Bash a detector thread

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Ok, seeing there has been so much detector bashing going on in regard to pricing, rehashing, counterfieting, outdated technology....... Since a lot of the other threads have been going so off topic I thought I'd start one where people can vent all their frustrations.

The aim of this thread is to let people vent instead of filling up other threads with drivel and then a fight starting because there was nowhere for them to get it off their chest.

Also moderators can move relevant posts here to this thread if they think it appropriate.

No animosity here, no personal attacks, let's just bag a product and pat each other on the back. :D

Now who's gonna start, best whinge may even win themselves a shitty bomb Sapphire worth totally f@#% all, won't be any Gold prizes in this thread..........
 
Hey Heatho, sound good man, so then we can decide whether we want to read the rubbish or not!!!!!!!!!!!
A Yah for the day for the Garrett ATX, for starters.
A few weeks ago I went on a tour with Gold Prospecting Australia and netted my first ever nugget........not a fuggett, a real life nugget. But nothing special, apart from the fact that it was my first ever and a real little tiddler. My first ever tipped the scales .........at wait for it...........0.31g, that's right 1/3 of a gram. I learnt on the day with Marka nd Rhonda, that if my swing speed was too fast, I'd have missed it every time. And just to prove it, before we showed it the light of day, Mark swung quickly across the target and sure enough, not a peep.

The point to my rave is that the Garrett ATX will certainly find subbies @ 0.31g. Now all I want to do is find my "Sherrin" but that's going to be left for another trip.

Happy swingin'
 
All sounds too negative to me.

I would think a better thread would be for people to give their praise and list the good things they have found with the detector/s they use.
 
condor22 said:
All sounds too negative to me.

I would think a better thread would be for people to give their praise and list the good things they have found with the detector/s they use.

I think that is the point of most posts normally. I can't think, off hand , of people posting and ''bashing'' their detector of choice. :)
 
In my opinion, it is not a matter of ''bashing'' a brand or model of detector. Most buy a detector of choice, if it is not what they want or doesn't do the job, they usually up date. My contention is simply that detectors are over priced for what they are, they are not the ''latest '' technology and that we, the consumer, deserve better. In 6 months I did quite well with a $59.95 Jaycar detector. Depth was probably only 4 inches,6 mbe - with the right conditions. I was surprised when I checked a few areas with the Compadre, and didn't find anymore targets. opened both the control box and coil, and it has more circuitry and components than the Compadre. of course, the Compadre is more sophisticated. the point is, the more expensive detectors don't have more components, which are cheap anyway. Metal detectors are the only electronic product that I can think of, that lag behind current technology,. My point in case, is the x-terra range, [ or most brands/models ]- released in 2005. It is the same as buying a new - 2005 Commodore, at the 2014 price. that doesn't make sense. IMO.
 
OK I will start . Number one.
I got old Tandy VLF detector for God only knows how
many years. It uses 3x 9V batteries and chews them fast. It is unbalanced and heavy. I don't know the model No, the sticker fall off long time ago. But I have found gold, silver , coins and relic with it. Bash it, Hell no it was good machine.
Number two.
XTERRA 705 . Got it for about a year. Got me over couple grand in coins 24 grams of gold jewelry and about 250 grams of silver. Oh and over 4 kg of brass ans copper. But only two small nuggets. Should I complain? Hell no, I'm happy with this machine
Number three.
White's SPP. Bit of problems from the start. DD coils don't work without mod. It hiccup sometimes. Got it for couple of months and already done new modifications to it. Found 2.4 grams of gold and about $60 and silver Ring. Should I complain, Hell no. It cost me under 12 hundred bucks, I could afford PI machine. I'm looking forward to find really nice big nugget with this one.
Well, I'm sorry, but my did not have detector yet that did not provided value for money I had spent on it.
Karl
 
Yes Karl it's horses for courses. I'd say you're laughing all the way to the proverbial!!!
I'm waiting for my SEF DD Coil from Detech to arrive from Bulgaria, wasn't cheap but at the moment i can do it without any financial difficulty.
It will complement my F1A4M2 beautifully.
Cheers Karl and happy being happy. :p
 
Farout fellas you're meant to be bagging these detectors not praising them........ Don't make me have to start a detector appreciation thread also. :D

SD I agree detectors are a bit to way overpriced but a price is a price and to use a certain companies tech you have to pay their price. Actually when we buy software or music for that matter we don't actually own it, we are paying to lease it. These high end detectors are just computers controlling hardware, with algorithms for digital processing. Want the algorithms and genuine hardware, you have to pay.

If a new model were brought out each year then we could compare them to cars but a new model detector usually only comes out every few years or longer.

Everything is overpriced because we live in Aus, I'm with you on that mate. Maybe a bit of griping on prices have brought prices down, if so the vocal have had a bit of a win.

I've done way better with my Aldi than either of my Gold detectors.............. But I have fun with all of them.
 
I wonder who here on this forum have used a detector from 30 years ago, a compass, Red baron or the old garret, and if they have in percentage terms how much better are they than 30 years ago
Ask all the old timers and have a look at what they found and at what depth
VLF is a limited technology a lot of different brands have been made by the same designer, so bashing which is better is pointless it all depends on which one you are comfortable with and usually comes from a lack of knowledge
PI detectors on the other hand have had some breakthroughs, but as we all know by the latest sale of aldi detectors, has led to parks and playgrounds being turned over and councils getting upset, if you made minelab 5000 detectors 500 dollars i think you would be battling to get a parking spot on the goldfields
People have been bashing ford and holden for years and the part that makes me laugh is they were never Australian companies they just what we were sold, i personally couldnt care who bashes what just get out and detect
 
Well said Duck, those old Compass ones, my Dad had one, didn't find much, technology has come a long long way. Things were fully made of metal, lol.

This thread is more tongue in cheek than to be taken seriously.

But yeah those old Compass ones are perfect for this thread, were top tech back then. :)
 
Micronta 4003, it was the first metal detector I ever owned as a teeny bopper, got be the worst detector I've had the displeasure of owning. I think the fact that it had a lot of silver knobs, a red button on the handle, and a fancy needle display that had me hooked, couldn't really afford much else back then

The shaft was permanently collapsible, the coil sounded off on the slightest bump, and I nearly permanently lost my Dad's wedding ring, which was completely undetectable under 2- 3" of bark in the garden. Good for detecting rebar though. :D

I used to dream of owning an xt17000 or a goldmaster 2, the latest and greatest detectors of that time.

Here she is, what a beauty (not my pic)

1415428638_img_20141108_144026.jpg
.
 
That is the one I used for many years. Worked OK for me. But it unbalanced and heavy. I still got it.
Karl
 
I had a micronta like that for my first detector lol I used to find a lot of bullet shells, my dad had the goldbug at the time and he would get me to check the signals he would get to see if it sounded . I would check to see if it was on. Still a lot of fun though
 
Interesting posts. Heatho states that technology has come a long way with VLF. detectors. Not really. VLF is still old platform. It has only been ''tweaked'' over many years. the basic functions of a detector are just that. Not Nuclear Science. It is the processor that is the brains. We use them because that is all there is. Oh well, if every one is happy with the status quo, then that's all you get, and deserve.
 
I grew up as a teenager with my mum and dads Whites 5000d coinmaster and used it myself to get enough cash to buy my underwater detector which in turn paid for the garrett ACE250 which then paid for my propointer and sandscoop ,..... the ACE250 in comparison to the other two detectors is like comparing a bicycle to a racing motorbike,.... with the scan button(pinpoint) it's like the old proximity machines, except you can let go of the button and examine your target in great detail with the new technology. Being as I grew up on the old stuff this machine suits me extremely well and enhances my skills in a way that lets me appreciate it for all the treasures it helps me bring forth. In so saying each of those machines has a special value in the learning process that it gifted to me through time to build my repertoire of skills up to my present level,.....had I not had those specific learning experiences with those machines I feel I would of had a lot less skill to bring to this round table of special people(not saying I wouldn't have gotten there eventually anyway).I could probably drone on(am now anyway) about it all,.....but I'm thinking any machine, the good, bad and the downright ugly, all have their special place in giving someone an adventure and a different path in life to take that will help leave a smile on their dial come the end we all must face,....life is short enough, get out there and dig Dig DIG.
 
slipped disc said:
Interesting posts. Heatho states that technology has come a long way with VLF. detectors. Not really. VLF is still old platform. It has only been ''tweaked'' over many years. the basic functions of a detector are just that. Not Nuclear Science. It is the processor that is the brains. We use them because that is all there is. Oh well, if every one is happy with the status quo, then that's all you get, and deserve.

Piston engines have been around for 140+ years but we still use them today, old technology yes. Got something better slipped disc?
You can huff n puff that "everyones an idiot for overpaying for old technology" but in all honesty what are the other options?

Technology/smart phones/computers/tv's - yeah they have advanced dramatically, but millions of people use them EVERY DAY OF THERE LIVES.
A detector to find gold and pull tabs? Lucky to be 20,000 serious users Aus wide i'd say.
 
Reeks said:
slipped disc said:
Interesting posts. Heatho states that technology has come a long way with VLF. detectors. Not really. VLF is still old platform. It has only been ''tweaked'' over many years. the basic functions of a detector are just that. Not Nuclear Science. It is the processor that is the brains. We use them because that is all there is. Oh well, if every one is happy with the status quo, then that's all you get, and deserve.

Piston engines have been around for 140+ years but we still use them today, old technology yes. Got something better slipped disc?
You can huff n puff that "everyones an idiot for overpaying for old technology" but in all honesty what are the other options?

Technology/smart phones/computers/tv's - yeah they have advanced dramatically, but millions of people use them EVERY DAY OF THERE LIVES.
A detector to find gold and pull tabs? Lucky to be 20,000 serious users Aus wide i'd say.

YEH. jet engines, Rocket engines, rotary engines. even the concept of the jet engine goes back over 2000 years.
you're huffing and puffing, I didn't say ''everyone 's an idiot for overpaying for old technology'' you did -your words. what I said and meant was, if we settle for second best, that's what we get. the main point I make is that the consumer deserves better than old re-hashed technology .
 
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