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Thinking about upgrading to Etrac....

H

Happa54

Member
Hi All;

I'm seriously thinking about upgrading to Etrac from my Safari and I need your HONEST opinion for those who are previous or current Etrac owners.

The reason being is that I read in too many posts (in the Etrac forums) that the Etrac ID's targets accurately therefore a lot less digging. In other words, they say the Etrac "tells you what not to dig".

The Safari seems to target everything under the coil. As far as I can see, it goes way deep. I seem to dig way too much on solid high tones only to come up with rusted nails & wire and high conductive metals. In many cases, I never recover the target because whatever is there is simply too deep.

I've learned the coin tones pretty good and I can differentiate between zinc, copper/dime, quarter and silver when I hear it. I have over 500 hours on my Safari.

I'm currently studying the Etrac manual and it is a lot to work with. More than I care for but I'm willing to take on the learning curve if I will be better off in the long run.

I'm not concerned about the difference in price and I don't mind owning both with the Safari as a backup or loaner.

I'm located on the West Coast, coinshooter and I hunt primarily in conductive.

Your feedback in appreciated.
 
Never owned one, but there' an eTrac emulator floating around that might be helpful in seeing how it works.
 
My opinion.. Etrac is far better a detector than the Safari.
 
That's positive Elton.... thanks

I hear both sides of the coin both good & bad (depending on which forum I'm on) and it's a hard decision to make at this time because the Safari is my first and only detector.

I hunt 100+ yr old trashy parks in Los Angeles and there's a lot of stuff in the ground.

In fact, at times I get burned out digging clad, steel, nails, cans, pull tabs, screw caps, etc. I have however taken my share of early wheaties, early metal buttons and on occasion silver dimes, European coins, a few pieces of gold jewelry, silver rings and war nickels.

Now, if the Etac will ID those undesirable targets, or at least significantly cut down on unwanted digging, then I can get through a lot of trash at these old parks and substantially increase my good finds.

I tend to work small areas for long periods of time because I enjoy working the coil slowly over targets learning the art of separation.

I love my Safari and will hang onto it as it has given me some pretty awesome finds.... but, I feel I need more data to work with to get through all the trash at the older parks.

Thank you for given me direction.
 
I am new to the E-trac, only had it 3 months now, and I can see a huge difference in the amount of junk I dig now compared to when I used the safari. I think the biggest difference is the number of programs you have at your disposal. The TTF is one I use frequently because of all the trash in certain parks. Sounds like you could use this feature as well. I will tell you that is very frustrating at first. It will take a while to get used to everything. I thought about selling mine more than once and going back to the Safari. But I can tell you with no doubt in my mind if I have a nail or a coin under my coil. The sounds are similar but the numbers really spell it out for me. But again it took a few hours and a lot of digging. Good luck and Happy hunting.
 
The Etrac is got a solid track record, Your going to have more options with The Etrac, Back light, tone options, larger display, just to name a few.

It's a better detector, but there's a price to pay, It cost more $$$ , and it's a heaver detector

Money is not a issue and you don't mind swinging a heaver detector, then The Etrac will work out great for you.

Minelab is making a new Detector announcement in Sept, maybe wait till then?
 
I'm under the impression that Minelab is coming out with a new gold detector this September, if anything.

I'm also interested in gold since I am close to the So Cal mountain ranges but I'm having such a blast with the coins that I thought that I'd wait on the gold stuff for now.

But the more I research and youtube the Etrac, the more I want it.
 
When it comes to metal detectors, I think it's all about personal preference. Having said that, the Etrac has a faster processor and has features i.e. back light and more flexible programing and maybe a tad deeper? but the jury is still out on that!! than a Safari.
I used to fish a lot and I had my 'favorite' fishing poles/rods. I had a split cane rod 'Aspindale' with a center pin reel that I bought when I was only 12 years old and it was my very first rod and reel (I still have them)!. I loved it and although it was a heavy and stiffer rod, it was my go-to rod just because of the sentimentality of it. I really enjoyed it and caught a lot of awesome fish even though it was heavier and stiffer than my other fishing rods. It's the same with detectors. They may not be the very best for a given terrain but we enjoy them too much for us to change to another and that's what metal detecting is all about, after all it's a hobby first and foremost? As in all hobbies, there are varying degrees of dedication and if a guy (or gal)! wants to spend more and get the better more expensive machines we can certainly do that and I think we all can say the Etrac is the 'better' machine as far as versatility but at the end of the day, it comes down to $$$$ and preference in my humble opinion. Now go out there, have fun and get some treasures and above all, have fun!!!!
 
Yup, I hear ya G.S.

And I'm still a mono guy with my Penn jigmasters, Newells and Daiwa's cuz it's what I cut my teeth on back in the day. Will never give em up either although I rarely fish nowadays.

It's a funny thing because I was out today and probably had the most enlightening day with my Safari thus far.

Went to a pounded out park close to the house and dug a handful of clad dimes, quarters and copper pennies in a super small area that I hunted many times over. What was surprising to me was this newer clad was buried between 4" to 6".

I stuck to a small squared pattern (approx 30x50) and was surprised that I was easily able to hear and identify more good targets than ever before. It was like a light turned on or something. Can't explain it as the hunt came too easy for me this time. Maybe this is the light switch that people talk about when they become one with their detector.

I have over 500 hours with my Safari and I was wondering when that time would come.

Now the confusion comes in.... should I give my Safari some more time before making the commitment to buy the Etrac?
 
This is my personal experience.I had a safari,,sold it and new when I was packing it up I was doing the wrong thing.Bought a Etrac,saw no difference except extra weight and settings I'll never use,or need to find what the safari could and would...Used the Etrac extensively,and sold it.Now I own a safari again and I'm ok with it,no matter what others opinions are about the Etrac being better.The safari is better for me.
 
Bigtom123 said:
This is my personal experience.I had a safari,,sold it and new when I was packing it up I was doing the wrong thing.Bought a Etrac,saw no difference except extra weight and settings I'll never use,or need to find what the safari could and would...Used the Etrac extensively,and sold it.Now I own a safari again and I'm ok with it,no matter what others opinions are about the Etrac being better.The safari is better for me.
Click to expand...


I think your last sentence is something that people don't give enough credit to. There's no single answer to What's The Best Machine and the question should really be What's the Best Machine For Me?.
 
Well said Bigtom

As I watch all these Etrac videos on youtube I ask myself, "will I be using all these combinations of patterns and discrimination?".

I use my Safari with no discrimination except for the negative metal numbers. Actually, I like hearing all the tones and cross checking from conduct to ferrous. It teaches me a lot about my machine and targets

They say (and I have quoted them) the Etrac tells you what not to dig. Really? Please give me an example if you agree with this. Can the Etrac guarantee you that your target is a coin, bottle cap or rusted nail?

I see seasoned Etrac users on the videos digging targets based on tones. Their end result seems to be no different than mine. They dig nails and junk targets just the same.

I may be hearing more potential targets due to my limited use of disc and patterns, etc.... right? Is the Etrac eliminating too many potential targets by using too many patterns? Is this technology that advanced or hype?

Although just a few days ago I was sold on the Etrac, I am now contemplating whether or not the upgrade is really worth it.

Thus far.... the jury is kinda still out on this one.
 
Happa54 said:
Well said Bigtom

As I watch all these Etrac videos on youtube I ask myself, "will I be using all these combinations of patterns and discrimination?".

I use my Safari with no discrimination except for the negative metal numbers. Actually, I like hearing all the tones and cross checking from conduct to ferrous. It teaches me a lot about my machine and targets

They say (and I have quoted them) the Etrac tells you what not to dig. Really? Please give me an example if you agree with this. Can the Etrac guarantee you that your target is a coin, bottle cap or rusted nail?

I see seasoned Etrac users on the videos digging targets based on tones. Their end result seems to be no different than mine. They dig nails and junk targets just the same.

I may be hearing more potential targets due to my limited use of disc and patterns, etc.... right? Is the Etrac eliminating too many potential targets by using too many patterns? Is this technology that advanced or hype?

Although just a few days ago I was sold on the Etrac, I am now contemplating whether or not the upgrade is really worth it.

Thus far.... the jury is kinda still out on this one.
Click to expand...

I'll tell you a experience I had with the Etrac and running disc.I hunted a old yard,running a tight disc pattern with the Etrac.Found a buffalo nickel...A week later I took the fisher f75 over the yard,literally 5 feet from where I found the buffalo nickel with the Etrac I found this with the f75ltd2,no discrimination.
There is absolutely no question I had the Etrac coil over it,several times cause I gridded the small yard.Thats what running heavy discrimination will do,miss targets.I honestly don't see any difference in the safari and the Etrac,I've dug iron and pop tops with both,couldn't tell them apart..I'll stick with a safari,much lighter and simple,same performance
 
B.T.123......that's a very nice and what looks to be a heavy 14K ring! I wish I had found that one!!!!!
 
Check out these 2 youtube videos by TexasTigerDigs Tech. They are only about 10 minutes each.

"FBS choice safari or etrac: on what should you base your pick"

"Safari tone machine with TID... etrac a TID machine with tones"

An interesting statement to make about the two machines. He says the Safari is basically a TONE machine, but not a TID machine, wherein the Etrac leans more towards target identification.

Please give me your opinion on TexasDigs wisdom on these two.
 
Nice fattie gold!
 
Goldstrike said:
B.T.123......that's a very nice and what looks to be a heavy 14K ring! I wish I had found that one!!!!!
Click to expand...

My preeeeeeeeeeeeeeeecious! Those hobbitses stole it from us!
 
I too am on the fence shpuld i upgrade to a Etrac or stay with the Safari as far as i can tell my Safari does just ad good pulling silver, relics. I think i will stay put after reading other peoples opinions. Thanxs you were a big help.
 
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