X Terra 305 HF Coil and new X Terra 705

[Shilohtrashdigger]

Hi All. I live in Western N.C. The soil conditions I face in my area is red, iron and sulphur laden clay. I was having a lot of problems with TID readings, not sure if false signals is the right word to use, but many non target sounds, unable to really tell if the signal was a coin or junk....and was not finding anything deep at all. I had no other Minelab machines to compare to, and it may not even be normal for the 305 to react to this soil as it did. A newbie to Minelab machines, I had to just guess. I read every forum I could read. I love metal detecting so much, I was not going to get discouraged with my finds. I finally ordered the 10 1/2 inch HF double d coil. For me, the results were unbelievable. I have only used the coil on two hunts, but I prepared a site, to take the new coil to when I got the new coil, just to test, if the coil would make a difference. I searched this area inch by inch with a sharp shooter 2, and the 305. I searched the area at least 3 times. When I got my new coil last week, I went to my test search, and the 305 acted like a new machine. Again, having nothing to compare the 305 to, there could have been a problem with the stock coil that came with it. I am not sure. I found clad but nothing over5 to 6 inches deep. I took the 305 with the new coil to the test area, and I was blown away with the way my 305 acted. I found a clad dime deeper than I have ever dug or found to date. My TID numbers were solid, and the tones sharp and clear. Also, when I found trash, I could tell by the tones, I had found trash. And remember, I had searched this area several times and had no coin or trash tones left in the area with the other detectors. I was finding bullets 8 inches deep that the other machines did not even hit. I just could not believe the difference.....sorry to keep saying that, but that is how much different the HF coil handled the soil. Just another side note, the entire northern part of our county is gold country. Home of the Bechler mint. (May have misspelled the mint). Our soil is very mineralized.
I am just sharing this to let others know who may be facing the same results I did, that there is hope and ways to improve your machines. The 305 is a good machine. I had read so many reviews on it, that there had to be a way to make it better. Now, maybe I am an exception with this coil, but I can now metal detect with confidence and a good machine to use. Some of you really experienced guys make think this can not be. But it is exactly how the coil worked for me.
On Thursday last week, after seeing what an x terra can do, I ordered a 705 from Big Boys Hobbies. I got a killer deal on the machine. It will be here Tuesday, and I am totally excited about metal detecting now that I can find what is under the ground. Thanks to Bart for helping me upgrade to a new machine.......If it is better than my 305, oh my, I am gonna have a great time digging.
And while I am using up space here, I want to thank all of you who post here. Digger Randy, thank you for the "Understand your X Terra" book. I learned so much from it. All the post you guys put up, I read and have learned so much from all of you. You make this hobby enjoyable and makes each hunt with your info, so much better.
Hope this will help someone. I am ready to go digging with my new coil and my new 705

 

[Old Longhair]

[attachment 254367 assimilate.gif] Welcome. You have been assimilated.

It really isn't too suprising that your 305 performed better with the new coil. Most any DD would have done better than the stock coil in your soil.

And congrats on the new 705! It will blow you away with what it can do once you learn it. And it won't be a huge curve, as it's mostly going to be what adjustments you have available and what they can do for you.

 

[7centsworth]

Welcome to the forum.

 

[Mark in S.E. IA]

With the type of soil you talked about I'm with Longhair, it's the DD coil that made the big difference. Conc coils do not do too good in that type of soil.

If you mostly hunt for coins I would go with the MF DD type coils.

 

[snoogieman]

Where in the Western part of NC are you,I am in Rutherford County and I have a new 705 too maybe we can get together sometime.

 

[Shilohtrashdigger]

I live on Poors Ford Rd in Shiloh . Email me at miked52 @att.net. Would love to get together with you....and Shiloh is in Rutherford County

 

[Shilohtrashdigger]

Got my 705 today. Took it on a short hunt. It is unbelievable. Put on the 10 1/2 inch double d coil. I have a lot to learn, but my first hunt was a blast. The machine is awesome.

 

[snoogieman]

I sent you a email with my phone number not sure if you got it let me know, Dan

 

[Old Longhair]

We'll be looking forward to seeing your finds.

 

[Shilohtrashdigger]

Got it and will call you

 

[Mick in Dubbo]

Good luck with the 705.
It was great to hear about your 305. It's an often underrated detector. i bought a 30 when the X-Terra's first came out. Had a Tracker IV before that. I was doing alright with it, but once I had the X-Terra 30, my success rate went right up. even now, after using most of the major brands over a number of years, I actually prefer the X-Terra's. If my 70 carks it, then I'll actually replace it with the 305! that's right, despite being a base model detector, i think that it holds it's own very well, even against some of the best that there is. Simplicity, fun and lightness! Oh and did I mention cheap.
Mick Evans.

 

[ryanchappell]

Welcome to metal detecting hell. I live in Birmingham and there is an iron ore deposit that runs NE to Chattanooga. I am sure there are similar deposits in your area. At least you get to hunt for gold, where you live.

Most of the guys reading your post can take the 10.5 DD coil and find a quarter at 10-12 inches deep, or a miniball at 15-20 inches. So they are probably thinking a miniball at 8", what is wrong with this guy. He just isn't trying, or just has not learned yet.

Many Relic hunters at DIV in Cullpepper, VA and the Smokey Mountains, etc are ditching VLF detectors and using PI machines, like the GPX $5000 to find miniballs at 12-24", but the GPX $5000 costs $5500, and is not going to work very well in a park with any trash.

The 705 will do at least as well as any other VLF detector. DD coils are the way to go. If given the choice opt for low frequency. It really is a shame that Minelab does not, nor allow anyone else to make an 8" DD coil for the X-Terra series. I really like the 8x6 on my E-trac, it offers a great balance between depth and separation. The 6" DD loses a little too much depth.

I bought the E-Trac thinking that I needed more depth, but in this soil you are limited no matter what detector or coil you use. What I really got when I bought the E-trac was separation and an enhanced ability to find coins on edge, and it was more than worth it. Depth is a lost cause. I look for sites where the ground is washing away quicker than soil is accumulating, washouts, erosion, places where the topsoil is shallow and the coins can settle on the underlying clay, or bedrock outcroppings that could keep the coins shallow, roots, rocks...

I have found 55 silver coins, mostly with the E-Trac and probably about 45 of them were shallower than 4 inches deep. The average is about 3-3.5" It is just that the soil is that bad. I hope yours is better. Now there are sites a creek basin or two over when I have found a clad dime at 8 inches deep, but the silver is probably 18 inches deep there.

Also, it is possible that a single frequency, non-FBS machine like the 705 could be getting better depth with a 10.5" DD in bad soil than an FBS machine like the E-trac an its 11" DD.