RobNC

A lot of people fretted over this battery replacement. The concerns of water ingress and such if anyone other than Minelab replaces it. The replacement of the battery is common sense, and no need to send it in to minelab for a battery swap. I'm a little surprised there isn't some kind of plug between the shaft and pod leading to the battery to fill that space. Having such a thing would add even more piece of mind and surely prevent water ingress even more. Seems they used a very miniscule amount of silicone grease too. Anyways, battery replacement seems simple and straightforward. I wonder when they are going to make the batteries more readily available?

Yet another case of corporate greed. Like most things today, "this new flim-flam technology is greater than all prior flim-flams" Just a bunch of greedy rascals trying to fill their pockets yet again by forcing people to migrate to the "latest technology". No let's be honest, it's a greedy arse company that continues to lie in order for more profits. It's a rampant thing, and people keep playing along so companies continue to get by with it. It ranges from even the most smallest items (a simple style of pants you actually enjoyed but are now "discontinued" and replaced by a pair of sucky quality replacements that don't fit anywhere like the old ones did) to everything else. Yep, sick of greedy companies. Items end up being "discontinued", "retired", and "End of Life" all for the sake of selling a newer model that really is not worth the price. Just junk with more flashy lights and more little colors or some other nonsense.

How about some overkill? I particularly like 3M Temflex 2155 for a wide range of uses. If you want to add a lot of insulation to something this is the good stuff. Temflex 2155 and put heat shrink over that.

I've ran one of these many years ago. I even found a real gold ring with it. Matter of fact the only gold ring ever found by myself in all these years. It is capable of finding the stuff but also has some weaknesses. Depth being one of them. It could reliably detect and ID down to about 4 inches from what I seen. Mine loved the can slaw and iron. Forget using it in heavily mineralized soil, it will randomly beep when nothing is there. It's also possible you may be into some interference like others mentioned. Reducing sensitivity is also another wise thing to try, because when that is too high the machine can even pick up moving of the coil cable. Which leads me to the next thing, check that your coil wire is tightly against the rod. If that is loose and it moves it could set the detector off. Do some air testing with your ACE 250. After reading your original post it sounds like to me something is wrong with either the coil or the control unit itself. That is not normal behavior. I echo what others said and would suspect if it is a "real" Ace 250 or not. Lotta counterfeits out there. On the large cans, the detector will see that as a very conductive target and will respond accordingly. You can always check that by raising your coil off the target. If you are still getting a strong response when you raise it 6 inches off the ground that is a good indicator you have either a flattened can or something large under the coil. I wish you the best with this, however the behavior of that detector does not sound very much how mine acted.

I think it is best left alone. It would be another matter entirely if you had stumbled across it unintentionally while out detecting THEN learned of the situation surrounding the loss. It's all about perception, and in today's climate of finger pointing I just don't see any good coming from it. Some things and wounds are better left closed.

I'm a realist. I'd settle for getting into some places I asked permission for but they either said NO or did not respond.

OHH YEAHHH. Fun with PVC!! My wife still does not understand my fascination with PVC pipe. I do all kinds of things with it. The office chair I'm sitting in now for example- The hydraulic lift kept sinking down without me pressing it. I set it to the height I use all the time, measured and cut a piece of PVC pipe to go over the pump. Sinking chair problem gone for over a year now!

Thank you for sharing the finds and interesting observations about the area. It is always fun to get into places where "why is that here?" pops up in your mind. You do have a point though. Just what went on there? Keep on scanning and digging. The more shallower things you dig out the more deeper items can sound off for you. Happy Hunting! I hope you find some great things there.

I live in Rockingham County. Nothing here to hunt but pulltabs, can slaw, and clad if you are lucky. The climate towards metal detecting around here has sure became unfriendly. I sure hope you have it better there in Catawba County.

The weight, no cords, and collapsing stem are all reasons why I had to buy another ORX. It is good on those days you don't want to swing something heavier.

Welcome! You will find there are many kind people here. I don't do prospecting but metal detect for coins when I can. Too cold and wet right now for me! Be safe out there and hope you find a bucket full of gold.

How long has it been lost? This may sound counter-productive but if it is a recent drop I would turn the sens down. Listen for whispers, not deep signals or strong ones. You will be wanting to home in on a very small signal. I've been able to find things as small as tiny shoe sequins smaller the size of a pencil eraser and with the stock coil. It's going to take some serious patience on your end. Do you have the other earring at hand for analysis with the equinox? That would also help greatly in tuning.

I'm really surprised about fishing lures and the absent hooks. Do the hooks just rot away or do people remove them for photos? I'd sure hate to dig up a lure with hook intact.. Talk about a real nightmare if that rusty tetanus-laced hook got in a finger.

My box label also says Made in Malaysia. I'm really sorry your unit took on water. Your hardship with the water ingress along with others has reinforced my decision to never submerge the control unit of mine. It's a shame because the Equinox is a good detector all around. Sort of sad that the one thing it is so good at (in the water) it can't be trusted 100% not to break because of these seal problems. Send it in for warranty!

I can verify these headphones work with the Equinox. They are high quality aptx. They work well and have better sound compared to the wireless headphones that come with the Equinox 800. https://www.mypaww.com/products/paww-wavesound-2-1?variant=14356841300010

I will say that not everyone likes metal detecting. They may think they do, but when they go out and expect buckets of gold and come back with pull tabs instead they lose the desire. Please understand that the pickin's are sometimes slim. I'd hate to see you spend $800+ for an Equinox 800 or near $750 out the door for an Equinox 600 and then your husband loses interest because he didn't hit gold rings and silver coins his first 5 times out. I think it would be best to go with the Vanquish series to start with. In many cases the Vanquish is even better in Target ID than the Equinox if my reading is correct. I would not buy anything less than the Vanquish 440. The wireless headphones with the Equinox 800 are to me not that great. For me, it is better with the WM08 module and wired grey ghost headphones. A lot more sharp tones in my rattle head. The wireless included phones are muddy in my ears. Please be aware that if your man does enjoy metal detecting you will create a monster, as he will forever be thinking that the more expensive detectors will net him more finds. NOT SO. It is all about LOCATION and skill of the nut on the handle. We all suck at first and on some days even years later we still suck! It is nice you are willing to enter into the fray of metal detecting. Best of wishes to you.

In my area the red clay occurs. The worst of it has little glitter specks throughout. My Equinox goes through this without chirping. My ORX also works with that same red glitter soil. The bigger problem for both are when you hit iron in that same soil. I don't see where one or the other has a clear advantage. The ORX does seem faster and has sniffed out some good targets for me in heavy iron areas. You lose a lot with the ORX though from an ID perspective vs. the Equinox or Vanquish. While I do not have any experience with it, some say that pulse machines do better in extreme soils. And again, the lack of ID capabilities with the pulse units make them dig it all machines. But admittedly, I have never owned one and only go on what I've read.

As tboykin said, still a VLF in the grand scheme of things. It does manage mineralized soil better than a single freq VLF unit. It will get better depth usually than a single freq machine in such cases. It's not perfect but a "perfect" metal detector has yet to be made. The Vanquish is a real deal in a lot of ways and should not be thought less of just because it is using VLF albeit multiple VLF's referenced at once.

I would like to see an extended ID Range. Better EMI suppression Don't run the F*#@&)%^ price so high us common folk can't afford it. This is not a p!$$!$% contest to see who has the most money, where only the "elite professionals" can afford the better equipment. Don't take a pee on me and tell me it's raining Minelab. Us common folk deserve a decent detector that will last more than 3 months without needing warranty "service".

How about one of my favorites- 3M Temflex 2155. Think it would do the trick? https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-us/all-3m-products/~/3M-Temflex-Rubber-Splicing-Tape-2155/?N=5002385+3290907746&rt=rud

I wish them the best with this. Hopefully we will see a hybrid using the best of tech from both companies.

I totally get it. You've lost confidence in it. That has happened to me many times. Like SVen1 said, if the detector is killing your interest in metal detecting it's GOTTA GO!! Other mentioned the Vanquish, from reports and tests it appears the Vanquish may even have more accurate target ID than the Equinox in some cases. It's a heck of a deal for a lot of detector too. Whichever direction you go I wish you the best with it and hope what you choose finds you many great things. Can you please report back to us when you get a different detector and take it out? I would enjoy hearing your comparisons and results. Best Regards, Rob

I can understand the lack of confidence in a certain detector. Most of us go through that, myself a lot. This often happens no matter what kind of detector you run. I was unable to try the Multi Kruzer I bought because it had issues out of the box unfortunately. I will speak on what I feel comfortable about concerning the Equinox 800. The Equinox 800 has far more settings than the Equinox 600. The 800 allows you to change the tone pitch and break points, the 600 does not. My hunting is mainly on school yards, old home sites, and fields. No beach hunting. The Equinox like most detectors will struggle on iron littered or trashy sites. You will get a lot of audio fatigue. This is not just with the Equinox but any detector in these conditions. I can only speak on the stock 11" coil. It's the only coil I have. I did try an Equinox 600 before the 800 and also bought the 6" coil. In my use the smaller coil did not help in that particular site. The factory presets are really good. I run a slightly modified version of Park 1 for most of my hunting. The only things I modified had to do with audio tone pitch and break points. Did some volume level adjustments too. Many may call me stubborn but after trying all the software updates I am back to version 1.75 and like it best. The wireless headphones that come with the EQ800 are not to my liking either. The audio is not sharp and defined enough for me. I use the wireless module and a pair of Grey Ghost headphones. It is annoying to fight the cable but the audio clarity is worth it. The Equinox is not a magic detector. It has its limitations like any other. Reported leakage of the control pod, wobble int he shaft, broken coil ears, battery problems, and a lot of people complain about build quality in general along with it being unbalanced. I like my Equinox, but it is not the end-all detector. We are still waiting on that one. Warranty-Minelab is generally good about warranty replacements. Some have reported it taking a while in certain cases which is more than likely due to part shortages. Bottom Line-when that Kruzer showed you a 90 ID you should have dug it. The same thing will happen with the Equinox or any other detector. Don't be too hard on yourself.

I would enjoy testing anything new Nokta puts out. I hunt primarily parks and schools with old homesites mixed in. Very trashy, iron infested places and sparkle dirt with varying mineralization is the norm here. That would be a good test. Sadly though, not near the beach.

The only things I have disc'd out are -9 to zero. I run my threshold at 3. Heard it some yesterday blanking or rather going silent. So at this point will assume it is some heavy iron garbage I surely do not want.