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Troy Shadow X5

Bell

New member
So I run an SE pro but have recently become aware of the Troy Shadows. Does anybody have one that can tell me how it stacks up against the Explorer, particularly in the depth category.
 
I did some tests with it against the Explorer XS.
Test #1: Got a good sounding hit with the Explorer at about 8" then tried the Shadow. Nothing. No beep, just a null. It was a brass disk.
It was in an iron patch and even though the Shadow has a double D coil, I don't believe the separation is nearly as good as the Explorer's.
Test #2: Old farm field where a house used to be. I could walk one row with the Explorer and get 20 non ferrous hits in the heavy iron areas of this site and then walk the same row with the Shadow and only get 3 or 4.
These are not scientific tests and I will admit I'm not a Shadow expert. I'm pretty sure it won't find what the Explorers can find.
I'm not sold on the low conductive sensitivity hype either. I seriously doubt if it can hit on ANYTHING the Explorer won't hit on.
JMHO
Neal
 
Well, for starters, you're asking this on an explorer forum, so go figure the opinions, haha. And secondly, your question is trying to compare apples to oranges. They're just two separate types of machines altogether. The X5 will have a much less accurate ID at depth. So while you may get "clicks" (thus some people would argue you've gone just as deep as an explorer), yet you have to factor TID into it. And the type hunt environments you intend to go to, also play a role in this. Ie,: perhaps you are in a relic-mindset area, where you simply intend to dig-all anyhow? And soil type plays into the question. The Explorer will handle more soil types, IMHO. There might be a place for the X5, but I can't say for certain. The only x5 I ever got to see in practice (pitted in a junky hardpan parking strip against a few other makes and models, when it first came out) was lacking terribly. Everything sounded the same. Of course, we were in an arena where we wanted to (gasp) loose foil, etc... It was more of an "under bleachers go for the copper/silver" type hunt environment, and I found the X5 to be seriously lacking, overly senstive (no matter how we tuned it), etc... However, shortly after that, apparently Troy Co. did see that it was too sensitive, so they did a modification to all the ones coming off the assembly line thereafter. I have not seen/tried these series II type X5's. The X2 (the X5's predecessor) does indeed see through and around iron better (so long as we're not talking super deep) iron better. So for example, it would be a better ghost town machine, IMHO.

So as you can see, depth isn't the only issue, and even to the degree we all want to know how deep a machine goes, there's multiple layered factors to lay on top of the depth question.

All in all, the Explorer is pretty durn versatile, and .... considering the "power house" that it is, it holds its own in the target-separation and averaging department of capabality. If you put on the a 5" coil, you can do pretty good in and amongst iron. But there will be 2 filter machines that will out-hunt an explorer in some iron-riddled environments (with the depth question aside).
 
I had one and wish I still had it as I did like the X5 for hunting for coins and relics for certain area where there was a lot of nails and other lower conductivity trash. In can slaw it had its problems, but most do anyway. My nicest IH penny (the one on my post) was found with the X5 in with several nails I had been over with my Explorer II when I had it. I also got a very nice 1894 O barber dime in with some serious trash along a old country store I wasn't able to work with the Explorer. Also in one area in a small town that was a corral now, but was a old school playground I checked it out after 3 Explorers had worked it out and said it was full of nail , but got a few nice coins. I just did one walk around it and got 2 barber dimes, 2 older merc and 6 wheat pennies in about a hour with the X5. I found out that it got a lot of good signals on nails, but by speeding up the speeding up the swing of the coil iron would break up while copper and silver seem to lock on better.
I also did a test on actual targets with a guy with a Explorer XS and a Sovereign XS and had them get me some deep targets they thought were good and let me see if the X5 could see them. First target I couldn't get, but both the Explorer and the Sovereign got some weak signals, so I turn down my disc to iron and got a good signal so I felt it was iron when dug was a rusty washer that was deep. Second target same thing and this one they said was a IH penny, but I said iron again and it was a small railroad button that had a iron backing. Someday I will probably have another one as I like it some places I hunt, but for some areas my E-Trac or the Sovereign GT is the ones I like to use.
 
Troy had some good ideas and may someday come out with another model if he can get financial backing.

X-5 is certainly a lightweight killer on low conductive targets and won't wear you out like heavier Explorers but certainly doesn't go as deep on silver or give you all the info to dig or not.

X-5 is surely not an Explorer but may excell under certain circumstances and most avid detectorists have more than one unit and just talked to a gentleman who had 15 plus units which is overkill but whatever works. Over the years have tried many units and most of them have their place in the hobby with give and take aways and certainly the experience was eye opening.
 
n/t
 
I do know he was once on the Tesoro team and only common sense doing what he knows best and really hard for the little guy to survive in the hobby and no matter where or how will add to
the company he works for or lets hope he gets some backing for a X6 in the near future...
 
So I guess my question was wood it be a good add on to the lineup for deep woods relic hunting? Or should I just stick with the Explorer SE?
 
That was Los Banos Fisher not F/T Fisher.
 
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