First hunt results…
Spent a little over an hour in a recent park, founded somewhere in the 80’s here in California, so no old stuff. Working in tough gold country highly mineralized soil. Using killer B headphones, the model with the limiter switch and adjustable volume.
Took the Apolonia gold pro out for this test run, since I’m just more drawn to metered machines then analog models. I like to get all the input I can get I guess.
I only Air tested the Black Devil Pro and left it at that since a simple quick airtest with some clad and a gold ring were giving comparable depth and audio results, and so it seems to be a an analog version of the Apolonia gold pro.
I’m comparing these initial findings with my other detectors that I have and have had.(Silver Sabre 2, Cortes, Tejon, Lobo Super Track, F19, Minelab Explorer 2)
While I am typing this I am having a hard time putting all initial thoughts on paper, since I feel that this detector is similar to what I have seen in my other detectors, but at the same time this machine is a completely different animal.
This machine is really something else compared to what i have had before, but if anything it feels like a Tesoro on steroids!
Handles in a very similar way compared to the Tesoro brand, but it easily goes as deep as my Minelab Explorer 2 in this difficult soil. It actually might even go deeper, and it for sure is more sensitive to smaller items, even at depth.
At the same time it’s one heck of a high strung machine, where you do have to pay attention to what it tells you, since it speaks fast and often.
I have a bunch more thoughts, and things I want to explore further to see if what I think this machine is about holds true after a few more outings. I feel like with this machine it’s a bit like learning a new language that sounds similar to your native tongue, but isn’t quite the same.
But a few things that stood out from this first outing;
-swings great; no pain, no strain, unlike the Explorer 2 where something, either design, weight or both is/are messing with me. After an hour on the Explorer I already feel it in my shoulders and lower back, with this Apolonia model I still feel fine.
-It’s most likely deeper and definitely more sensitive to low conductors and tiny stuff compared to the Minelab Explorer2 (which I think is quite an accomplishment ) and this makes me look forward to do more testing.
-It’s super fast compared to the Minelab, I can swing it real quick and it still doesn’t seem to miss a thing.
-Forget about discrimination out larger pieces of foil and larger iron; anything bigger then a nail and this detector is begging to have you dig up whatever it is it found.
-The VDI system leaves a thing or 2 to be desired for the park hunting that I did today.
On the digital Apolonia Gold Pro the machine lumps all USA clad to the far right of the target indicator bar, and VDI numbers are all high and close together. Only foil and gold make the numbers go down to about mid level on bar and numbers (which makes sense) but anything from clad penny to copper penny, dime and quarter gets put to the far right of the target indicator bar, with numbers that are so close together that (at least till now) I can’t tell what’s most likely under the coil. The nickels seem to fall a little lower, in between foil and gold.
When targets get to be too deep, the vdi system draws a blank, and it’s audio only. It seems that this is not an easy thing to do, to create a detector that ID’s accurately and at depth.
I never had a Makro Racer 1 or 2, but read a good amount of reports where people experience something similar. Lumping targets together on the makro racer 1, and with the marko racer 2 the vdi system will throw in the towel before the detector stops giving an audio signal.
Have to say that for me (for visual ID), Minelabs system is about the best as I have seen so far.
All in all I am intrigued by this detector and I like to get to know it better. I will update more as I spend more time with the Apolonia Gold Pro.
The Black Devil Pro will probably be put up for sale soon. Why? Well, I have a Tesoro Tejon, so that's my analog Tesoro machine (got to have a tesoro, was my first brand when getting into detecting), I have the Pirate Apolonia Gold Pro for speed and depth even on small stuff, and I have the Minelab Explorer 2 for depth and accurate ID through multiple tones and its VDI system.
So with the Tejon, Apolonia and Explorer I feel I have my bases covered pretty good
Below the results of 1 hour of detecting, discrimination to max, will pick up some foil and larger iron, but also easily picks up the 'good' and small stuff.
2 small chain links, were gold plated at some point.
