Minelab Explorer/Etrac question

I have never used any of the Explorer or Etrac models but wouldn't mind trying one sometime. I have heard over the years that they were the Cadillac of detectors in their day and still are very good. I don't know anything about them and was wondering which one would be a good one to get, Explorer, Explorer 2, Etrac, etc. And are they hard to setup and use and are they as heavy as I have heard that they are. Thanks!

I would opt for Etrac as ID system easier to catch on to call explorers especially if finding old coins is your goal.
How hard to run.
Etrac was my second detector after short stint with White's V3i. Etrac was easy.
Chances are slim and none you'll ever dig a solo bottle cap.

Just becoming familiar with ID system as far as where the ID coins come in, and learning detector tendencies over deeper iron. One is off to the races.
Few settings actually.
Deep turf detecting,
Noise cancel
Manual sensitivity 27
Variability to 29/30.
Disc setting of 28.
Conductive multi tones.
Choose type ground.

No ground balance to do. Balances itself.

That's about it.
Keep swing speed slower version faster.
And be digging 9"'deep plus coins pretty quick (if they exist).

Weight- yeah heavy and not balanced too well.
One can put harness on if they use for longer periods. I did this.
Oem battery ok. Aftermarket lithium better!!

Screen can be harder to see with sunlight glare. Screen is more old school for view ability.

Cheers.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/29/2021 12:23PM by tnsharpshooter.

The Etrac as it even has a 4 tone option if the multi tones becomes too much which it did for me. I am probably one of few who preferred 4 tones but it cut down the learning curve for me and seem to also make lower conductor coins stand out more.

Tn-sharpshooter gives good advice. I would add :

The Etrac had a better pinpoint mode (the VCO growl ). And a few other bells and whistles. But as far as depth and needed-bells go, I do not think it is any better than the Exp. II predecessor. And the benefit to the Exp. II predecessor was, that it had a "sweeter spot" for high conductors. Ie.: Almost as if you could tell a silver dime from a copper penny. Something that the Etrac lacked. So for this reason, many persons who came up through the ranks preferred to stick with their Exp. II.

I know you didn't SE incarnation per se, but it suffered criticism of depth loss (harder to ID deeper targets, without ample scrutiny. Versus the Exp. II which tended to get it on the "first swing over").

As far as ability to harness the "cadillac" reputation, I would suggest that you join up with persons proficient with it. To trade off flagged signals for comparison. Otherwise, it will simply sound like a flock of sick geese. But once the lights go on, then it's: "Game on"

Thanks for all your replies, I will watch some videos.

There should be lots of good videos out there on the eTrac.

I liked the coil options of the eTrac a lot. There were some great coils for it.

With you never running one of these machines, you'll have to get used to SLOWING DOWN vs what you have been running. I personally liked the eTrac more so than even the CTX 3030 for inland hunting. The only reason I preferred the CTX was for beach hunting and water hunting.

It's hard for me to believe the eTrac is nearly 14 years old. Where does time go.

The E-Trac/Explorer/CTX are all really good units. REALLY good! But....... you may want to reconsider the EQX........for........(possibly) unsuspecting reasons. No....... not for it's light-weight. I'm referring to its real-World performance. The Operating System is much further advanced...in its ability to 'adjacent target separate'.......better than CTX (or E-Trac/Explorer). Even if you slow down the sweep-speed of the CTX...... this only (partially) helps in catching up to the performance of the EQX. What's crazy is: The CTX and the EQX have nearly identical depth performance on single (solo) targets. BUT..........the REAL difference is: If you hunt a fairly trashy area..........the EQX (hands-down) will give you many more targets to select from. , . , . , . , . , . , . do to its ability to isolate (and accentuate) close targets..........and much-better separate them......to include uncanny ID abilities. ---------- If I bring you into my test-garden and demonstrate the E-Trac, CTX and EQX........ I can prove to you...... there is no need to get a EQX. Period! -------- UNTIL.................................... I take you out into the real-World! THAT'S where the difference; herein, lies! REAL World.

I have been using an Etrac as my primary detector since 2013. I hunt for silver coins in old parks and yards. I have tried many other detectors and consider the Etrac to be the best machine for this kind of hunting, especially when equipped with a Sunray X-1 probe. I have owned an Equinox 600 since February 2018, and the Equinox rarely gets used.

My Equinox is used as a cleanup machine to find masked coins in trashy areas or mineralized ground. In that respect, I no longer use small coils on my Etrac, preferring the Equinox for this purpose. I also use the Equinox as a travel machine because it breaks down better for airline packing. Otherwise, I am swinging the Etrac.

You can program the Etrac with any discrimination pattern or settings you desire. Personally, I haven't changed my settings in years. The Etrac is very easy to operate once programmed to your taste.

If and when you get yourself an FBS detector you will at first get pretty frustrated because it will sound off on some deep iron, but if you stick with it and put some hours in eventually it will come to you, it does seem like a light switch is turned on when you finally get it. The older versions of FBS like the first explorers will go crazy deep but you have to slow down your sweep speed. If you put one of the smaller search coils on and take your time swinging the FBS will surprise you in the heavy trash. They love high conductors and they have a real sweet sound when they get over silver, like an angel singing I own an Equinox 800 and they are much faster and easier to use in the trashy areas but I am a big fan of the FBS technology and I like going old school every now and then. Good luck if you get one and just stick with it, you will be glad you did.

SkiWhiz Wrote:
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> Thanks for all your replies, I will watch some vid
> eos.

There's been a *few* hobbyist videos done with/for the express purpose of capturing the audio. Try to find those. Because if the videos are simply just someone with an open hole saying "look what my Explorer found", then that's not helping you with audio lessons. Same for if someone's got their headphones on : You're not hearing the audio.

And not only persons capturing the "signal they're about to chase", but also try to find videos of persons capturing surrounding audio that they're electing to pass. Otherwise, as said, the Explorers can sound like a "flock of sick geese"

A buddy of mine did a chord splice from his helmet go-pro, through his earphones, so that everything the detector audio was saying, was captured in-full-volume, on his go-pro. Then he went to a junky urban park, where the objective was to pass surface coins, pass foil and tabs (yes, kiss nickels goodbye) and only do "cherry picking for deep silver". In the video you can see/hear him passing a symphony of signals, and stop on ones that hinted of deep silver/copper hiding in urban park turf .

Naturally, the objectives of a relicky site hunter will be totally different.

Tom -- I'd like to watch that video; it's been a long time since I got to hear Explorer audio, and there's a soft spot in my heart for it!

Any idea if it's on YouTube?

Steve

I have used all of them and I still have the Explorer SE Pro. I like the target ID number system better on it. And the audio is very telling.

I did not think Ole' Daniel had much time on the Etrac?

Time is all in how you measure it. In the overall scheme of things, even 20 years really isn't all that long. My first FBS machine was the Quattro. It probably wasn't the best one to start out with because quite frankly, I ended up hating it. Somewhere in there, I decided to try an Explorer 2 and actually liked it except for the overall weight. When the eTrac came out, I was one of the first ones to get it and always had one in my stable up until about 2-3 years ago. I've owned several of them over the years; especially playing back and forth when talk was big about the Ireland models vs the newer ones. I sold my last eTrac in favor of the CTX because I had started doing more water hunting. Overall, I'd say I had owned and used eTracs for about 10.5 to 11 years. I guess that could go either way on your time table. I never said or claimed I was an expert on it. But I know what I like and don't like.

steveg Wrote:
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> Tom -- I'd like to watch that video; it's been a l
> ong time since I got to hear Explorer audio, and t
> here's a soft spot in my heart for it!
>
> Any idea if it's on YouTube?
>
> Steve


Let me see if I can find the link. He never made many videos, nor every posted much on social media, so lemme see if the video is still there........

steveg Wrote:
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> Tom -- I'd like to watch


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnoA1vIuuL4&t=186s

Although he's not being very heroic or picky in this video. Only ~ 5 or 6" deep. ( & threshold too high, IMHO)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuQN5BzfyUQ

(again, threshold too high IMHO)

THANKS for the links, Tom. I'm going to watch both...

Steve

Watched 'em both, Tom. Thanks! I enjoyed hearing the sounds, and watching the way he filtered effortlessly through all the noise. It takes awhile to get to that stage, but once you do, FBS is TERRIFIC for cherry-picking...

Steve

Dang Daniel 11 years? I thought you sold it after a couple weeks on eBay and the guy never paid for it or something like that? I never knew you kept a detector that long.

Nope that wasn't me. I haven't done much selling on eBay; mostly just buying.

Yep the eTrac was my favorite of the Minelab FBS machines. The one I didn't keep long was the Explorer XS; I bought one of those because I think it was Keith and some of the others that said it was overall the deepest of the FBS machines and I just wanted to compare. I usually always had an eTrac tucked away though; it was my cherry picking machine for when I got the opportunity to hunt old home site yards and might only get to hunt it one time; was a cherry picking machine for me. I knew I wasn't going to get all the coins but could put a dent in the low hanging fruit for sure. It was the machine I dug my first silver half dollars with. Ironically...the spot I dug those and a bunch of other silver coins, is now completely gone. I was so careful to dig pretty and un noticed holes...only for them to come in last year and take out 5 foot of top soil and start building a new elementary school on the site. They put a huge chain link fence up around the site to keep people out; nobody got to hunt it at all during the initial construction phases. No telling what all they hauled off in that dirt. It dated back to the turn of the century.

Daniel Tn Wrote:
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> ..... They put a huge chain link fence
> up around the site to keep people out; nobody got
> to hunt it at all during the initial construction
> phases. ....

Not sure about your area, but where I'm at, any time an old park or turf is scraped (like to prepare for artificial turf install, or some sort of park renovations), there will ALWAYS be a way in. They NEVER go "un-hunted". Don't you have a cat-key ? Or if it's a combo. lock, try this : Go by during the day-time, when the place is open. And odds are, that whomever opened the gate that morning, typically fails to spin-the-#s on the dial. (so you merely look down at whatever #s are on the lock hanging there). Scores more tip where this came from if you care for more

Some of our most memorable hunts have been park scrapes like these.

Sounds illegal!-------Tom_in_CA Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Daniel Tn Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > ..... They put a huge chain link fence
> > up around the site to keep people out; nobody go
> t
> > to hunt it at all during the initial constructio
> n
> > phases. ....
>
> Not sure about your area, but where I'm at, any ti
> me an old park or turf is scraped (like to prepare
> for artificial turf install, or some sort of park
> renovations), there will ALWAYS be a way in. The
> y NEVER go "un-hunted". Don't you have a cat-key
> ? Or if it's a combo. lock, try this : Go by dur
> ing the day-time, when the place is open. And odd
> s are, that whomever opened the gate that morning,
> typically fails to spin-the-#s on the dial. (so
> you merely look down at whatever #s are on the loc
> k hanging there). Scores more tip where this came
> from if you care for more
>
> Some of our most memorable hunts have been park sc
> rapes like these.

The sneaking around stuff don't fly too well here. Nearly every major construction project here will have security guards on site 24/7. This particular site was no exception to that. They brought in some type of trailer/camper things to use as a guard shack and break room for the workers had on site security watching over the equipment and such. That is common place here now days. They usually put the fences up, post it with signs, and have security.

Years ago not far from me, there was a good size chunk of land they were going to build a Walmart complex out of, I'd guess about 80 acres. It had an old stone farmhouse right in the middle. The stone driveway didn't have any posted or no trespassing signs anywhere.

I drove by there several times for two years and finally temptation steered mt pick up into the driveway all the way down to the dilapidated house.
I parked behind some big old sycamores to hide my truck from the busy street 300 yards away.

Had my f-75 at the time and started swinging, BAHM! dug a nice Indian Head, sweet. Wandering around swinging, and up flies a pick up, uniformed man gets out and says "what the hell are you doing here, you can't be on this property". I felt like an ass, because I really knew he was right. I threw some excuses out there and he softened up, some. He said "you won't find anything here because I already found a bag of Indian Heads tucked away in the house". Son of a gun I thought.

Weird that he thought he got it all, I didn't mention the I.H I dug. I tried some inconspicuous charm and I thought I had him but he said he couldn't let me detect the property because of liability concerns. I did get a phone number for the developing company from him, then I left.

Couple days went by and I called the number and a woman got on, daughter of the company. My charm must be off because I couldn't get permission from her either.

It's a shame . . .all that land. .. . I know and you know there were old coins maybe even gold coins on that property. I get an ache in my gut knowing they will be gone forever without anyone getting a shot at detecting the place before they chop it up and build. Oh well, I'll get over it I suppose. Progress sucks sometimes. . .more, the older I get.

I never liked detecting like that as no fun looking over your shoulder every 5 minutes or so. People still detect spots around here with No Metal Detecting signs even and just wait to get thrown off and hopefully not get a ticket as the Forest Preserves do that now that everyone is doing it. Too me it is just no fun spending a day in court as you can not just pay it like most of them and they getting up to a like 150.00 minimum in Illinois and up to as high as 500.00 so not a cheap ticket.

When corporations buy properties lawyers are in charge. Very few will allow any kind of risk to the transaction of business.