nickelNdimed

12 minutes ago, mh9162013 said:

Honest question: why is having a clock on a metal detector so important to many of you? I get the "odometer" and/or timer, knowing how long you've been operating your machine for a given hunt or its entire lifetime. But a clock? You can't check your phone or watch?

Is it that your phone is off to avoid interfering with your SMF detector and you don't normally wear a watch?

Just asking for a friend...😁

I haven’t worn a wrist watch since I started carrying a phone in my pocket other than a Garmin for training and events when I used to compete. I don’t own one otherwise.

 During detecting I carry my phone and have no noticeable issues but I wear gloves. I won’t reach in my pocket and handle my iPhone with muddy gloves. It is a hassle just to check the time.   

There are these things called girlfriends and wives that sometimes get upset when you lose track of time and are gone longer than you said you would. I mitigate that by literally setting alarms on my phone to give me a heads up.  We have commitments or I tell her I’ll be back by X.  I get it out occasionally to send her and a buddy pictures of cool stuff I find, especially when it is jewelry. I might remember to check the time before I shove back in pocket and put gloves back on.

Personally I could care less how many hours I have hunted or hours on my machine. It is not a mechanical device that needs maintenance.  A clock on the screen that I am starring at anyway is handy and a simple delighter feature to add.

The clock is a nice feature I wish I had honestly and the ferrocheck graph seems useful. Not sure worth upgrading if you already have the “competitor” unless it has game changer performance somehow. They sure took some not so subtle jabs at them!  If you didn’t have “competitor” or upgrading from a Simplex it might be compelling.

I suspect a compatible version of the Pulse pointer will come out and 6x9 and 13” coils to up the sales numbers later. 

Also wondering if they just plan to drop a lot of their other models and just make it up on volume with the Simplex and the Legend and the kid devices. 

14 hours ago, mh9162013 said:

Sorry, but I'm not sure what you're asking?

If you're asking about selling the AT Max, then yes, I'm most likely going to sell it. If you're interested in buying it, let me know 😄

As for the Fisher F2, no, I'm keeping that one. It's a very sentimental gift and was my first metal detector.

I'm not surprised you're gravitating to the Vanquish. If the Vanquish could ground balance, I'd probably never have sold my 540. For shallow hunting in my highly mineralized soil, it does fine (for the most part). But if I want to go deeper than 6 inches or so (depending on the soil profile), it struggles.

I love the look and feel of the Vanquish, especially with its cam locks. I've been brain storming how to somehow replace the control box of the Vanquish with the pod of an Equinox without it looking too janky.

I know some people mock the Vanquish's red color, but I like it! I don't like how Minelab can't get their plastic dyes to be consistent, but that's the cost of a cheap detector having MIQ, I guess.

Yes, nobody seemed to have answered the question in the title of your post with the obvious answer : )  

I occasionally struggle with nostalgia about a detector I wanted as a kid and never bought but it would just collect dust. I kind of get that but I guess by the results and the rest of your tools....

Check out Sea Ghost housing if you have not.  Probably no cost effective solution but pretty neat. He makes for various detectors. 

So the answer is yes? And the F2 as well?

I have a somewhat similar detectors as you. Equinox 600, Vanquish 440, Fisher F22. The Ace 300 other than being a Garrett probably doesn’t compare to AT Max in frequency and coil type but I do have a Simplex that should be closer in specs. I’ve been wanting to do similar comparison testing with mine this winter. 

But so far this year, all I know is I have been defaulting to the Vanquish a lot and it does find the goods just like the Equinox without having to think too much about the settings. 

Just for fun, I was wondering what the short list of names for this coil was 🤔 

I like Bigfoot and Cleansweep better than Arrow.  I would have named it “Sythe” I think.

I was also thinking about how quickly I would be able to move or what kind of rhythm a coil like this. The 6” is like having your laces tied together, the 11” like wearing shackles, an 18” ‘er like normal walking pace? 🤔 

 

 tones are door bells so you'll get some crazy looks from the general public using it unless you have headphones, no volume control exasperates the doorbell problem.

this...  the MS-2s fixed part of this issue but the tones are not for me...  thing is I probably would have loved a detector like the Ace when I was a kid

 

Used Garrett Aces are a dime a dozen. If someone in my area is selling one, I'm sure I can get an Ace 150/200 for $75-$100, Ace 250/300 for $100-$125 or an Ace 350/400 for $125-$150. I'll have to be patient, but for those prices, I'll pass on the Simplex. Of course, if I find a used Simplex for really cheap, I'm open to buying that, too.

I picked up my Ace 300 in that range. The Simplex was sub 200.  Then used wireless headphones from a guy whose Simplex was stolen...  Patience and opportunity is key!

 

While I don't know about the Simplex being a Dues / ORX budget alternative I do know it's very similar in performance to a T2 although I think the T2 goes a bit deeper with ID's although the ID's aren't much good as they're all over the place anyway and the Simplex will get the same targets but have no ID's at all, If I had to pick out of the Simplex or T2 I'd pick the Simplex for features alone when they're so close in performance.  I personally don't think you're missing much by using a Simplex instead of a T2, you're gaining more than you're losing.

As for this coil the reason I want it is for right after events, things like New Years Eve fireworks where thousands of people sit on a lakeside beach watching them being fired off barges in the water for example,  to hit the locations the morning after and get all the surface and slightly buried drops using a quick and effective coil, and if it picks up a few shallow goodies to go with it I'd be happy, I don't want to spend my time worrying about deep targets when my aim would be to get the surface stuff before someone else does 🙂

Yes, I think in this case the depth is not a concern as I have other tools for that and the Simplex with the headphones and perhaps adding their linked pinpointer will be the nicer setup.  

My case for this is areas that get temporarily fenced for festivals at park and the grassy temporary parking areas for fresh drops.  May try it at the beach when visiting family just for something different. 

 

B/c I can sell the AT Max, buy an Ace, then still have cash left over.

This is a similar decision for me but the delta between the value of the ACE and the Simplex is likely not worth going for the ACE I think. Similar to another recent discussion on the you might still be able to get someone to pay a lot more for a used Max than a Simplex for whatever reason.  I doubt there will be a difference in the price of this coil between the two so I am leaning towards the Simplex. 

 

I have posted extensively on the BigFoot coil, but this is not a BigFoot, not even wound the same. You should not be buying it if depth isn’t your main goal, which misses the point of the design.

 

I wrote that I do not want it to be really deep.  I was hoping it was even more limited in depth by design. Same strategy you mention I think. If I can’t pop it out quickly with my digging tool or find it on the surface, I want to move on or not detect it possibly.  Thanks for sharing the link. I’ll get caught up on that.  

 

It's a work of art. 

Ok so it does do the Simplex, so now it's Simplex, T2, AT Gold, Ace 300 or Gold Bug Pro in the mix.... Gold Bug Pro it is I guess, I notice E-trac isn't on the list, I thought it was going to be, I guess it's a variant? I've got my eyes out for a second hand one at the moment.

When I was looking into possibly getting an F75/T2 to try, some of you guys convinced me that other than the ergo, I wasn’t really missing anything if I already had the Simplex for a lesser price and it was sort of a budget Deus/Orx replacement to compliment my 600. My decision right now is between the Ace and the Simplex. But other than having less money into the Ace, I can’t find any other reason to choose it over the Simplex. But there is always that other option of buying something else on the current or future list of detectors. Decisions, decisions..... 

 

Hmmm...

I really want one of these coils, but so far, the Equinox 600 is eating my AT Max's lunch.

Maybe if I sell my AT Max, I should replace it with an Ace...there are alot of used ones for sale online...

Why the Ace if you already have a Max?  I ask because my two current options on the list are an Ace 300 and Simplex. My Simplex would be most similar to the Max in this case in features and frequency so curious why you would make that choice. 

 

I'm an undersell/overdeliver guy, so I'd say expect depth like a 4" stretched. But that is not accurate, it's really more about coil square inches than either length or width. As EL NINO77 has already answered, probably more like a 6" - 8" round depending on the target, with depth like a 6" round being a nice conservative guesstimate. Remember this is a stretch DD, not a concentric, and that complicates things also. This will be one coil where doing good depth comparison tests will be far more informative than is the norm. Fun project for EL I'd think.  Speculating on VDI, depth reading, and such is kind of a waste of time, we will just have to wait and see.

I’ll probably wait and see on this but it is something that actually has me interested and I may actually purchase. I have some areas and situations in mind for this. Recent or fairly recent drops in areas where events are held or overflow parking. So I actually want it to not be too deep and get sidetracked on deeper signals. I’ve been trying this with my Vanquish with the sensitivity backed off but the extra coverage would be great. Was just looking to see if others had experience with the predecessors to this and if similar results could be expected out of this coil design. 

 

So with the 4” width, the assumption would be 4ish” max depth.

Should one expect depth meters to be at all accurate on coin sized targets?

Is 4” maxed out on sensitivity? Less if sensitivity dialed down?

With the depth being relatively shallow, are VDIs relatively close to air test values for a detector?

Anyone have experience with this on the Bigfoot or Cleansweep?

Can anyone comment on this? 

I don’t have too much experience with alternate coils other than the 6” for my Equinox and it IDs VDI and depth just the same as 11” in my experience with it, with coin size targets of course. Oh, and it seems to find stuff deeper than 6” although most of my significant finds are less than 8”.  Should I expect the same with a coil like this?

I have an Ace 300 but don’t like the scale and sounds of it compared to other detectors I have.  I plan to sell it eventually but it is the only one I have on this list.

I’d pick up an F75 or F70 just for this but only if it was a killer price.

I haven’t messed much with the Simplex I picked up last year and was thinking about selling it after trying it a little but this coil might give me a reason to keep it...

And only reason I consider that is that I can’t get one for my 600 or Vanquish.

I’m really surprised the Simplex didn’t make the cut as popular and recent a detector that is....

So with the 4” width, the assumption would be 4ish inches max depth.

Should one expect depth meters to be at all accurate on coin sized targets?

Is 4” maxed out on sensitivity? Less if sensitivity dialed down?

With the depth being relatively shallow, are VDIs relatively close to air test values for a detector?

Anyone have experience with this on the Bigfoot or Cleansweep?

I’m not super familiar with these but I also keep an eye on things that go up for sale on a few places and seems like the ORXs are in the 450-500 on the low side asking and and the Deus in the 800-900 range on low side. But I guess the combos of coils and headphones vary so it us hard to say. I’m not even familiar with what the average going price of new is for XP.  You would think with new new detector coming at least more Deus would start going up for sale and bringing prices down.  

What one paid is irrelevant. I’d say in general for used stuff 50% of new is a good starting point for negotiating assuming it is a newer/still made detector and up from there depending on condition and what is included. Paying close to new or even 60-75% doesn’t even seem worth it sometimes considering some of the holiday bundle deals or dealer street prices one can get.  I still think it is crazy what people want for AT Pros and F75s considering options like the Simplex and Equinox 600 go for new... 

12 hours ago, phrunt said:

If that did happen would you buy one? Is it a detector that I'd want? Would it be a good seller?  Just trying to work out if they would be wasting their time. 

It will be the deepest, biggest, lightest, even if it isn’t......  I’m pretty sure that is their marketing strategy from what I have observed.   At least for outdated stuff. Shame because I do think the F Puse and F22 products are decent products.  I think an updated CZ would at least be worth shopping against the competition if the price was right. 

11 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

Yeah, it’s me, and the picture is real. It was cold (was snowing earlier in the day)…. I was wearing a coat for that. Try doing Tahoe at 40 degrees with a stiff wind, and I suspect you’ll wear a coat also. There was a group, and we had diverted from a planned nugget hunt due to snow. I used what I had in the rig, my pick magnet to recover the small ferrous trash, and dig / recover targets. Not my preference, but it worked for me under the circumstances. In fact, nugget hunting techniques work rather well for hunting micro jewelry, the type that drops through most scoops.

It was not a posed photo shoot, though I did shoot some video tips on the 24K at beach because, yes, it’s a great small jewelry machine. This photo was shot by somebody when I was not even aware of it, and they decided they liked it well enough to use it anyway. Sorry I’m not the typical faked gal in bikini photo.  Not royalty for sure, just an old guy in a coat with a pick.

Regardless, let me remind everyone this is the First Texas Forum, and bringing up other brands is as welcome here as bringing up Chevy on the Ford Forum. If you want to get into brand versus brand stuff, we have a forum just for that.

Hi Steve. I stand corrected and surprised it was a real photo.  Most of it was meant in humor and hope no offense was taken by anyone. The reason that came up was just as an example of what Fisher may need to do with their site to stay relevant.   That I do hope they take seriously. Just sort of got off on a tangent on the 24k, which I’m not a gold prospector due to geographic location but Fisher could probably update a Gold Bug model to be competitive I imagine and should also take note. 

31 minutes ago, kac said:

You know who that guy is right? 🙂

I've used a gold machine on the beach and for combing towel lines, cuts and damp sand you can do really well with small jewelry. You won't get a lot of depth in the wet and may false some but running gb close to 0 on most machines and dropping the gain as needed can reduce falsing.

Small jewelry and chains don't sink fast like rings.

Is it Steve?  It’s hard to tell, I don’t follow detecting world fame and royalty much.

Gold is gold and I suspect it would make a decent jewelry and aluminum bits machine.  No argument there if they are also trying to market it as such.

Hopefully it was obvious that my comment was meant in jest and I believe the picture is photoshopped from a different background if you look at others on their site. I’m just guessing whomever is doing their marketing or website editing is not paying attention to details or clueless. Not sure I would expect someone at the beach with a rock pick? How about a sand scoop or even a shovel?  Maybe those clothes in colder weather?  I don’t know, it stood out to me.  Bringing it back to the original post somewhat, Garrett is at least putting more effort into their web presence which Fisher is clearly lacking. 

18 minutes ago, nickeldNdimed said:

Garretts site is actually not half bad as an example. 

Just not sure why this guy is using this gear at the beach?  Looking for gold jewelry in frozen sand?

Hopefully not out of business. I like my F Pulse under warranty and still have my F22 which is not a bad little detector and weatherproof unlike the Aces or Vanquish. 

Just blows my mind the site is so archaic and they still have some of the still available detectors marked as new when they have been around for a few years now. And then their updated GB2 with the screen was just announced and it is not marked as new? How is their web presence not a priority?  I think old dudes even know how to use mobile phones and computers to web search no?  Garretts site is actually not half bad as an example. 

https://3dshoes.com/blogs/news/treasure-hunter-metal-detecting-sandals

THIS, is the future....  😂  the site doesn’t even have info on them anymore but apparently you can purchase 3D printed novelty sandals and 3D printing materials.

Check out the “Teslas” or the “Covid-19s” under their product offerings. New beach detecting footwear anyone?

This is all this made me think of. 

If you are looking for a deal on one and are in Wisconsin here you go:

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/331453465286333/

Lady won’t ship.  I would have bought them both just to try them.  You can send me the Compadre as a finders fee 😁

On 9/21/2021 at 11:28 AM, bigtim1973 said:

Watch out....one has popped up here for 425.00!!

 

Maybe I will be able to retire if I hold on to mine for a few more years.

Sure it is not same guy?

 I’ve wanted to try one of those Tesoros but not at those prices.  Seemed a bit steep to me for what they are.  

But I guess similar thing happened with some Whites stuff like TRX pinpointer...  I’m glad I got to try one before that and was able to break even on it when I decided to let it go.  Wouldn’t have even thought to try and price gouge on it.