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Safari debate

I

issombeituni

New member
I currently own a xterra 705. I love it hands down. Its a beast. I have found great things at great depths. Thinking of picking up a safari. Is it really worth the upgrade or hold out for a etrac??
I thinking the safari would be easier and i wont get lost in settings on the etrac. Anyone want to chime in on the hands on differneces from the 705 to the safari if u used them?
 
I [/b
I would hold off and go for the E-Trac. The reason that I am saying that. I called the dealer who sold me my Safari and he told me he would give me $495,00 for a trade in on a E-Trac. I can't see losing that much money. I purchased my Safari in March 2013. I like how the E-Trac screen is set up, better able to pinpoint what and where it is.If I were in your shoes I would wait until I could afford it. Good luck.
Jim
 
Since you already have a good detector, I'd agree with Jim and go ETrac. If you didn't have the 705, I'd advise that its a pricing/data presentation decision that is a personal preference one. Don't get me wrong, I love my Safari and I'd make the same choice again, but when I got mine all I had was an 80's vintage Whites Coinmaster and I was unsure about the current state of tech.
Realize too that I no longer hunt by looking at the screen (except to judge depth sometimes) and go solely by sounds now so the ETrac screen isn't that big of a + to me. ymmv.
 
I had a Safari for three months - it's a great machine !
Then I upgraded to a E-Trac - four years ago - probably one of the smartest things I've ever done !

The handle on the E-Trac is set at a 15 degree different angle then the Safari's and Explorer's - this makes a HUGE difference in how long you can swing the machine without any shoulder pain !
The E-Trac gives you two sets of target ID #'s - FE - (Ferrous ) and CO - ( Conductive ) this feature helps save a lot of time by not digging as many junk targets - especially in heavy iron areas.
The E-Trac also has a lot more setting options than the Safari - these extra settings allow you to "fine tune" the machine to the area you hunting that your hunting that day.

The bottom line - both are fantastic machines - but if there's any way you can do it - get the E-Trac !

Good Luck !
 
Well the same goes for the Quattro....I kinda like the Quattro and have figured out the tones and what they mean, so I don't dig too much junk...But the problem with the Quattro
is the weight ..I have a strap set up to help some but its still too heavy and unbalanced...I need a lighter detector that don't wear me out in thirty minutes...So would the etrac be a candidate..Also
does the etrac have a backlight???...
 
To be truthful the 705 you got with proper ground balance and coil selection can be as good if not deeper than all the FBS machines that includes Safari,Etrac,and CTX and will pick up gold better depending on how good an operator you are.
 
Prep1957 said:
To be truthful the 705 you got with proper ground balance and coil selection can be as good if not deeper than all the FBS machines that includes Safari,Etrac,and CTX and will pick up gold better depending on how good an operator you are.
Click to expand...
I concur and agree fully with Prep.

I have many XTerra's, an Etrac, Safari and 3030. I prefer to use the Safari with small coil combination amoung the three FBS units. The Etrac I've put away now with It's stock coil (in case a rich widow asks me to move into her beachside mansion with her one day). And I've given the 3030 the complete flick now as I was never a stand all day and do nothing detectoricts anyway. Plus you leave too many good targets undug with them.

As for hands on differences between the 705 and Safari ......you already know your 705 inside out by the sounds of it issombeituni .......so between the two It's really only same depth, same understanding of junk to good target info. Just that the XTerra's hold a much better sound in the ear, plus the pure all metal ground balance mode that'll take you deeper with no ID that the Safari /etrac lack.

FBS is definently no upgrade from an XTerra.
 
Nope just won't take the bait...
 
What the heck Edward ......take the bait and run with it.
 
The first question I would ask is where and what are you primarily hunting for ? I had a 705 with 5 coils. Loved it. Only reason I sold it was beacuse I am primarily a salt water beach hunter, and it's now beach hunting season and the 705 would not be put to good use. The 705 does work ok in the wet salt sand but I had to dial down the sensitivity and find the right coil combination. Much easier to just use an FBS unit in that environment.

So if you are NOT salt water beach hunting, or if your soil conditions are not brutal, stick with the 705.

If you have to have an FBS unit, check out the classifieds because there are some good deals on used Safaris and Explorers too. The E-Trac is a step up from the Safari, and there are a lot of options. But if you are just going to compare the Safari and E-Trac on depth, I have found there is very if any difference when using the 11 inch Pro Coils on them. Especially on silver.

The Safari is much easier to set up and use and optimize since there are a lot less functions and adjustments. It does have a slightly slower recovery speed.

The Ferrous and Conductive numbers on the E-Trac do help out a lot, but if you are primarily a tone hunter, then it does not matter much. I have found the Safari actually has a bit of a higher tone on silver and it's easier to differentiate.

Bottom line is, if you primarily hunt for coins and jewelry in parks, fields, dry sand hunt, the 705 will handle those applications very, very well. It has much faster response time to separate trash from treasure, more sensitive to gold using the small 6 inch HF DD, and the Coiltek Digger coil is killer on old silver and copper coins. Plus...it's a heck of a lot easier to swing !

My 2 cents.
 
I had the both E Trac and CTX at one time or another. I just bought a Safari from vancemetaldetecting. I look forward to the simplicity. My dirt hunting fluctuates and I can't justify having an expensive dirt machine anymore. If the Safari offers the same depth and power of the E Trac I will be very happy.
 
Figured for $275 could not go wrong if it worked properly...and it does. Depth and power are on par with the E-Trac using the Pro coil.

Found out testing and using it, that other than the ergonomics being a bit better on the E-Trac, and the somewhat slower sweep speed needed to hear the deep ones, the Safari used just in Coin/Jewelry with optimal sensitivity settings, at a bit slower sweep speed than me being used to on the E-Trac, it's a darn good unit. Going to test out the Sunray X-8 and X-5 coils on it soon.

I mainly got it so my son can venture into the wet, salt sand when we go beach hunting, as his single frequency unit could only handle the dry sand, and at this time the dry is totally useless here in NJ unless you find a boardwalk replacement project or machines moving tons of sand.

The one Vance had was near mint, so it should be good to go.
 
I personally love the Safari. I like it more the longer I have it. I can hunt for hours with it and it's been awesome. You've got to have a great pair of headphones. I took the Pro pointer case, wire tied it to the top arm and it's right there for me every find. I don't think it's too heavy at all.
 
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