A couple of weeks ago I said I was going to do a field test between my new LTD and new E-Trac. Let me start by saying for the past two years I have been a diehard F 75 fan. I've dug deep coins and many deep civil war bullets. The last deep coin was a half cent at a measured 9" deep at a civil war camp I've been hunting for years. When the new LTD was announced, I jumped at it. My dealer gave me a heck of a trade on a White's Vision for the new F 75. While visiting with him, he was telling me about a customer of his that has been cleaning up on old school and park sites with his new E-Trac. It got me interested, and I started to lurk on the E-Trac forum and was amazed at all the silver that was being found, so I went back to the dealer and he gave me another heck of a deal on trading in my old F 75 on a new E-Trac. I picke up both machines the same day, nearly four weeks ago. I decided I wanted to test them both head to head at an old school located two blocks from my house. Needless to say, I've hunted it hard over the years. It was built in 1912 and has an athletic field next to it where all the old high school football games were held. It is still there, but now is used for annual carnival rides and our town kids Summer soccer program. Lots pf pick up football games are held there, as well. It was pounded before I started hunting it four years ago. I have gridded off and hunted this field on three seperate occasions. Four years ago with a Minelab Sovereign. Two years ago with my then new F 75. Last Summer with my White's Vision. Deep finds have been few. A barber dime and a couple of Indian head cents with my F 75 two years ago. A few deeper wheats, but the rest has been mostly clad. I figured this would be a good test for my two new machines.
The test started with gridding off a 100' by 100' section and giving the new E-Trac first shot. I covered it thourghly, overlaping my swings with as much power as the spot would allow. It's trashy in places. The E-Trac found a new cent at 2", a nickle at 3", a 1906 Barber dime at 5" (sweet) and a wheat penny at 6". Not too bad, concidering the pressure put on this spot. I then reworked it with the LTD with BP mode, disc. at 21, sens. at 65 in 3H tones. It was a little jumpy, but nothing I couldn't deal with. I found no targets with the LTD. Next, I gridded off a 100' by 200' area and gave the LTD first shot. On my first pass I found a clad quarter at less than an inch deep adn that was all for the rest of this gridded off area. I checked out several iffy targets, but dug no more coins in the whole area. Today, I reworked the area with my E-Trac and found two pennies at the 2" deep level, a nickle at the 3" mark, a penny at 4" and two wheat pennies, both at the 6" mark.
I don't claim this to be a scientific test. It was something I did for my own curiosity. I have to say that the E-Trac seemed to do a better job pulling coins out of a heavily worked, somewhat trashy area. I'm sure there are better ways to do a test. This is just the way I wanted to do it for my own satisfaction. The LTD will be my go to relic machine, until the E-Trac demonstrates it's better. I will try it at some tough civil war sites. But for coin hunting, the E-Trac will be my go to machine. In my test garden, the LTD will hit deep signals with more power. I do have a 10" deep dime that both machines struggle with, but I also have a 10" deep minie ball that the LTD will hit much better. I really like both machines and feel they have a place in my arsenal and will use tham accordingly.
Enclosed is a pic of the school, showing the athletic field to the right. I hit the center of the field, directly opposite of the school.
Thanks for looking, and keep on diggin'
jimmyk in Missouri
The test started with gridding off a 100' by 100' section and giving the new E-Trac first shot. I covered it thourghly, overlaping my swings with as much power as the spot would allow. It's trashy in places. The E-Trac found a new cent at 2", a nickle at 3", a 1906 Barber dime at 5" (sweet) and a wheat penny at 6". Not too bad, concidering the pressure put on this spot. I then reworked it with the LTD with BP mode, disc. at 21, sens. at 65 in 3H tones. It was a little jumpy, but nothing I couldn't deal with. I found no targets with the LTD. Next, I gridded off a 100' by 200' area and gave the LTD first shot. On my first pass I found a clad quarter at less than an inch deep adn that was all for the rest of this gridded off area. I checked out several iffy targets, but dug no more coins in the whole area. Today, I reworked the area with my E-Trac and found two pennies at the 2" deep level, a nickle at the 3" mark, a penny at 4" and two wheat pennies, both at the 6" mark.
I don't claim this to be a scientific test. It was something I did for my own curiosity. I have to say that the E-Trac seemed to do a better job pulling coins out of a heavily worked, somewhat trashy area. I'm sure there are better ways to do a test. This is just the way I wanted to do it for my own satisfaction. The LTD will be my go to relic machine, until the E-Trac demonstrates it's better. I will try it at some tough civil war sites. But for coin hunting, the E-Trac will be my go to machine. In my test garden, the LTD will hit deep signals with more power. I do have a 10" deep dime that both machines struggle with, but I also have a 10" deep minie ball that the LTD will hit much better. I really like both machines and feel they have a place in my arsenal and will use tham accordingly.
Enclosed is a pic of the school, showing the athletic field to the right. I hit the center of the field, directly opposite of the school.
Thanks for looking, and keep on diggin'
jimmyk in Missouri
---------Regards, Del