The brown truck arrived...)bit long)

[Dan-Pa.]

Wow what a small box was my first reaction on the X-terra 30..Too darn cold to actually hunt here in Pa. but heres my feelings...
Its light and well balanced.
User friendly no telephone book manual on this one.
I like the multiple holes for the armrest for comfort for your particuliar arm.
4 batteries sure is nice.
Armrest appears to be a bit large but one does not always hunt in short sleeves and with a jacket seems fine..Always can pull tight with the velcro strap.
Bottom of armrest is just too narrow and your machine could topple if not on even ground..Perhaps Minelab will widen or one fellow heated his to make it wider. Not the first detector I encountered with this problem and I would think an easy fix.
Just luv the meter screen as a blind man can can see it.
Did some testing and does have audio variances to work with especially in the gold ring versus trash where lighter trash that mimics heavier gold rings just don't hold a signal as long.
Battery condition and depth reading are a plus.
Am a tall fellow but can see where it might be a problem for a child or short person relative the rod.Easy fix at best if needed.
Well weighted and good ergonmics.
Just don't like the door for the headphone jack, but even if it falls off...no big deal
Hand grip matter of preference as I have used hard and soft and all a matter of getting used to. Imagine a tennis racket cover may may it softer if one sees fit.
Pinpointer seems right on and should produce only small holes.
Went out to my test garden( buried 12 years) and hit a silver dime at 8 inches with good ID and also got my trashed small gold ring at 5 inches with good ID also.
Tested the swing speed and surely a moderate one much faster than other Minelabs which are slow at best.When I get to the field should be able to contribute more and probably missed something along the way.Having used the Explorer and Sov. must admit quite a change and should be able to swing for hours with no problem.
Am I going to burm my Elite( heck no) and again best I could do and am just itching to get into the field and must relate the 30 model might fit my needs better as I am a silver coin hunter and 3 tones where a dime comes in high and a 50 it comes in midtone having 4 tones. Basically eliminated the bobble head effect of looking at meter..
For you fellows down South good hunting and you fellows up North lets hope we can swing a couple of hour in..Remember just my opinion and yours may differ and after sliding other Minelab coils along the ground may take a bit to learn to swing the X-terra just above the ground as the manual states for more efficient hunting...to be continued weather permitting.
Have no association with Minelab and just an old groundpounder like the rest of us.

 

[BobH]

n/t

 

[John(Tx)]

I like my 6a but just have to work it real slow. Next time I go out with the 6a, I will run it in "0" disc as I read in one post where it will do better in iron running it this way. Hope you get to go out soon, the weather here is in the frosty 60's...Ha! Ha!

 

[Dan-Pa.]

Much lighter on the arm and I can see this unit will require a little brisker speed to cover more area..CZ's you have to crawl with for superior depth..I realize we don't hunt coins in the air but was impressed with some air tests I did..and wouldn't be surprised if it grabbed them deep without all that masking from iron...only time will tell as I know of an old park where if you don't go 8 inches all you will get is what the pigeon left on the rock..Just doesn't have the look of some of the lightweight units from other companies which is for lack of better word is (cheap looking) remember no detector wars just my opinions and use what trips your trigger...

 

[Ralph Bryant]

Hi Dan,

Looking forward to your thoughts on the Xterra-30 once you get some time swinging. But in the meantime, what kind of air test range does your unit get on a regular U.S. nickel in all-metal mode and at full volume and sensitivity ? I always like to use that as a guage of referrence between my different machines.

TIA

Ralph

 

[Dan-Pa.]

Previous Minelabs did not air test well...Explanation need to mix with ground matrix for full ability...Always just swing a clad quarter myself as air test are just ball park at best..Heck didn't even measure the quarter and distance but was approx. 11-12 inches..Silver coin hunter myself so didn't even swing a nickel...sure impressed me....Will have to get in the field under natural conditions to get a better fix on depth capabilities....at least in my neck of the woods...Sorry if I couldn't be more specific but in the ground is where it counts...

 

[Ralph Bryant]

I agree, in the ground is where it really counts. But remember the Xterras are not like some previous Minelabs, but more conventional single-frequency induction balance machines rather than time domain (modified pulse induction) like the Sovereign, Explorers, and Excalibers. That's what I was really getting at in doing a nickel air-test comparison with my other IB machines. And since nickels are fairly uniform in size and alloy content, they are a good "standard" or control sample for most machines in helping determine how a specific machine will react to mid-level conductivity targets somewhere between foil and higher conductivity coins. Operating frequency and gain level plays a big role here, but someone had mentioned that their Xterra air-tested a nickel at a much greater range than they expected it to, considering the frequency, so that stirred my interest.

Ralph

 

[Dan-Pa.]

Ralph you bring up some good points..Well just had to test that nickel and it knocked my socks off as it easily matched the distance of the quarter. Quite uusual to me as nickels usually air test several inches less. Another plus for the X-terra...I understand and not trying to make comparisons but when you can swing faster you basically can cover more ground efficiently and a lighter unit gives you more time in the field with more comfort..I do have to say it was an eye opener at best and easily beat the CZ relative nickel air tests. Again air tests just give us ball park figures so keep that in mind. Another point from the new Jefferson nickel to the Shield quite a bit of difference in mettalic content so keep that in mind when hunting older areas as older nickles Buffalo, V and Shield tend to come in lower on a meter.Is it fair to virtually undress an X-terra..I think so as I feel the gang enjoys the feedback and coming from a CZ user since 92 must make a lot of guys and gals smirk. Yep I say gals as I think the gals will enjoy the weight as I don't feel there are many female Explorer users...Do remember I have used the Explorer and several Sov's and speak from experience even though only opinions..

 

[Digger]

I agree that air testing the FBS and BBS detectors is not a good comparison to the X-Terra. As we know, the multi-freq detectors seem to need a ground matrix to provide consistent readings. However,lets not lump all Minelabs together with poor airtest results. Don't forget Minelab has been making single frequency machines longer than they have the FBS or BBS units. With that said, I have found the X-Terra (7.5 kHz & 9" coil) performs in the air and in the dirt, similarly to the Advantage 5kHz detector with the stock TS800 DD coil. And, that is a GOOD thing. Regardless of the bantering back and forth between multi-freq and single freq and depth comparisons, I know that the Advantage has hit IH cents at 9". I also know that both the X-Terra 30 and the X-Terra 50 has found buried coins at 8". So, (with the current stock coils) until I find a coin that one machine hits and the other one don't, I will surmise that the single freq units, both the new X-Terras and the Advantage, are similar in their depth of detection. HH Randy

 

[BobH]

We live in an old house and the kitchen, a converted separate room, measures an about 11.5' x 12'. It contains all the usual metal appliances and an old Sears 5' metal cabinet with cast iron sink/counter top. There's also a ceiling fan/lights right over the kitchen table. However, I was able to run in all-metal with the sensitivity and volume at 20 (max.) and the X-Terra was perfectly quiet - no phantom iron butterflies. Of course, this test should be taken with a grain of salt, but here's what I found:



1. The nickel id was a steady '12' up to almost 9".
2. Waving the nickel fast gave a '9-12' id from 9" to about 10.5".
3. Waving the nickel fast produced a repeatable chirp at about 12".

4. On the beach in real life today I got a solid '12' on nickels up to about 5.5".
5. If the nickel was tilted or 5.5" to 8" deep an id of almost any number was possible.

6. The quarter id was a steady '42' up to about 10".
7. Waving the quarter fast gave a '42' id to about 11".
8. Waving the quarter fast gave a '36-39' id to about 12".
9. Waving the quarter fast gave a '33-36' id to about 13".

10. Waving fast increased the volume, especially noticable on the quarter.

 

[Dan-Pa.]

I learned quickly many detectors give false readings inside your home and some won't work at all..I think we have all learned over the years that air testing even outside is ball park at best, this unit requires a faster swing( covers more ground) than previous Minelabs that were slow swing units.And last but not least even if we get 8 inch targets( really think they will be deeper than that in ground)we have a excellent depth machine..Unfortunately most units will pick up a target with audio farther than it will ID and with some the ID number will go down with depth. Surely my air tests were none scientific and just guesstimates...
Taking this all into consideration having used many units this mid line unit(pricewise) anyway will be a deepseeker with a good ID.
With two inches on snow on the ground here in Pa. guess I will have to look for feedback from the Southern guys and gals...
Good report Bob now lets try those air test on your picnic table and see if any differences....
Honestly never held much stock in air tests but they do give one an idea if you have a deepseeker or not and come the Spring will surely be able to give more accurate finding as we have some deep coins here in Pa.

 

[BobH]

...one just can't expect a clear '12' reading all the time and sometimes they sound like trash (break up). Yes, I know no detector reads nickels correctly all the time, especially at depth. So far, I've gotten a better nickel ratio with the X-Terra 50 than with any other detector I've tried, except maybe the MXT.<br><br><center>[attachment 12230 1202.jpg]</center>