New member with questions

[EBCIII]

Welcome to the site BigFrank! It sounds like you are very ready to hunt. I do not run a White's but they have a very good reputation.

Have you looked at other brands like the Minelab X-Terra 70, or Fisher F75?

Just wondering really. Good luck with your choice, Beale.

[PAPPY]

WELCOME to the TQ FAMILY FRANK ! GREAT to have you with us.

[ERnurse]

Welcome to the site.

[Buster]

Frank, welcome to the Treasure Quest family...I run an XLT ..have been for the last 12 years I think...Found all kinds of good stuff.. It's a good machine for sure...If it says that you have found a quarter then that's what it is..Same with the other coins.. It has a lot of modes that you can hunt in also...I would ask some of are sponsors also for feedback They can help.... And of course check the back posts and detector feed back for sure...What ever you get you will like this hobby...Buster...

[bigfrank]

Originally Posted by grasshopper

i went through the exact same thing when i was buying my detector. i ended up going with the xlt and i don't regret it at all. it is a great machine, i find lots of coins easily, its great on beaches/with the coil submerged in the water, and it has a preset prospecting program which i haven't tried yet. the mxt and xlt are very similar there is virtually no difference and if you go with the xlt you wont be sorry.

I scanned the XLT and the DFX manuals gleaned from this site and in the prospect mode, it say that the XLT will find gold down to 9 grains and the DFX down to 6 grains. So on the sirface, it looks like the DFX is a bit more refined in at least the prospecting mode.

Although prospecting will probably be the smallest part of what I would be doing, it's still an option that I need as there is alot of gold in my area, and alot of places to look for it.

Thanks for the info...

frank

[bigfrank]

Originally Posted by EBCIII

Welcome to the site BigFrank! It sounds like you are very ready to hunt. I do not run a White's but they have a very good reputation.

Have you looked at other brands like the Minelab X-Terra 70, or Fisher F75?

Just wondering really. Good luck with your choice, Beale.

Hey Beale, thanks for the welcome!

Yes, I have looked at the Xtera 70, and have a Garrett catalog to look through. As a matter of fact, Im going back to the local Minelab and Garrett dealer today to pick his brain. The Xterra 70 looks like a nice machine. On the surface, the only thing I didnt like about it was that I would have to buy another coil to do prospecting, where the Whites you didnt have to do that. That may not be a big deal, and I have to talk to the Minelab dealer again to ask. I have not looked at the Fisher units yet.

Our area has alot of places to prospect. They ( Department of Fish and Game) are cracking down on the panners and sluce box guys for silting up the rivers and streams (its total BS) but here in California, you can never bet that it wont get worse as time goes by. I figure that I can run the MD and never really get in the stream, thus keeping the law off of me. Thought I wold think that prospecting would be the smaller part of detecting I would be doing. I think if I really got into prospecting, i would buy a dedicated unit just for that.

Will let you all know what decision I am going to make. It probably wont be for 2-4 weeks anyway as I want to attend a local club meeting and talk to some detectorists and read up some more here. Ofcourse, I may just get the bug and buy one sooner if the weather gets better!

Frank

[bigfrank]

Originally Posted by PAPPY

WELCOME to the TQ FAMILY FRANK ! GREAT to have you with us.

Thanks Pappy. Sure looks like there are a lot of dedicated enthusiasts here that are happy to help. Just the place i was looking for!

frank

[bigfrank]

Originally Posted by Buster

Frank, welcome to the Treasure Quest family...I run an XLT ..have been for the last 12 years I think...Found all kinds of good stuff.. It's a good machine for sure...If it says that you have found a quarter then that's what it is..Same with the other coins.. It has a lot of modes that you can hunt in also...I would ask some of are sponsors also for feedback They can help.... And of course check the back posts and detector feed back for sure...What ever you get you will like this hobby...Buster...

Thanks Buster. Good to hear that you like your XLT. It and one of the Minelabs are the two I am looking at closely, thought I haven't looked at the Garretts much yet.

I have looked through the site and like what I see. I have an "in" with the Whites dealer and can get a unit pretty reasonable, so that may be the kicker leaning me towards the Whites, although the Minelab dealer is a super nice guy and offered me a package deal that seemed pretty good. I will check with the sponsors here before buying. Thanks...

frank

[The TINMAN]

HI bigfrank WELCOME to TQ.
Had A DFX and they are Great Detectors but they can have a bit of a learning curve to them and as You are just starting out I would Think the MXT or XLT might be a better choice for you. If you Yahoo or Google .. MXT metal detector Forums you will find one that says... The Very Unofficial MXT Users Support Homepage... Great insight into the MXT and may help in your decision if ya Come down to the MXT or XLT. Also you can check out ... METAL DETECTOR NEWS & REVIEWS. The MXT has about 50 reviews and gets rave reviews under all conditions. Also it has a High Gain to it for your Prospecting end. The XLT has about 30 reviews and also gets rave reviews on it. I'm sure the XLT & MXT users here will chime in. Whites Makes Great Detectors for Sure. Hope this helps a little.

[The TINMAN]

Forgot to say that It's a Great idea to talk with some Club members as they may have the detector there where ya can put them in your hands and they can explain their workings as A Good dealer would. Also as Has been said Talk to our Sponsors as they can help ya out with more of the Tech side to them. Whatever Ya Get Good Luck & HH. You will love this Hobby and this Site. Ask all the qyestions Ya have cuz thats what we are here for.