Musky question

[Hightone]

The Minelab Advantage Musketeer is heavier than the Tesoro's. But does it have any "advantage" over the Tesoro Vaquero? Also, didn't the Musky sell for $349, and now it's $499. Was this just because of a coil change?

.....it has no advantage over the Vaquero, and not many do!

The major difference in the new Musky PRO is the new, lighter and more efficient "slimline coil", and it now includes the NiMH rechargeable battery pack and charger.

Originally Posted by Hightone

The Minelab Advantage Musketeer is heavier than the Tesoro's. But does it have any "advantage" over the Tesoro Vaquero? Also, didn't the Musky sell for $349, and now it's $499. Was this just because of a coil change?

[bill(de)]

You can still get a Musky for $349 and the extra money on the Pro is for a 10" coil and the accessories Chuck mentioned and i think it includes the modified armcuff that allows mounting the control box under the cuff that really negates much of the top heavy weight feeling. I think you can order the armcuff assembly separately.
I never used a Tesoro but tested the Advantage against my Fisher CZ5 many many times before i sold the CZ and my main concern was depth on smaller high coin targets (pennies and dimes --quarters are easy

The Advantage will get excellent depth on coins, buckles, bullets and buttons and is great at iron infested sites. The Minelab is 5khz and the Tesoro is 14khz the rest is up to you and everyone elses opinions. HH Bill

[John's Detectors]

The Musketeer Advantage is 499.99 which was recently raised to that price. It does have your choice of the 8" or 10" slimline coil which really makes a difference in feel for me after using the Explorer SE that had this coil change. The Musky does have it's following and these users are very happy with it. It does seem to make an excellent relic machine but from using the 3Khz coil on the X70 extensively I have found that the sensitivity is still there for small coins with increased depth so I know that the 5Khz frequency will be no different. Also I would not be little the Tesoro Vaquero either, they have an excellent lineup and I really like Tesoro. I don't have any problem in recommending the Musky because I know what the 5Khz frequency is capable of. I have a White's 4900 that is set at 5.6 Khz and it is a very good relic finder. Chuck I'm not disagreeing with you on the Vaquero and it is one of my favorites too. Ok God Bless all.

John Tomlinson,CET
John's Detectors
Blackwell,Tx.

[Hightone]

It would seem that with the added price, Minelab could have added a trigger, or an easier way to access AM for pinpointing. It seems that it would be difficult looking for the toggle switch on the face (especially if it's under the cuff), compared to the Vaquero's button in an easier to access position.

[TonyinCT]

Many Musky users will tell you that they get great depth out of theirs. This is the advantage over the Vaquero. The Vaquero is a great detector in it's own right but the Musky is better overall.

[bill(de)]

I never use pinpoint on the Musky have no trouble locating a target, just use the tip of the DD coil to locate and is just as fast as pinpoint and accurate. I did see the Musky advertised on Tony's site for $349 without the Pro Pack . The TS 800 coil is plenty deep and great in trashy areas but the 10" will provide better coverage.

Once you ask for detector comparisons you will get lots of differing opinions and much of it is probably due to various hunting conditions. Both detectors are very good. HH Bill

.....out sells the Musky "5 to 1"! It's lighter, better balanced, costs less, has a lifetime warranty, is lightning fast in recovery speed in trashy areas, and with the HOT "High Output Technology", goes very deep.

The Musky is a 5kHz machine well suited for sensitivity to larger targets, less sensitive to small targets. The Vaquero is a 14kHz machine, more sensitive to smaller targets, and still sees the larger targets well.

Attachment 9097

Attachment 9098

Attachment 9099

Attachment 9100

I am a Minelab and a Tesoro dealer, and both are fine machines.....you decide!

[Hightone]

I would agree that both are good machines.

It looks as if you have to switch the Musky into ground balance to perform that action. And the same switch lets you reset the threshold. These are two things that are done on the fly with the Vaquero. Is that the way the switch works?

Also, do both machines use VCO in the AM mode, or monotone? Do they use VCO for pinpointing?

[John's Detectors]

Hey Hightone, the Vaquero is using a VCO circuit for the all metal--pinpoint mode. I believe the Musketeer is also the same but don't quote me yet, I will find out for sure. I have yet to put a Musketeer to use and need to do this. I know that the Minelab Explorer SE went to an audio modulated pinpoint. Ok Hightone God Bless and CU later.

John Tomlinson,CET
John's Detectors
Blackwell,Tx.
Best Little Detector Shop in Texas!