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Field Testing the X-Terra 50

Digger

Constitutional Patriot
Staff member
First of all, I want to thank the folks at Minelab for allowing me to be part of the Field Testing team for this new detector. It is an honor. And, I would like to thank Findmall for responding so quickly with this new forum. As many of you who read the forums know, I am a BIG FAN of the Minelab single frequency machines. Especially those 5kHz units! And, as many of us have stated over the years, "if they would only incorporate a meter into the Musky"! Well, they didn't add a meter to the Musky. But, I think you are going to like what they have come up with. Like the other field testers, I received my X-Terra 50 last week. And believe me, it was tough not being able to come on here and tell you all about it then. But, after talking to Dick today, it seems the cat is out of the bag, so I just as well throw my 2 cents worth in to the mix. I won't bore you all with the specifications, as there are many sites that are offering that information at this time. What I would like to share with you is how it has been working for me the past few days.
The first thing I did with my X-Terra was to take it outside and pass a couple hundred old coins under the coil. My findings have been a bit different than some of the others in that I get a wider range of readings on certain coins. For example, silver dollars and half dollars hit a hard, constant 45 on the meter. And, quarters hit a hard 42. Seated, Barber, Standing Liberty, Washington. Mine were all the same. But some of my dimes varied. I passed about 50 Seated, Barbers and Mercs under the coil and the readings were 33, 36 and 39s. No certain type of coin seemed to make a difference. In other words, one mercury might come in at 33 and another at 36. The next one might be 39. But what I found was that, if a certain dime read 36 one time, it would always read 36. All the nickels I tested read a solid 12. Shields, V-nickels, Buffaloes and Jefferson
 
Digger,

Is it like the CZ's and Advantage in that they maintain good depth when using the slow sweep needed to wade thru all the signals?

Thanks
Tom
 
Tom, I haven't noticed any appreciable difference in depth at any speed. I will say that going too fast does create falsing in the areas I have been hunting. Particularly in discriminate modes. So, in those regards, it is similar to the CZ-5 and the Advantage. I also think it is "human nature" to slow down our sweep speeds when we are closing in on a target. At least I am that way. I will sweep in a rhythm that seems to connect my feet, arm and detector. A short step between every couple arm swings. I maintain that rhythm until I get a signal that requires investigating. Then I usually sweep more slowly and much more methodically. If there is trash near the suspected target, you will have to slow down to recognize the tones and let the meter do "its thing". I would almost compare the isolation process that I have been doing to an overextended sovereign wiggle. A sweep that is short enough to allow me to make sure the reading is strong and consistent, and allows me to get pretty darn close to pinpointing without switching to pinpoint mode. Although I have found that the pinpoint mode is very accurate, it is a bit difficult to maintain a steady threshold tone when narrowing down the target. Especially in areas of heavy trash concentration. Anytime I don't have to switch modes, I speed up the recovery process. In the pinpoint mode, the X-Terra seems to want to constantly tune itself to the specific area. And if you are too slow about pinpointing, you have a hard time maintaining a consistent audible sound level. Of course, the graphic meter tells you when you are pinpointed. And is very accurate.
 
Thanks Randy,

Sounds good! Your replies always cover the details very well and are much appreciated. The X-Terra sounds like a fun detector that has a relatively short learning period to get the most out of it. It should go over well. I'm not concerned about the P/P, as you mentioned it is easier and quicker to pick a spot over the target where the signal repeats with consistency for our style of hunting.

HH Tom
 
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