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I'm glad I went ahead and got mine from Cabela's (sorry, dealers). Last week I added up all my gold/silver finds since I sarted hitting the beach with it (sometime around Jan 25th) and it's already halfway paid for itself in melt value.

Thank you! I was rather proud of my new toy and have *almost* forgiven MineLab for all those Nox broken coil ears. 😁

Just plain old vanillla normal.

It was broken so the clasp that would have been stamped was gone. It acid tested at 14K. We were all kinda blown away that any machine would pick up something that small. But it did.

Ya'll, the more I swing this thing the more I love it. Beach low conductor, 22 sensitivity, 6 recovery speed. 14 K chain. I think it was about 2 inches down. There were 3 of us hunting together today. Me with my Manti on Beach Low conductor, another guy with a D2, and another with a Manti on Beach General. Deus 2 on any program and Manti on Beach General and Beach Deep did NOT see it, even right on top of it. I think beach low conductor is the way to go if you're looking for the small gold everybody else misses.

I wondered about cutting an inch or 2 off the end. I ruled that out as I'm fairly certain that doing any type of cutting on any part of the detector would null and void that warranty instantly. And there's no way I'm doing that after all my troubles with my 800. In the 3 years I used it under warranty I know MineLab replaced every piece of it at least once and some of it twice. I don't think that will be the case with this MC, but as pricey as it was we'll be keeping it under warranty. As I use my MC more I seem to be subconsiously adjusting my swing to avoid the elbow bump. I didn't even really notice the extra long piece at the top yesterday. Maybe I'm just getting used to the different "feel" of it vs. the 800.

So I'm guessing if I try it the warranty will be voided. Might just have to get used to it.

Oh yeah, I had totally forgotten about the Daytona part. 🤣 I hate gettin' old. $3 an hour!!! You need to move east. Most of us locals here in Volusia County get a wonderful thing called a "beach driving pass" for $25 a year. Drive the Can-Am Spyder right onto the beach and park it at a conservation pole. Not finding much? Hop back on it and drive down the beach to a different spot. Sometimes Hubby and I make a day of it. We start at Ormond and drive (on most of it) all the way down past Dunlawton looking for cuts and low places for me to hunt. Paradise, I tell ya! Straight up Paradise! 😁

"B" is one of my detecting friends. I'm not going to say exactly where he lives but you can probably figure out a general location from my info. Super nice guy. Come on down here and visit us! I can give you some hints on where to park and which areas are your best chance to find something good. The beaches are sanded back in again but it was high 70's/low 80's most of last week.

And those tiny little copper? nails. Of which my beach has a bazillion. And I've personally dug about half of those in the past 4 years. 😁

Thank you! I didn't think it would be any more difficult to take off/reposition than my Nox was. I know I did it because MineLab had to replace my pod for me and all they sent was the pod in a box. I don't remember much about it but I'm sure I got the old one off somehow. Does anybody know if it will void my warranty if I try it on my MC?

I've had my Manti for a couple weeks now after running an 800 for 4 years. Yes, I had to order from Cabela's. I haven't been out with it as much as I'd like-work, life etc. I probably have about 25 hours on it so far. What I don't like- Not much. It was pricey, but we already knew that. Was it worth that $1600 price tag? The jury is still out on that one. Ask me in about 6 months. That target trace doesn't seem to be particularly useful for me, at least on iron identification. I've always hunted "by ear". Seems like every time I glance down at it I kinda already know what it will look like because it's already "told" me through the headphones. I don't think it's handling EMI as well as I had hoped. Not a huge deal as we don't have many cellphone towers in my favorite spots. It seems to be constructed for male/long-armed people, which I am not. When I have the arm cuff all the way down to make it comfortable to swing the top of the shaft kinda bumps my elbow. My buddies say it's because I swing like a girl. Whatever. 😅 The screws holding the pod on there aren't regular screws-they look like they need one of those tiny little allen wrench things you get for assembling boxed furniture. I think when I find one that will work and move the pod up on the shaft a couple inches, then adjust the lower cam-locks accordingly it will "fit" me better. 1st photo. If anybody has a clue what I need for this please let me know. It does false on iron, especially the deeper stuff. No way to sugarcoat that. I just do my usual "rotate 90 degrees and if I get a clean signal both ways dig it". I'm finding that many times when I think it's falsing and I dig there are actually 2 targets in the hole. I got a mercury dime right next to an iron bolt 2 days ago! What I like- It was extremely easy to transition to from an 800. The menu is easy enough for a beginner but has enough customizition options to make a seasoned detectorist happy. The build quality is much better, it's better balanced and I'm no longer afraid to hose down my detector when I'm done. Yay. The recovery speed is much faster and target separation is way better. Those trashy, iron-infested areas where I had to slow way down with my Nox to hear every target I can now plow right through without feeling like I might be missing something. I'm not sure what MineLab did different with this machine, but there's no doubt in my mind that it does go deeper than an Equinox. Example. 1st hunt-it got a tiny 10K gold chain bracelet that I'm pretty sure was about 4-6 inches down...in the rough surf. (2nd photo) I don't believe my 800 would have gotten it, what do my fellow Noxians think? I guess the easist way to explain the difference is this. You know when you're swinging your 800 in the sand and you hit a tiny little target that rings up a 1-6? And you get it in the 1st scoop nearly every single time? I'm finding with my MC that many times it's takiing 2 or even 3 scoops to get those tiny targets out. Which is a good thing because sometimes they're tiny little 10K bracelets. 😁 My verdict so far. Equinox 800's big brother-on steroids.

"Pay with cash upon delivery." Something about this one doesn't seem right..... Maybe I'm just paranoid.

The 2 best things about Daytona beaches-1. Tons of free parking beachside (when they get all the hurricane-damaged parks back open). 2. In the 5 years I've lived here I've never seen a dredge pipe or truck full of sand dumping it on the beach.

Just teasin' ya! I'd probably be the same way if I lived somewhere there was a reasonable chance of diggin' something over 200 years old. I'm a bit curious though. Do you have to turn over every coin you find to to the government antiquities people or is it just "significant" stuff?

The hunting was great for a month or so after Ian. t's been sanded back in for the past 2 weeks. What we need is a 20 mph north wind for about 3 days. 😁

Yeah, those park rangers are real Debbie Downers sometimes, huh? 😁

Ya'll "Old Country" people just love to yank our collective "New World" chains don't you? I find a 100 year old wheat penny and I'm like "Heck Yeah, Baby!" 😅

Well, I ordered mine through Cabela's this morning. It's being processed, so maybe it won't get cancelled. I wish I could have supported a detector dealer, but I'm just sick and tired of this epoxied, Gorilla-taped, zip-tied Equinox that still wobbles every time I swing it. I'm supposed to get it Friday. I'm doing a little experiment starting Sunday morning. (Saturday will be a bone-chilling 55 degrees and weekends are workdays for me anyway). I'm going to see how long it takes to pay for itself in clad and scrap price gold/silver. I'll post my results periodically if anyone is interested. I live near a popular tourist beach, and go detecting 3-4 days a week so it shouldn't take long. Maybe. We'll see. 😁

She needs a detector of her own so she can go with you! I tried to get my kids interested when they were younger. Looks like you might have better luck than me if you start early with her.

I think most of the "MineLab Dealers" are really independent entities with no real affiliation with MinelLab at all.

Chase, it's more a matter of gotta have something to detect with. I go 2-3 times a week minimum and it's my work-out routine. I'm afraid my poor Equinox (my only practical beach machine) is on it's last legs. Both coils are sort-of zip-tied on those "ear support" things and wobbly. I can't get it wet because it's out of warranty. The headphones refuse to pair up without multiple tries most of the time. The battery is probably about to die as it won't last more than 5 hours or so on a full charge. The shaft lock things are loose. It's had a rough 4 years, but has paid for itself many times over, so I really can't complain too much. Yes, I could spend the money to upgrade it, but I'd rather save that cash for a new something with a warranty. Honestly, it will be retired and probably sit in the garage as a back-up when I get a Manti.

I would if they actually had any in stock or even an ETA. MiineLab is really dropping the ball here as far as supporting their dealers. It seems like Cabela's is getting the bulk of the first shipment.

I just did the live chat thing. No, they don't do the discount, but they do their own 5% military discount. That's a $160 difference if I wait. Seems like back in the day right after Cabelas started getting boatloads of Equinoxes then their dealers did too within a few weeks/days. Decisions, decisions....

I have one in my cart! Does anybody know if they do the military discount? It was supposed to be my Christmas present from Hubby.