Looking for a lightweight, basic, yet powerful unit - Any suggestions?

[Cutaplug]

I use an etrac as my main machine but I'm looking for something specifically for woods hunting. Basically I want a unit that is lightweight, powerful enough to hit deep silver, and has circuitry to deal with moderate mineralization and discrimination of rusty nails effectively. Not worried about fancy bells and whistles as it will be used primarily as a "scouting" unit. Will be doing a lot of hiking into deep woods and scouting sites and if they produce some decent targets return with the etrac... If it's easy to disassemble or folds up would be a bonus. If not I'll be doing some shaft modifications on my trusty old workbench =)

 

[CladDog]

You had several options until you said "light weight".

One I can think of that might suit your needs is the Tesoro Vaquero or the Tejon.

 

[tabman]

You had several options until you said "light weight".

One I can think of that might suit your needs is the Tesoro Vaquero or the Tejon.

Yep. Light weight, excellent depth and built to last. They run quiet. Not a lot of annoying chatter.

The Teknetics G2 and Omega are good choices as well.

tabman

 

[Barry NY]

Please take a look at the DeepTech Vista Smart at just 3 pounds...

You may find that not only is it a good "scout" but it may wind up cleaning out the entire site...especially if there is iron present...

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kC1V7sN-AKI[/video]

 

[Cutaplug]

You had several options until you said "light weight".

One I can think of that might suit your needs is the Tesoro Vaquero or the Tejon.

Yep. Light weight, excellent depth and built to last. They run quiet. Not a lot of annoying chatter.

The Teknetics G2 and Omega are good choices as well.

tabman

I was actually thinking tesoro but didn't want to mention a brand to see what others thought. Was looking at the Vaquero but the silver umax really caught my eye too. Would there be any difference in depth capabilities? What are the benefits of the Vaquero?

 

[Cutaplug]

NM I see that the Vaquero has manual ground balance whereas the other two are preset I think. Will probably go with the Vaquero for that reason...

 

[Rick N. MI]

Outlaw would be good too. You can ground balance it. You would have 3 coils. Power balance it and the depth is close to the Vaquaro and Tejon. Tesoro forum just talked about power balancing.

Omega is very light especially with the 10"dd coil which is a nice combination.

Rick N. MI

 

[tabman]

You had several options until you said "light weight".

One I can think of that might suit your needs is the Tesoro Vaquero or the Tejon.

Yep. Light weight, excellent depth and built to last. They run quiet. Not a lot of annoying chatter.

The Teknetics G2 and Omega are good choices as well.

tabman

I was actually thinking tesoro but didn't want to mention a brand to see what others thought. Was looking at the Vaquero but the silver umax really caught my eye too. Would there be any difference in depth capabilities? What are the benefits of the Vaquero?

The Vaquero is going to be around 2 to 3 inches deeper, but the Silver carries a little more info in its beep. Which is great for jewelry/coin shooting.

It depends on what kind of soil you have. You may or may not need a detector with a ground balance.

As others have suggested, the Tesoro Outlaw with its 3 coil package is something to consider. It's one amazing detector.

tabman

 

[Cutaplug]

You had several options until you said "light weight".

One I can think of that might suit your needs is the Tesoro Vaquero or the Tejon.

Yep. Light weight, excellent depth and built to last. They run quiet. Not a lot of annoying chatter.

The Teknetics G2 and Omega are good choices as well.

tabman

I was actually thinking tesoro but didn't want to mention a brand to see what others thought. Was looking at the Vaquero but the silver umax really caught my eye too. Would there be any difference in depth capabilities? What are the benefits of the Vaquero?

The Vaquero is going to be around 2 to 3 inches deeper, but the Silver carries a little more info in its beep. Which is great for jewelry/coin shooting.

It depends on what kind of soil you have. You may or may not need a detector with a ground balance.

As others have suggested, the Tesoro Outlaw with its 3 coil package is something to consider. It's one amazing detector.

tabman

Thanks for the info. The outlaw looks great but I don't need all the extra coils as I have those for the etrac. Really just wanting the basic unit with GB and that goes deep. I think the Vaquero is the perfect choice and about the right price range for me. My dad has used Garretts since the age of dinosaurs so I started with the older analog units. That's why I don't mind going back to the basics =)

 

[tabman]

RCDetector, if you find the Vaquero a little too light, you can always add some lead weights.

The Tesoro Vaquero screams when it goes over silver. http://www.findmall.com/read.php?17,1569304

'53Silver has done some very informative videos.

I think you are making a wise choice choosing the Vaquero. It will make a great companion for your etrac

tabman

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qa1sTRoJDKc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeby9MGZsHI

 

[SpiritRelic]

I do the same thing.I put my Tesoro in a small book bag.A Tesoro is like 2.2lbs.

 

[JimmyCT]

The video was very informative. Thanks for sharing - Jim

Please take a look at the DeepTech Vista Smart at just 3 pounds...

You may find that not only is it a good "scout" but it may wind up cleaning out the entire site...especially if there is iron present...quote]

 

[Cutaplug]

RCDetector, if you find the Vaquero a little too light, you can always add some lead weights.

That's OK my etrac weights about 10 lbs with my camera mount and 12x13 coil that I always run =) Thanks for the vids! I'll find a 9"-10" dime and make a vid out of it to see how the Vaquero does. I think it will do quite well. Even an ace 350 will pick up a silver dime at 5.5-6" so I'm curious to really test the V's capabilities in person.

 

[Cutaplug]

I do the same thing.I put my Tesoro in a small book bag.A Tesoro is like 2.2lbs.

Good to hear is it easy to assemble/disassemble? I have an AT Pro that is pretty light but the coil and headphone plugins are terrible. Would be a good unit but no way I'm going to fiddle with that pain in the butt plug. I just realize what I typed

 

[tabman]

I do the same thing.I put my Tesoro in a small book bag.A Tesoro is like 2.2lbs.

Good to hear is it easy to assemble/disassemble? I have an AT Pro that is pretty light but the coil and headphone plugins are terrible. Would be a good unit but no way I'm going to fiddle with that pain in the butt plug. I just realize what I typed

Yeah that's funny stuff!

Yes the Vaquero breaks down into three pieces real fast and assembly is fast and super easy.

It's amazing that such a small light package has so much detecting power.

tabman

 

[Cutaplug]

I do the same thing.I put my Tesoro in a small book bag.A Tesoro is like 2.2lbs.

Good to hear is it easy to assemble/disassemble? I have an AT Pro that is pretty light but the coil and headphone plugins are terrible. Would be a good unit but no way I'm going to fiddle with that pain in the butt plug. I just realize what I typed

Yeah that's funny stuff!

Yes the Vaquero breaks down into three pieces real fast and assembly is fast and super easy.

It's amazing that such a small light package has so much detecting power.

tabman

Ya I was wondering how it could be so powerful and light at the same time but I guess it's all back to the basics. Looking forward to getting it in and doing some testing. Will probably do an etrac vs at pro vs vequero vid or something when the weather's nice.

 

[Nauti]

I think u should have taken a slightly longer look at the deep tech vista as shown in an earlier post.Not only is it better than the vaquero in amongst iron,it is also deeper too and not much heavier.

 

[Cutaplug]

I think u should have taken a slightly longer look at the deep tech vista as shown in an earlier post.Not only is it better than the vaquero in amongst iron,it is also deeper too and not much heavier.

It weighs more and costs twice as much. Just looking for a basic and lightweight machine as a scouting machine so purchased a vaquero today. Think it will be a great choice =)

 

[SpiritRelic]

You are going deep.Read up on supertuning.This will give you 3" more in depth.Found a 1702 colonial coin with mine last year hunting in the woods.So light and plenty powerful.Good luck to you RC. :-V

 

[Cutaplug]

You are going deep.Read up on supertuning.This will give you 3" more in depth.Found a 1702 colonial coin with mine last year hunting in the woods.So light and plenty powerful.Good luck to you RC. :-V

Messed around with supertuning today but the site I was in has been cleaned out with the etrac so didn't find much. Do you run a stock coil or the 10x12? What kind of depth are you getting on silver dimes with the stock coil?