A question of detectors.... what to keep/what to sell

[jbow]

This is not meant as a comparision so forgive me for mentioning another FTP detector but I would like some input from you on deciding what to do...

I have two Teknetics and a Fisher. I don't think I need all three. I have an F75 LTD, a T2, and an Omega-8000.

My ground is medium to medium high mineralized. The T2 works well, the LTD is jumpy at some places and smooth at others but the TID on deeper targets is useless. The Omega is, IMO, as deep as either in my ground IF the ground balance is set correctly, it cannot be off by much before it loses depth. It is the most fum detector of the three but not always the quietest. It tends to chatter when I run the sens at 70 or higher. The T2 tends to run quieter and the LTD in AM/BP tends to run quieter but I am not convinced either will find anything that the O8K wont find.
I am having a hard time deciding to sell the F and the T and keeping the O8K...

Tell me what you think. Why should I keep one whyt should I sell the others, why should I keep two and sell one or why should I keep all three.

Also, I have used the T2 at the beach and it worked very well in the dry sand so I am sure either of the others would work well in the dry sand too.

I have other machines I like better for hunting places where there are only masked or iffy targets.

I have other detectors I am going to part with also, well one at least... but I think I have no need to have all three of these machines and if I sell them I can buy something else.

I am leaning toward keeping the O8K but I am not sure. Once I start thinking about it I get mixed up and wonder if I am making a mistake...

I tried hunting a place about a week ago with the LTD. It is a place that has been hunted hard (by me) for a long time and it does not give up much anymore. I was trying AM and disc=0, watching the screen fro anything jumping above TID=15. I could have done the same thing with the O, watching for anything above 39, and the T2 same way... it just happens I was using the F... anyway I discovered that I cannot hunt this way due to degenerative disc disease in my cervical spine... 40 minutes of looking down at the screen gave me two days of massive headache... so, I don't know if that is a consideration but it is a fact.

Why should I keep the O8K and sell the other two? Why should I keep one of the others and sell the other two? Why should I sell all three and get a T2 SE?
I am thinking that it would be a good idea to keep the O8K, sell the other two, and buy a G2 when it comes out... and maybe a pulse machine... like the one in the big black box, the Pro model.

Anyway, I would appreciate your encouragement or discouragement. What do you think.

If I crossed the line mentioning another brand I am sprry but since two of the machines are Teknetics I thought this would be a good place to post it... I really have not warmed up to the LTD anyway but I have not given it the time it deserves either... BUT it bothers me that I have taken it to places where I just had to put it in the truck because of EMI.

Help...

Thanks,

Julien

 

[captdirt]

Hi Julien, Sounds like you are leaning toward the 8000 which brings me to this question. I'm thinking about a lighter detector and with the reviews on the 8000 it seems to be pretty good. I hunt farm fields mostly and no parks. What is your honest opinion on the 8000 and what type of hunting do you do. How mineralized is your ground? You said it got noisy above 70. I know you have a tough decision to deal with and my answer would be hang in there and take your time to decide. What's the rush.

 

[jbow]

Thanks... I have been hanging too long.

I really like the Omega, it is very much a fun detector, it is a delight to use. The sens from 70 and up is not linear.. it gets much hotter much faster but I can still use it, it just isn't as quiet but it is quieter when you swing it. To be fair, I don't yet have the 5" coil for it and that small coil really quitens the F and T at high sens.

I'd recommend the Omega to anyone. I'm thinking that it and the G2 will be a killer combo since they share coils and one runs at a a lower frequency, the G2 runs at 19khz.

Thanks again for the reply.

J

 

[Elton]

Just my opinion Julien, Sell the one you use the least. If it's the LTD due to not operating as smooth as you like then let it be that one.

Ask your self what two detectors can do the same thing as all three. Or really cut the heard and sell two and keep just one. On the LTD all you have to do is lower sensitivity and you then have about the same as the Omega. The T2 is equal or deeper in depth so all you need to do is figure which tone settings equal the LTDs closest operation... You can only use one at a time anyway.. My suggestion is sell the two you don't use much, buy one other that is completly different in operation and use that when it warrants different hunting type.....But looking at your list you have what Other detector I would buy anyway..So just sell two keep one.No sense in having three that are very near the same.

 

[captdirt]

No problem, Still curious on the type of hunting you do and soil conditions. Been thinking about the G2 also but a little worried about a late release date and some of the comments in other forums. (sending the detectors back to Teknetics) I want two things Depth, light weight. I hunt with an XLT but I wish Whites would get rid of the Big Black Box. Great Detectors!

 

[hershey1]

jbow what I have done is look at all your detectors and think about all the fun you have had with each one and all the finds from each one clean them up good and go buy a new one. There are too many obstacles in life to worry about other than getting rid of one of your babies so get that new G-2 and let us know how you like it. Problem solved. Just another service from a friend on the forum. HH

 

[jbow]

I mostly relic hunt, mostly old lawns or old parks... construction sites if construction ever starts up again. Our ground is mineralized, iron bearing red clay. Medium to medium/high mineralization. the county I live in had lots of iron mines in the 19th century and lots of furnaces. It is a sort of different geology here with lots of different minerals and mining. Akin to Spruce Pine, NC or Bancroft, Ontario though not as radical as Bancroft.

This is where I live and hunt: http://www.valdostamuseum.org/hamsmith/location.html http://www.valdostamuseum.org/hamsmith/FShist.html

Bartow county

Julien

 

[jbow]

Thanks Elton...

J

 

[jbow]

Thanks... I needed a kick in the pants!!

J

 

[captdirt]

Thanks Julien for the information, Wow! Mineral city Your Dad must have been a great guy and a miner to boot, that's awesome! I really appreciate the info. It sounds like you have got some tough ground to hunt. I think Elton has the right answer but have a backup unit, just in case. I live in Western Mass. and it's starting to get cold. Our days are numbered here. If you are ever up this way let me know.

Jim

 

[jbow]

No, not my dad... just a website about the county. Sorry for the confusion... we were both rockhounds and he a lapidary though!

J

 

[captdirt]

Still a miner, tough work. I've hunted up in New York state and in Maine at Mt Mica for the Herkimer Diamonds and Tourmaline, indian artifacts too. Have a great weekend and good luck with the decision.

Jim

 

[jim tn]

I certainly don't begrudge a man his detectors, but Julien, how are you able to switch back and forth and remember everything there is to know about a particular detector from hunt to hunt and actually have the time to learn them all well in the first place. I'm retired, hunt daily and by the time I finally learn one reasonably well, I've forgotten a good bit of things about my others. Yes, some of it comes back quickly if one has learned the detector well in the first place, but I always found it tough to go back and forth between three, (the most I have ever owned at one time) let along several more. But, this is not meant to be derogatory, that is just me. I have the F 75 LTD and the Omega. I haven;t hunted in your ground with either of these detectors, but in my milder ground the LTD is deeper. For old coin hunting, though, the Omega gets the nod, hands down. For relic hunting and when I think some extra depth is needed, the LTD is my choice. Having said all this, I think you are the only that can make the decision on which to move out of the herd. Me, I would move those I seldom use and any that I may have lost some degree of confidence in. Admittedly, though, Julien, I wish I had your dilemma. HH jim tn

 

[Jay Evans]

Julien, From what I've read on the Omega and Monte's post on the G2 & with both detectors able to share coils you might consider just having those two. But if you hunt areas with high grasses/weeds the CL/BP option with the LTD would help in that situation so I guess you need to weigh your hunting situations and decide from there. Also, do you hunt in different states? That might be something to be considered. If money isn't much concern buy the G2 give it plenty of swing time and then make your decision. I for one have been guilty of having up to 5 detectors at one time..... I got rid of two and bought the T2SE and don't regret it one bit, I still have three detectors The T2SE, Older model silver sabre with the pinpoint button & an X2..... I'm considering getting rid of the other two and getting an O8 for hunting the parks here and using the T2SE for my relic hunting ventures. I used to enjoy having several detectors to choose from but looking back most sat idle in the detector closet more than they actually got used...... Also For ME, I think having the O8 & T2SE they would both get plenty use and neither would sit idle near as much as some I've had in the past. Thinking back, those that sat Idle were just from ME being greedy and wanting to have more..... Nothing wrong with that either though!! lol
Just my observations.......
Good Luck Bud!

 

[jbow]

Me, I would move those I seldom use and any that I may have lost some degree of confidence in.

That is good advice... thanks.


I have no problem with most of them. I used the T3 for about 1yr, the F75 for about 2 yrs, I used them regularly. I know the sounds and numbers... it only takes a few minutes to remember it all... like riding a bike. The E-TRAC is so easy that there is no problem there. I know the numbers on it too and I mostly run in an 2-tones. I used the SovereignGT for about a year as my only detector so I know most of the good numbers on it and the sounds. The Tejon... any moron can run it. The V3 is hard to learn, I am working on it but I like learning detectors. I never liked the SE and it is on the block for sure. The Omega is just another FTP product and once you know FTP detectors it is a short leap from one to another. It is like running any of the three FTP detectors on disc=0, you just decide whether to run one tone 2 tones, or AM. Or run the F with disc=6, the T2 with disc=21 or the Omega with the disc=16 and use one tone on each... or your shoice of tones.

The main reason I use different machines is that they all excell at different kinds of hunting and at different sites... I could go on an explain why I use this one or that one for different hunting, relic, park, coin, beach, park/relic etc and how one will unmask better or work better in certain mineralization and/or EMI... but, personally, I have no trouble using any or all of them and usually carry 4 or 5 with me all the time and sometimes I will use several on a hunt once I get there and see what the ground is like and what the trash or targets are like,,, is the iorn small or large... it makes a difference.

Still, I want to try a G2/GBSE and a TDI so I am goingto sell a few. Probably going to keep the Omega as I don't see any great advantage to having the three FTP detectors I have. They are all fast and deep. I may keep the T2 also because I have had it for so long.

Anyway... it is not a problem if you use them enough and most of them, except the O8K and the V3 I have used as my main detector for at least a year and if you do that and you hunt 4 or 5 days a week several hours a day... you learn the machine and you don't forget it... I always carry a silver quarter, a merc, a bronze penny, a nickel, and a zinc penny in my watch pocket to refresh myself if need be. I always carry .44s, 4 ringers, cuff and coat buttons in containers in my truck.. if I am rusty, I get them out and run over them... and it all comes back.

It isn't hard and it is rewarding!

J

 

[jbow]

Thanks Jay... I have had a hard time warming up to the LTD. So...

I like the T2 and the O8K much better and would love to check out a T2 SE one day. I like BP in AM but I cannot look at the screen as much as I used to be able to.. it kills my neck.

I am pretty sure what I am going to sell and what I am going to buy... plua by next summer I want to have a saltwater machine... it's always something. It is a good thing I like detectors a lot!



Julien

 

[Elton]

switching a lot makes you lose some targets due to uncertainty

 

[jbow]

That is why I carry the coins in my watch pocket... I remind myself before I begin and sometimes i'll twhow one down while i'm hunting... it isn't hard if you're prepared. It's why I check minnies too. Brass butttons aren't hard to remember because a coat button almost (eagle type) comes in just above a nickel and a cuff button a bit lower. Some eagle buttons read just like a squaretab...

J

 

[gmanlight]

Julien like Jim said if your not using a machine cut free.
My F75 runs pretty smooth with a good ID so my Omega although a little tighter was
repetitive.
Now my GB SE brother to the G2 can run max sensitivity most all the time with little or no disc.
I like old sites with iron so i guess thy fit my style.
Good Luck Mike

 

[Elton]

One day I was using my f75 and not the T2 didn't dig any 30 sounds,,LOL... Might have missed a ring, or Buf nicks ??