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That is in great shape, most the nickels here get trashed. Never found a V. Congrats!

Nice dime.

XP and Nokta are doing deals similar too, guess to spark those potential buyers sitting on the fence. Kruzer and Amphibio have a deal with the pulse dive pointer included and of course how can you go wrong with a hat and plastic shovel tossed in the deal!

I have used both, I think the ATP is a quieter machine and seems to perform better. Max includes the carrot so guess that adds to the sticker price but think it should be at the price point where the ATP is and ATP should be lower for what it is. I found the Max menu system hard to get used to after using the ATP so much, can't tell ya how many times I hit the threshold way up trying to manually gb it. Threshold also isn't fine enough for me. Lastly still no iron audio volume control!

I have an RTG scoop with the wire basket that is on the short side. Wasn't a big deal when I used a VLF as I wasn't going that deep but the PI is a different story. I could be going at too much of an angle which doesn't help as the angle of the scoop is almost 90° to the shaft.

I like my ATP but the display layout and features on the MK are really appealing. ATP isn't all that deep of a machine. There are some very old coins in my neck of the woods and was thinking the power of the MK with a 13" coil might do well. I use my Tejon the most but the higher frequency it hits small silver a bit softer than I like. The audio is seem harsh from what I have seen on demo videos but if it goes deep and is fairly light I may snag one this spring. Thanks for the feedback

That is a heavy coil, did you try running the shaft shorter so the coil is closer to your feet? I did that with my 3lb nel and found it easier to swing rather than a harness. Harness I got was awkward and hurt my neck. Beaches here are difficult to dig more than 14" or so because they fill in so fast, really need a monster scoop to get the find in one or 2 shots. I recently snagged a 10x14 and find it does better than I thought in nail infested river bank. Taking me some getting used to for pin pointing. I have been using the nose of the coil to find the edge of the target then approach at an angle then dig from there. Is there a better way to pinpoint with a mono? Lastly I stuffed a couple rare earth magnets from some old hard drives in the bottom of the scoop I have and seem to snag those nails pretty easy.

That is odd, usually AM mode runs deeper than disc. How do you like the machine overall?

I spent about $80 for the Lesche Ground Shark which is a good digger and makes smaller holes. Got that because it handles roots pretty good but the little bond shovel is much lighter. Almost tempted to put some saw teeth on the edges. Think I paid few bucks more because I got it at a local family owned garden shop, don't mind they need to eat too.

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.

Have you used it with the 13" coil?

What is the Gen tone is that like a vco or all metal mode?

I have a small spade shorty shovel like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Bond-LH015-Mini-Handle-Shovel/dp/B000X47NJY/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=short+spade+shovel&qid=1574897396&sr=8-4 It is pretty cheap, very tough and really light.

Thanks for the kind review. My welds are adequate and for now was just for the initial field testing. Final product will be tig welded so there is less cleanup and look prettier. 4130 is really tricky to weld with a stick.

Thats in really good condition. Always amazes me how good silver looks when you dig it.

Too bad he didn't use the old square nails. Old iron smothers other targets on the AT with stock coil. Even worse when elevated. Be interesting if the Simplex would pass the elevated nail test.

I'll try a brass brush on it. Does look old by the rivets they used. It was near a foundation that was what looked like a chicken coop so fox trap is probably spot on.

I cleaned it up some but my rectifier doesn't have enough amps to get all the crud off. The spring still works! You have an idea how old it might be? Rivets on the bottom are round like a screw top. Thanks

Wow, Lesche are usually really beefy. I have the ground shark which is welded at the foot peg and on the shaft so probably less likely to bend. The ground shark has a very hard blade that is narrow. Almost looks like the handles shaft wasn't heat treated.

Was a zinc penny in the wash which was damp and soft. Not sure if that makes a difference or not. Sorry I don't pack a camera with me, I should. I have a small water proof camera but taking 4 hours of footage of me pulling nails and junk probably isn't very entertaining. I'll pack it with me next time I head out.

The sand here really restricts depth on vlf's and I can hear a penny at 12 nice and loud on my SH with 8" coil. The 10x12 is picking up targets much deeper. Pin pointing the target I use the rim and hit from a couple of angles. Pin pointing takes some getting used to on a mono coil vs others and does take some practice. I could hear targets today that my friends Nox's didn't even blip on so yes PI does go deeper. All that is meaningless if your snorkeling unless you can really hold your breath for a while. Mada if you already own the SH just toss the short shaft on it and try it snorkeling. No money spent and may fit your purpose.

I just gave my seahunter a run with the 10x14 coil and used it all day. There is tons of iron and hot rocks. The larger coil really makes the machine a killer. Incredible depth and putting the control box on the back under the arm rest it balanced out nicely. We have a good amount of black sand here and found running a vlf in the wet was pretty much a no go. 2 friends joined me with their Nox 800s and depth wise its a no brainer. Nox's did run quiet for them but depth not impressive. They did however do better than another guy running an xcal who dug up some trash and missed a couple quarters next to it. Guess that was a swing and a miss for him. For beach combing the larger coil is a must. If you already own the SeaHunter the smaller coil and shorty shaft might be the way to go when snorkeling. If there is too much trash then for a bit more money I would look at the Nox 800. Where I have been hitting it has some old stuff there but also old nails, bolts etc etc etc. So much iron it masks out everything so no matter what machine I run I sort of need to dig it all anyways. Other beach areas are pretty clean and smooth sailing. Really depends on trash levels in your area.

I can only comment on the SeaHunter. SeaHunter is immune to the salt and is pretty much a dig all machine. It will pick up the tiniest bit of lobster trap and you would think you had something good where a VLF you can disc those out. The stock coil is 8" which is great in the surf and water as it is easy to swing. If you plan on covering ground on the shore you may want to consider the larger 10x14 coil. Seahunter is a heavy machine (weighted for neutral buoyancy) so if you plan on hitting on land the hip mount is really nice. Lastly I know you don't want to hear about depth but in the wet sand on the small 8" coil it hits a penny at 12" deep very loud. I just got my larger coil and wanted the extra depth because there is a lot of washed out sand I want to punch through. I heard the larger coil will hit coins at 18" or so , will find out if that is true or not this weekend (if there are any coins there). I have 2 VLF's and though they work fine on the dry to damp sand and they are not beach machines or have beach modes I found them to get chattery. Depth 8" tops in the wet. Was annoying to constantly fiddle with GB and try to listen through the chatter. I really love the Pi, so quiet and only picks up on targets, seems immune to hot rocks and yes I dig a lot of trash, lots of nails, screws, lobster traps, car keys, pocket knives etc. Even welcome the occasional square tab just to mix things up a bit. Snorkeling would a Pulse Dive work better?

Been using Blackube lipo batteries for 3/4 of a year now. Solid performers and less effected by the cold. They have a spaghetti cord with micro usb ports to recharge which works good as you can use any usb power source that is suitable for a phone. Battery life is approx double. One downside is because they run nearly full power until they run out don't expect your battery indicator to be accurate. I charge mine after 30 hours or so on my Tejon. Charge time is 2 hours or so from fully drained. Also note their AA batters have the same voltage as an alkaline unlike nicad which are less.

Wouldn't the Multi Kruzer at 19khz be better for small jewelry and coin shooting? I had my eye on one for a while and like the handle, big display and frequency choices as well as coil choices on it. Looks like a good performer.