CZ21, 1280X vs Excalibur for travel Opinions?

[Gerry]

Chris, can I take it by the name Cabo Chris that you frequent the Cabo area. I do as well, do you detect the area? The reason I ask is I detected the dry sand last year and have bought an Excal to take down this year. If you like email me a PM and we can see if we can set up a time to meet and do a little detecting.

Gerry

 

[grumpyolman]

Another possible solution about the two of everything. How good of friends are the friends? If they are all really good friends and have the same concerns about 2 of everything, maybe you just take one extra detector for the 3 of you and the agreement is whoever has a machine that dies, the backup becomes their machine for the rest of the trip. Also, if I may, it sounds like the vacation is becoming work and if you aren't working it's stressful and if you aren't finding gold it's stressful or wasting time. That's a lose lose set up.. Maybe relax and take what comes. You know like they say? Stop and smell the roses. HH Jim
PS you can always get a custom built hard case to fit the Excal. that has the foam cut out just perfectly for it...like the 1280-X has.

 

[cabochris]

Yes that is a good point. The problems though are sometimes there is a newcomer or 2 and it would be tough to loan them a $1,000 machine. Once I did just that only to have my Excalibur trashed. But for the most part I would loan my detector to those I know without hesitation. But then there is Murphy's Law. Most trips there are no detector problems. But every now and then more than 1 detector goes down unexpectedly. Then there have been the times a machine or 2 did not survive the flights, or luggage is lost. Having 1 or 2 spare machines for a group of 5 to 7 is just not enough with so much invested in these trips. Plus detectors and scoops can be stolen in the Caribbean. Once we nearly backed-over a scoop and Excalibur that someone forgot to load up. Also consider some do not take care of their machines as others and the designated back-up machine might end up not being a working model!

Because of the 50lb luggage weight limit I leave all hard detector cases at home. The lightest/largest hard side suitcase I have found weighs about13lbs. That means I can pack about 35lbs of gear, clothing and personal items. That weight adds up quick! Plus now airlines charge for a 2nd check-on. No matter how many times I pack and repack my suitcases weigh within ounces of 50 lbs! I am almost to the point of simply paying the overweight fees so that I can take along all that I need. CC.

 

[grumpyolman]

When I went to the Bahamas I carried my Excal broken down in my carry on. No baggage handler was going to get that. I put an aluminum scoop in my check in. Don't know but it's a personal preference. We bought the locks for the luggage that only TSA is supposed to have the keys to get into. That was some comfort but probably just fluff. The bags were locked and the average joe couldn't open them. If they were opened, there was a trip gauge to show they had been opened somewhere. Let all know how you faired on your trip...Jim

 

[cabochris]

Jim, on a couple of trips guys with the machines in carry ons were not allowed on the plane with them. So to avoid having to check carry on luggage we pack detectors in suitcases. And that is a crap-shoot! TSA is the problem and it makes me angry just to think about it. I have found nearly every time TSA has NO RESPECT for my personal items. I understand that they have a tough job, but that does not give then a Right to hit my luggage like a thief in the night! They rummage through everything, open and dump my spare parts containers, pull on machine wires, scratch machines and so on! Once they took my diamond tester apart! Once half of my travel scoop was missing! The TSA could care less if they ruin my vacation because they handle my gear roughly. I do not even use TSA locks anymore because often the TSA will not replace them! This is out of the Seattle, Washington airport and I would love to have an Off-Duty TSA agent personally explain why they do this? I have even gone so far as to place easy to read notes in my bags requesting TSA please handle my gear with respect. But that seems to just bug them and they make more of a mess! I have been on enough trips to know that TSA is the problem with sensitive/fragile detectors and not baggage handlers! CC.

 

[Rockpile]

I have been using CZ 20 and 21's since they came out. Had great success until lately. I had a problem with my new CZ 21. sent it in for repairs which turned into a nightmare. I would get it back after 3 weeks to a month of turn around and it would fail on first use. It took four trips to to Texas to get it fixed and months of wasted time. Each time it was delivered it looked brand new only to let me down when used. I am almost afraid to use them. A good machine is worthless with out good service. I hope they have things in order again. On the up side, the customer service people were for the most part OK. Once they kept promising me a return shipping voucher but after several calls and a wasted week I gave up and paid $59 to ship it back at my own expense after it failed the third time with 20 minutes use. My old CZ 20 was an exceptional machine till it needed repairs. I have the new machine with multiple repairs set for a test hunt this week end. Got my fingers crossed it will run the day. Such experience shakes ones confidence. I have had good and bad experiences with several manufactures in my 20 plus years of underwater detecting. Seems to cycle about. When traveling about you certainly would like to be packing a machine you can rely on. My Infinium has not been such a beast. It to has had multiple failures in it's 1.5 month life.

You will just have to take your chances and go with the gut feeling. good luck.

 

[grumpyolman]

That's strange about the TSA not letting you on the plane with the machine. We flew out of Portland and you can only immagine how many airports and security checks we had between Portland and the Bahamas. They just ran it through the X-ray and handed it to me. Not one single question. I was holding my breath when we hit the Bahamas and went through their customs on the way in. Not even a nod.
I did have a small jar of peanut butter inside my scoop and they opened things up to confiscate that. They found that inside an aluminum scoop. Wasn't trying to hide it, It was just the rights size and protected the plastic jar. It's not a liquid but it's soft enough that, the TSA agent whispered, that it could have been plastic explosives. They did the gunpowder sniff test of the gear and took the PB and pleasantly sent us on our way. That's the only hassle coming or going. Bet we went through 8 different check points on that trip. Jim

 

[cabochris]

Thanks for the info. Fisher should have made right with you on the spot! Word of mouth can help to make or break sales for them. Hopefully they will clean-up their act soon. The last thing we "end users" want are cheaply made detectors! I guess working bugs out of new machines is to be expected. But that process should include first rate customer service. Fisher may not realize that by relating your experience on-line, I now have something to think about before purchasing a new CZ21 or 1280X! This brings to thought that perhaps it is better to buy detectors from smaller dealers even if they cost more. By getting to know a particular dealer, when one has a service issue, let the dealer go to bat for you. In your case had you bought from a small dealer, I would have requested that the dealer simply gives me a different machine. CC.

 

[cabochris]

The problems I saw were on the return trips. Leaving a small Caribbean Island with detector in carry-on. On one guy they did a strip-search because of it! And I mean strip-search in a private room! Also there have been problems with detectors in carry-on Island hopping. I guess most of the time nothing happens. But as a group we have to stick together and not board our flight until all can go. A detector hold-up could spell trouble for the entire group! That is why we all pack detectors into checked luggage now.