CZ3D my feelings.

As a long time user of CZ's get a lot of questions and the like but in laymans terms a CZ3D is an excellent user friendly metal detector and coil for coil is as deep or deeper than anything on the Market.

I hear rumors that they are made in Mexico by the new Fisher and are not as well made or as deep as those made by the old Fisher.
Concerning the above talked to Fisher and they are made in the U.S.A. at the new Fisher and have talked to their tech's with favorable results and understand one of their techs the go to guy has been with Fisher for over 20 years
long before the new Fisher. Have owned and used the old and new CZ3D and saw no difference but seems like some can be out of tune or not go as deep so my advice only believe half of what you see and and surely not all you read.
PS: buy a longer digger if you own one or are thinking of buying one...

Yea Dan, I'm getting the hang of my 3d. I don't hear those subtle differences in the high iron tones vs the high coin tones. Maybe I need to concentrate more. Wife says to get my hearing checked, I said you already told me it's off, should I get a second opinion? Just shakes her lovely head.

I did find a large cent today, loud and clear 1830 Matron Head 8" deep.I can read liberty across her head. I'd say it's in EF40 condition. They usually don't fare that well.

i have owned cz's in the past,and they are all terrific detectors!
the "technology" is PROVEN and these dogs CAN hunt! granted they don't have
outrageously fast processors,however if you mount the 5" hockey puck,you can pick off
a 'ton" of good stuff in the "junk!'.the 5" coil is 'deceptively" deep. i like "simple" and the cz is just that!
once properly ground balanced,it will hunt in any soil,and will find just as much as ANY top of the line detector
currently made. it was and is,in it's various models,one of the "best 'technologies ever developed for hunting
coins.one must keep in mind,the technology was developed in the early 90's,and exclusively uses concentric coils.
just sayin'

(h.h.!)
j.t.

One thing I noticed about the 3d is; the GB has to be on the money. I use the 10.5" coil mostly. I can now tell when it needs to be checked. It will predomimantly high false or it will; low tone more than usual with very little high falses. If it's an equal ratio it is still set correctly. When it does either I check it and it always needs to be re-set. It may only be half a click, but seems to perform better. When I go from the field into the woods, I hear the difference and adjust accordingly.
Also when ground balancing, I just barly have to turn the gb knob to equalize the sound, it's not real easy to turn a knob that fraction of an inch while pumping the coil.
I'm really becoming fond of this machine, it's one you can rely on.
I think my shoulders are getting bigger though :]

I currently have a F.T. CZ-3D and it is a good machine. And since I sent it to Tom it is a better machine. I had one of the original first run CZ-3D's I bought brand new. I will say even after Toms calibration my new one is just a hair less hotter than my 1021. But my newer one is better in iron trash than my 1021. I dug my 6th silver dime with it yesterday since getting it back from Tom. The dime was in the hole with a small nail! I hate to say this ,But it was in the same little trashy area I hunted with my E-trac with my X-5 coil so I was very pleased with it's performance. It is a good machine.

As some of you may know, I too have the CZ-3D (1021 model). It was actually re-calibrated by Tom himself. Per his air-tests, he stated it can pick-up on a clad dime at 11.9" without the coil cover. In the field is no different. This baby is DEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP I only hunt with the stock 8" coil & think it's the perfect 'all round' coil - small enough to use in the less trashy to moderately trashy places yet still large enough to ascertain good depth & coverage. I use the 'bobbing technique' to ground balance & it is simple as pie to do. As others have stated, this machine WILL keep pace in the field with the e-trac, explorer, F75, T2 & other big boys. I have at least a few hundred hours on my unit & have done REALLY well this year in terms of finds. Only (2) minuses in my book are;

1. The 3D (as well as most Fishers) tend to LOVE deep iron. Be prepared to dig a ton of old nails, rusty iron bits & pieces, bottles caps, etc. Using some trickery, there are ways to decipher SOME of the iron SOME of the time, but, you'll still dig a fair amount of it as the deeper stuff sounds so damn 'good'.

2. The unit isn't bad in trashy places if one slows down a lot, but, IMHO the 3D isn't the best tool for moderate to heavy trash sites. Why? While the processor isn't slow, it's certainly not lightening quick. Forces one to really slow WAY down. Also, having to hunt with the concentric coil versus a DD in these areas is a tough pill to swallow. However, Fisher doesn't make DD's for the 3D's, so, gotta live with it. If I remember correctly, it even says in the instruction manual that if hunting with the 3D in a relatively clean site, the unit will beat most other machines & pull out coins from depths that are truly astounding. Yet, in trashy areas the unit loses a lot of the advantages of enhanced mode. Totally agree with this. When moderate to heavy trash is present, the name of the game really ISN'T about depth. Rather, it's MORE about unmasking ability, processor speed & great target separation. A few better choices for a trashy site would be a G2, Omega, Gold Bug Pro or F75. All can run with a DD coil, are super fast & get decent depth.

I would NEVER sell my 3D. That's how much I enjoy it & how many oldies it's produced for me. It's one of the best (and deepest) coin machines around IMO. Just make sure you're using it in a place that is light on trash. You'll have a field day. If moderate to heavy trash or iron is present, take a swing with one of the other beasts above.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 09/04/2011 12:47AM by njnydigger.

unfortunately,MOST public places are "slammed" big time with crap!,which as you suggest,and i agree
is NOT the cz-3d's forte...yes! the affinity for iron is well known,a characteristic of the cz's circuit design.
to be truthful, ALL of this doesn't matter because in the hands of an experienced hunter,these obstacles CAN
be circumvented,and overcome. the detector is that good!

(h.h.!)
j.t.

Good thread.

(ozzie.... your ground sounds extremely 'hot'..... by what you describe with your Grnd Bal control).

Thats funny you say that Tom.

Today I was on a property where the GB on the 3d was wide. I could rotate the knob a half a digit + (while pumping the coil) and the sound was steady, or ground ballanced....does that mean the soil is mild?

The area I was detecting in the above post (yesterday) was the opposite. A fraction of a digit either way would push the sound or pull it from the ground and was difficult to get between for a steady threshold....does that mean the soil is hot?

Both days the 3d was set; sens 5, volume 6, enhanced mode, disc 0, 10.5" coil.

It depends where your numbers are at after you ground balance. The lower the number the hotter the ground. 5 is average any lower is hotter any higher is milder. Someone correct me if I am wrong.

ozzie Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thats funny you say that Tom.
>
> Today I was on a property where the GB on the 3d
> was wide. I could rotate the knob a half a digit +
> (while pumping the coil) and the sound was steady,
> or ground ballanced....does that mean the soil is
> mild?
>
> The area I was detecting in the above post
> (yesterday) was the opposite. A fraction of a
> digit either way would push the sound or pull it
> from the ground and was difficult to get between
> for a steady threshold....does that mean the soil
> is hot?
>
> Both days the 3d was set; sens 5, volume 6,
> enhanced mode, disc 0, 10.5" coil.


In MOST of my hunting locales, Ozzie, my ground knob setting usually comes in at 3 or 4 on my 3D. Very true about the ground balance issue. Sometimes QUITE difficult to get that sweet 'in between' quiet spot or even-ess. Really got to play with it sometimes, but, after awhile it becomes second nature. Frequently, I will not be able to achieve total even-ess, but rather, just a slight pushing or pulling from the ground...which is 'good enough'. BTW, I usually run with pretty much the same settings - 0 disc, volume at 5 or 6 & sensitivity at 4.5 to 5

Couple of tips I've learned from many, many hours in the field & a LOT of trial and error with my CZ...

1. I almost never use the pinpoint button. Rather, I just X the target. If the signal area is quite wide/large, it is normally iron or junk.

2. Once you dig a plug, due to the round coil, the target should be more or less smack dab in the middle of the hole. If you find yourself digging outward towards the sides, 90% of the time it's iron or junk...or multiple targets in the same hole.

3. The deeper targets are where most of the falses occur - at least that's been my experience anyway. Anything 6+ inches or deeper & the CZ has a real knack for reading good targets as iron. Also, bad targets will i.d. as a mid tone or high tone. There are a few tricks like lifting the coil 4" or 5" off the ground over the target or flicking/swinging the coil over the target to see if it shows it's true identity, but, these don't work all the time.

In Tom's video, he has the 50% rule. Any target must be AT LEAST 50% high tone for him to dig it. In my experience however, it needs to be AT LEAST 90% high tone for me to dig. Anything less is trash 9 times out of ten.

Keep swinging for the fences & lets get out together soon

Joe



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/04/2011 10:25PM by njnydigger.

Ozzie...... that's correct. If you can hardly move the Grnd Bal knob..... and the unit instantly has a 'reaction' to the dirt whilst bobbing....... the soil is very hot. If you can rotate the Grnd Bal knob a bit to either side of (proper Grnd Bal) 'null'..... the soil is not very hot.

I'm seeing the same things Joe and I agree with you about the percent rule. I've done 360's around a target with all high tones and to find a 10" deep nail in the side, always in the side of the hole. I did try the "flick" and the high turns to a low, is that proven? I'll have to work on that theory.

Wow Tom! that's nice to know. It's pretty neat to have a simple (but deep) machine without all the bells. These little tricks can tell you some of the same info you get from a machine with everything.

Any other tidbits about the 3d are certainly welcome,,,Thanks guys!!

PS. I know if I dig deep in the past posts the info will probably be there, but it's nice to keep the forum rolling whether it's old hat or not. Sometimes it invokes new ideas and thoughts.