If you were to buy one water machine.......

[DHanis Dude]

I'm going to buy a water machine. I don't know which one but I can tell you how I will be hunting.

West of San Antonio where I live we have a shallow river where people ride innertubes during the hot summer months. There are enough rapids where inebreated folks tend to capsize and lose all their goodies. The river has swift water areas a couple of feet deep with a hard limestone bottom. On this bottom their are "holes" or "pockets" where coins or jewelry go tumbleing along until they land in one. Some areas are gravel bottems in smooth wide slow water.

The secod place I will hunt is local lakes and down in Corpus Christi along the beach.

What machine would you buy? A PI with little disc or a vlf water machine with some. Also, why buy a machine with disc if you have to dig aluminium anyway to find gold.

I like White's but have owned Fishers and Garrets. Any detector recommendations based on the above info would be appreciated. My budget is probably around a grand.

Thanks

 

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[DHanis Dude]

Jim

What will the 1280X do for me in freshwater that the PI won't do? Thanks

 

[Sandman]

One detector to use is very difficult. ?For the places you mentioned I would go with a Minelab Excalibur 1000. ?If you weren't going to do any salt water I would also recommend the Fisher 1280, or CZ20 both with the ten inch coil. ?Tesoro also makes a great machine in the Tiger Shark that is near the 1280 price and it has a salt water mode. ?This might be the best detector for you as it also has a life time warranty and changeable coils.

The PI detectors like long iron thingies like nails. ?They are deep machines and are worth it where wave and sand movement may cover items deeper. ?The CZ20 and Excalibur have different sounds for different targets so it's possible to also turn down digging coins and only go for the rings. ?Granted some bigger rings will ring up in the coins area, but the white gold with the big rocks are much lower. ?PI's can't tell the difference.

For only detecting dry sand or fresh water lakes I enjoy using the Sand Shark with the 18 inch Clean Sweep coil as it covers the ground three times faster per sweep. ?Hence three time the targets than your buddy with the smaller coil. ?But it only goes about 8 inches deep on a coin. ?More than good enough for most freshly fallen goodies. ?Hope this helps some.

HH,
Sandman

 

[Surfmaster]

Only one choice....Excalibur 1000 or Sovereign GT in a waterproof case, both basically the same. Nothing else matches up. Forget about White's. They cant touch the Minelabs.

 

[wreckdiver1715]

From one Texan to another, Minelab Excalibur 1000! I learned to dive up that way back in the day. San Marcos River, Guadalupe River, Canyon Lake, and one of my favorites was Lake Travis up by the nation?s capitol (Austin).

Q

 

[neilo]

There only one thats the Excalibur in the conditions you are talking about you want a machine with good discrimination and depth.This machine has both there have been times when I have had to give up digging because the target was just too deep.P I machines have a poor discrimination set up on them and you are continually picking up tiny bits of steel and rubbish. With practice it is easy to identify what are good and bad targets the variable tone identification on this machine is excellent.If you want proof of performance have a look at my little picture most of those rings etc . were picked up by my Excalibur.

Good hunting Seeya Neilo