havent bought anything yet.im leaning towards the mxt or mxt300. im looking for advice on a good initial setup for coil/s,pinpointer digging equipment etc for my wife and i.we live near beaches and mountains in n.h. ive been reding this forum and have thoroughly enjoyed it but kind of confused also so im not sure what to buy???
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new to metal detecting
- Thread starter jacknh
- Start date
dirtdigginlady
New member
n/t
Nancy-IL
Well-known member
I've had my MXT for many years and I wouldn't trade if for any other. Larry (my hubby) has used the DFX, Top of the line Minelabs, and now the V-3. I wouldn't want any of them. I can hunt with the best and still retrieve great finds with the many coils that's available and also at great depths. If you choose the MXT, you can't go wrong. It will have a good resale value if you do ever decide to sell it. It's durable, and you can't beat Whites service and reputation. I also use the SunRay DX-1 pinpointer.
I would say that Nancy's advice above is as expert as you can get. I'd also add that if you're new to MD'ing, like me, and/or you like a short learning curve before you start making great finds, the MXT is a great choice. It has a large group of coils to choose from also so even though it's simple to operate, it's also very versatile. I've found the 6x10 DD coil to be my favorite so far and would recommend picking one up ASAP if/when you get the MXT. I've read that it's a very good prospecting machine, which is a great option if you find the opportunity to do that, but I'm here to tell you that it finds coins and jewelry ( great on small pieces) like a champ if that's what you'll mainly be doing. It's a great machine. Nuff said.
HH
Scott
HH
Scott
You will love the MXT but the MXT 300 with the 12 inch coil is probably a little big to begin with.
I thinks Whites started selling the MXT this way because so many people were concerneded about depth.
I have the 12 inch and I have to admit I paid a lot of money for something that has not really benifited me much.
The 9.5 standard coil is just fine, buut I ended up getting the 6x10DD.
The 12 in coil is nice when you have a lot of ground to cover and you have time constraints but it's
not going to do you any good when your in a park or an area that as so much trash you can't lock in on a
good pin point. Thats why so many people end up buying a smaller coils like the 5.3 or the 6x10DD.
I think you would be better served by getting the MXT with standard coil. Bigger is not always better and that
applies to this case, in my opinion.
As for the pin pointer, if you can afford it, then the Garrett Propointer is the way to go. It gets two inches as
oposed to the standard one inch depth. Here are two reviews on the ProPointer.
Enjoy
Good luck.
Katz
Review Of The New Garrett Pin Pointer
Posted by: John-Edmonton [ Send a Message ]
Date: August 27, 2008 09:04PM Registered: 4 years ago
Posts: 6,382
I received the Garrett PRO-POINTER on Friday evening, used it after work on Saturday, Monday and Tuesday for a total of about 12 hours. First three words that come to mind....."I LIKE IT." It looks Garrett researched what is available out in the market place, worked on improvements and even went the extra mile to package it in a nice colorful/pictorial box with both instructions and explanations on it's applications.
I have no less then 5 pinpointers of various makes and models at home presently, and about half of them still sort of work. They have split, cracked, gone out of tune permanently, quit beeping, quit vibrating and some only work on warm days. Turn down the temperature a few degree, and you might as well leave them at home, as they can't be tuned anymore. The ones that have to be tuned every time you turn them on have had their variable tuning knobs just plain wear out. Heck, I even built my own, tweaked it and it ran better then the others for about a year, but it eventually joined the rest in the "box" downstairs.
So, what makes this machine so good? NO MORE TUNING, first of all. The electronics do this automatically. No knobs to wear out. No retuning as the batteries weaken, or changes with the outside temperatures. And when you turn it on and put that probe in a hole to find that hidden coin, a slight BEEP and vibration is IS GIVEN OFF. And both intensify as you maneuver the tip towards that target. This machine goes DEEP! It picks up coins at a distance of about 3 inches, which means that I can quickly find that exact center of the target in seconds, if I can't get it manually with the search coil. Sometimes coins are on a steep angle, and the metal detector coil has difficulty finding the center of the target. Not the PRO-POINTER. It reads the coin directly below. If I couldn't pinpoint that coin with my screwdriver within 10 seconds, out came the PRO-POINTER and within seconds I had the target nailed. Another great feature of this pinpointer, is that it easily tracks the shape and size of the target. A strong vibration plus a strong audio covering a distance of 4" or more means it's a larger then coin size object, so it stays in the ground. If the target is a larger coin like a half, and its in the hole somewhere, but difficult to pinpoint....no problem. The PRO-POINTER can be de-tuned, just like a regular metal detector to make it less sensitive to the target, so it will only sound off when you are right beside it. NO MORE SCRATCHING SILVER COINS.
Ands it gets better yet......it doesn't interfere with the operation of metal detectors like some of the other electric pinpointers do. One particular model interferes with the operation of most of my detectors to the point where they almost become paralyzed. And......the output signal of the metal detector coil interferes with the automatic shutoff on the electronic pinpointer to the point where it won't shut off either. I actually have to remove the battery to shut it off........a great waste precious time towards metal detecting.
Now I just walk around with a screwdriver and probe in my hand, and leave the digger in the bag. About 80% of my finds from sports fields and schools can now be removed with the screwdriver in my hand, which acts as both a probe and removal tool. No more digging holes using my digger to see where the target might be. And this is a real bonus for working well manicured grass, as you can pull targets out of the ground leaving no trace at all. A great way to increase my finds.
And it was designed for the simplicity of the overall use. The 9 volt battery just "drops" in. No more of those cheap 9 volt battery clips to fight with. Simple turn on and go sequence saves a lot of time. You can either shut it off, or just leave it on and use as needed.
Finally, an electronic pinpointer to replace all the rest I have in the "box" downstairs. It really is an improvement on what is available today. And it's built tough!
I think Garrett has bragging Rites On This One. For further information, call a Garrett Dealer.
John-Edmonton
Field Test & Evaluation Of Garrett's New Pinpointer - The Pro-Pointer by Uncle Willy
Posted by: Uncle Willy [ Send a Message ]
Date: September 09, 2008 11:09PM Moderator
Registered: 5 years ago
Posts: 21,838
Garrett is the house that innovation built and over the years one innovation after another has poured forth from this well of electronic wizardry - and their latest innovation, the new Pro-Pointer, is once again going to raise the bar for the competition. Unlike many boxy, akward, flimsy, hend-held pinpointers out there the Garrett PP is a sleek, slender, light, streamlined, ergonomically appealing little gem that fits the hand like a glove and is as handy as six fingers - plus it's tough as a tank. Its size and weight is 9 x1.5 inches and weighs a mere 7 ozs.
** FEATURES **
The PP is microprocessor controlled, non-motion all metal, with maximum sensitivity, requires no tuning or adjustment, features audible and vibrating alerts that increase in intensity the closer to the target it gets, has a simple on/off switch, an LED flashlight, 3.75 inch scraper/raker blade, and has side-scan capability. It will operate for 30 hours on one nine-volt alkaline battery and battery change is a piece of cake - just unscrew the end of the pointer, drop the old battery out and the new one in and it has a low battery alert. The PP can also be detuned over a target just like your detector. Has a working depth of two inches on coin-sized targets, more on larger objects. It can also be used to scan walls for any kind of metal. It comes with a nifty drop-in holster allowing you to whip it out like a six gun, shoot your target, and drop it back in the holster. It is classed as water resistant and can be used in the rain and rinsed off under running water. The wand can be submerged to just below the speaker.
** FIELD TEST **
I have been testing the prototype and production model over a period of a couple of months and have used it on many hunts in many situations. On one hunt in a park right after a rain the ground under the grass was quite muddy and the PP proved invaluable in locating coins in the gooey mud..I even retrieved a couple of coins from the mud at the bottom of a water puddle. Three coins that really lit my fire ( three silver Ben Franklin halves ) were recovered in bark chips in front of the swings in a local park. I got one of those wide signals that sound like junk so I whipped out the PP and scanned the area and got no signal at first, so I scraped off some chips and waved the pointer over it again and then got three separate signals. Those three finds really made my day.
I repeated this again in another playground when I got four different wide signals and checked them out with the PP. The first three turned out to be crushed pop cans buried in the chips which I traced with the PP and determined them to be such but the fourth signal was a horse of a different color. I scanned it with the PP and got three separate signals which turned out to be three quarters grouped together. At another park I located a fancy earring encased in a small clod. among a bunch of other small clods.
At another park I got another wide signal that was shallow so I whipped out the PP and scanned the area and got three signals ( and this is a lesson in target masking ). I removed the first target which was a bottlecap. The other two turned out to be a penny and a quarter. Together these three objects cancelled each other out and appeared as one object to the detector.
Finding a coin in the side of a hole requires a certain procedure. Since the wand on the PP picks up at a full 360 degrees you can stick the PP into the hole and get a signal but you will have no idea where the target is, so you pull the PP back out of the hole slowly until the signal just quits. This will give you the elevation of the target in the hole. You then angle.the PP and spiral the tip around the inside of the hole at that elevation until you hear and feel the strongest signal, then you have located the target
** SUMMARY **
I really like this pointer and it has proved invaluable in retrieving targets and saving time and frustration looking for coins in bark chips or soil that have turned the same color as the chips or soil. And locating your target quickly and accurately in mud is self-explanatory I feel Garrett has hit the bullseye on this one and produced a tool for the discerning treasure hunter. In all my hunts with the PP it never failed to perform as I thought it should perform and it is so easy to use, as handy as it gets, and is tough as nails.
The MSRP on the Pro-Pointer is $149.95 but there will be dealer discounts and specials, so watch for those. For more information contact your local dealer or the sponsors of this forum or you can contact Garrett directly at Garrett Metal Detectors, 1881 W. State Street, Garland, Texas 75042. You can call them toll free at 1-800-527-4011 or email them at sales@garrett.com You can also visit their web site at www.garrett.com
I thinks Whites started selling the MXT this way because so many people were concerneded about depth.
I have the 12 inch and I have to admit I paid a lot of money for something that has not really benifited me much.
The 9.5 standard coil is just fine, buut I ended up getting the 6x10DD.
The 12 in coil is nice when you have a lot of ground to cover and you have time constraints but it's
not going to do you any good when your in a park or an area that as so much trash you can't lock in on a
good pin point. Thats why so many people end up buying a smaller coils like the 5.3 or the 6x10DD.
I think you would be better served by getting the MXT with standard coil. Bigger is not always better and that
applies to this case, in my opinion.
As for the pin pointer, if you can afford it, then the Garrett Propointer is the way to go. It gets two inches as
oposed to the standard one inch depth. Here are two reviews on the ProPointer.
Enjoy
Good luck.
Katz
Review Of The New Garrett Pin Pointer
Posted by: John-Edmonton [ Send a Message ]
Date: August 27, 2008 09:04PM Registered: 4 years ago
Posts: 6,382
I received the Garrett PRO-POINTER on Friday evening, used it after work on Saturday, Monday and Tuesday for a total of about 12 hours. First three words that come to mind....."I LIKE IT." It looks Garrett researched what is available out in the market place, worked on improvements and even went the extra mile to package it in a nice colorful/pictorial box with both instructions and explanations on it's applications.
I have no less then 5 pinpointers of various makes and models at home presently, and about half of them still sort of work. They have split, cracked, gone out of tune permanently, quit beeping, quit vibrating and some only work on warm days. Turn down the temperature a few degree, and you might as well leave them at home, as they can't be tuned anymore. The ones that have to be tuned every time you turn them on have had their variable tuning knobs just plain wear out. Heck, I even built my own, tweaked it and it ran better then the others for about a year, but it eventually joined the rest in the "box" downstairs.
So, what makes this machine so good? NO MORE TUNING, first of all. The electronics do this automatically. No knobs to wear out. No retuning as the batteries weaken, or changes with the outside temperatures. And when you turn it on and put that probe in a hole to find that hidden coin, a slight BEEP and vibration is IS GIVEN OFF. And both intensify as you maneuver the tip towards that target. This machine goes DEEP! It picks up coins at a distance of about 3 inches, which means that I can quickly find that exact center of the target in seconds, if I can't get it manually with the search coil. Sometimes coins are on a steep angle, and the metal detector coil has difficulty finding the center of the target. Not the PRO-POINTER. It reads the coin directly below. If I couldn't pinpoint that coin with my screwdriver within 10 seconds, out came the PRO-POINTER and within seconds I had the target nailed. Another great feature of this pinpointer, is that it easily tracks the shape and size of the target. A strong vibration plus a strong audio covering a distance of 4" or more means it's a larger then coin size object, so it stays in the ground. If the target is a larger coin like a half, and its in the hole somewhere, but difficult to pinpoint....no problem. The PRO-POINTER can be de-tuned, just like a regular metal detector to make it less sensitive to the target, so it will only sound off when you are right beside it. NO MORE SCRATCHING SILVER COINS.
Ands it gets better yet......it doesn't interfere with the operation of metal detectors like some of the other electric pinpointers do. One particular model interferes with the operation of most of my detectors to the point where they almost become paralyzed. And......the output signal of the metal detector coil interferes with the automatic shutoff on the electronic pinpointer to the point where it won't shut off either. I actually have to remove the battery to shut it off........a great waste precious time towards metal detecting.
Now I just walk around with a screwdriver and probe in my hand, and leave the digger in the bag. About 80% of my finds from sports fields and schools can now be removed with the screwdriver in my hand, which acts as both a probe and removal tool. No more digging holes using my digger to see where the target might be. And this is a real bonus for working well manicured grass, as you can pull targets out of the ground leaving no trace at all. A great way to increase my finds.
And it was designed for the simplicity of the overall use. The 9 volt battery just "drops" in. No more of those cheap 9 volt battery clips to fight with. Simple turn on and go sequence saves a lot of time. You can either shut it off, or just leave it on and use as needed.
Finally, an electronic pinpointer to replace all the rest I have in the "box" downstairs. It really is an improvement on what is available today. And it's built tough!
I think Garrett has bragging Rites On This One. For further information, call a Garrett Dealer.
John-Edmonton
Field Test & Evaluation Of Garrett's New Pinpointer - The Pro-Pointer by Uncle Willy
Posted by: Uncle Willy [ Send a Message ]
Date: September 09, 2008 11:09PM Moderator
Registered: 5 years ago
Posts: 21,838
Garrett is the house that innovation built and over the years one innovation after another has poured forth from this well of electronic wizardry - and their latest innovation, the new Pro-Pointer, is once again going to raise the bar for the competition. Unlike many boxy, akward, flimsy, hend-held pinpointers out there the Garrett PP is a sleek, slender, light, streamlined, ergonomically appealing little gem that fits the hand like a glove and is as handy as six fingers - plus it's tough as a tank. Its size and weight is 9 x1.5 inches and weighs a mere 7 ozs.
** FEATURES **
The PP is microprocessor controlled, non-motion all metal, with maximum sensitivity, requires no tuning or adjustment, features audible and vibrating alerts that increase in intensity the closer to the target it gets, has a simple on/off switch, an LED flashlight, 3.75 inch scraper/raker blade, and has side-scan capability. It will operate for 30 hours on one nine-volt alkaline battery and battery change is a piece of cake - just unscrew the end of the pointer, drop the old battery out and the new one in and it has a low battery alert. The PP can also be detuned over a target just like your detector. Has a working depth of two inches on coin-sized targets, more on larger objects. It can also be used to scan walls for any kind of metal. It comes with a nifty drop-in holster allowing you to whip it out like a six gun, shoot your target, and drop it back in the holster. It is classed as water resistant and can be used in the rain and rinsed off under running water. The wand can be submerged to just below the speaker.
** FIELD TEST **
I have been testing the prototype and production model over a period of a couple of months and have used it on many hunts in many situations. On one hunt in a park right after a rain the ground under the grass was quite muddy and the PP proved invaluable in locating coins in the gooey mud..I even retrieved a couple of coins from the mud at the bottom of a water puddle. Three coins that really lit my fire ( three silver Ben Franklin halves ) were recovered in bark chips in front of the swings in a local park. I got one of those wide signals that sound like junk so I whipped out the PP and scanned the area and got no signal at first, so I scraped off some chips and waved the pointer over it again and then got three separate signals. Those three finds really made my day.
I repeated this again in another playground when I got four different wide signals and checked them out with the PP. The first three turned out to be crushed pop cans buried in the chips which I traced with the PP and determined them to be such but the fourth signal was a horse of a different color. I scanned it with the PP and got three separate signals which turned out to be three quarters grouped together. At another park I located a fancy earring encased in a small clod. among a bunch of other small clods.
At another park I got another wide signal that was shallow so I whipped out the PP and scanned the area and got three signals ( and this is a lesson in target masking ). I removed the first target which was a bottlecap. The other two turned out to be a penny and a quarter. Together these three objects cancelled each other out and appeared as one object to the detector.
Finding a coin in the side of a hole requires a certain procedure. Since the wand on the PP picks up at a full 360 degrees you can stick the PP into the hole and get a signal but you will have no idea where the target is, so you pull the PP back out of the hole slowly until the signal just quits. This will give you the elevation of the target in the hole. You then angle.the PP and spiral the tip around the inside of the hole at that elevation until you hear and feel the strongest signal, then you have located the target
** SUMMARY **
I really like this pointer and it has proved invaluable in retrieving targets and saving time and frustration looking for coins in bark chips or soil that have turned the same color as the chips or soil. And locating your target quickly and accurately in mud is self-explanatory I feel Garrett has hit the bullseye on this one and produced a tool for the discerning treasure hunter. In all my hunts with the PP it never failed to perform as I thought it should perform and it is so easy to use, as handy as it gets, and is tough as nails.
The MSRP on the Pro-Pointer is $149.95 but there will be dealer discounts and specials, so watch for those. For more information contact your local dealer or the sponsors of this forum or you can contact Garrett directly at Garrett Metal Detectors, 1881 W. State Street, Garland, Texas 75042. You can call them toll free at 1-800-527-4011 or email them at sales@garrett.com You can also visit their web site at www.garrett.com