Buy an E-Trac or hold out for the Minelab Mystery Machine?

[GKMan]

Hello Folks
I have been mulling over the idea of upgrading to the E-Trac and retiring or selling my old Explorer and even older Sovereign. As I sit here day after day, I try to placate myself by saying that we are that much closer to the unveiling of some new machine from Minelab that is built for the coin, relic, and perhaps occasional beach hunter. I believe that we are overdue for something new to come out as their flagship detector, be it an E-Trac II or something entirely different and I am willing to spend the money to get it, but if it was going to be another year before its arrival, I would probably

 

[LabradorBob]

I was in the same place about a year ago,Glad i got the E trac.

 

[reltolbert]

Haven't heard anything yet. Don't wait. Buy a new E-Trac and if a new type of E-Trac or something better comes along,
then you can sell your E-Trac and get the new model.

 

[digmeahole]

lol just got one! was so paranoid that an e-trac 2 was gonna come out i asked someone inside who said nothing new that he is aware of....but he is probably sworn to secrecy and wouldn't tell me anyway!

 

[sugar]

NO DONT BUY AN ETRAC guys weve got to stop this onslaught of etrac owners hitting out lots lol less coins for us stick together keep all those silvers for ourselves lol no seriously i would like to think minelab may come up with something in the future but would they go for different features or improve on the etrac so i think it could be some while i think a good way is to try and borrow one for an hour and then make your mind up happy hunting all of you

 

[Flambeaux]

I tell people the E-Trac is a waste of money and they should go buy an Ace 250 and save the cash...Then I get their number and have them call me when they find a place to hunt....j/k

 

[John]

Minelab is testing a new prototype in Ireland right now and they are very quiet about it. It could be a new Xterra, Explorer, Etrac or ??? It could be a year or more before we see something new. All the top companies test prototypes all the time and most never get past that stage. Whites was testing the GMZ five years before it was marketed to the public.

 

[GKMan]

Thanks for all the responses. I am going to try and hold out for the next machine, but it will be tough, very tough. In the meantime I might just upgrade my pinpointer since the one I have has been acting up and continue to squeeze all I can out of my very reliable Explorer.
On second thought, wheres my wallet..j/K

 

[GKMan]

Thanks for all the responses. I am going to try and hold out for the next machine, but it will be tough, very tough. In the meantime I might just upgrade my pinpointer since the one I have has been acting up and continue to squeeze all I can out of my very reliable Explorer.
On second thought, wheres my wallet..j/K

 

[digmeahole]

Cant lose either way...Even if you go for an e-trac you can trade it in to one of the many dealers on here like backwoods detectors and they hold there value as long as you keep it nice...I had my 705 for a month but he gave me such a good deal I could not say no!

 

[sandnsea49]

n/t

 

[Andy Sabisch]

Gary,

You are probably in the same position as 1,000 other treasure hunters on any given day. It's no different than almost any other purchase - when to buy. If you are in the market for a computer, do you buy one today or wait a month knowing a faster, cheaper model will be available . . . . it comes down to what you need and when you need it.

Is Minelab working on a new "mystery detector"? Only the engineers locked deep inside the Minelab fortress in Oz know for sure but you need to realize that all the manufacturers are working on new detectors as well . . . . look at what has come out in the past year and you can be assured that other manufacturers are developing and testing new models as we speak.

Are the Minelab detectors top notch? The finds posted speak for themselves. On the other hand, the BBS circuit in the Sovereign and Excalibur is pushing 20 years old and the FBS circuit in the Explorer, Quattro, Safari and E-Trac is more than a decade old . . . . have their been refinements as various models have been released? Yes, but there are a number of seasoned hunters that actually prefer the Explorer II over the SE. There are a number of very successful hunters that still use the XS and upgrading was never a need based on what they are finding. Since you have an XS and a Sovereign, you already have some great detectors in your stable.

You need to look at the type of sites you are searching and based on the challenges you are facing at those sites, determine if the E-Trac will serve you better than the Explorer you already have. Have you looked at a different coil to see if you can unlock keepers at sites you have written off? Take a look at the post Bryce has pinned on the Explorer forum to see if one of the optional coils will be all you really need . . . . I have found the 6x8 SEF is an unbeatable coil in high trash and has been my coil of choice for most of hunts with the Safari, E-Trac and Explorer

Let us know what type of sites you typically search (old parks, trashy parks, school, yards, relics sites, etc.) and what issues you have been challenged with and that will let us offer suggestions on what detector tends to work best. But to sit on the fence hoping the newest model is just around the corner with Minelab at this time is probably not a productive decision.

Just one person's opinion

Andy Sabisch

 

[reltolbert]

Well said.

 

[etracjoe]

Just another reason I wish I still had my 6x8

 

[D&P-OR]

Just another reason I wish I still had my 6x8

Buy another one!-----Kellyco (Findmall sponsor) has them on sale right now--thirty bucks off-----$129.95 (delivered).------I just ordered one yesterday and they told me they had secveral of them in stock at the moment.

 

[etracjoe]

Might just have to do that!! Thanks for the info.

 

[GKMan]

Hello Andy
Good post thanks.I believe that Minelab is working on something but who knows what that will be. It may be another mid range detector for the masses or a new high end detector like the E-Trac. I am hunting relics and coins for the most part in fields and woodland so in the end I took your advice and decided to spruce up my detector with a new coil. Since there is little trash where I detect I decided on the 10 X 12 SEF. I already have a smaller coil for trashy areas that I use when required.
When the coil arrives I have some places that I have hit really hard with diminishing returns since I have recovered so many nice coins, buttons etc. so I am hoping that the coil will give me a new edge. This will also allow me to forget about purchasing an entire new detector for a while.

 

[joedirt]

Just another reason I wish I still had my 6x8

Buy another one!-----Kellyco (Findmall sponsor) has them on sale right now--thirty bucks off-----$129.95 (delivered).------I just ordered one yesterday and they told me they had secveral of them in stock at the moment.

I don't see any for $129.95

I see this one for $149.95

Are you talking about a different coil?

 

[1goldsniper]

Have metal detectors come along way? The first ones gave you 1 tone and you dug everything! Today we have 2 tones ferrous and non-ferrous and we still have to dig everything because there is no possible way with all the variations of garbage in the ground to id. anything 100%.

 

[GKMan]

FYI... Took Andy's suggestion and went for the new coil.... bought the 10X12 SEF. I posted this for another forum about coils but I thought this was a nice follow up to the my question and your suggestion..


Well, I got my new 10X12 coil today and had a few minutes to try it out before it got too dark. What better place to try out a new coil than my own backyard. I have hunted it quite a few times before with good results as far as clad, wheats and older kids toys go so I wasn't expecting much different tonight.
I didn't find the coil too heavy but I use the Swingy Thingy which I love since it really does take a lot of the weight off of your arm so I imagine that without it some may notice a difference. The first signal ended up being a modern day dime near the surface. Pinpointing this was easy. I heard another decent signal and attempted recovery but once it got too deep to continue with the digging tool I had and so I abandoned the hole for this evening. I detected slowly across the yard and heard a good but weak signal that made me believe it was probably a wheat cent. I started digging and digging and attempting to pinpoint the target both with the coil (which continuously said that it was in the middle of the hole) and my pinpointer. In the end 8 1/2 inches down right below my pinpointed location I saw the tell tale curve of a coin. The coin was lost from view for a few seconds as I tried to pull the dirt out with my hand in the off chance this was actually a decent coin. Once recovered it was without a doubt a large cent of some sort. This cent ended up being a King George II Farthing. I can't read the date but these were minted 1746- 1754. Amazing, a 261 year old coin in my fifty year old house.
Did I find this because of the coil? Perhaps, but I didn't switch the coils before recovery to find out if there was any difference between the signals. But so far I am very, very pleased with it.