csarebelva
New member
Ok I have had two weekends with the Racer 2 and this is what I have to say so far.
Two Tone - Not as chirpy as the Red Racer but still very sensitive to bumps such as corn stalks and large grass mounds. At 70 Gain and ID filter at 10 I still get a lot of chirping. Now let me say that good targets are usually much more pronounced and come through solid but I often find myself switching over to Three Tone just to get rid of the constant chatter when in areas where the coil is going to be bumping some.
In three tone I usually run it at gain of 80 and target ID filter at 10 I found this loses little depth to the Two tone at 70. Checking targets in both modes the signals are pretty close in strength although the Three Tone seems to ID the target better.
Deep Mode in a slow swing at factory settings really does give you a clear sound on iffy targets and often will give you a ID number when you don't get one on Two or Three tone. I like that it is real simple to switch back and forth between the modes to check your target.
Trusting The Machine - Now like many I just am often afraid to leave any target in the ground but as the day wears on and I get tired I get more selective of what I am going to dig. If I trusted this machine the last two weeks I don't think I would have dug but about 1/4 of the trash. Big iron still fools it often coming in the 70s or 80s on IDs and sounding good....especially large pieces of flat Iron. Old screw top whisky bottle tops seem to be another problem. They ID in the ground at over 8 inches and give around a 67 ID. Now after only two weekends and 4 short hunts I can almost tell you a 31-33 loud signal is going to be shallow buckshot. I can tell you if your target breaks up in one direction but sounds great in another direction it is usually can slaw or a larger piece of iron. It may sound great swinging north to south but if you turn and swing east to west and it sounds trashy I would almost give a 99% trash rating. I have checked it several times and it was always trash.
Understanding the tones. I like to set my Iron audio at about 23 - I have found no targets yet that come under 23 that are worth digging. With that said this machine talks to you with sounds and numbers
If your numbers are jumping all over the place on the center of your target it is almost assuredly trash/iron/foils and such. A jump in a 10 point range like 62-72 may be a good target but if you are getting 30s 40s 50s 60s all off the same target it is most likely trash. Masked targets usually still don't get an all over the board reading. The sounds on good targets are usually just that ....good ... solid smooth tones with or without a target ID number. Now I did get two good targets that had a little different sound. One was a button back that was right on the surface and it gave a target ID of 45 (a little low for brass) but the sound was like a wave ....solid but a little split between high and low ...eeeeeeeAAAAeeee eeeeeAAAAeeee (my best try of explaining the sound) The other was a flat button that was on it's edge ....standing straight up (glad I got to see this one in the wall of the hole so I could understand why I was getting the tone) .... this tone broke in the middle EEEE..EEEE EEEE...EEEE but both of these were solid sounding signals .... no grunts or multi breaks in the tone. It seems even deeper targets give a nice solid sound
Target IDs - well if I had my choice I would dig mostly 45-95 most under 45 are modern bullets 12 guage shells and other non desirable targets (well unless your into digging modern bullets) over 95 has every time been large aluminum. Round balls and civil war bullets SO FAR for me have all come in the 60s, Flat buttons are where you have to listen to the sound as much as the ID as pewter ones will sometimes land in the upper 30s but always give a solid sound 36-39 but most of the brass or other ones read in the 50s. Coins seem (although I have not dug a nickle yet) most coins range in the 70s-high 80s range.
Pinpoint - One flaw I have found is that the target never seems to be at the center of the coil on the strongest signal. I have missed about 50% of my targets by an inch or two to where I thought it was centered. I have learned to dig back to the target .... in other words since I use the ground shark shovel (which cuts great plugs) I go back about 4" from where I think it's centered and cut my plugs. I dig slightly larger holes to prevent hitting the target but that is not a huge deal since I can still leave a yard looking life little more than a mole has passed through.
Overloads - Now I have not had it in freezing weather yet (and with spring here that may have to wait awhile) but so far the only time this machine overloads is on shallow large targets ...not every time you turn it on like my Red Racer.
Arm wear - Ok for years I swung a lightweight Tesoro so I got spoiled by that weight but the new design with the coil ears moved closer to center of the coil and a slight change in angle on the arm bar has made it more comfortable. I don't get as much shoulder strain now it seems as the pain I use to get in my shoulder after two days of hunting now seems more to the forearm and elbow. I am sure as time goes on I will find a sweep range and swing style that will make it a little better on me all together such as swinging my hips a bit more instead of using all arm.
Depth - can't really say except yes the deep mode does give you a nice crisp reading on targets that may be a little iffy on Two Tone or Three Tone. I have found 69 cal. round balls at 6 inches flat buttons cuff size at 6 inches and wheat pennies at 7 inches and a silver dime at 8 inches. I have found large pieces of spoons at 9 inches. All of those were pretty solid sounding targets.
Battery life - I don't think you are going to get the same life out of the batteries in the Racer 2 as you did in the Red Racer - now I did have some test time and some time when I had the back light on since I got the new machine but I just replaced batteries for the first time Sunday ( had the batteries that came with the machine) I would say I had 22-25 hours on this set when I noticed only two bars left on the battery display on the machine. Now I may have been able to hunt 3 more hours like that but I went ahead and replaced them. The Red Racer easily gets 35-40 hours out of a set of batteries.
Against the competition - Ok so I have only hunted along side a Tesoro Tejon and a Garrett AT Pro with the new machine - The Tesoro picked up most of the targets I had ID on but the swinger said he would dig several targets I did not and several targets he asked me if I would dig and told him I would not and when he went on to dig them they were trash. The Tesoro Tejon goes pretty deep but it does not give you all the ID information to help. I do think the Racer 2 in two tone will hit an inch or two deeper on a quarter sized target. The AT Pro seemed pretty closely matched on target IDs and signal strength. We often would compare sounds and IDs to determine what we thought the target was. We were both pretty darn close on figuring what the target may be and neither of us found a deep enough target that the other couldn't read. Only on the lower ID numbers would he question to dig or not to dig (isn't that always the question) where I would say ...trash and would be right. Now on all three of my outings with others I have produced more good targets/relics usually 2 or 3 to one against the Tesoro and 1 1/2 -2 to 1 against the AT Pro with a user that has 15 years experience on me. ... now what does this mean ..... well rally not much as we all know that luck has a HUGE part in this game or shall we say hobby. One step left or right makes a world of difference in the relic hunting world. I do however contribute the fact I am spending less time digging trash and more time swinging to some of the success of good targets.
What have I dug - well a few short hunts in places pounded (and I mean pounded) and my cousins suburban yard garden (house 50 years old) I have got 4 - 69 cal. round balls, 1 carbine bullet, 6 flat buttons, 1 flower button, 1 button back (CW military), 1 silver broach, 1 silver dime, 3 clad dimes, 3 wheat pennies, 12 clad pennies, 1 clad quarter, various brass pieces and parts camp lead and such. Nothing great but these are spots I was not expecting much out of
Final Thought - The Racer 2 is a darn good machine and I love their customer relations and desire for input. They fix the wrongs ....they make the stuff that's OK even better..... they listen to their customers and that is one of the things that sold me at first with them. If your a coin hunter I think you will love this machine .....I can pick coins out of trash easily ...especially with the small coil. There is no one machine that will do it all but if your not worried about diving into rivers and creeks then I think this machine covers all else...... It is easy to use ...... it hunts pretty deep ..... it is even better now at target IDs. If your just looking for a good all around mid price range machine I think you will like this one.
Two Tone - Not as chirpy as the Red Racer but still very sensitive to bumps such as corn stalks and large grass mounds. At 70 Gain and ID filter at 10 I still get a lot of chirping. Now let me say that good targets are usually much more pronounced and come through solid but I often find myself switching over to Three Tone just to get rid of the constant chatter when in areas where the coil is going to be bumping some.
In three tone I usually run it at gain of 80 and target ID filter at 10 I found this loses little depth to the Two tone at 70. Checking targets in both modes the signals are pretty close in strength although the Three Tone seems to ID the target better.
Deep Mode in a slow swing at factory settings really does give you a clear sound on iffy targets and often will give you a ID number when you don't get one on Two or Three tone. I like that it is real simple to switch back and forth between the modes to check your target.
Trusting The Machine - Now like many I just am often afraid to leave any target in the ground but as the day wears on and I get tired I get more selective of what I am going to dig. If I trusted this machine the last two weeks I don't think I would have dug but about 1/4 of the trash. Big iron still fools it often coming in the 70s or 80s on IDs and sounding good....especially large pieces of flat Iron. Old screw top whisky bottle tops seem to be another problem. They ID in the ground at over 8 inches and give around a 67 ID. Now after only two weekends and 4 short hunts I can almost tell you a 31-33 loud signal is going to be shallow buckshot. I can tell you if your target breaks up in one direction but sounds great in another direction it is usually can slaw or a larger piece of iron. It may sound great swinging north to south but if you turn and swing east to west and it sounds trashy I would almost give a 99% trash rating. I have checked it several times and it was always trash.
Understanding the tones. I like to set my Iron audio at about 23 - I have found no targets yet that come under 23 that are worth digging. With that said this machine talks to you with sounds and numbers
If your numbers are jumping all over the place on the center of your target it is almost assuredly trash/iron/foils and such. A jump in a 10 point range like 62-72 may be a good target but if you are getting 30s 40s 50s 60s all off the same target it is most likely trash. Masked targets usually still don't get an all over the board reading. The sounds on good targets are usually just that ....good ... solid smooth tones with or without a target ID number. Now I did get two good targets that had a little different sound. One was a button back that was right on the surface and it gave a target ID of 45 (a little low for brass) but the sound was like a wave ....solid but a little split between high and low ...eeeeeeeAAAAeeee eeeeeAAAAeeee (my best try of explaining the sound) The other was a flat button that was on it's edge ....standing straight up (glad I got to see this one in the wall of the hole so I could understand why I was getting the tone) .... this tone broke in the middle EEEE..EEEE EEEE...EEEE but both of these were solid sounding signals .... no grunts or multi breaks in the tone. It seems even deeper targets give a nice solid sound
Target IDs - well if I had my choice I would dig mostly 45-95 most under 45 are modern bullets 12 guage shells and other non desirable targets (well unless your into digging modern bullets) over 95 has every time been large aluminum. Round balls and civil war bullets SO FAR for me have all come in the 60s, Flat buttons are where you have to listen to the sound as much as the ID as pewter ones will sometimes land in the upper 30s but always give a solid sound 36-39 but most of the brass or other ones read in the 50s. Coins seem (although I have not dug a nickle yet) most coins range in the 70s-high 80s range.
Pinpoint - One flaw I have found is that the target never seems to be at the center of the coil on the strongest signal. I have missed about 50% of my targets by an inch or two to where I thought it was centered. I have learned to dig back to the target .... in other words since I use the ground shark shovel (which cuts great plugs) I go back about 4" from where I think it's centered and cut my plugs. I dig slightly larger holes to prevent hitting the target but that is not a huge deal since I can still leave a yard looking life little more than a mole has passed through.
Overloads - Now I have not had it in freezing weather yet (and with spring here that may have to wait awhile) but so far the only time this machine overloads is on shallow large targets ...not every time you turn it on like my Red Racer.
Arm wear - Ok for years I swung a lightweight Tesoro so I got spoiled by that weight but the new design with the coil ears moved closer to center of the coil and a slight change in angle on the arm bar has made it more comfortable. I don't get as much shoulder strain now it seems as the pain I use to get in my shoulder after two days of hunting now seems more to the forearm and elbow. I am sure as time goes on I will find a sweep range and swing style that will make it a little better on me all together such as swinging my hips a bit more instead of using all arm.
Depth - can't really say except yes the deep mode does give you a nice crisp reading on targets that may be a little iffy on Two Tone or Three Tone. I have found 69 cal. round balls at 6 inches flat buttons cuff size at 6 inches and wheat pennies at 7 inches and a silver dime at 8 inches. I have found large pieces of spoons at 9 inches. All of those were pretty solid sounding targets.
Battery life - I don't think you are going to get the same life out of the batteries in the Racer 2 as you did in the Red Racer - now I did have some test time and some time when I had the back light on since I got the new machine but I just replaced batteries for the first time Sunday ( had the batteries that came with the machine) I would say I had 22-25 hours on this set when I noticed only two bars left on the battery display on the machine. Now I may have been able to hunt 3 more hours like that but I went ahead and replaced them. The Red Racer easily gets 35-40 hours out of a set of batteries.
Against the competition - Ok so I have only hunted along side a Tesoro Tejon and a Garrett AT Pro with the new machine - The Tesoro picked up most of the targets I had ID on but the swinger said he would dig several targets I did not and several targets he asked me if I would dig and told him I would not and when he went on to dig them they were trash. The Tesoro Tejon goes pretty deep but it does not give you all the ID information to help. I do think the Racer 2 in two tone will hit an inch or two deeper on a quarter sized target. The AT Pro seemed pretty closely matched on target IDs and signal strength. We often would compare sounds and IDs to determine what we thought the target was. We were both pretty darn close on figuring what the target may be and neither of us found a deep enough target that the other couldn't read. Only on the lower ID numbers would he question to dig or not to dig (isn't that always the question) where I would say ...trash and would be right. Now on all three of my outings with others I have produced more good targets/relics usually 2 or 3 to one against the Tesoro and 1 1/2 -2 to 1 against the AT Pro with a user that has 15 years experience on me. ... now what does this mean ..... well rally not much as we all know that luck has a HUGE part in this game or shall we say hobby. One step left or right makes a world of difference in the relic hunting world. I do however contribute the fact I am spending less time digging trash and more time swinging to some of the success of good targets.
What have I dug - well a few short hunts in places pounded (and I mean pounded) and my cousins suburban yard garden (house 50 years old) I have got 4 - 69 cal. round balls, 1 carbine bullet, 6 flat buttons, 1 flower button, 1 button back (CW military), 1 silver broach, 1 silver dime, 3 clad dimes, 3 wheat pennies, 12 clad pennies, 1 clad quarter, various brass pieces and parts camp lead and such. Nothing great but these are spots I was not expecting much out of
Final Thought - The Racer 2 is a darn good machine and I love their customer relations and desire for input. They fix the wrongs ....they make the stuff that's OK even better..... they listen to their customers and that is one of the things that sold me at first with them. If your a coin hunter I think you will love this machine .....I can pick coins out of trash easily ...especially with the small coil. There is no one machine that will do it all but if your not worried about diving into rivers and creeks then I think this machine covers all else...... It is easy to use ...... it hunts pretty deep ..... it is even better now at target IDs. If your just looking for a good all around mid price range machine I think you will like this one.
that's what you wanted to hear wasn't it 
air is air ground is ground.
best of looking at features you would like/want and grab one see if it fits the bill if not sell try the next one, but hey they are VLF's its kHz and coils and features all we really need to look at. what someone thinks about it really doesn't matter I am the one who has to use it not them.