Best detector for beach and U/W hunting?

[too_deep]

Hi everybody:
I'm new to the forum and was wandering if anyone can help me. I am looking for a MD that I can use on the beach, in the woods and underwater. I live in South Florida. The Fisher CZ 20 looks like a good overall machine, but maybe there's a better option for the money (a little over $1,000.oo) Any help would be greatly appreciated, this looks like THE place to get expert advise.

Thanks,

Carlos

 

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[surfrat96]

Carlos, you might also want to check out the Minelab Excalibur. Where in So. Fl. are you?

HH 8) surfrat

 

[too_deep]

Thanks SurfRat,
I live in the Ft. Lauderdale area.

Carlos

 

[surfrat96]

Floater also lives in the Ft. Lauderdale area. I hunt the beaches in Hollywood. We'll have to hook up and hit some beaches!

HH 8) surfrat

 

[neilo]

I think you would be more than happy with the Minelab Excaliber 1000. I own one and ?the depth at which I have found gold rings and jewelry has been out standing. On some occasions the targets are just too deep to retrieve and ?I ?have had to give up digging. I usually work the shoreline in the water up to chest height.The machine is rated for use in water up to 200ft, it uses the same technology as the Sovereign operating 17 frequencies, the only difference being there is no notch discrimination on the Excalibur.It runs on permanent iron mask which is excellent for getting targets alongside pieces of iron which would normally be missed by other detectors.It has its own standard ?adjustable discrimination which is usefull if you want to use the detector on land. In the water I dont use any discrimination at all, anyone who discriminates in the water with any detector is going to miss out on fine gold chains and small rings . Gold chains will give a signal where you would normally get alfoil,you dont get much alfoil in the water it tends to be up high on the beach.I would sooner dig a little bit more rubbish than miss out on a good find. THE Excalibur is heavy ?in its normal configuration but once in the water it is bouyant and easy to handle.If you want to use it on land I would recommend getting the hip mounting kit this is a shoulder harness which the control box and battery mount to. The machine comes with its own rechargable battery pack which would give around 15 hrs before needing recharge.
No matter what detector you buy take my advice get the best digging sifting device you can.What happens especially in soft sand is it becomes a race to retrieve your target.Some sand is like quicksand and your target sinks deeper and deeper once the sand has been disturbed. Having a good retrieval device makes life a lot easier you get more good finds because you are saving time giving yuorself more time to hunt. I use a Stainless steel scoop which has a 4ft handle, the scoops about a foot long and 8inches in diameter. I made my own from scrap metal, the worst job was drilling about a hundred holes in the scoop so it would act as a sieve.
The second machine I would recommend would be the Garrett ?Sea Hunter 2 this machine is good at picking up very small items but falls behind the Excalibur in the discrimination and is prone to giving signals with ?annoying small bits of iron. The pinpointing is also difficult and it is not as good on land as the Excaliber.It doesnt have a rechargable battery system and you have to buy batteries. ?

? ? ? Good luck on your detector hunt I hope Ive helped seeya Neilo ? ?

 

[too_deep]

Neilo,
Thanks for taking the time to share all that info. After talking to some people, seems like the Excalibur is the way to go. Kelly Co. offers it with 8" and 10" coils for about the same $$; any thought which one to get?

Carlos

 

[lonewolfe]

Don't do it dude!!

Get the CZ20 with 10 inch coil for deep targets..

Have had mine for 5+ yrs now, and just sold my ex-cal 1000

cz20 is built like a tank, and has a

"Lifetime warrantee" -- Minelab ex-cal 1000 = 2yr warrantee and the knobs always strip & need replacing + a LOT of guys have had leakage problems with theirs (not fun) and costly + time lost hunting..

CZ20 is Lightweight & hip mountable with "included clip" - Minelab 1000 is shoulder mountable "if" you buy the shoulder mount for additional cost, and then it's "still heavy" because the coil weighs so freekin much...

CZ20 is as good on land as it is in the water, and being hip mountable & light weight ensures hrs of painless, and non stressful hunting unlike the heavy and awkward ex-cal 1000

CZ20 = 200 ft depth/submersion

3 tone ID for easy target ID'ing

dual frequency for good depth, and salt water hunting

target/sound boost for deeply buried targets,

easy to use/learn,

etc.

etc.

etc.

good luck, and HH

Lonewolfe

 

[neilo]

Carlos the 10 inch covers a bit more ground and goes slightly deeper. I have the 10 inch on mine it is a little bit harder to pin point than the smaller coil but with practice you soon get the knack of it. I know some people had problems with the knobs on them but that has been eliminated on the latest model.
I am sure you will be happy with it if you get one
seeya Neilo