Monte

Steve H... 'Thanks' for the link. I enjoy reading other's viewpoints regarding detector that interest me. Chuck (RR).. I have to first wish you well. I agree with most of your thoughts, except it took me all of 4-5 days to realize the Simplex+ was not going to be a 'back-up' or only a 'sometimes used' detector in my outfit. I happened to have a site to compare it with the 11" DD coil, and was wonderfully impressed! The numeric VDI read-out can 'lock on' quite well in my rather mineralized Easter Oregon soil. I have 9 detectors now in my Regular-Use Detector Outfit, and 5 of those 9 are Nokta / Makro devices. The only main-design glitch is the too-rapid 'Time Out' for adjustment purposes. The only workable changes I wish it had are with the Beach mode. I'd like to have full-control to Accept and reject ALL of the Disc. segments. I'd also like to have Iron Audio Volume adjustment in that mode. I search at ')' Disc. in all three of the Discriminate modes, and most often use the Beach mode because I prefer that Non-VCO function in more open places with mid-depth to deeper targets. I can live with some occasional Iron as I do with my FORS CoRe's, but when it gets a bit annoying I then switch to the Field mode with Iron Audio. It also has the VCO-enhanced audio response. Sven1.. I'm with you as I find the Simplex+ grip to be very comfortable 'as-is' with the big 11" DD coil mounted. I am certain it is going to be one of the better feeling/handling detectors when they get smaller-size coils released this spring. Monte

That is exactly what I did, keeping the 540 w/9X12 at-the-ready to grab for wide-open / low-target sites, and my regular-travel V-540 with the 5X8 DD on my back seat with two other detector. However, I don't like to mess around when out afield swapping coils on and off the lower rods. So I keep my extra coils ready for a quick-change, already on a spare lower-ron. They are in my Accessory Coil Tote in case I need them. If I am using one 540 and I let a friend or family member use the 2nd device, but they want to use the same coil I am using, then coil changes are quick-and-easy. No chance for lost bolts or washers, especially by someone less experienced. Monte

I bought two of the V-540 Pro Packs and don't really need the V1-10 coil. HOWEVER, I do want to order two lower rods for the vanquish, if I can find a USA Dealer who has them available. I like to keep some extra coils ready-to-swap on a spare lower rod. If anyone knows who has them, let me know. Thanks. Monte

abenson: I’ve had the Vanquish 540 out on 4 ghost town hunts now and I wanted to give my thoughts on it’s performance in these challenging sites. 3 of the 4 hunts were at places where the items are on or near the surface. At those places the 5 x 8 coil was used. At the other site the items can be anywhere from surface to 12 inches deep because the town was located in a now plowed field. At that place, the 9 x 12 coil was used. In some cases other metal detectors were used to find some of the targets and compare signals with the Vanquish. Getting to understand the Vanquish 540 is kind of fun. It's also kind of frustrating because you would have thought they would have had some prototypes units in the hands of knowledgeable evaluators to isolate design flaws, then fix them prior to production. Obviously, it doesn't seem like they did that. When I got my 540 I mounted the 5X8 DD (mainly because I like the looks of that coil) and spent about 10-15 minutes checking out the settings and differences between the 3 default search modes. By then I knew it had one design glitch that annoyed me. Then, I took it to a CCC Camp / Japanese Internment Camp location, then a German & Italian POW Camp site, and finally out to a Ghost Town with even more iron debris that the first places. The only coil I used for those sites was the 5X8 DD. I bought the Vanquish 540 knowing that it had limitations since it lacked a selectable frequency option and also lacked a Ground Balance feature. I determined some of the strong points about it, then sent it off to Minelab USA to see if the service technicians could do anything about the design glitch. abenson: The Vanquish set at high iron bias does a great job at discriminating out surface bottle caps and other flat tin where single frequency metal detectors struggle. First site I went to I only used the Vanquish with the 5 x 8 coil, coin mode, high iron bias, horse off, sensitivity at 2 below max. The site is loaded with bottle caps and tin cans, I could see them on the surface in many areas. I hunted for 3 hours and only found a zinc mason jar lid, a large brass ring about the size of a pocket watch, two deep soda cans, the type with aluminum top and tin sides and a few other modern things like a pull tab and modern penny found on the surface. Made me wonder how much I walked over because everything was either on the surface or big. I used all three of the default mods in the first hour I had it to note the differences, and found that use of the Horseshoe button to accept all Disc. segments was useless to use in any terrain with rough-textured ground that had rocks, davits, holes, bumps, furrows or voids of any kind as it resulted in a lot of falsing. Note, too, that I live in far Eastern Oregon and the places I search are comprised of high mineralized ground which adds to the annoyance. Turn the Horseshoe function 'Off' and the annoying glitch goes away. Also, I run with the Sensitivity at the highest setting and reduce it only if there is EMI or some necessary reason to do so. With the right mode and Disc. settings, it does a very good job when it comes to handling Bottle Caps and a good share of the problem ferrous junk. abenson: At the other 2 sites, even with the small coil on, the Vanquish really struggles on targets in carpet of nails. This shouldn’t be a surprise. With the other metal detectors (I had along with small coils) targets could be detected from multiple directions. The Vanquish on a good amount of the targets could only see the target in one direction and in some cases couldn’t see the target at all. I had several targets I could see on the ground surrounded by nails but couldn’t get the Vanquish to lock onto them. I fell like if you only worked an area from one direction you would probably walk over about 50% of the good targets with the Vanquish. Not saying the Vanquish is bad, it just isn’t the right choice for a trashy ghost town. However, on a positive note. I did have one signal that the other metal detectors ID'd in the coin range and I thought for sure I had a dime or quarter. The Vanquish gave a broken tone and wouldn’t lock on, I thought crap, too much iron around for the Vanquish to pick out this good signal. Surprise, it was a flat piece of tin about the size of a half dollar. No coins found at either of these sites. Found suspender clips, watch parts, buttons, scraps of brass, etc. And if you're finding suspender clips, watch parts, buttons and scraps of brass, it shows the Vanquish 540 has the ability to also respond to coins, trade tokens, sheep ear tags and all sorts of desired small non-ferrous stuff. It just wasn't your day or the right site. Unfortunately, you used a term we all seem to use, but there isn't a defined descriptions we can all identify with, and that is "a carpet of nails." I generally spend the bulk of my hunt-time in dense Iron Nail contaminated places, and along with my Nail Board Performance test I also use three or four other 'Test Scenarios' that make use of 1-Nail, - Nails or 4-Nails to evaluate the performance of both a detector and a coil by duplicating encounters I have made afield through the years. In some testing I found the 540 to do a very good job or responding to a coin and even providing a proper numeric VDI response for that coin, but in some other testing as well as hunt-site work, the 540 does have some drawbacks, at least when compared to my two top picks for Relic Hunting dense Iron nail contaminated conditions. Those are my Nokta CoRe w/'OOR' DD and Nokta Relic w/5" DD. (I'll demonstrate that when I see you at the WTHO the first of June.) I do like the 5X8 DD, and I really like the balance and feel of the Vanquish 540, the features/functions it has, and I'm satisfied with what it can do for me and my applications. MInelab still has my unit and I tried all week to contact them with at least 5 calls each day, only to get a 'Leave a Message' recording ... so I did. My first call was answered and the gal was very courteous and helpful ... but now I'm wondering about the service. I have no doubt that they will likely say the problem is all in software and three's nothing they can do about it, and I was prepared for that. But the 'glitch' is easy to work around. abenson: At the site with deeper targets is where the gap between the Equinox and Vanquish become more apparent, and rightfully so. Vanquish settings-Coin mode (relic mode is worthless in my mineralized soil), horseshoe on, max sensitivity, low iron bias. Equinox settings-Park 1, sensitivity 22, iron bias 0, recovery 4, horseshoe on, 50 tones. The amount of iron junk at this site is moderate with good targets mixed in at various depths. I found 12-15 targets at this site with the Equinox and went over them with the Vanquish. All the targets that were co-located next to iron and less than 7 inches deep, both the Equinox and Vanquish saw (a least from one direction) and gave a good ID. I got several like 5 or 6 that were too deep for the Vanquish to ID and one gave absolutely no tone at all on the Vanquish, it was a small button at 7 inches. Other items found were large buttons, small buttons suspender clips, scrap brass and lead, shotgun brass, etc. I was out hunting yesterday at the old CCC/Internment Camp using the three modes to decide how I want to set up and 'save' my Custom mode settings. The only thing to determine is the Default mode you prefer which determines the Depth and Recovery Times, then the user-choice of Disc. segments to Accept. I double checked the use of the Horseshoe button a few times to confirm the annoying glitch, then went back to my Disc. settings. I don't have an Equinox but have compared the V-540 performance against my XP ORX w/5X9½ HF coil, Nokta CoRe and Relic w. smaller coils and their 5X9½ DD, and a Tesoro Bandido II microMAX w/6" Concentric. I do this to learn not just weaknesses of a device, but to better understand what it can do and identify the strengths it might offer me. I had the same results you mentioned, too. I found a lot of smaller-size, non-ferrous targets. The "could-have beens" but no keeper coins or tokens. But wait .... didn't I just say I am waiting for Minelab service department to finish checking out my vanquish 5e40 and sending it back to me, and then I stated I was out hunting the same days? Yep, that's what I said, because I was so impressed with what the Vanquish 5e0 can do, and the comfortable weight and balance for me and my pain and hampered mobility, that I bought a 2nd 540 Pro Pack that arrived last Monday. ► I bought it because I like it for what it can do for me. ► I bought it so that I can keep the two available search coils mounted on their own unit for a quick-grab when I arrive at a site. ►I bought it so that I can keep one of them in my vehicle at all times in my "Travel-Team." ► And I bought it knowing that the 'design glitch' was likely going to be a permanent design oversight. Something we have to live with as it likely isn't correctable, although I hope they find a way to correct it. Something they didn't figure out and correct before it went into production. abenson: Without going into a bunch of detail, I’m starting to see some trends regarding the Vanquish. First, the Vanquish struggles with small low conductors that are deep or mixed with iron trash. Second, the Vanquish just seems to cut off at a certain depth. No glimpse of any numbers, very little up averaging, just straight out slashes across the screen with iron grunt or simply no sound at all. Most other metal detectors I use at least chirp and flash a number on deep targets. Now these could be related to my mineralized soil. But I feel like it’s related to iron bias, I wish it could just be turned off. In any case the Vanquish IMO is a good park and beach machine, comes up a little short as a relic and ghost town machine. Could also be used to scout areas out and cherry pick the good signals then follow up with a better detector later. Still better than most other metal detectors in it’s price range though. I’m headed to another ghost town with it and some other metal detectors tomorrow. This time I’ll try and shoot some video and show what I’m talking about. I don't have a problem with the High / Low Iron Bias option, although in many places I don't find either choice all that useful. You pointed out the main reason I wanted to have the Vanquish in my Regular-Use Detector Outfit, and that is to keep the handy 5X8 DD coil mounted and use the V-540 as a 'Scouting Unit'. I have also used it for some "Cherry Picking" around the local p-ark Picnic Area that abounds in Bottle Caps and a lot of modern trash. What I Wish They Would Have Done .. or ... Would Do: Eliminate the 'All Metal accept' Horseshow Button. It is very easy to select one of the three factory default modes, Park, Relic or Jewelry (our USA spelling) and quickly make the changes we want to Accept the number of lower-range Disc. segment ... even to accept All of them to potentially accept all Ferrous and Non-Ferrous targets. We can also make that setting decision in the preferred default mode and SAVE that setting and performance in the Custom mode. Then, use that button as a Ground Grab feature to bob the coil and use an automated Ground Balance function. That would take care of the ground environment we are hunting, and .. if done right ... would eliminate any circuitry designed default in software.. That means, if done right, it would eliminate the design 'glitch' is has. And my 2nd Vanquish 50 has the exact same performance and design glitch as the one I want Minelab to return (fixed, if possible). Okay, so you're wondering, "What is the 'glitch?' Here it is: It relates to a default Ground Balance for the different modes as the Vanquish has a 'fixed' GB. Either an internal trimmer or more likely handled in software, but ... In the Coin and Jewelry modes, if you active the Horseshoe button to Accept all Disc. segments, then bob the search coil up-and-down from 6" to about 1", especially in a more mineralized environment, you will notice a 'Beep' on the DOWNSTROKE of the coil towards the ground. This is an indication of a Too-Positive Ground Balance behavior. But if you select the Relic mode, active the Horseshoe button and bob the search coil, you will notice a 'Beep' on the UPLIFT of the coil as you pull it away from the ground. A behavior related to a Too-Negative GB behavior. If you activate the Horseshoe button in any mode and search over ground that is especially very mineralized; or search over dirt and rocks; or hunt an area where the coil is being lifted or lowered to go over weeds, sticks, clumps of anything, or covering uneven ground, especially if it is lumpy, uneven or has holes or furrows, you are going to hear a lot of Low-Tone audio 'Beeps' caused by the imbalance. If in Coin or Jewelry it will 'Beep' as you sweep over the top f a furrow or over a bump or hump of ground, and if in Relic it will do the opposite and 'Bee' when you sweep over a hole, depression or a furrow, etc. You will think that a site is terribly littered with Low-Tone responding ferrous trash ... such as a "carpet of nails" ... when there might be none or only a few pieces of ferrous debris present. Step out in a yard or a rock bead, or use some black asphalt that is often rather 'mineralized', and bob th coil with the Horseshoe button On and then Off. You will notice the design glitch. I discovered the differences in each mode in the first 10-15 minutes of checking out the V-540. How I Deal With It: Simple. I just do NOT use the Horseshoe button. On my in-for-service Vanquish I used the Relic mode because that is the slower-sweep and deeper-detecting mode for more open areas with sparse targets. I then Accept ALL Disc. segments except the first two. Then I hunt almost anywhere without the audible 'glitch' falsing all the time. I like to hear Iron targets, or most of them, and it has been working well when I have re-hunted the places where I was very annoyed from the audio caused by the default glitchy behavior. That is the unit that will keep the 9X12 DD mounted to best handle the more open / sparse-target areas. On my 2nd V-540, I will keep the 5X8 DD mounted to better handle the trashier places with more targets encountered. For that I will use the default Jewelry mode because it seems to have more of a blend of quick-response and recovery of the Coin mode but just a little bit of behavior of the Relic mode. Again, I will Accept ALL of the Disc. segments except the first two. Note that when you use a factory designed mode and then SAVE the Disc. settings, it also saves the rest of the mode functions. You can also tell that by checking the ground falsing behavior using the Horseshoe button. Out of the box my Vanquish models had a 'positive' behavior like the Coin and Relic mode. When I used the Relic mode and selected the more open Disc. pattern and Saved it, Custom then demonstrated the Negative GB behavior of the Relic mode. One final comment. I have had three friend check their Equinox 800's using the Multi-IQ and with the 'default' ')' GB and activate the Horseshoe function and they also had similar misbehavior. THEN, they did either an Automated GB or a Manual GB and ... the falsing glitch was gone. One reason I won't use a '0' GB setting. Always GB the Equinox. Sadly, we can't with a Vanquish. Sorry to ramble. If my post is too lengthy or annoying, let me know and I'll try not to in the future, and tell Steve H. and he can scold me. Monte

I'm a Tesoro fan ... of some models ... and the Tejón isn't one of them. I hunt mainly very littered sites, especially with a dense ferrous contamination, and smaller-size coils are a must, and Double-D coils do not work so well on Tesoro models for that. I only use a 6" Concentric on my favorite Tesoro models, but use either a Concentric or DD on my other units based upon what works best for the site environments I encounter. I hunt more mineralized locations, too. As for those Bottle Caps (the pry-off type "crown caps"), they can usually be easily 'audibly classified' with smaller coils than lager-size, and a Concentric generally does it easier than with a DD. I'm curious: What types of places do you usually search that call for the use of a larger-size search coil? I presume they are relatively trash-free/target-free areas, right? Monte

Old detector and memories. Again, I enjoyed the photo. Of all the White's models from the '90s until recently, other than the XLT, my favorites have been the 5900, 6000 Pro XL/XL Pro, and a modified IDX Pro. I loved the 5900 and the only reason I let it go had to do with weight and balance. That's one of the main reasons I have been trimming my Detector outfit a lot the past couple of years, to go to lighter-weight and well-balanced models. It was good to see the 5900, although my personal preference is the all yellow display instead of the colorful back-plate. The Coin Scanner, with John Earle's 'Vari-filter' aka 3-Filter circuitry, wasn't a bad concept. Kind of ahead of its time (since we didn't see the 3-Filter White's MXT for another dozen years) and sadly it was at a rough time in this industry when Compass, like many others, was struggling and going under. I have several detectors I just listed on my Buy/Sell/Trade on my ahrps.org Forums, and maybe two more to add to the list, and if I don't count my seminar demo units, I am down to 9 or 10 detectors. All well balanced and comfortable to let me stay-in-the-game a bit longer. But after the lst couple of days I need to buy one more 'accessory' item .... a wooden cane. I use smaller-size coils most of the time but this week I worked the round 11" DD on the Simplex+ and yesterday the 9X12 DD on the Vanquish 540 and the larger-size coils sound-off if swept too close to my aluminum cane. The costs of falling apart. Close to retirement? You don't need to retire to make it to a Welcome-to-Hunt Outing ... just take some time off and come have fun. Anyone is welcome, and our 12th WTHO is in just 3 months from today! June 3rd thru 7th in Wells, Nevada. Folks use some modern digital detectors, some slightly older and more featured equipment, and in my case I have my dedicated relic hunting detectors to tackle the dense iron debris, and that includes my good-working analog, non-display Tesoro's. I'm sure you have a great selection of models to fit right in. Monte

Paul, I always envy some of the displays you have of the models you've gathered up. I've trimmed my detector count down quite a bit this past year and am at 18 now, but that's counting the Regular-Use Outfit I use, the few I have for demonstration use in seminars/presentations (the older units) and a few I still have for sale. Hopefully I'll be down to about '10' that I'll have on-hand for regular use before summer gets here. Monte

Again, I am not Paul, but I have owned and used both the Original Lobo and the latter Lobo SuperTRAQ. With the Lobo for general-use applications I enjoyed the 8" brown Concentric coil. Nabbed a 1904 Silver Morgan Dollar on my first Day I took it afield. A lot of Wheat Cents, other coins, plus a 'V' Nickel, 1904 Indian Head Cent before I took a lunch break, and a 1904 Barber Dime as my last find for the day. I called it my '04' Day. A nice day, for sure, but I didn't like the LST all that much, partly due to the Auto-Tracking All metal mode and fixed GB Disc. mode. I preferred the 'original' Lobo with manual GB that was tied in with both modes. Thus, I ran it just slightly negative GB setting . Monte

I'm not Paul, but I am and have been a very avid Tesoro user since July of '83. I have spent most of my life in the greater Portland Oregon metro area, but get away to hunt ghost towns, homesteads, pioneer and military encampments in Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, California, New México and a number of central and eastern states, as well. The bulk is in the 'west' and in locations with very high mineralization levels. Generally, I get batter depth of detection with Concentric coils, and most places I hunt 'depth' isn't a major issue due to all the shallower masking trash as sites are heavily littered. Smaller-size coils tend to perform well for me and the sites I work. There are several notable differences between the DeLeon and Cortes. I owned both when I was a Tesoro Dealer, and dumped them as they performed terribly. The Cortes was the better of the two, but gave me problems in the bad ground I hunted, especially with search coil changes. That's because with Tesoro's designs, the change of a coil often requires a change in the GB for perk performance. The first Cortes I got I took afield with the stock Concentric 8X9, plus an 8", a 7" and all Concentric, as well as a DD CleanSweep and 10X? coils It only worked with the stock coil and one other. the rest of them resulted in a lot of falsing because the GB was way off for the Discriminate mode. It had one other glitch and I sent it to Tesoro. It was returned with the other glitch taken care of, but I still had falsing with half of the coils they returned that I sent in. The external Manual GB functions with the Threshold-based All Metal mode, only. I had to open it up and located the GB trimmer inside for the Discriminate mode and 'calibrated' the GB setting (meaning I tweaked the GB trimmer for a functional setting to handle all the search coils I had). By that time I had a two more coils to check out. Through the years I have spoken with, or e-mailed with, a number of people who had one or the other of those models and had difficulty with an accessory coil falsing and/or not performing well. They, also hunted in a modest to higher mineralized environment and not a mild or mellow location. Monte

R.J. and Cal_Cobra and other who are interested. Sorry for this very tardy post to catch up on old topics. The 'topic' was originally about the Nokta / Makro Simplex+. Earlier, I said I was awaiting its arrival, but it didn't get here until Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving brings us good grub, great get-togethers opportunities, and time to reflect on things that give us thanks. It also is about introduction time to winter so it's been colder and wetter and windier and only intermittent break to get out hunting. I really am impressed with the Simplex +, even though it coms with a big 11" DD coil, but it works for some sites I hunt. What I am waiting for now is the release of one or two smaller-size coils, and I am really hoping it will be a 5" DD and 7" Concentric. Then all we need is huntable weather and some good sites to go search. Both are coming soon, so here's a reminder. R.J., you were planning a detecting trip this spring or summer and I thought I let you know about our 12th WTHO this June 3rd thru 7th. The Welcome-to-Hunt Outing will be based out of Wells, Nevada, and it looks like we might have out biggest turn-out yet of attendees. Cal_Cobra has attended in the past and know they types of challenges we can encounter in these old, out-of-use sites We have averaged 17 to 25 people on these Outings, but this year I wouldn't surprised to see that number increase to 30-35, but there are six or more ghost towns for us to spread out to and hunt. A lot of people are experienced at hunting these iron-contaminated places, and some are newer to the relic Hunting game, only having some urban Coin Hunting experiences. Most will bring their "Old Faithful" detectors along with the best coil for the task at hand, and some are going to have a newer detector they recently acquired and will have the opportunity to learn it better. Winter will be over and gone so we'll enjoy better detecting weather, meet up with some great people who attend, and have a lot of fun. Just thought I through out this reminder to you two, and also assure anyone I'll have the Simplex + along with me. I really hope I'll also have a new smaller-size coil or two for it to best tackle the dense debris, the weeds and brush, and find stuff. Monte Anyone with questions can also e-mail me:: monte@ahrps.org

Odin: Had to send my 8000 to Teknetics, because of a “GROUND GRAB’ issue. Ground Grab stopped working, I could adjust manually. Got a call back from technician, informing me that it would need a new housing and that the phone plug would only accept 1/4 inch. About a year ago and then again in January I picked up two Omega 8000's. One had a GG touchpad that didn't work every time so I also called them, thinking they could just replace the control-face decal and touchpad, but I was told the same thing. Thy didn't have it and it wasn't replaceable, and it would take a whole new control housing. The cost for that was rather high, and I wondered why they would still have Omega 8000 control housings hanging around after it was discontinued and replaced a few years ago. The cost was too high for be to budget it, and I hadn't heard of a swap for an 8500. Odin: I was ready to hang up and asked him about someone had mentioned that they had sent theirs (8000) and when they got it back, they received a new 8500. This was on the Facebook page for Teknetics. he asked “ You want a 8500?” Got it 3 days ago and tried it yesterday. clad quarter right on at88, pull tab jumpy 57 and a zinc at 77. I didn't care for the early Omega 8500 I tried, but if I would have known I likely would have taken that deal and then just sell the 8500. If your unit works OK and satisfies you, then I wish you all the best of success with it. Odin: Using discrimination with a 10 inch coil. I have a 11 DD so when and if it warms up again, I’ll try it. some say the 10 inch elliptical works better, but I always used the DD ON MY 8000. ANY THOUGHTS Yes, here are my thoughts on search coils. I got my first Omega 8000 in March of 2010 with the 3-coil package. I have never liked the 11" BiAxial coil on any of the Teknetics or Fisher models, so I sold that new coil. I used the elliptical 5½X9¾ Concentric 'standard' coil (I measure but they call it a 10" I believe) and the round 5" DD. For typical urban Coin Hunting I liked the elliptical Concentric coil, generally, but ended up swapping for a round 8" Concentric off a Delta as I liked the more accurate or efficient Pinpointing ability. So, if I had to pick between those two coils it would be the elliptical Concentric and I'd also have the 5" DD for more confined spaces. On the two Omega 8000's I had and parted with last month, I kept the 5" DD on one of them, and for day-to-day hunting I used the round 7" Concentric coil. I am using that coil now on my Fisher F44 and I'm very pleased with it. For urban uses I'd suggest you take a look at the 7" Concentric coil as it is affordable and works great. Monte

Mike, I enjoyed your initial post because I like the configuration of the Omega / G2 and G2+, and also because I really liked the Omega 8000 as an urban Coin Hunting model. Knowing that you especially enjoy Jewelry Hunting I was curious what it was about the 8500 that appealed to you. I have a dealer friend who carried some of the Teknetics models and figured I use the 'borrow' method to check one out after they were first released, but side-by-side comparisons let me down. I much preferred the audio clarity of the 8000, but the 8500 had an annoying 'clipped' audio. Much like Tom Slick mentioned. Maybe it was something with the early released models, I don't know, but it left me displeased and I stuck with the Omega 8000 and didn't invest in the newer model. Now you've left me and others wondering what detector attracted your attention and investment? Yes, I've noticed a lot of the used detector market this year as I have shifted and trimmerd a lot of models from my Oufit. Some new and some used are going for great prices .... if you're buying. But trying to thin several out I sure took a significant loss on what they would have commanded six months to a year ago. Monte

Well, I guess you ought to put this old character in the line with others who are finding their XP Deus or ORX to be a more-often-grabbed device. More than age affecting my hearing, I used to do a lot of shooting w/o ear protection, then had five incoming mortar rounds impact about 10-15 yards to my left one noisy evening in Viet Nam, and an on-the-job injury 9½ years ago ruptured my right ear drum that healed with scar tissue on the ear canal and ear drum. The USAF told me I was deaf in '82 thru '86 on the annual exam for veteran summer hire at Hill AFB, and so did the ear surgeon after my injury .... so I guess I qualify for hearing impaired. That said, I have one of my ORX control units mounted on the operating rod and the other in an XP arm band. I prefer to use my Gray Ghost XP headphones or 2nd pick would be the Back-Phones. However, in very quiet areas that are traffic-free and wind-free, I do sometimes just hunt with the speaker audio only. Overall, no problems hearing most response with the exception of some of the weaker or fainter deeper targets that might sometimes elude me. Monte

Rick N.NI: Nice report Monte. I'm thinking I need to add the 9.5x5 hf coil with my 9" hf coil. I was kind of torn between getting my ORX with the round or elliptical partly because a hunting buddy/dealer friend loves his Deus and both 9" and 11" round coils. I don't care for the Deus, personally, but the ORX got my interests up, and since the bulk of my detecting is in very littered or confined places, I favor smaller-size search coils .... have since 1971/'72. XP doesn't have a smaller-size coil, so I went with the 5X9½ HF DD coil because it was their smaller coil, and I consider this to be a mid-size, just as I consider a round 7" coil to be mid-size. Rick N.NI: I am really liking this detector. It is becoming my main detector. My main hunting will be in lakes and the waterproof kit works great. No problems. I keep the waterproof container with the box inside of my waders. And that is almost the same 'problem', if you will, that I have. I liked the ORX w/5X9½ HF so much that it has become one of my favorite detectors to grab at many hunt sites. The other 'problem' I have is that I do have other favorites, some of which have held that classification for quite some time. They became a favorite and haven't really been 'bumped' due to a much improved unit taking its place. One of the reasons the ORX is a great 'fit' in my arsenal is that, due to age, health issues and mobility limitations, I just can't get out and about like I used to or put in the time I would like to, and a lighter-weight, well-balanced detector helps me last a little longer. Rick N.NI: Give the Gold modes a try. In tests It seems to separate better and goes very deep on gold. I can't gold nugget hunt like I did in the '70s and '80s, but I try. Gold jewelry, and silver, is always welcome when I'm Coin Hunting. I spend most of my time in brushy and iron littered Relic Hunting environments the bulk of the time and "separation" is only part of the process that makes a detector/coil combination perform well. Some models are quick-response and fast-recovery performers when dealing with a lot of closely-spaced accepted targets, but lack the needed circuitry design to recover-and-respond when also taking on nails and other ferrous trash that is a rejected target because they can't recover well from handling the rejection process. I'll be tinkering with the ORX Gold programs now that 'cabin fever season' has arrived. *** +++ *** +++ *** +++ *** +++ *** +++ *** +++ *** Ridge Runner: Monte If would makes myself just keep that 5X9 on but my trouble is I’m in love with the 9” round HF coil . That 9” is my go to coil and it’s hard to turn my back on it. Trust me, I know what you're saying. For over five decades now I have maintained more than one detector (usually 2 to 5 and others up in the 10 to baker's dozen count) that are each equipped with my preferred search coil. Some models I don't even have a standard coil for or any extras, and a few I do, IF I plan to occasionally use them. I keep extra coils on lower rods in my Accessory Coil Tote, but seldom get in there because each detector sports the coil I am most often going to use. For example, I have 4 Tesoro's (2 models and 2 back-up duplicates) and all of them keep a 6" Concentric coil mounted because that's the only coil I like to use on them. A 6½" Concentric stays on my modified IDX Pro, 7" Concentric stays on my F-44, and an 'OOR' DD on my FORS CoRe. I have 2 FORS Relic's and keep a 5" DD on the most used device, and a mid-size 5X9½ on the other. Much like my ORX models, of which I bought a 2nd. My most-used is with the 5X9½ DD HF coil, but I like the round 9" X35 coil for other applications, and to keep both coils ready-to-use, they are set with their own ORX. Ridge Runner: I can’t say the other wouldn’t be as good but at my age I don’t want to waste my energy to find out. Well, I guess I've been "wasting energy" a lot over the years, but that's fine. I usually can tell in a short period of time by the testing I do. Due to age and health I have to budget that evaluation time, but it doesn't take long because it has to come close to matching what other units I own and use can do. Ridge Runner: I’ve got it and just need to make myself put it on until I know it. I say that because I don’t think you put a different coil on for a day and say you know what all that coil can do for you. Just mount that coil and do some comparisons. Since you like your XP and round 9" coil, do some quick-and-simple side-by-side comparisons to see if it comes close to the performance you currently enjoy. That's what I do, and it doesn't have to do them a lot better, just do them well enough that you're pleased with the results. The key I look for in evaluating any detector/coil combination to see what it CAN'T do for certain applications I would be using it for. As an example, I wouldn't expect a detector with a 9" or 10" or 11" coil to keep up with the performance I get from a Tesoro w/6" when working tot-lots with a lot of metal structures so that wouldn't be a fair comparison to reject a model. But if it is touted to perform really well in a very iron nail contaminated site, then I have two Test Scenarios I use to compare it against units I have that work exceptionally well. If the new-to-me detector & coil CAN'T come close to matching their performance for that applications, then I have no need for it. Some makes & models can make very good "multi-purpose" detectors for Relic Hunting as well as urban Coin Hunting needs, but others can't so they become more of a specific-application type model. I own and use both. Ridge Runner: When I say energy I’m talking due to age I have only so much each day. When young I always had a full tank of gas. As time is passing me bye I find my tank on most days may not be over half full. Then like some here health problems can shorten that energy level even more. I've been waiting at the pump for a while to get service. Injured my back at Compass in Sept. '88 and that started the slow-down process. I could still get in a full day of hunting, but sometimes it was a little slower. Diabetic issues and other ailments came to visit in '90 and never left. Back got worse, was assigned a cane in March of '93 and impaired mobility started to get in the way and has really limited my hunt-time ever since. Steadily declining as age increased and balance and mobility have decreased. I even decided this weekend that I'm going to further trim some of my all-time favorite detectors from my Outfit because I just can't hunt for long anymore, especially if they are just kind-of on the heavier side. To keep having fun and enjoying myself and maybe increase my hunt time to a couple of hours a day, I have to trim my Outfit to the lightest and better-balanced detectors I can tolerate. Naturally my two ORX devices are setting a standard to compare others with. Monte

'ukaradag' said: I need some help. I want to buy a detector. But my budget is limited (say i can buy a garret 400i or a fisher gold bug 2). I'd suggest you forget investing in a lower quality or inferior performing detector for such a special-purpose and challenging goal you have. You might be better served by investing in a better quality, mid to upper-end model in the used detector market, if your funds are limited. For your goal, and considering a popular or conventional model in the VLF operating frequency range, you would be best served by having a detector with a true, Threshold-based All Metal mode and especially one with manual Ground Balance. You will also have to invest in a larger-size search coil more capable of attaining the detection depths you speak of. This might put a reasonable detector 'package' above your "limited budget" amount. 'ukaradag' said: For me the depth is important after that iron discriminatin comes. The real importance is having a good idea of the size and shape of an accumulated mass and description of the individual target size as well as alloy content of the individual targets, and maybe a documented location and depth of the cache you are looking for. Also, it is really better if you have some knowledge or documentation of the hidden wealth and know if it is in some type of container AND just what type of material the container is made of. You mention the 2nd thing of importance is "iron discrimination." Why is that? It suggests to me that the cache of gold coins you are looking for have been hidden inside some sort of iron container. If so, THAT CAN BE A GOOD THING! Iron (a ferrous object) has a greater effect on an Electro-Magnetic Field that a comparable-size non-ferrous object. If the desired objects you are looking for have been hidden in an iron container, you do NOT want to use any Discrimination that could have a negative impact on performance, and you DO want to use a search mode that would be more responsive to such an object. Keep in mind that if the gold coins are inside any type of enclosed metal container, you are not going to detect the coins. Instead, you want to be looking for the container. 'ukaradag' said: I wil use it for gold prospecting (!check the picure, with gold what i mean). The depth is around 3 or 4 feet. Can you give me some advises for getting a detector? You are looking for minted or processed gold and not raw, native gold, and it is in an accumulation. That is not 'gold prospecting' but in the category of Cache Hunting. The key comment here that would interest me is knowing the depth. If it was passed down in conversation, or was it written down to be more accurate? I started metal detecting in 1965 and took on my first Cache Hunt by early '69. Through the following decades I have been contracted quite a few times to search for hidden caches, and in most of those cases the 'depth of detection' was not the same as the individuals had suggested. Most often it was less (shallower) and that made the target more easily detectable. 'ukaradag' said: What kind of detector can detect this kind of treasure? My first search by '69 was with a BFO using a large search coil as ground cancelling VLF detectors had not been made, yet, for the recreational or hobby-end market. Since '75 my contract searches have been handled using a VLF detector, almost always using a Threshold-based All metal mode, and with a detector operating in the 5 kHz to 15 kHz range. Search coils I most often used ranged from a round-shaped 9½" diameter to just a little over 15" diameter. The largest measured over 16". Also, when I was told that these various cached objects were hidden at a depth of 3 feet to 5 feet, they were very wrong. The largest hole was dug to about a 30" to 36" depth, and that's 2½ feet to 3 feet. Most were a bit shallower. And that was the depth to the bottom of the hole. The hidden container's BOTTOM was that deep, but the rest of the container and top of the container was naturally much shallower. Monte

I spend the bulks of my time in Relic Hunting environments where my greatest interest is in old Coins, Trade Tokens, buttons and other artifacts-of-interest ... all the whole dealing with modest to totally frustrating ferrous debris. Nails and cut wire are one thing, but all the other ferrous junk, especially rusty tin and shards of decaying cans, present a different challenge. Been at it for decades and favor smaller-size coils, but the XP folks won't produce a smaller-size coil for us, and I didn't/don't care for the Deus anyway. But with the arrival of the ORX as well as the 5X9½ DD HF coil (mid-sized and not small but an improvement), I added a new ORX w/5X9½ HF coil to my Detector Outfit the first of June. Impressed, I made a few adjustments trimming my arsenal, then bought another new ORX late September/early October with the 9" X35 DD coil. Just wanted to see what it offered me in performance and I like it for some urban Coin Hunting in open grassy parks and such, and might grab it for open plowed fields or rangeland. But my favorite set-up is my ORX w/slender HF coil that I specifically assigned to my Relic Hunting Detector Team. As the year draws to a close for many detecting opportunities due to the drop in temperature and arrival of snow this week, I'm going to do some more thinning of detectors, but the two ORX & coil packages are going nowhere. I need them due to my age, bad health and impaired mobility, and their light-weight and comfortable performance are letting me hang in there to continue to enjoy this great sport. You said you ordered the 5X9½ HF coil about June, I believe, so with 5-6 months of working it I am curious what you think of it for your sites and coin-finding abilities. care to share your preferred settings? I hope you have a milder winter season than many of us will have to deal with, and if you get out, the best of success to you. Monte PS: I'm naturally interested in other's experiences as well w/ORX, the elliptical HF coil, and how it handles the types of cite environments they hunt.

To RobNC: 'Thank You' for the reply to my questions. You're fortunate to have the permission for that property for so long ... and also to know that is still can produce the occasional good find for you. You mentioned a few models I can relate to and that got me drifting back down memory lane for a bit, only to flash forward to my newest detectors. I've been doing some serious cleaning in my den the past couple of months to get rid of old paperwork (or clutter) and gather up my notes and past efforts so I can work on finishing my metal detecting book this winter. We don't get a lot of snow where I live, but the cold weather is arriving in the next day or two that will keep me from going out to play. I came across some of the older 'keeper' coins I've found and a note that listed where and when I found them and the detector and coil I used. Most of the choice older coins came from a site I had permission for. It was an unoccupied site, a good chunk of my favorite ghost town, that others have hunted through the years simply because it was there. A few had been chased off by misguided government folks, but I never had a worry or a problem. I hit it first in early May of '69 and then when I had a whim to travel out to it through the years, but that was with earlier BFO and TR or TR-Disc. models. I found stuff, but the efforts with the old equipment was fun but not pleasurable, if you know what I mean. Then in July of '83 Tesoro introduced their Inca with slow-motion silent-search Discrimination that gave us quick-response and fast-recovery performance and handled nails and iron trash quite well. Since that July, 36 years ago, that townsite, that I had named 'Twin Flats' Utah became my all-time favorite hunt site. Not just favorite ghost town, but hunt site. I filled 4 binders with 2X2 carded coins and had more left to clean and card. I haven't had a chance to get back to it the past several years or else it was choked up with dense, tall weeds, plus it has since changed ownership and I'll need to track down the current owner for permission. But on reflection, while I have used many models from different manufacturers, at least 95% of all the good finds it has surrendered came my way when I had a Tesoro model in-hand. My production really picked up and held pretty steady ever since the 'original' Bandido was released (March of '90), and the Bandido, Bandido II and Bandido II microMAX (they used the term µMAX) were my favorite models. Today, I keep two of the Bandido II microMAX units in my Detector Outfit, and it is one of the models I use when evaluating any make or model for handing iron nail contaminated sites. I don't hesitate to take one afield with the 6" Concentric coil I keep mounted to it because it is a proven performer. Not the deepest detector, but still an excellent general purpose unit for iron contaminated sites. The T2 series, and I've had each variant and currently the T2+, has been a very good model for me, especially with the 5" DD coil in heavy litter, but even this model with built-in DST is only a little better when it comes to handling a challenging EMI bothered site. The XP ORX, however, and I have two of them now, uses bigger-size coils (I have the 5X9½ HF on one and the round 9" X35 on the other) but is hardly bothered by EMI, and my 5 User Coin program has the Sensitivity saved at '99'. I love the overall package design, ergonomics, balance and simplicity of the T2's, but they have all been more chatty than most anything else. Monte

Chase started a good topic, but like many forum posts, it seems we can often drift off-topic in different directions. So, I'll respond to the point about 'Why' a Simplex+, especially if we have an assortment of up-line / higher-cost detectors, which I do. My decision was rather simple to make, and my Simplex+ has been shipped and I hope delivery will be in time for a detecting jaunt over the holiday weekend that's coming up. My reasons for a Simplex+ are: #1.. My experiences with the build quality of the Nokta / Makro products going back to January 8th of 2015. That's almost 5 years using solidly-built, durable detectors. #2.. Very impressive in-the-field performance they have provided. #3.. The company's dedication and devotion to listen to and take action as needed to satisfy the end-user consumer base. #4.. A market share they had not directly competed with is the "entry-level" or "low-end" market, and they worked the R&D part to produce a very reasonable product in their initially planned Simplex, and then went above-and-beyond to add, change, and enhance this model by time of release. The end result is a product that is attractive and ergonomically appealing, with an ample number of useful and functional features that even some experienced detectorists don't have on the mid-line to higher-priced model! #5.. And to top that off, they packaged it in a waterproof, submersible unit for an even broader range of usefulness and consumer appeal. And it's all packaged at a retail price that makes it a very handy detector to have on-hand for an entry-level user to get started with a more sophisticated model, or an Avid detectorist to carry with them full-time with a little more comfort about the device being in their vehicle. Additionally, I haven't seen anything else, offered by any competitor, that was in a close retail price range that came close to offering comparable features. I also have faith that it won't take Nokta / Makro long to develop two or three accessory coils to enhance the versatility of the Simplex+ ... at reasonable prices, too. I am not getting the Simplex+ to try and replace anything in my current Detector Outfit, but instead to simply 'complement' my Outfit to add more fun and pleasure on future detecting jaunts. Monte

RobNC: I have spoke with the family that owns the land, and their grandfather had a brother that was in WW1. I will be giving this find to them. It's their history, not mine. A kind and generous thing to do. You have several detectors, so do you mind what detector and coil you used that day? You also said you hunted this location "many years ago" so I'll presume you're using a different detector set-up now. Have you offered / invited. and of the owners to join you in your adventure? I ask because you have multiple detectors, as I do, and for decades I have had at least one detector on-hand that I use to either try an invite in order to gain permission, or just to provide that opportunity to folks who have already said 'OK.' More often than not I will get a lead from a property owner to search a different property, or invitation to work a family member's property. That's a main reason I added the Fisher F-44 to my Outfit, to use for family and friends, and to provide a detector for a property owner to use and join in the search. Congrats on having a permission to hunt, and best of success on your next visit. Monte

Hand recovery tools? I have a few and have tried a lot through the years. One that I have ready for 'quick-hits' is the Lesche Digger. I like mine and it has worked well for a long, long time. Longer than the one I had that wore out quickly and bent, and longer than a couple my friend Chris had years ago that broke. Two of them snapped in half. Our experiences, and that of another fellow we heard from, happened sometime between '98 and '04, but the one I use now has lasted for over 15 years so I guess manufacturing changed and I have a good one. When I say "quick-hits' it is one I keep with a knee pad I need to use. When I put on the knee pad I run the top strap through the digger's sheath so I have the Lesche strapped to the outside of my left knee and lower leg. However, even though the Lesche Digger has held up well, the sheath is getting pretty ragged. On my gear belt I currently have a White's DigMaster as my regular-use digger, and it is holding up well and works fine, but .... Even though it is sturdy and works well, the handle is kind of oversized for my hand. I have shorter fingers and with arthritis, age and loss of strength and mobility it has a fatty feel and isn't as comfortable feeling as the Lesche. Otherwise I like it and it works, that's the main thing. I've tried some other diggers and still have one or two in my 'extra' tote that are new and I offer them to folks on an Outing if they don't have a good tool. I've tried the Hori Hori digger and other different-looking tools but just didn't care for them. I did buy a new tool this week, which also marked the first time I have ever purchased anything on ebay! It's due to arrive tomorrow and is the Stanley FATMAX BDS7236 gardening digging knife. I liked the look of the handgrip, and have used a similarly-tipped tool before that handled plug-cutting in grassy areas just fine. Besides, the price, delivered, was only $14.95 and I figured it was reasonably affordable to check out. It will likely be my new 'quick-hit' recovery tool. Now, all I need is a smaller bladed shovel with a 'D' handle that is very light-weights and can take the place of my cane. So light weight but sturdy and being the proper length is important. Monte

Manny ... I enjoy my ORX w/5X9½ HF DD coil as you were using, but haven't had success YET in some of the Eastern Oregon gold mining ghost town areas I hunt. My age and impaired mobility have limited my mobility afoot, but I plan on getting a side-by-side RUV for next year's adventures. That will let me maneuver into more of their prospecting areas. Now all I need to do is spend this coming cabin-fever season to work on some settings and mode picks to be ready for the challenge. Would you mind sharing the op. frequency and settings that brought you that success afield? I, and others, would appreciate the input. Thanks, Monte

A tardy congratulations on your very good success! I have to agree with your comment about the XP ORX. I bought a brand new ORX package earlier this year with the 5X9½ HF DD coil. While versatile for many uses I mainly got it for working some of the iron littered ghost towns I hunt out west. Then in October I got a hold of my dealer again and bought another ORX package with the 9" X35 coil. 'Kickindirt,' my dealer, is a devoted fan of the Deus but I never liked it, preferring 'simplicity.' His enthusiasm for the Deus, however, kept my interest up and with the new ORX on the market we have 'Simplicity' yet ample 'Functional' adjustments and terrific in-the-field 'Performance.' They don't replace the other models I've kept in my Outfit but certainly do complement them. I hope you got out more since that July post and had comparable success. Monte

Tag1260 ... A lot of the resulting performance you get will be determined by the type of hunting you do, such as average urban Coin Hunting sites or remote Relic Hunting in very dense nail and other ferrous junk conditions. Also the particular make and model detector in use because some work fine with one type of coil and not so well with another type of coil based on the site challenges. We can't ignore the fact that some circuitry designs like a Double-D coil better than a Concentric and visa-versa., and search coil size can also make a big difference. I've been Coin Hunting since early '65 and relic Hunting since mid-'69. I've used a variety of search coil types and usually, when I have a choice I'll favor a Concentric designed coil, but not always. In '71 I started using some of the first Double-D coils offered in this hobby market and enjoyed their general performance and behavior with the brands I used because they were designed to work well with that coil design. Today I have a good selection of detectors in my regular-Use Outfit and all have a preferred coil mou8nted, with some being a DD design and others a Concentric. I did like a few DD's on select Tesoro models, but overall the Concentric coils have been the best performing choices for most of my hunting, and that's generally going to be in heavily nail infested sites with other debris to deal with. The DD's do not work so well with the Tesoro circuitry designs in side-by-side comparisons. In most site environments, the bulk of the coins and jewelry are not all that deep and for those applications I believe the topic of 'depth' is overhyped. Bigger coils also do not work as well in a site with abundant trash targets that cause more good-target masking, whereas a smaller-size coil has the benefit of performance in its favor. On my current 13 detectors, the largest size coil I keep mounted is a round 9" DD on one of my XP ORX units and the other ORX supports a 5X9½ DD. All the rest keep a coil on them full-time that runs from a 4.7X5.2 DD on a Nokta CoRe, a 5" DD on my Nokta Relic's, to a 6" Concentric on all four of my Tesoro's, to a 6½" Concentric on my White's IDX Pro and XLT, to a 7" Concentric on a Fisher F44 and Makro Racer 2. I have these coils mounted for the most frequent everyday use I'll grab them for, but I do have a few larger-size search coils in my Accessory Coil Tote for those times when I feel a want or need for a bigger coil. For reasons I am not very partial to the Compadre, but the Vaquero is a much more versatile performer. I would look for a 6" Concentric for it and NOT the DD, aka Wide-Scan,. The Concentric will provide better all-purpose performance afield, but I found the 6" Concentric coils to be noticeably heavier than the same-size 6" Concentric I use on my Bandido II microMAX and Silver Sabre microMAX. By the way, the 5.75 name was simply a dumb marketing move taking after White's lame idea to call some of their coils 5.3 when in reality they measure 6½" in diameter. The Tesoro 5.75, when measured, is actually a 6" diameter coil. Hopefully you've had some favorable weather to check out the 8X9 Concentric. I think you've found it to be a decent search coil for the Vaquero. Monte

Diggin' It: I prefer to use a quality Alkaline battery, and very seldom use a rechargeable battery of any type. When I do, it is a NiMH. I do have some on-hand, including the (white) Eneloops and Varta. I NEVER use a Rayovac of any type, and haven't since '87/'88. Even back then, doing a lot of battery comparisons in both metal detectors and flashlights (which I have more of than I do detectors) I got much better run-time with just about any other brand. Sometimes I get a detector in a trade and the seller has installed brand new Rayovac, so I use them up to check operating performance/duration. Never as good as what I use. GB_Amateur: Yes, I have used the Costco 'house-brand' 'Kirkland' AA alkaline batteries and have for a long time. I remember when they used to cost $10.xx for a 48-pack and the last time I bought them they were $12.00 for a 48-pack (here in the USA). When I checked with Costco corporate years ago I was told they were made for them by Proctor & Gamble, the same folks who make the Duracell batteries. And what you have found is quite true, and that is not all alkaline batteries are the same. I have had very little to no problems at all with the Duracell and Kirkland AA alkaline batteries, nor with the Varta or Nuon batteries. I also buy a 60 pack from the Albertson's grocery store that last well and without problems. I believe the last package cost me just pennies less than $11. On occasion I find a "house brand" 'JobSmart' offered by Tractor Supply that are on sale for something like $5 for a pack of 36 or 48 and I'll buy several packs, especially during a busier detecting season, or when headed off on an Outing to be prepared for some of the participants who sometimes forget to come prepared with extra batteries. I still got an average run-time hours of operation run-time in my Nokta / Makro CoRe, Relic, Racer 2 and Impact and White's MX-7, IDX Pro and XLT models. But I prefer (alphabetically) Duracell, Energizer, Kirkland and Nuon brands of alkaline batteries, and haven't been let-down by Panasonic or those I get from Albertsons grocery or Tractor Supply. Monte.

I'm very familiar with the Aurora vicinity and know that some of the older farm sites attracted a fair amount of local activity and have some worthy potential. A fair amount of research can help track down any popular-use locations to try and secure permission for. Not just near Aurora but many early-era sites in the Willamette Valley. Five of my eight Large Cents came from those places, and Large Cents are not a frequently found target in the west like they can be back east. Come spring/summer detecting season you're welcome to contact me, if you're trying to find an old ghost towns or two to hunt over on this side of the Cascade Range. And if you're planning on making a 2-week detecting journey in May, you're going to keep yourself very busy with a lot of travel time, and likely less detecting adventure, if you plan to travel and hunt in five or more states. Trust me, I've taken on that experience numerous times over the past 5+ decades, but I've found it better to narrow my travelling and dedicate more time to site selection and patiently working them well. Matter-of-fact, we haven't organized our Welcome-to-Hunt Outings yet for 2020, but each year, starting in 2015, we have hosted at least 2 Outings that usually span a 4-day get-together, and those have primarily been Relic Hunting types affairs working ghost towns. We have a really great bunch of people from several states who have participated, and we average 17 to 25 people per Outing event. If you're interested, drop me an e-mail with your Name, Mailing Address, Phone and E-Mail contact address and I'll put you on the WTHO Contact List to be informed. That information is not shared. While your planned 2-week adventure could include any type of hunting, from beaches to urban coin sites, to rural relic-type locations, I'm going to guess that you enjoy the more iron-infested Relic Hunting types of sites, correct? Do you mind sharing what make/model detectors you rely on to work those sites and the search coils you prefer to use? Until more favorable weather returns, I wish you the best of success through these wintry months. Once my Simplex + arrives I plan to work in a cross-state journey just for a coastal beach hunt. Maybe we can meet up for a visit when I do. Monte