Tom what detectors do you like best and why?

This has probably already been asked, if so maybe someone could point me to a link.

We can call this "Tom's picks for 2010."

Also what do you think of Nautilus 2ba in normal soil? 15 inch coil.


Different machines for different uses, so let's start with these categories:

Beach wet and dry

Underwater

Relics, hot soil and normal

High iron content

High trash content

Coins

Nugget shooting

Meteorites



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/24/2010 08:57PM by jamt225.

Gold Bug-2.........hands down...........for micro-jewelry hunting and for medium & light mineralization prospecting.

Minelab GPX-4500 (w/DD coil) for high mineralization dirt prospecting.

F75 LTD for relic hunting. This is for extremely high-trash areas..........all the way down to... no-trash.

F75 LTD or CZ-3D for coin hunting. The LTD .....in this case.....would be reserved for high (iron) trash coin hunting sites.

AquaStar-II.........hands down..........for wet salt slope and in the water. This is a PI unit with extreme power and no intelligence (all-metal). Smaller coil for water.........and large coil for wet slope. (( I will switch to a CZ for wet salt IF the area to be hunted is extremely trashed-out with iron.........which is rare )).

Au-21X..........hands down........... for blanket-line/towel-line dry sand hunting.

Minelab Explorer-II/SE/E-trac for any/all types of hunting (coins, relics, jewelry) in high mineralization areas.

Naut. DMC-2B is a VERY powerful unit for it's time; however, for relic and/or coin hunting the elliptical DD coil detectors have a substantial edge over this old (and respected) technology.

..........I'm starting to have questions/respect for the new proto White's V3; yet, comments (justifiably) reserved.

Tek G2 may skew above data...........when released.


Tom

A V3 prototype...that's really interesting. I know you really cant say anything Tom, but is this a whole new V3 or just new software?
I sent mine back to Whites for the new "i" software upgrade.
Thanks,
Aaron

Thanks Tom. That is very helpful info and I haven't heard of some the units, ((Aqua Star II and AU-21X)) so now I have a whole new line of research and study. You definitely keep the brain cells working and keep this hobby interesting. Next best thing to actually going out and hunting with you.

what!.. no mention of standard f-75?

(h.h!)
j.t.

The original F75 has fallen as a hero from the past.
Was one of the best until the LTD came on site.

Tom how do you rate the Whites DF PI compared to the AquaStar-II?

Isn't the DF an Eric Foster design also?

Okay Tom.
"Gold Bug-2.........hands down...........for micro-jewelry hunting and for medium & light mineralization prospecting. "

How does it do with the 0 ground balance mentioned in lesson 101?
Does the small gold vanish?

White's new TDI is the same as the AquaStar-II & the GoldScan-5C. (((( The AS-II & GS-5C share the exact same Xmitter )))). BUT...........the TDI has one measurable concern. It's a mass 'production' unit; subsequently, its tolerances are not as 'hand-crafted'.....as the AS-II & GS-5C. I surmise its pulse delay is in the 13uS - 14uS range..........whereas the AS-II & GS-5C are right at 10uS. This makes a BIG difference in real-world performance..........especially with small gold. Yes, the White's TDI is a Eric Foster release.....through White's. ------ So far........Eric Foster is yet to be 'trumped' in PI design/performance. Bruce Candy (Minelab brainchild) holds the record for PI performance in Australia dirt......esp with GPX-4500. Still waiting for Dave Emery (Pulse Devil) to 'level' the field......and not sure it'll ever happen.

The 71Khz Gold Bug-2 does not have enough Ground Balance range to accommodate wet salt. No joy here.
(( Let's wait and see how the 19Khz Tek G2 compares.........when its released )).

No further comment on V3.

With the advent of the 'boost process' ('bp' mode) on the LTD; this poses a dramatic departure from a standard F75... IRT real-world application.

Tom

f-75 fallen from grace!..ok!..thanks!

(h.h!)
j.t.

Well there is a new unit in town the LTD is by far a better machine more stable alot deeper and has the air gap. If a new unit comes out and is better then I will get one. It is all about finding history and unmasking and getting better stable depth....for me that is..

LowBoy

TAKE A LITTLE TIME KICKBACK AND WATCH SOME OF MY DETECTING VIDEO'S BELOW ON YouTube

[www.youtube.com]

If you don’t dig it, then how are you going to know what you’re missing!
How can you have your pudding if you don’t eat your meat!

Hi All, I just join the form, I think I might learn alot here. This is my first question, I just got a CZ7A, not PRO, What do you think of this detector, is it good for coin and jewelry? I got it so i can hunt in lite rain in parks with out people. Thanks Flintstone

Very good detector. Always listen to all 3 tones.......and run your Sens on '4' or '6'.

Can that first DVD be bought somewhere? I purchased the latest one from Famous Treasures on Ebay.

There's only one DVD (thus far).......and yours is the correct/up-to-date DVD.

NASA-Tom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Gold Bug-2.........hands down...........for
> micro-jewelry hunting and for medium & light
> mineralization prospecting.
>
> Minelab GPX-4500 (w/DD coil) for high
> mineralization dirt prospecting.
>
> F75 LTD for relic hunting. This is for extremely
> high-trash areas..........all the way down to...
> no-trash.
>
> F75 LTD or CZ-3D for coin hunting. The LTD .....in
> this case.....would be reserved for high (iron)
> trash coin hunting sites.
>
> AquaStar-II.........hands down..........for wet
> salt slope and in the water. This is a PI unit
> with extreme power and no intelligence
> (all-metal). Smaller coil for water.........and
> large coil for wet slope. (( I will switch to a
> CZ for wet salt IF the area to be hunted is
> extremely trashed-out with iron.........which is
> rare )).
>
> Au-21X..........hands down........... for
> blanket-line/towel-line dry sand hunting.
>
> Minelab Explorer-II/SE/E-trac for any/all types of
> hunting (coins, relics, jewelry) in high
> mineralization areas.
>
> Naut. DMC-2B is a VERY powerful unit for it's
> time; however, for relic and/or coin hunting the
> elliptical DD coil detectors have a substantial
> edge over this old (and respected) technology.
>
> ..........I'm starting to have questions/respect
> for the new proto White's V3; yet, comments
> (justifiably) reserved.
>
> Tek G2 may skew above data...........when
> released.
>
>
> Tom
Tom do you know of any differences that might be between the G2 and the new Gold Bug Pro?

VERY little.............but...............we must wait till release. AND...................whilst on this subject...........do NOT become discouraged because of late release.....or delays. It just simply (usually) means that Dave and John are NOT ready for release (yet); which.........................in turn.....................means 2 things;
1. You do NOT want it yet......till it's finished...........and..............
2. There are usually additional improvements/concepts/extra debugging taking place.

Slower to release..........but, a win-win scenario.

To my understanding the Fisher Gold Bug Pro and the G2 will be very simular except the G2 comes stock with the 11"DD coil. The gold bug has been out for several months, and available at Cabelas
[www.cabelas.com]
outdoor stores and I just thought you might have done some testing. Now on the official Fisher site they're advertising that the new Gold Bug is "the most sensitive gold hunting detector ever made" of course they have the same statement under the old Gold Bug 2 too.
I guess I need to state my complete desire, I'm looking to purchasing a machine that will have better micro jewelry and small gold jewelry hunting capabilities than my F75. The areas where I hunt have a lot of EMI to contend with and usually requires the F75 to be turned way down in order to hunt, but I feel that the lower settings cause me to possibly loose some of the very small gold. Just wanting your thoughts.

A lot to be said here.

First; Cabela's new Gold Bug is different from the new version that is to be released shortly from FTP/Fisher.

Second; So far.........nothing comes close to the micro-jewelry performance of the 71-Khz Gold Bug 2. I am anxiously awaiting for the release of the newer version Gold Bug (19 Khz) to see how it performs.

Third; There is a tremendous performance difference IRT small gold detection with the F75 and LTD.....when Disc is dropped down to '4' .... then to '3'.........to '2'.........to '1'.........and ....especially to '0'. This exposes the largest gain whilst in 'je' mode on a standard F75. ((( Ironically, the best usable performance process mode on the LTD is the 'bp' mode.....NOT the 'je' mode ))).
Then.........the next largest gain.......is to boost the Sens up to max (if possible/stable).

The Gold Bug 2 is much less susceptible to EMI vs the F75's.

When all is said-and-done......there is a large difference between the F75 vs F75 LTD.......with the LTD having the largest gain in performance above the F75..... by 100's of percent on micro-jewelry.........and , , once again.........the LTD is NOT in the 'je' mode, rather, it's best performance is in the 'bp' mode. (( The LTD's 'je' mode produces much lower performance levels vs it's 'bp' mode )). Yes, the 'cl' mode is yet another huge performance gain on the LTD.......but, it's hardly usable.

Now..............with all of THAT said-and-done....................The LTD in its max settings still does NOT come close to the performance of the Gold Bug 2.....SPECIFICALLY in reference to micro-jewelry hunting. The GB-2 wins by 100's of percent. Huge difference. The soon-to-be released Gold Bug.........,,,,,, we will just have to wait and see how it fairs ....head-to-head..... with all other units...and especially the GB-2. I suspect it'll be a bit lacking to the smallest of 'micro' jewelry.....but will make up for it in other areas.

What is stunningly interesting.....is the fact that the LTD is tremendously more powerful/deeper over the GB-2 on small gold. The LTD is nearly double the depth difference in performance over the GB-2 on a U.S. $1 Type-1 gold coin (its size slightly overlaps a pencil eraser) and also has nearly double the depth difference on a very small (size 3) white gold womans wedding band. xxxxxx These targets are catagorized as 'small' gold. Now,,,,,,,, tiny gold............and the playing fields are leveled. Micro gold...........and the GB-2 wins....hands-down,,,,,,........100's of percent over the LTD.

Clear as mud????

Tom

wow, I am without words to say, that is why I love this site

This is a great forum! Please forgive the basic nature of this question, but what size is considered Mico gold? Is it something smaller than a type 1 gold coin or is it bits and pieces of a small gold chain or flakes of gold like you see in a gold pan?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/05/2010 06:12PM by lsm1955.

I know I answered this exact question in a other (recent) post......and in much more detail...............but micro-jewelry is your single-post earrings (sometimes called stick-pins)...that usually have single diamonds installed in them. They could even be as big as 2-Ct solo diamond earring. Other micro-jewelry items would be chains/necklaces/anklets/bracelets that are the diameter of pencil-lead....or smaller. Pendents/charms that are slightly smaller than a dime (especially if they are white gold) are micro-jewelry. OPEN hoop earrings the diameter of a dime.......or smaller..... are micro-jewelry. If you have a chance to read the thread on "CZ owners, wet salt training 101"............ you will find tests and legitimate justification as to why these items are micro-jewelry.

Tom can you share why there might be something with the G2?

Mark,

Not sure I understand your question..........but here goes:

The G2 should have identical operating characteristics as the not-yet released newer version Gold Bug. The 19 Khz operating freq will be much more sensitive to lower conductors.........such as MANY relics....and tiny gold jewelry. I'm not certain as to 'micro-jewelry' performance as of yet. The unit will most probably be even more accurate for identifying iron due to its operating freq. Yes, the G2 will sport the larger 7-11 elliptical DD coil.......which is more conducive to 'application' for relic hunters.....and gold jewelry hunters (dry sand ONLY).

NASA-Tom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Mark,
>
> Not sure I understand your
> question..........but here goes:
>
> The G2 should have identical operating
> characteristics as the not-yet released newer
> version Gold Bug. The 19 Khz operating freq will
> be much more sensitive to lower
> conductors.........such as MANY relics....and tiny
> gold jewelry. I'm not certain as to
> 'micro-jewelry' performance as of yet. The unit
> will most probably be even more accurate for
> identifying iron due to its operating freq. Yes,
> the G2 will sport the larger 7-11 elliptical DD
> coil.......which is more conducive to
> 'application' for relic hunters.....and gold
> jewelry hunters (dry sand ONLY).


I am anxiously awaiting your reviews of both the new Gold Bug and the G2 for finding the fine gold jewelry.
I was looking for a less expensive machine that would out perform my F75 in hunting exclusively for the gold droppings of others. But by what you've stated, I should just wait for my Black LTD to arrive.

I had a real hard time with the LTD finding gold nuggets that would not be the unit I would use for rings and such it is great.

LowBoy

TAKE A LITTLE TIME KICKBACK AND WATCH SOME OF MY DETECTING VIDEO'S BELOW ON YouTube

[www.youtube.com]

If you don’t dig it, then how are you going to know what you’re missing!
How can you have your pudding if you don’t eat your meat!

Yes, IRT 'tiny' and 'micro' gold jewelry..........I'm curious as to how the G2 vs F75 LTD (in 'bp' mode) compare. I would "assume" the 19-Khz G2 will/should trump the LTD............yet, the LTD should/may still be the trump-card for 'small' gold. Currently, we can only speculate.

Ok, I'm intrigued, and since no one seems to have asked, can you give me more info on the Au-21X? I didn't get anything on a standard Google search, so I'm assuming it must be Aussie or European.., but I'd rather hear your point of view anyway because it's where you use the detector that I find most interesting...I know that zone well and hunt there quite often. I assume there's some overlap with the GB2 for that area, so it depends on what you're hunting for that day?
BTW Tom, I found the F75 LTD did a pretty fair job in that area on micro-jewelry, but if anyone tries it, you'd best be prepared to spend a lot of time scooping and diggin'.

Au-21X is mine............and I'm debating releasing it.

Tom,

Curiosity is killing me. Is the AU-21X the 3D modification you showed at one of our club meetings a couple of years ago or a least a deriviative thereof??

Wally