D sections of the coils

Always like his videos. I watch a lot of the beach ones.

Not sure how that would work. I always assumed if you go bankrupt, that's was the end of it, and bankruptcy laws protected your personal assets. So maybe they could sue the company but only recoup what the company owns?? Hopefully someone will do side work on repairs and maybe buy out the rest of the machines and spare parts. It's very sad to see a company go out of business with such a loyal following if that is what is going to happen.

Hi Steve, I'm not trying to diss anyone for selling carbon fiber rods, and that is why I did not state where I bought them. Here are a couple of pictures of the breaks. You can see one upper GPX tube is extremely thin and that is why it snapped when I put some pressure on it. If it wasn't for the adjustment hole being a weak point, it probably would have survived being used that way. The other pictures are of the lower shaft for the GPX. I bought a bunch of them so that I could have all my coils available without changing them over. That one is thicker, but split just the same. I'm going to put this statement out there as just my opinion, but I can't think of many inventions in recent history that were supposed to be great, only to have them cheapened out before they get to market. I agree, carbon fiber is a very strong material, I'm just not sure the carbon fiber I received was like the original versions that were developed. I really comes down to suppliers. I'm confident you have tested your supplier's batch, but others probably shop by price. Now for the CTX shaft ..... Here is how you break one. Put that 15x17 coil on it, wade into the water just where the waves break onto the beach, swing it relatively quickly (as quick as the waves allow) and in a while it will snap directly where it exits the machine itself. I found a picture of that from 2016. And for good measure I've thrown in a picture of the never ending snapping handles on the GPX. They can not handle swinging a 12x15 coil as your primary coil. These are examples of what can go wrong. There a tons of examples of what has gone right, and was designed brilliantly, performed like advertised, etc.... The good far out way these issues pictured here. .

I think that is where I sent my CTX to have it repaired. I sent it to PA, so I'm assuming it was there. He did a terrific job replacing the whole back end of the machine along with the screen and a lower shaft I think. Wonderful job, great communication and the price and turnaround was decent. I was very happy with that repair, and have only good feelings about that transaction!

My lower rods (4 of them) are starting to split at the top. My upper rod snapped on me when I tried to use it as a tool to push some reeds down flat. My fault on that one, but it made me notice how fragile the top rod is because of the adjustment holes. It snapped right at one of the holes. In reality, I was not pushing the reeds very hard. Bottom line is they are too thin and have very little strength to then. I will not buy anymore carbon fiber rods from anyone again. The only reason I wanted to try them was that my stock rod for the GPX did not lock anymore I have 2 of them and both do not lock anymore, so I thought I would spring for the carbon fiber.

That is my dilemma too. I just had it repaired and want to sell it but only if the buyer is aware that I can't vouch for it. It is an awesome machine on the beach, but I can't trust it in the water. I won't buy another rechargeable for it. But if I did, it would only be for dry use. I would use the alkaline pack for the water hunts. It's a lot cheaper to replace that pack. Kind of sad that the flagship machine, for me at least, was never waterproof long enough to enjoy it.

I think my Deep Tech Vista Gold says not to turn on the detector without a coil attached, as it can damage the unit. But honestly, I may do that anyways

That would have been a heart stopper if it was not plated. Nice design too. I went out today again to a different beach. This beach is loaded with small rocks that read a solid 1. I dug those all day long because of that earring but no gold for me today.

Even though I live in a colonial area, I still love finding Barbers and Indians. They are such beautiful designs. Looks like some nice hunting you had there.

Given the choice I would still pick the Equinox. If I was new to the hobby and did not pick Garrett, then I would probably pick White's, but only if the price was lower. I'm not sure that machine can compete between the Equinox and the Deus and still sell enough of them to remain profitable. But an odd thought just came to me...We all think that this is Minelab's top of the line unit. What if.... it is their entry level machine and they are holding back with releasing their mid and high end units in the $1500 - $3000 range respectively?? What would that do to the MX Sport and AT Pro units sales? I still think the MX Sport has potential, but with a price closer to the Equinox 600.

Yep, the GPX looks like a small tank, but that box actually sits better on the ground than the Equinox. It's footprint is measured in feet . With all the different machines out there, you would think that someone would make a better detector stand that you could just clip on.

Unbelievable how far modern circuitry has gone. Some small little flat packs, IC's and some nice palladium capacitors, etc. Doesn't look like much. It's hard to believe that all that performance and flexibility comes from those electronics. Amazing

On some of the old detectors I thought you could cause damage if the unit was turned on without a coil connected. Maybe just an urban legend???

Apparently your settings are working well and I would use them for a while. If you are done with an area (I would grid the most productive area), then you can redo it while changing settings and see if anything else comes up. Otherwise the other way to do it is, when you get what you think is a very deep iffy target, don't dig it. That is the ideal time to, one by one adjust settings to see if you can clear up the target or not.