I own and use a variety of metal detector brands. None are 'perfect' but there are many that I prefer for different types of search applications. I always have two or three of my favorite Tesoro models on-hand. I was also well equipped with a selection of four favorites from White's in early 2010 as well as a Minelab Explorer II and a Teknetics T2. In March of 2010 I bought a Teknetics Omega 'Pro Package' and settled on using the 5" DD and elliptical Concentric coils. Later I switched to the round 8" Concentric & 5" DD and worked it afield, comparing it against all my other detectors.
I found that for serious Relic Hunting in very dense iron contaminated sites, I preferred my Teknetics T2 w/5" DD along with a 6½" Concentric coil on my White's MXT Pro, modified Classic ID and modified IDX Pro, plus my Tesoro's with a small 6" or 7" coil. The Omega 8000
[size=small](which was the Version 4 back then)[/size] proved to be a very decent working detector for urban Coin & Jewelry Hunting, but didn't made the grade when it came to really ugly ferrous debris locations. But that was OK because I had several models in my group to handle my Relic Hunting needs, and in a very short time the Omega 8K became my primary-use Coin Hunting Target ID / Tone ID detector, even over their own T2.
How was that possible? I've been dealing with health and mobility issues since '91, using a cane since March of '93, and I need to use detectors that are lighter weight and well balanced to reduce fatigue. The T2, as many folks know, is a comfortable detector, but the Omega 8000 felt much better. And what really surprised me was that if the T2 and Omega had their own 5" DD coils mounted, my Omega would give me a cleaner audio response on the deeper coins I encountered with less instability. Even more surprising was that I got a better, tighter numeric VDI lock-on with the Omega on deeper targets than I did using the T2. And that was with their 5" DD coils. I'm not a fan of the 11" BiAxial coil and got rid of it quickly, and found the Omega 8K w/8" Concentric was a much better combination that the T2 with it's standard 11" DD coil. At the time I lived in a large metropolitan area with a lot of Coin & Jewelry Hunting opportunities and the Omega became my go-to unit.
Since late '13 I moved to a smaller town well away from popular coin potential sites but was enjoying more devoted Relic Hunting which is what I have preferred for decades. In January of 2015 a new detector arrived and my evaluation of it didn't take much time at all. Other than my trusty Tesoro's, everything else I had in my detector outfit was for sale or trade within a week! All my White's Minelab's, Fisher F75 , Teknetics T2 and .... just everything. The last two models to go were my White's MX-5 and then, finally, my Omega 8000. The Omega continued to satisfy my wants and needs for working the typical coin-producing places in small towns to bigger cities.
dfmike said:
I'm glad you enjoy it Monte. It seems like the behavior is very similar to your Omega which is a great thing plus it has added features that are useful. Mine was very different. With the Omega or the F5 I would know if a target was a good one just by the sound (full double beep) while swaying the coil and in more than one direction. The F44 would double beep on random patches of ground. I would of course swing the coil again at the same angle and the "target" would suddenly disappear or make a clipped sound and then complete silence. I would then change angle and it wouldn't peep. This went on forever making me lose a lot of time double and triple checking everything. It behaved somewhat like my MX7 does now but much worse. With the MX7 it seems to be dependent on ground mineral and trash content and the detector can run quite stable in some places. The F44 would do this all the time and I remember it being worse in coin and jewelry mode than in custom. I just couldn't make it run smoothly no matter what I did and I never used it at full gain.
Looking back, I should have sent it back to Fisher Labs and they could have taken a look at it. They've always treated me well.
Yes, a trip to FTP might have made a big difference for you. To be honest, I haven't been overly thrilled with a lot of the products out of First Texas other than the Omega 8000. Back then I did also have a Tek. G2, the same as the Fisher Gold Bug Pro, and I used to work it around some of the building tear-downs I kept a watch for and using the 5" DD coil it was handy, but not great. Depth was unimpressive and it didn't handle unmasking in the very dense iron nail littered sites like my Tesoro Bandido II µMAX.
The F-19, and I have owned three of them just hoping I could find one that might work well for me when hitting the ghost towns I frequent, also fell way short on performance compared with my very dependable Relic Hunting units, the Nokta FORS CoRe and FORS Relic. Besides, in many sites I like to have more than just a 2-Tone audio. So I parted with the last one I had a few months back.
Since I got my first Omega in early 2010 I have had to deal with several unpleasant health and / or accident issues that have really cramped my style. It's very difficult for me to handle rough, uneven terrain or try to hobble along very far from my vehicle. The back is much worse, my left leg, knee and foot aren't like they used to be, and two injuries earlier this year really hampered my ability to get out and have fun. It also brought about the critical need for surgery on my neck in August to help prevent things getting much worse.
I am still a very dedicated Relic Hunting character, but as my time afield is getting shorter I figured I'd shift gears next year and start doing more casual Coin Hunting around here and in my travels. So a few months ago I analyzed all the models I had, or have, and considered units that I have a soft spot for that served me well in the past. I was fortunate enough to chance upon one, and then a 2nd, Omega 8000, and in doing so I ended up with the two Fisher 7" Concentric search coils plus all the rest for the Omega. This put some 'fun' back into my casual trips around here and local towns and got me wondering about models they have offered since the Omega 8000 was discontinued.
I haven't liked some of the units they have offered which I would buy, check out then unload. But the F44 just caught my interest so I thought I would give another 'budget-priced' detector a try. I'm glad it didn;'t work like yours. This specimen is really a simple yet versatile unit for a lot of places I like to visit.
Bucksport said:
Sounds like it is a machine worth looking at. I have long been thinking about one, but haven’t seen many reports about it. I might have to put it on my list. Thanks for the evaluation Monte.
Bucksport, it just might be a model that will satisfy you, or it might not. I own quite a few detectors and assign them certain duty to perform for me, and the Omega 8000 and F44 are going to handle my urban wants and needs just fine. If you get the opportunity, check one out.
TheHunterGT said:
I am glad to see it is finally getting some love across forums and videos. For the price it is very hard to beat if you want a weatherproof detector that goes 7-8-9 inches in good dirt.
Not many people know it has notch volume adjust like the Omega 8500. Probably one of my favorite features on any detector.
That big teardrop concentric it comes with....fantastic coil.
I don't like to hunt in the rain, and where I live we don't get much anyway. However, I have been hunting and caught in a summer cloudburst that can be a drencher, and I have been out in some parks and schools just enjoying life when, all of a sudden, the timed sprinkler system comes on. And in bigger grassy areas that tends to be bigger and powerful and very wet watering system they use. So I agree, the weather-proofing is a nice feature, and I like the Iron Audio Volume settings as well. Two of the preset Disc. models are 'functional' for where I might hunt, and it is nice to set up the Custom Disc. mode to satisfy what I want.
In my case the F44 came with the 11" BiAxial DD and not that goofy-looking tear-drop Concentric. Besides, I seldom use a standard to larger-size search coil because I am most often in trashier or brushier environments where smaller to mid-size coils work the best. But the F44 is a model I think many people ought to check out.
LW Steve said:
I have my custom program built to find small gold rings & silver coins.
Here is how I have it set up...
I have iron notched out (1-19) (bass tone)
(20-29) (medium tone) tiny gold rings / tin foil
(30-39) (medium tone) small gold rings / nickels / round tabs / beaver tail tabs
(40-49) (low tone) square tabs / Men's gold wedding bands
(50-59) (low tone) zincs come in at 50 to 54 the corroded ones come in the lowest
(60-69) (high tone) silver dimes / cu pennies come in at 63 to 66
(70-79) (high tone) silver quarters
(80-89) (high tone) silver halves / caches / large items
(90-99) (high tone) silver dollars / caches / large items
'Thank You' for your settings. I will never use the Coin mode, but do like the preset Jewelry and Artifact mode programs. My Custom settings are close to yours,but I Accept the Fe segment with a '0' VCO audio. I also have the '5' segment assigned the '4' High Tone because that's also where a lot of Indian Head and very early Wheat-back Cents register. I'll use the Custom mode in the older places I prefer to hunt where modern Zinc Cents aren't an issue.
LW Steve said:
In the early 1990's on land... I used a Compass XP-Pro - - The Compass X-200 Challenger - - Fisher CZ-5 - - Fisher CZ-6a
More recently I've used the Fisher CZ-70 Pro - - the Tesoro Cortes and the Tesoro Deleon.
In my opinion I will take a Fisher F44 ( and all its features and 7" coil ) over any of those detectors I just mentioned above.
There you guys go Monte and me... we have said our peace
Lake Washington Steve
I have owned all of the above except the Challenger X200 which, in my opinion, fell short of what the X-100 offered. I am with you 100% on this one, too, because all those models were heavier and/or awkward performers in many places. I like my Omega 8000 for Coin & Jewelry work and now the F44 has a sold,
"it's not going anywhere" position in my Detector Outfit as well.
And that is especially true with a Fisher 7" Concentric coil mounted full-time on my F44 and also my 2nd Omega 8000. It is nice having two of those coils.
Monte
