Hi all.

We are looking for field tests on the various machines that are on this site, and would like to form a database of user experiences...not from manufactures. So if you have any experiences with coils, accesories etc...please email us at fieldtests@minelabowners.com

MINELAB EXPLORER XS
BY Marc Pontician

I have been using the Minelab Explorer XS now for about a year. I have put it through its paces, in sand (dry and wet), in the rain, in the wind, in hard packed soil, in highly mineralized coal soil, in the ice cold, to the deathly hot swealtering days of summer, from morning to night, and yes, even in the darkness. I have used it in the ocean, up to its CPU (display box), and NEVER ONCE did it ever not perform PERFECT!

The PLUS side of the detector:

1. 28 frequencies, it really does make a difference. The Minelab operates with 28 different frequencies, unlike the usual one or two of other models.

2. The display is a perfect "10" It displays the conductivity/ size one way, and the other way is the ferrous content, giving you a two dimensional view, or you can use the straight number display as on other minelabs. It is a nice size, plus it is backlit for those night adventures.(can be turned off to save battery power)

. 3. Deep penetrating double "D" 10.5" coil. This detector should be named the Explorer XD... for EXTRA DEEP! I consistantly find items deeps than my detecting friends. Even in clay or mineralized soil... it simply goes deep!

4. Battery power: The detector lasts quite long on a set of batteries I usually get a couple of trips out of a set. It also comes with a rechargable stick, which last a tiny bit less than the "AA" pack, but I tend to use both.

5. Pinpointing: I find it very easy, and also accurate. It is a little different than using a concentric coil (cone shape) but once you are use to it, it is highl;y accurate!

6. Weight: I find it to be light enough to swing all day long. Any detector feels heavy at the end of the day. This is no different. It is well balanced & evenly distributed. 7. Customizing: You can customize the program to what you are looking for, it is limitless to the discrimination patterns you can use. It has learn capabilities, but it also has a SUPER factory preset mode, so you can take it out of the package, put batteries in, turn it on and detect, it's that easy!

MINUS SIDE:

1. It is a complicated detector to learn the advanced functions, but it is WELL WORTH IT to learn!

2. The shaft could be a few inches longer, I am 6' tall, would like to see Minelab add two inches for us taller folks.

3. The bottom where the coil meets the shaft could be "beefed up" a bit. I know it would be a little heavier, but I would rather the peace of mind. Mine did not break or even crack, but just a thought.

MY CONCLUSION:

The Explorer XS is one of the BEST machines money can buy. It is complicated to learn, but if I can do it... anyone can! I have used most detectors out there, and this is the detector of choice for me. I could write 20 pages on this machine, but there is not enough space, so if ANYONE has any questions, about this or any other detector, and you want an honest opinion (I don't sell them, I just use them!) please email me! TreasureQuest360@aol.com As I said, I have used most of the detectors available, and have a kazzillion hours in the field, so if you have a question, or need some help... email me. TreasureQuest360@aol.com ( Marc Pontician)

 

 

MINELAB MUSKETEER
BY Patrick McDonald

 

The Minelab Musketeer was the first metal detector I bought when returning to the hobby in my "mature years." I confess that I first chose it because I wanted a locally made product (here in Australia) that would be sure to have servicing and parts close at hand. I also liked the study-looking, no-nonsense appearance of the Muskie compared to the coloured plastic look of other models.

My first experiences almost changed my mind about Minelab, even though the detector worked perfectly, so to speak. There was a defect in the Sensitivity/On&Off switch which meant that the machine was "on" as soon as batteries were installed! So . . . everything worked fine, and I took to the Muskie's operation straight away, but I had to return it to the local dealer for repair under warranty to have the switch replaced. This was done within a week and the dealer gave me a "loaner" to use in the meantime.

Since then, the Musketeer has worked just fine.

Apart from the ground balancing, all the controls are straight forward and reasonably intuitive. I leave the ground balance switch on the default "Fix" setting and so far have seen no reason to change it. Perhaps when I go out into the gold mining territory in the west of NSW I'll find that the high mineralisation level of the soil requires its use. However, I am only interested in coin and relic hunting, so this is not a likely scenario, even though I'm told that casual gold prospecting is possible with a Muskie. Discrimination works in standard fashion and the all-metal switch is similar to that on other detectors. I quickly learned how to pinpoint in the pinpoint mode, but no longer use this very much, as I find I can pinpoint sufficiently well in the ordinary discrimination mode. After considerable use, I now leave the sensitivity switch at the maximum and try to keep the discrimination setting as low as possible, around 3 or 4. I know that you have to be prepared to dig a lot of bottle caps and pull tabs in order to find things of value!

How well does the Musketeer XS work? Well, the quick answer is: just fine! I have found lots of coins and relics around old houses and parks in my neighbourhood, which is just what I wanted. However, in reading reviews of metal detectors in various newsgroups over the past year, I realise that almost all new users say this about their first machines. Probably all entry-level metal detectors of modern vintage work pretty well. The question is one of comparison. What would happen if I had a couple of months with a Sovereign or (my dream) an Explorer in my hot little hands? From the reviews I've read, my guess is that, after another learning curve, I'd find that these more expensive models have nuances and features somewhat beyond the basic Muskie. The same might be true for the White's, Fischer, Tesoro and other ranges of popular metal detectors.

Two factors come to mind. First, I think I was typical as an adult hobbyist in having reasonable financial resources, so that I didn't have to buy the cheapest product available; at the same time, I didn't want to spend a lot of money and discover that the hobby wasn't really for me. Secondly, I guessed that I would have a lot to learn about the basics of metal detecting, and that a standard "ears only" machine might build important listening skills and keep me from focussing too early on "bells and whistles." I was supported in the second opinion by my brother, a much more experienced THer who has used a very simple metal detector for many, many years, and can virtually predict the date of the dime from the tone he hears! The Musketeer, a mid-range machine from a reputable company, seemed to fill the bill.

I hope this review helps. I do not recommend the Muskie for finding gold or for shallow water detecting. My more experienced friends tell me that gold requires quite different technology and that the Minelab SD range is the b est in the world. I take their word for this. My several attempts to detect with my Musketeer on salt water beaches seems to indicate that the machine is much better in dry sand; the salt seems to confuse it, even though the coil assembly is completely waterproof. Again, my local friends tell me that the Minelab Excalibur is what I want for this purpose!

Otherwise, I am a very happy Minelab Musketeer XS user! Patrick McDonald 23 May 2000 patrick@mpx.com.au

 

 

 

MINELAB EXPLORER XS
BY Gillraker

"Can you say deep?"


The full band spectrum technology, that went into the creating of this unit, is simply outstanding. 28 simultaneous frequencies make this possibly the deepest seeking unit on the market today.

Now you can go back over all those places you have pounded previously with other detectors, and really find the long lost gems. 20 inches in wet salt water logged sand? No problem......the Explorer will find the tiniest of targets with amazing accuracy. I personally have found coins and jewelry at stunning depths, in every thing from salt water saturated sand, to the darkest of murky black sand mixed with salt water......the explorer seems to be hindered by these highly mineralized soils, not in the least.....actually it seems to excel......for beach hunting, Im not sure a finer machine exists today.

The large easy to read oversized display and 2-d target smart find screens, make this one a breeze to use in high trash areas, and still pick out the good targets amidst the trash(However, much practice is needed to be successful).....although the pinpointing feature is a non motion all metal mode...and hard to find the target you are locked on in heavy trash areas. its dead on in cleaner areas.....no problem probing for the target in clean areas, and poking it on the first strike......locating it to within a few inches in high trash areas is easy with the smart find features....now getting it in your hand is all up to your persistence and perseverance. Forget the sand scoop....you won't be using it anymore....get a long handled shovel instead.

The iron mask is amazing.....no more hits on those rusty old iron targets, one push of a button and they are forever gone.... allowing you to find those really deep old coins in a field of rusty old nails. This unit is fully customizable, enabling you to shrink the size of the cross hairs for more accurate discrimination, to increasing them for a wider range of targets of similar conductivity.

 

"The Pros and Cons"
The good points:

1. Superior dept in any type of soil.

2. large easy to read display screens

3. Targets can be identified in 3 ways. 2-d graph (smart find display ) Digital meter screen tone variation ID.

4. Signal blanking on discriminated targets

5 Over load signal on large targets.

6. Options of factory preset programs, or make your own.....search for only a single specific type of coin or ring, block out everything else, or accept any target, or anything in between.....

7. Very simple push button menu control.

8. 10.5" coil, submersible in salt or fresh water

9. concealed coil cable....( No more winding it around the shaft, or ghost signals due to loose coil wire)

10. Use alkaline, or NiMH batts. Never a reason to be at a loss of power.

11. Awesome adjustable back light display for night hunting.

12. All features are fully adjustable and programmable....save your programs and screens, pick the one that best suits your scheduled hunts with the touch of a button.

13. The pinpointing feature is extremely accurate with a little practice, completely eliminating the need for apin pointer of any type.

 

"The bad points"

1. The learning curve on this unit is extremely steep, not for the faint of heart nor, the beginner who is in a hurry to get out and hit the jackpot. Patients and perseverance is required to master this beast.

2. The overall weight of the unit is lacking a little to be desired, as the 10.5" coil is well balanced, but makes the units less than comfortable to use on long hunts.

3. This one is a power hog, no doubt of that......NiMH batts last approx 10 hours, and alkaline will get you up to 14-20... Ive seen better.

4. The digital target Id is lacking a lot to be desired, as the ring and coin symbols aper on almost every target, but not a major factor as the 2-d smartfind screens are dead on as far as accuracy.

5. The 10.5" coil make learning to hunt high trash areas very difficult...Much time is required to master high trash areas.....However in defense of the unit, if you take the time to learn, and have the patients to prevail, you will find this unit practically unbeatable.....dont expect instant results.

 

 


MINELAB SOVEREIGN
BY TerryWilliams


I have been metal detecting for almost 20 years. I started with an old Metrotec model and moved up to an early White's detector soon there after. I used several different White's products for years with good results searching for civil war relics in and around Kennesaw Georgia. I have owned and used Garretts and Fisher(1260X) machines as well. All the machines did a good job for me in normal soil conditions. I used to have many false signals in highly mineralized soil with all the above mentioned machines. If you tuned the machines to avoid the false signals you lost depth and sensitivity.

I bought a well used Minelab Sovereign about 4 years ago from a man that sold civil war relics that he found with it for a living. He did quite well with this business and I was sold on his testimony of the muti-frequency (17 separate frequencies) Minelab Sovereign. I am still using this great machine even with the original battery pack. I have found that nothing I have ever used compares to the performance of the minelab when the soil is heavily mineralized or at the beach. With the standard coil depth is great. With the optional larger coil depth is fantastic, bring a long handle shovel. I have replaced the control box and armrest with a new ones just to make it look pretty again for a cost of about $20.00. That is all I have had to do and it still looks and functions as new. I do not use it as a hip mount although it is quite easy to do. I am still able to manage the weight in the normal configuration. My machine has a nice removable meter on top of the control box that I never look at. I have been around long enough to know that the "Target ID" and "Object Depth" are gimmicks that are a waste of time to the experienced and serious treasure hunter. I hunt in the "All Metals" mode and although the discrimination with this unit is the best I've ever used I still dig most targets.

There are only three minor negative things I can say about this unit:

1) The weight is a bit much for most people especially with the bigger coil unless you use it in the hip mount configuration.

2) There is no way to control the volume output to headphones. I solved this by getting a small pair of Sony headphones that have an in-line volume control. I think this has been fixed with an upgrade on the new Sovereign XS Model.

3) The instruction manual was not the best I've ever seen.

Once you experience the Minelab it would be difficult to go back to anything else. I live in Columbia SC now and I look forward to searching for Revolutionary War artifacts this spring. Terry Williams

 


MINELAB SOVEREIGN
By Mike Bloodsworth


I have been detecting since 1977 and in that time I have had four different detectors. My first was a Bounty Hunter Red Baron, next was a White's Di 6000, currently I own a Shadow X2 and a Minelab Sovereign.

All four of these detectors have basically been good machines and I have made good finds with all of them. The old Red Baron was a good machine in its day and a lot of fun to use in open ground where you could whip it back and forth rapidly. It was hard to use in many relic hunting situations because of the need for rapid coil movement.

The White's Di 6000 is a good machine. Its best feature is its metering system which I found to be very accurate in both id'ing the target and depth determination. The depth that it gets is fair. The negatives to me were that depth is drastically affected by how loud you have the volume turned up and the ground balancing is a little complicated for someone not entirely familiar with the machine. Overall a good machine and can be balanced to do a little bit of good even in sites that have been burned. A little heavy for my wife when she tried to use it.

The Shadow is the machine that I sold the 6000 Di in order to buy. I bought it primarily for my wife to use and as a backup machine for me. It definitely is light and this is a big plus for her! It is also very easy to use, basically you can turn it on and go. Discrimination seems to be good and it is very quick to rebound between signals. Depth is fair and definitely not spectacular! I have hunted with it in my left hand and the Sovereign in my right hand and more often than I would have thought I could hear a signal with the Sov. and not hear anything with the Shadow X2. I must admit that I don't have near as many hours on the Shadow as I do the Sovereign and that definitely makes a difference. Overall the Shadow is a decent machine with some real advantages, but not as good as a lot of people think, at least in my opinion.

The Sovereign is the best machine I have ever had. I have used it for about 7 yrs or so. There are a few disadvantages including the weight which is a little heavy even with the hip mount. There is a little bit of a learning curve, but not a lot more than other machines. I like the tone id, works pretty good. The Sov meter is not so hot but the Sun Ray is nice and accurate. Depth is very good in most soil conditions. Deepest dime is about 8-9", Minnie balls 2-4 inches deeper. Larger brass and iron objects up to two feet. But depth is such a variable thing with any machine! Best indicator is that I have found many, many, many more finds with the Sov than with any other machine that I have used. Also the days that I hunted with both the Shadow and Sov at the very same time was quite revealing. Bottom line: if all my detectors were stolen today I would buy another Sovereign no question.

 

The Minelab Electronics Explorer XS Revisited
Enhancements Build on Proven Performance!!

By Andy Sabisch
From page 43 of the January Issue of Lost Treasure Magazine
Copyright Lost Treasure Inc. 2001, 2002


In mid-1999 I received one of the first prototypes of a metal detector utilizing a new technology being developed by Minelab Electronics. Building on the well-proven and extremely effective BBS-circuitry used in the Sovereign and Excalibur models, the Explorer was intended to provide treasure hunters with level of performance not found in any other detector currently on the market. Over the next few months as I began to master the Explorer, the quantity and quality of my finds from areas myself and others had hunted for years continued to grow. When the production units started rolling of the assembly line in early 2000, the word quickly spread about how effective the new FBS technology was in virtually any area one wanted to hunt and the newest member of the Minelab family developed a loyal following of successful treasure hunters worldwide.


As the number of users increased, Minelab received comments and suggestions from their customers on how to further improve the Explorer series and many of these were incorporated into the Explorer XS & S units since their inception. The purpose of this field test report actually two-fold – first, to discuss how these improvements enhance the Explorer’s performance and second, to provide some additional information, tips and techniques gathered since my original field test report was published in the April 2000 issue of Lost Treasure.


NOTE: Many of the features found on the Explorer S model are identical to the XS model covered in this report. The previous field test reports on both of these units contain additional information on their features and operation and may be helpful if additional insight is required.


Features


When the Explorer XS was introduced, it featured an entirely new type of detection circuitry called Full Band Spectrum (FBS). Unlike the circuitry found on the Sovereign & Excalibur models which used 17 different frequencies simultaneously, FBS uses 28 different frequencies and a substantially higher upper range which was increased from 25 kHz to 100 kHz. As a result the Explorer is able to provide even greater detection depth and accuracy of target identification than the BBS models that have become so popular. The truly unique feature on the Explorer series is that the detector does not always use the same ‘set’ of frequencies. The upper and lower limits are set; however, the 26 points in between vary depending on what Noise Channel has been selected. On the Explorer XS model, you can either make this adjustment manually (effective but time consuming) or have the internal circuitry make it for you (recommended and extremely accurate). To find the optimal set of operating frequencies, one simply has to place the coil on the ground, press the NOISE CANCEL button and allow the circuitry to cycle through the 11 possible options. The detector will have selected the best set of frequencies for the specific area you are hunting to ensure you are getting the most accurate information from any signal that you might come across. To maintain optimal performance in the field, the NOISE CANCEL feature whenever you reach an area where ground conditions change or if you change sites.


In addition to the FBS circuitry, Minelab found that with the aid of new microprocessors, additional characteristics regarding the composition of a target could be obtained and displayed on an LCD display panel. Now, by combining the conductivity value of a target used on all other detectors to provide target ID with the object’s inductance value, the ability to differentiate similar targets such as a gold ring and a pull tab can be achieved. This 2-dimensional target identification circuit, called SmartFind (discrimination) is found only on the Minelab Explorer series.


With the SmartFind circuitry, a greater degree of target acceptance or rejection can be obtained than with conventional conductivity-only discrimination circuits. This allows users to select specific targets to either search for or eliminate which translates into more finds in less time when in the field. For example, if you are hunting a site where you know there are Indian Head pennies; however, it is also littered with screw caps and pull tabs, the SmartFind circuitry allows you to open a "window" where the Indian Heads will be accepted while ignoring most of the surrounding trash. And, once you have setup one of these "discrimination patterns" as they are called, it can be saved for use later on. Up to six different patterns can be created and saved on the Explorer XS which is convenient if you do different types of hunting; i.e., beach, coin, relic, etc., and want to create a pattern to locate specific types of targets.


The LCD display screen provides a wealth of information, both in terms of target ID and depth as well as when adjusting the detector — and is easily visible at all times thanks to a contrast control and backlight for low or no-light conditions. All of the adjustments are made using the 6 touchpads surrounding the display screen and 8 touchpads below the screen on the control panel face. The controls are fairly self-explanatory; however, if you are not sure of the function of a control, pressing and holding the touchpad will cause a help box to pop-up on the display screen that explains most features. The display screen was one of the areas where enhancements were made based on user feedback. While the changes are subtle in nature, the screen is easier to read in varying light conditions and responds quicker to signals and adjustments. In addition, the internal software was changed to support the new screen capabilities.


Another extremely useful feature on the Explorer is the ability to select the degree of iron elimination through the Iron Mask circuit. Sovereign users may remember the Iron Mask toggle switch on the original Sovereign. On subsequent models, this switch was removed as 99 percent of all hunters left it in the ON position. This was the right setting for most applications; however, it was not ideal for relic or beach hunters who may have wanted to find ferrous artifacts. Well, the Explorer has restored this control and now allows users to select any degree of iron-rejection ranging from none to full. Depending on the type of hunting you do, you now have the ability to define precisely what type of target will produce a positive response thanks to the SmartFind and Iron Mask circuitry.


The Explorer has multiple display options that aid in identifying objects. The Digital mode depicts target ID with a numerical value ranging from ‘1’ to ‘32’ and a corresponding picture icon; i.e., coin, nail, pull tab, etc. The Digital mode is best suited for basic coinhunting. The increased target differentiation of the SmartFind and Iron Mask display modes make them more suited for most forms of treasure hunting. In the SmartFind and Iron Mask modes, the unique Conductivity and Inductance value for each target will define a point on the display screen and this point will be indicated with a cross-hair icon that can move around the screen.


A small portion of the first ‘batch’ of Explorer’s that came out were found to have an ‘Achilles Heal’ in that the plastic housing in the area of where the shaft entered the control housing as well as where the adjustable arm rest connected to the battery pod assembly developed spider cracks with use. The factory replaced those that developed cracking and developed a new composite that was less susceptible to stress cracking. The fix has virtually eliminated the problem and is an example of how Minelab responds to both feedback and problems when they arise.


The Explorer XS comes with a 10.5 inch Double-D search coil. Double-D coils take a little practice to become proficient at pinpointing targets; however they do a more through job of covering the ground than a concentric coil. The depth indicator that appears on the display screen and registers depth in the motion search modes aids pinpointing. At first glance, one may question the ability of the Explorer to operate in trash-filled sites due to the large coil size; however, there are advanced settings that allow it to handle all but the trashiest sites after one has some experience with the detector.


The armrest is adjustable which allows users of different sizes to use the Explorer comfortably. Adjustments are made by loosening a screw in the center of the armrest and re-tightening it in the appropriate position.


The NiMh battery system has been designed to avoid developing a memory often associated with conventional Nicad batteries. It provides approximately 10 hours of use and can be recharged at home or in your vehicle using the cigarette charger that comes with the Explorer. It also comes with a holder that allows 8 standard AA batteries to be used if the NiMh battery goes dead in the field.


The XS package also includes a coil cover, detector stand and a set of padded stereo headphones.


FIELD TEST


When I conduct a field test on a detector, I typically head for areas that have been well-hunted in the past as I feel this provides a better indication of how well the unit performs rather than hunting an un-touched site where any detector may have done well. Since the Explorer XS is a high-end detector, I wanted to try areas that I knew some of the better hunters in the area had been to before me to see what might still remain.


The first site I visited was a mid-sized public park located near downtown Wilkes Barre that was a 45-minute drive from my house. The area dated back to the late 1800’s and had produced well in the past. As with most of the sites in central Pennsylvania, ground conditions are less than optimal since coal cinders have been dumped everywhere for more than 150 years and the park was no exception. The nice thing about using the Explorer with its FBS circuitry is that highly mineralized ground such as that in the park or salt water / black sand is literally ‘ignored’ automatically and maximum detection depth is achieved with no complicated adjustments. I loaded in a custom pattern I had programmed in the night before designed to detect only silver or copper coins, pressed the NOISE CANCEL touchpad so the Explorer XS would select the optimal spread of operating frequencies and started searching along the path heading into the old park. Not even five minutes went by before I received a solid, repeatable signal that registered in the white area in the upper right portion of the SmartFind display. The DEPTH icon indicated mid-position which meant the target was approximately 6 inches deep. Cutting and removing a plug, I saw the telltale shine of a silver coin in the edge of the hole. Pulling it free, I put a nice 1937 Mercury dime in my pouch. I continued on towards the a small shelter / pavilion and recovered several copper pennies – both Memorial & wheats – at depths ranging from just under the surface to nearly 8 inches down.


I spent the better part of the afternoon hunting portions of the park – in no particular pattern – trying out several patterns to see how they performed in the adverse conditions throughout the area. Checking my finds before I left, I was quite happy to see that I had come up with a Barber quarter, three Barber dimes, three Mercury dimes, two Roosevelt dimes, 11 wheat cents, more than 30 Memorial pennies and some clad coins & a toy car I found in the playground area when I reduced the amount of discrimination I was using. The Explorer XS had done quite well in an area that many other detectorists had been through before me.


The true benefit of the Explorer XS was evident not simply by the finds I had made but by the total lack of trash targets in my pouch. The ability to create up to 6 custom discrimination patterns, save them and them recall them for use later in the field is a feature found on no other detector. They can be as broad or specific as one wants as in my case where I opted to ignore everything except for copper and silver coins. This can be a great time saving feature if you have a limited amount of time to search a site and want to maximize what you find in the available time (I use this quite a bit while travelling when I see a promising site and can only spend a half hour or so).


The local YMCA occupied the next site it visited in my local town that had once been the High School and then the Junior High School. The small grass area remaining combined with the previous hunters that had searched it over the years did not bode well; however, I was hopeful that the Explorer could ‘snake’ out a few keepers. Not wanting to limit myself to copper & silver coins as I had in the park, I went into the standard discrimination settings and placed a ‘checkmark’ next to COINS and an ‘X’ next to CROWN CAP which left a white area on the right side of the meter. This would let me find all types of coins and non-ferrous ‘trinkets’ while still rejecting the pesky rusted bottlecaps that are common in older sites.


The area alongside the sidewalk was quite trashy and I slowed my sweep speed down in order to avoid missing anything due to target masking. I hit several pulltabs and crushed screwcaps; however, it was easy to identify them by the cursor position that they produced; i.e., higher on the vertical axis than nickels or jewelry typically registered. In the one block area I covered near the sidewalk, I found 11 nickels without digging a single pulltab – definitely a time and frustration saver when compared to using a detector without the target ID capabilities of the Explorer XS.


Most of the good targets I found at this site were at least 6 inches deep; however, they all produced clear, repeatable signals. Several wheat cents, two memorial pennies and three silver dimes along with a few keys turned up during the time I spent there which was quite impressive considering the area had been heavily hunted in the past.


The next site I tried was an abandoned home just off one of the main roads paralleling the Susquehanna River. It dated back to the late 1800s and several of the local club members had mentioned hunting it over the last few years. Luckily the summer had been quite dry and the undergrowth was not as high as it had been during the wet Spring weather.


Starting near the path that led from the road to the front door, I opted for the IRON MASK search mode since I was looking for any interesting items that might still be in the yard. Leaving the SENSITIVITY in the Semi-Auto mode set at ‘25’, I pressed the NOISE CANCEL button and allowed the Explorer XS to find the optimal set of operating frequencies to operate on. The first few signals produced indications that jumped around on the meter and when I checked them in the pinpoint mode, I could tell that they were larger targets indicative of trash. Just to check my hunch, I recovered most of them and found an old metal toothpaste tube, a crushed canning jar lid and a ball of wire. As with most other detectors, a consistent response both in terms of audio and visual indication is what usually indicates a good target has been detected.


I picked up a few ‘keepers’ in the front yard including a 1944P war Nickel, two wheat cents, a child’s Cracker Jack prize from the 1940’s, a brass car key and a few buttons. Hoping to pick up a few artifacts from the barn area, I walked around back and headed towards the back of the property. There appeared to be the remains of coal cinder piles near the barn so I opted to use the NOISE CANCEL feature again to get the Explorer’s circuitry to re-analyze the ground and make any necessary adjustments to ensure I was getting maximum detection depth and target ID accuracy in the new area.


Several signals that appeared to register right on the edge of the BLACK region turned out to be rusted pieces of metal so I increased the IRON MASK setting slightly and continued searching. This adjustment eliminated most of these bothersome targets and I was able to cover much of the area surrounding the barn focusing on the more interesting targets. Several horseshoes, three old axe heads, half of a pick and a few other tools such as hammer head and drill bits came to light. The Explorer’s IRON MASK circuit had allowed be to find larger ferrous targets while not waste time digging up small pieces of iron such as nails and wire.


Another area that typically gives detectorists ‘headaches’ is the wet sand area of ocean beaches. Most VLF detectors operate erratically when they approach the surf line due to the salt & black sand content. The two most common solutions to search this area are either to use a pulse detector which lacks discrimination or use the VLF detector at low sensitivity settings which greatly reduces the effective search depth the detector is capable of. The Minelab FBS circuitry has earned a reputation of being able to hunt these areas with little impact on performance. I took the Explorer XS to the stretch of beaches north of Atlantic City, NJ that have the reputation of being a difficult area to search due to the iron content and black sand found on them. Since I wanted to make sure I did not miss any jewelry, I opted for the IRON MASK mode and set it to ‘-10’. This should eliminate virtually all of the iron trash, while still picking up all non-ferrous targets such as coins and jewelry. I spent almost a full day hunting several different beaches and the most noticeable aspect of the Explorer’s performance was the stable operation around the wet sand region of the beaches. I was not plagued with any falsing even when the waves washed over the coil and recovered coins at depths of up to 15 inches. Unfortunately I didn’t do very well in terms of gold as my take at the end of the day included a lone small 10KT gold ring and several silver ones but the Explorer had found targets deeper than one typically would find them with a conventional VLF detector would be capable of on salt water beaches.


I hunted a number of other sites – most of which had been previously hunted and a few that I had the opportunity to be the first one to search – and was able to make good finds in all of them. Some required additional adjustments in order to compensate for specific conditions; i.e., mineralization and/or trash, but they were easily made and the Explorer XS had the ability to find targets others could not even when side-by-side tests were conducted.


SUMMARY


I will say that the Explorer XS has been an exciting detector to use over the last two years and it has added many fine pieces to my collection from areas that I – and many others – had long considered ‘worked-out’!


The Explorer XS is a detector that provides a wide range of adjustments allowing you to customize it to meet whatever conditions or applications you come across but unlike some detectors which require a computer engineering degree to set properly, even a novice can start using it effectively immediately after unpacking it from the box. I frequently attend treasure hunting shows and club meetings across the country and it is becoming more and more common to see the top hunters displaying finds made with an Explorer. It’s a detector that will allow you to hunt a wide range of sites and with some time in the field under your belt, the more advanced features on the detector will enable you to be even more successful in searching sites others have long since given up on.


Minelab offers a number of accessories designed to enhance the Explorer’s versatility including a smaller 8-inch coil, a weather cover for the control housing, a padded carrying case and additional rechargeable battery packs. These are all available from your local Minelab dealer.

MINELAB GP EXTREME
By Chris Gholson

From page 41 of the November issue of Lost Treasure magazine.
Copyright © 2001, 2001 Lost Treasure, Inc.

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There’s no gold left in those old nugget patches! The surface gold was cleaned out long ago by VLFs in the 1980s, and the deeper ones were plucked out by the SDs in the mid ‘90s. Say that to the new owners of a GP extreme and they’ll just rattle their pokes at you and smile — or perhaps the smarter ones won’t.
Minelab’s newest addition, the GP extreme, comes in its own heavy-duty, plastic carrying case that has an inner skin molded to the shape of the detector’s components. It is supplied with both 11inch and 18 inch extreme coils, metallic blue control box, armrest, shafts, handle assembly, 6 volt/10 AH battery, curly power cable, 110 volt charger, 12 volt vehicle charger, 600 ohm Telex headphones, battery pack and instruction manual. While its overall appearance is ergonomically similar to the SDs, you can rest assured that this is not merely a 2200d wrapped up in a fancy new package.

In fact, it is the first gold detector to utilize Dual Voltage Technology (DVT). This new technology was developed based on the existing Bi-Polar technology used in their military mine detectors. DVT, refers to changes in voltage used to create the electro-magnetic field, transmitted by the coil into the ground. It has nothing to do with the power supply. The magnetic fields, which are transmitted by a metal detector, can ‘magnetically-saturate’ the ground, especially if the coil is held close to the surface. Minelab discovered that by applying two different voltages to the transmit coil they were able to cancel out many of the signals caused by this magnetic saturation. Thereby improving the detector’s sensitivity, depth and its ability to balance out mineralization.

Features

Below is a very brief description of some of the more important features found on the new GP extreme. The Rx setting changes the characteristics of the new ‘extreme’ coils by altering their transmit and receive fields, giving them the ability to change their configuration pattern with the simple flip of a switch. When the Rx switch is set in the Normal position the coil will function as a conventional double D.

If the Rx switch is set in the E (Enhance) position the coil will essentially function as a ‘pseudo’ monoloop. By this I mean, it will exhibit some of the characteristics of a traditional monoloop coil. When operated in this mode the GP’s detection depth is still good, but sensitivity on the right hand side of the coil is virtually non-existent. The Cancel feature changes the electro-magnetic field of the coil so that it is relatively stable in areas of electrical interference. This feature is especially useful when hunting near power lines, electrical fences or under poor atmospheric conditions.

The Boost feature allows the operator to select the type of processing and filtering used while hunting, thereby enhancing the signals produced by different types of targets. Shallow amplifies signals from small, faint targets near the surface. N (Normal) can be used in most any soil conditions. This setting does not boost any signals, regardless of size or depth. Deep may be used when searching for large nuggets in highly mineralized ground at depth.

The Soil feature optimizes the detector for different soil conditions and targets by changing the signal processing. This switch offers three different settings: Normal, Sensitive and Salt. The Normal (N) setting may be used in all types of ground, ranging from lightly to highly mineralized soils. This is my preferred setting for the Soil switch. The Sensitive setting is useful when searching for tiny, shallow gold nuggets. The Salt setting enables the GP to search in areas containing large amounts of conductive salts. Although I have not had an opportunity to test the GP on the salt, I have talked with several professional Australian hunters who are impressed with its capabilities. My advice is this; unless you are hunting the dry salt lakes of the outback avoid using this setting, as it reduces sensitivity towards small nuggets. You will find that the American goldfields are much less mineralized and using this setting is largely unnecessary.

Like its predecessor, the SD 2200d, the GP extreme is also equipped with automatic ground balancing (AGB). The Balance switch, which controls the ground balance function, is located on the front panel. Unlike manual ground balancing detectors, the GP, when placed in the Tracking mode will continually adjust to minimize the effects of ground mineralization. It also has the ability to be dialed or ‘tuned’ in for a particular piece of ground when placed in the Fixed position. Strangely enough, it has come to my attention that the AGB feature often works too well. Tiny or deeply buried gold nuggets are often difficult to hear because of the feeble signal they emit. Usually these signals are in the form of a small dip or rise in the threshold level, and are often so weak they’re nearly impossible to distinguish from the background noise.

Unfortunately the GP, because of its improved canceling ability, may interpret these subtle responses as being nothing more than ground noise and attempt to balance them out. This problem can be remedied by leaving the machine in the Fixed position after it has been properly balanced. Based on my own findings and the comments of others, the general consensus towards the Balance feature is the following. If the ground is quiet to medium mineralized there is a sensitivity advantage if the Fixed position is used for searching. Not to mention, the machine will not accidentally balance out those faint murmurs. If the ground is variably mineralized and noisy, then Tracking is the preferred position.

The GP is outfitted with an Iron Discriminate feature, which allows the user to select between a Disc or an All Metal mode. In the All Metal mode, the detector will respond to all types of metallic targets, including ferrous (iron) items. In the Disc mode, the detector will cause the threshold to be ‘blanked’ or silenced when the coil is passed over a fairly large ferrous target.

Field Test

Trying to decide where to test the GP was a tough decision. I knew I would have to choose the test site very carefully, as it would be crucial in determining the GP’s performance. After consulting with my father Steve, we finally decided on what we thought was our best ‘hunted out’ spot. Our destination was a nugget patch located in the desert southwest of Quartzsite, Ariz. This was not an area that had been casually hunted in the past by amateur detectorists, oh no! This patch had been tediously gridded, scrapped and pounded to death by some of the most successful hunters in Arizona. That is why we knew it was the ideal place to test the GP.

It was early morning when my father and I finally reached the patch. We decided that I would start off in the immediate patch, while he focused his efforts on the surrounding hillsides. Since the overburden was rather deep in some areas, I decided that the stock 18 inch coil would be the best choice for maximum ground coverage and depth penetration.

I slowly worked my way across the patch without hitting a single target until I reached a promising bit of red stained soil. As I passed the ‘trashcan lid’ sized coil above it I picked up a faint disturbance. It wasn’t exactly a signal, but the variation in the threshold was enough to get my attention. By the time the hole hit ten inches the target was really screaming. Finally it was out of the ground and I began running handfuls of dirt across the coil. When the detector let out a high-pitched squeal I knew it was in my hand. Slowly I peeled back my fingers and there in my palm lay a chunky 4.3 gram nugget!

A few feet away I encountered a hefty boulder partially submerged within the soil. As I walked past I swept the coil across its surface. The rock was rather large and cumbersome, but once out of the way the signal got considerably louder. After digging nearly six inches I finally discovered what was setting off the detector. It was nothing more than a fragment of rusted iron, probably part of an old miner’s pick. Even though it had not been gold, I was utterly amazed that the GP had been able to pick it up so deeply beneath the rock.

Recovering the next target was a difficult task, as it was situated amongst an old-timers drywash tailings pile. The signal was a little stronger than the others, but not by much. After rummaging through the loosely classified material for nearly 15 minutes I finally found what I was looking for. Eureka! Another nugget had been found, this time shaped like a teardrop. I managed to find a few more bits of rubbish in the diggings, but no more gold.

By now it was late afternoon, so I decided to check how my father was getting along with his GP. “How’d you do?” I asked. “Not too bad,” he replied with a smile. He riffled through his pockets and produced a leather pouch, which he immediately dumped out. Three miniature lumps of yellow metal rolled out into my waiting hand. He informed me that all three nuggets were found on the outskirts of the patch with the stock 11 inch coil at an average depth of 5-6 inches.

Much to our surprise the old patch had given up another 5 nuggets, for a total combined weight of 7.2 grams. Truthfully, I didn’t have much hope of finding gold in this particular location, considering my father and I had been over it no less than 20 times — and there’s no telling how many other hunters had been over it. These results lead me to believe that either the GP was indeed outperforming the earlier VLFs and SDs, or we were extremely lucky.

Summary

After finding a fair amount of gold in a well-hunted site, the GP extreme has proven itself capable of finding smaller gold than the previous SD 2200d and punching deeper than any other detector on the market. Its new features, ease of operation and uncanny ability to knock out ground mineralization make the GP an extremely tough machine to beat.

While I would highly recommend this machine to anyone, I don’t want this to come across as a sales pitch. All I can offer you is my own honest opinion. The cost for instance, is one drawback that must be taken into consideration. The GP carries a suggested retail price of $3,495 making it the single most expensive gold detector on the market. The increased weight of the coils and general bulkiness of the unit is something a potential buyer should also keep in mind. With that out of the way, let me close this article with one final suggestion.

If you only get the chance to go out detecting a few times a year or are unsure about your interests in prospecting, I suggest you save your money. The GP is a big investment, so there’s no sense shelling out that kind of cash if it is going to sit at home collecting dust. On the other hand, if you are a serious hunter with a passion for detecting or are thinking about becoming heavily involved with prospecting, the GP is probably the perfect machine for you. It is equipped with the very latest in detector technology and will give you that extra edge where it counts most — on the goldfields!

 

 

Explorer S Metal Detector

From Lost Treasure Field Test By Andy Sabisch

From page 35 of the August 2001 issue of Lost Treasure magazine.
Copyright ©1999 Lost Treasure, Inc.


FIELD TEST

By Andy Sabisch

In January of 2000, Minelab introduced the Explorer series of metal detectors that introduced technology found on no otherdetectors on the market. Almost immediately reports of exceptional finds from even the most heavily-hunted areas began to come out. The Explorer S and XS proved to be one of the fastest selling detectors of all time
and its popularity shows no sign of abating. Since its release, I have used the Explorer XS extensively with a high
degree of success in a wide range of conditions and applications; however, despite my familiarity with the XS model, I have had only limited exposure to the S model so I was looking forward to seeing how it performed in comparison.


Features
The Explorer series is the result of extensive research and development using input from treasure hunters worldwide. The extremely popular Sovereign and Excalibur models, utilizing Broad Band Spectrum (BBS)
technology, had developed the reputation of being able to handle extreme ground conditions and provide top-notch detection depth. Capitalizing on the processing power of today's micro-processors, Minelab engineers were
able to develop an enhanced detection circuit as well as extract additional information from the target signal to more accurately identify it in the ground. The Explorers utilize Full Band Spectrum (FBS) which is the newest
detection circuitry from Minelab. FBS simultaneously transmits 28 frequencies up to an upper range of 100 kHz. The Explorer is able to provide superior detection depth and accuracy of target identification
in even the most adverse ground conditions. In addition to the new FBS circuitry, Minelab found that with the aid of new microprocessors, additional characteristics regarding the composition of a target could be obtained and displayed on an LCD display panel. Now, by combining the conductivity value of a target used on all other detectors to provide
target ID with the object's inductance value, the ability to differentiate similar targets such as a gold ring and a pull tab can be achieved. This 2-dimensional target identification circuit, called SmartFind (discrimination) is found only on the Minelab Explorer series.

With the SmartFind circuitry, a greater degree of target acceptance or rejection can be obtained than with conventional conductivity-only discrimination circuits. This allows users to select specific targets to
either search for or eliminate which translates into more finds in less time when in the field. For example, if you are hunting a site where you know there are Indian Head pennies; however, it is also littered with screw caps and pull tabs, the SmartFind circuitry allows you to open a "window" where the Indian Heads will be accepted while ignoring most of
the surrounding trash. And, once you have setup one of these "discrimination patterns" as they are called, it can be saved for use later on. Up to six different patterns can be created and saved. The LCD display screen provides a wealth of information, both in terms of target ID and depth as well as when adjusting the detector. The
controls are fairly self-explanatory; however, if you are not sure of the function of a control, pressing and holding the touchpad will cause a help box to pop-up on the display screen that explains most features. Combine that with the 100 plus spiral-bound manual and pocket-sized menu short-cut sheet, it is apparent that the factory has put more effort
into the manual than typically found on metal detectors today. Another extremely useful feature on the Explorer is the ability to select the degree of iron elimination through the Iron Mask circuit. Sovereign users may remember the Iron Mask toggle switch on the original Sovereign. On subsequent models, this switch was removed as 99 percent
of all hunters left it in the ON position. This was the right setting for most applications; however, it was not ideal for relic or beach hunters who may have wanted to find ferrous artifacts. Well, the Explorer has restored this control and now allows users to select any degree of iron-rejection ranging from none to full. You now have the
ability to define precisely what type of target will produce a positive response thanks to the SmartFind and Iron Mask circuitry. The Explorer has multiple display options which aid in identifying objects. The Digital mode depicts target ID with a numerical value ranging from 1 to 32 and a corresponding picture icon; i.e., coin, nail,
pull tab, etc. The Digital mode is best suited for basic coin hunting. The increased target differentiation of the SmartFind and Iron Mask display modes make them more suited for most forms of treasure hunting.
In the SmartFind and Iron Mask modes, the unique Conductivity and Inductance value for each target will define a point on the display screen and this point will be indicated with a cross-hair icon that can move around the screen.
The Explorer S comes with a 10.5 inch Double-D search coil. Double-D coils take a little practice to become proficient at pinpointing targets; however they do a more through job of covering the ground than a concentric coil. Pinpointing is aided by the depth indicator which appears on the display screen and registers depth in the motion search
modes. The Explorer S is powered by 8 AA batteries. An optional NiMh rechargeable battery system is available from Minelab and can be recharged at home or in your vehicle using the charger adapters.

Field Test When I field test a new detector, I try to hunt areas that have been previously hunted since that gives a truer indication of how well a detector performs rather than hunting a "virgin" site where virtually any detector can find targets. The first site I took the Explorer S to was an old high school in a town 20 miles away. Built in the 1920s and
closed in the mid-1980s, it had been HEAVILY hunted by hunters from all over the area for years. Opting for the COINS option on the SELECT menu, SmartFind search mode and semi-automatic sensitivity set at "30", I
started hunting the small front yard. The first few signals registered in the area where screwcaps / pulltabs would and were quite shallow based on the target depth indication. To check the accuracy of the Explorer S, I recovered them and they were exactly what the indication had been. As I approached the hedges near the building, I received a
repeatable signal that registered in the upper right corner of the SmartFind screen and was approximately 8 inches deep according to the depth indicator. Cutting a deep plug and removing some dirt from the
bottom of the hole I saw the glint of silver and pulled out a 1937 Mercury dime. I continued hunting along the hedges which seemed to be the most productive area in the lawn - apparently most detectorists had
avoided the overgrown area. Over the next hour or so, I recovered six wheat cents, two more silver dimes, a Cracker Jack toy from the 1940s and a key. The SmartFind screen combined with the target depth indication had allowed me to identify and ignore virtually all of the modern trash that littered the area. The next spot I took the Explorer S to was my mother-in-law's backyard which I had hunted with numerous detectors over the past 20 years. While
the house was only some 50 years old, the land had been part of a small coal-mining town since the mid-1800s. My in-laws had used coal to heat the house up until recently and the cinders had been dumped in the
backyard for years. As a result, the ground was extremely mineralized making detecting difficult at best. The Explorer S with the FBS circuitry made short-work of the bad ground. After determining the optimal NOISE channel for the conditions, I hunted a portion of the yard with no change in threshold or any falsing. Since the potential for
finding a relic or two existed, I hunted in the IRON MASK mode with the left-third of the screen blacked out; i.e., accepting everything in the white area. This allowed me to identify targets and then decide if they
were worth recovering. The first few targets turned out to be "unidentifiable" pieces of metal ñ made of brass or copper - that came from depths of 5 to 9 inches. Near a large tree, I received a good signal that registered slightly above where screwcaps typically registered and appeared to be approximately 6-7 inches deep. After nearly 15 minutes of trying to dig the target out from under the roots, I found an 1887 Indian Head penny in the loose dirt. A few wheat pennies
and a clad dime capped off the hunt. Considering I would have thought the area was thoroughly hunted-out after years of searching it, the Explorer S had proven what Minelab states in their ads which is "Even
worked-out areas are productive again with the Explorer series!" I hunted several other sites throughout central-Pennsylvania and New Jersey and found the Explorer S to be as effective as the XS model in
detecting and accurately identifying valuable targets in sites most hunters have long since given up on. FBS-technology is definitely a detector technology that results in improved performance where it counts
- in the field! Summary As with the field test report I wrote on the Explorer XS, space limitations keep me from delving into many of the unique features found on the Explorer S. The new FBS technology and SmartFind target analysis
circuitry in the Explorer has taken metal detecting technology to a new level. The ability to hunt in even the most adverse conditions and obtain information to aid in identifying targets with accuracy not found on other detectors make the Explorer S a "detector of choice" for a wide range of applications. A hands-on demonstration is highly recommended to
see just how different and effective the Explorer S is - especially in comparison to the detector you are currently using.
The Explorer XS offers some additional features not found on the S model as well as accessories such as the rechargeable battery system; however, if price is the deciding factor, the S model will save you some money.

MINELAB USA RELIC HAWK METAL DETECTOR
By Andy Sabisch

From page 37 of the April issue of Lost Treasure magazine.
Copyright © 2001, 2001 Lost Treasure, Inc.

Most treasure hunters have come to recognize the Minelab name as a company that produces metal detectors utilizing cutting-edge technology; however, they are also a company that has achieved the reputation of a company that supplies highly-acclaimed mine locating equipment to military forces and humanitarian groups worldwide. Based on requests and input from treasure hunters for a detector optimized for location of deeply-buried relics, Minelab’s engineers worked on combining technology found on their consumer and military models with the result being the Relic Hawk.
Features

When I received the Relic Hawk, I was immediately impressed with the way it came packed from the factory. Rather than “stuffed” in a cardboard box as is typical with detectors today, a high-quality padded backpack slid out of the shipping box. The backpack is designed to hold the Relic Hawk and all of the accessories that come with it in one, compact location. Unzipping the cover revealed the detector (which comes apart into three short sections), headphones, battery pack, battery charger, cords and instruction manual.

The Relic Hawk can be setup with the control housing in one of two configurations — attached to the shaft or hipmounted. Surprisingly, with the mounting point of the control box and searchcoil, the Relic Hawk is well-balanced even without hipmounting the housing. This shows that the Minelab engineers had listened to actual users during the development phase since many relic hunters spend their in-field time searching overgrown areas and tend to dislike having to hipmount their detector to avoid getting the cables snagged on underbrush.

Three knobs (Sensitivity, Ground Balance and Discrimination) and five toggle switches control the Relic Hawk’s operation. The Relic Hawk is a VLF-based detector with a unique three-position toggle switch labeled Operating Mode. The “S” mode enhances the detector’s sensitivity to smaller shallow targets while the “L” mode optimizes the Relic Hawk’s response to larger, deeply buried targets. The “M” mode is designated as the one for general use. The ground balance circuit has both a Manual and Fixed mode and a corresponding knob used to make the necessary adjustments. The Relic Hawk also features two search modes — All Metal and Discrimination — and a non-motion Pinpoint mode. The last toggle switch turns the power on and off.

The standard searchcoil is a 15 inch Double-D design that ensures you receive complete ground coverage without the need to overlap each sweep unlike conventional concentric coils found on most other brands. It is an open coil which keeps the weight to a minimum and aids in pinpointing. The advantage of a Double D coil over a concentric coil is that sensitivity to small targets can be maintained even with coils as large as that on the Relic Hawk. At first glance the 15 inch coil might seem to be “overkill”; however, after spending sometime testing the response to targets ranging in size from coins to artillery shells, it is a size well-suited for the Relic Hawk’s intended use. The only downside to the coil is that being open, it does tend to get caught on sticks or tufts of grass but there are aftermarket coil covers designed to address this issue.

The Relic Hawk is powered by a 12 volt Gel Cell battery contained in a small padded pouch. It is designed to provide 20 plus hours on a charge. The recharger allows you to keep the battery pack on a float charge for extended periods without damaging the battery or creating a memory typical on many other types of rechargeable batteries.

Design features carried over from their military detectors include the rugged connectors used on the searchcoil and battery cables, the composite housing and square shaft assembly. Through the use of these components, the Relic Hawk should provide years of reliable operation under even the most adverse conditions.

Field Test

I have been involved in field testing treasure-hunting equipment for more than 15 years, and it always seems that I receive equipment at the least opportune time in terms of weather to test it. Water detectors in the dead of winter, coin detectors in the middle of the summer with temperatures in the 100s — the Relic Hawk was no exception. Having recently moved the family from Georgia to Pennsylvania, I had forgotten about that season called winter and the funny white stuff that came along with it. I was able to get two weeks of local hunting in before Ol’ Man Winter arrived and dumped 6 inches of snow forcing me to drive south to Maryland for additional testing.

The first site I took the Relic Hawk to was an old cellar hole in the woods not far from our house. I had hunted the area before; however, much of the site was covered with downed tree limbs. In order to hunt it effectively I had tried to move the branches so as to get my coil close to the ground but that was a time consuming task. Setting the Relic Hawk to MAX sensitivity, switching to the All Metal search mode and selecting the “L” operating mode, I made a quick adjustment to the Ground Balance circuit and started sweeping the 15 inch coil across the limbs. I wasn’t long before I received a repeatable signal and moved away nearly 10 inches of branches to reach the ground. Two shovels of earth were removed to uncover an axe head dating back to the 1800s. Considering the axe had been buried nearly one foot down and covered by 10 inches of limbs, I was quite impressed at the Relic Hawk’s performance so far. I spent more than two hours hunting the area surrounding the cellar hole and was rewarded with a number of relics dating back to the mid-1800s including tools, part of a lantern, horseshoes and some unidentifiable metal objects. With the use of the “L” mode, much of the small metallic items such as nails and shards of tin from the old roof were either ignored entirely by the Relic Hawk or produced signals that were easily distinguishable from those produced by larger objects.

The next site I took the Relic Hawk to was an old picnic grove that had been heavily hunted over the years yet based on my experience, still had some deeply buried targets worth pursuing. This time I opted for the “S” mode and set the Discriminate level at “5” to eliminate some of the ferrous trash that was present. I had some difficulty in maneuvering the coil through the underbrush which was to be expected with an open coil that large. Opting to stick to the less-overgrown areas, I hunted for less than five minutes before receiving my first signal. I turned the Discriminate control up to “8” and rechecked the spot and still heard a solid signal. Careful probing turned up an 1894 Barber quarter in VF condition at just over 10 inches. The next good signal turned out to be a clad quarter just under the surface — considering the site had not been used in more than 50 years, I can only assume another detectorist dropped it. After hunting for close to 1 1/2 hours, I received another good signal. From almost 11 inches, I pulled up an 1844 Mexican 4 Reale silver coin — a surprising find since it predated the site by some 45 years. As the sun began to set, I started to hike back out to the truck and head for home.

After the snow hit, I decided to drive down to a farm that I had gotten permission to hunt years ago near Antietam, Maryland. The scene of considerable Civil War activity during the battle of Antietam, I had made a number of good finds over the 150 plus acres that were part of the farm. I drove out through the fields to a low ridge where I had done well in the past. Wanting to optimize the response to both small and large targets, I opted for the “M” operating mode and the All Metal search mode. Sensitivity was set at 2:00 and due to the ground mineralization present, I switched to the Manual ground balance setting. Quickly adjusting the balance control, I started hunting along the top of the ridge. The first few signals turned out to be recently lost tractor parts at fairly shallow depths. Starting my second pass I picked up a softer signal that was smaller than the other signals recovered. Cutting a deep plug and removing the loose dirt, I could feel the tell-tale weight of a Minnie ball in my hand. Filling in the hole I continued searching. Several more bullets came to light over the next hour or so at depths ranging from a few inches to more than 10 inches down. A larger signal near the fence line produced a Cavalry saddle buckle in nice shape. Over the next few hours I picked up a number of period relics; however, the best find of the day turned up as I was starting back to the truck (isn’t that always the case?) As I crossed the “road” crossing the field, I picked up a solid signal in the area between the tire track grooves. Expecting to find a part off a vehicle, I cut a plug and was surprised to see that the target was still in the hole. A few inches further down I saw the edge of a coin sticking out. Wiping the loose dirt off the face of the coin I was surprised to see that it was an 1822 Large Cent! Not a bad find to add to my pouch before hitting the road for a 3 1/2 hour drive home!

Summary

Minelab has developed a first-rate metal detector designed to excel in its intended application — search for and locate artifacts at extreme depths without fancy bells-and-whistles or complicated adjustments. It is obviously not the detector-of-choice for coin hunting in your local trash-filled park or private yard; however, if you are searching for deeply buried targets in well-hunted sites, the Relic Hawk deserves your attention.

Minelab Electronics Sovereign XS-2a Pro
By Andy Sabisch

From page 16 of the October issue of Lost Treasure magazine.
Copyright © 2000, 2000 Lost Treasure, Inc.

Nearly 10 years ago Minelab Electronics in- troduced a new technology to the metal detecting industry that revolutionized how targets were detected and identified in even the worst ground conditions. It took a while for “the company from down under” to build up a base of users worldwide, but as reports of the success enjoyed by those early coverts spread, the sale of Minelab detectors grew exponentially.

Recently Minelab reviewed their product line and, due to the introduction of the new Explorer series, felt that a change in the price point of their Sovereign model was in order. At the same time, they opted to add a few features to the unit based on feedback they have received from users and dealers worldwide. The result is the new Sovereign XS-2a Pro which has replaced both the Sovereign XS-2 and XS-2 Pro models.

Features

Most of the features of the Sovereign XS-2a Pro are similar to those on it’s predecessors. It comes with the choice of either an 8-inch coil (all-purpose coil with good target separation and depth) or a 10-inch coil (better ground coverage, increased detection depth but a little more difficult to pinpoint and more susceptible to target masking in trashy sites).

The XS-2a Pro uses Broad Band Spectrum (BBS) technology to operate at 17 different frequencies unlike other detectors, that use one or at most two frequencies. As a result, the Sovereign is able to effectively ignore even the most adverse ground conditions while achieving above-average detection depth and consistent target ID accuracy. All of this is done without the need for any complex adjustments or setup procedures found on many other brands.

The Sovereign’s adjustments are made through five knobs and two toggle switches on the face of the control box. The knobs are: Discrimination, Notch; Volume, Sensitivity and Threshold. The toggle switches are: Mode Select (Discrimination or All Metals) and Tone ID Selection.

The biggest difference between this Sovereign and its predecessors — and one many people may not immediately see the value of — is the Tone ID Selector Switch. A complaint that Minelab has heard from would-be users over the years is that the different tones produced by different targets was too confusing to learn in conjunction with the different response produced by the BBS circuitry itself. This was especially true when someone had years of experience with another brand that simply had a single tone for all targets. Well, even though the different tones do help one identify targets quite accurately, users can now turn that feature off while they learn how a BBS detector responds and later, when they are more comfortable with what it is telling them, switch the variable tones back on.

The digital meter is the same one that came with the XS-2 Pro and takes some time to get used to. It displays a numeric value with negative values indicating iron objects. Non-ferrous objects register from “0” to “550”. The display does “jump around” a few numbers when you pass over a target; however, with a little practice in a test garden or the local school yard will help you make sense of what the meter is telling you. The XS-2a Pro is powered by 8 AA batteries which provide between 15 and 20 hours of operation.

In addition to adding a few new features, the XS-2a Pro does not have a few items that were included with it’s more expensive predecessor. These include the hipmount bag, rechargeable battery pack and the charger. All of these items are available from your Minelab dealer.

Field Test

The timing for conducting the XS-2a Pro field test was ideal, as I had just been told about several old schools and parks near the town I was staying in central Pennsylvania. With two large, active treasure hunting clubs and several detector dealers in the area I knew I wouldn’t be the first person to sweep a coil across the ground at these sites; however, I was optimistic that the XS-2a Pro would prove itself and come up with a few “keepers.”

The first site I visited was a school built in the 1920s that had recently closed. Being inside the city, there was very little grass to search. As I got my detector ready I saw several plugs lying alongside holes and knew someone else had hunted here recently. After spending 10 minutes filling in the open holes, I began my hunt. Using the 800 (8 inch) coil, I set the DISC control at 10 o’clock, left the NOTCH control fully CCW (off) and used the AUTO setting on the Sensitivity control. With a faint threshold hum in my headphones I walked across the grassy area in front of the school. The first few signals were quite loud and I knew from the meter reading that they were probably pull-tabs and screw caps. As a testament to the XS-2a Pro’s accuracy, that’s exactly what they turned out to be. Near a large bush I received a repeatable but weaker signal that registered between “544” and “548” on the meter. Cutting a deep plug, I removed some of the loose dirt at the bottom of the hole. As I was getting ready to check the hole I glanced in and saw the edge of a silver coin sticking out — nearly 8 inches down. It turned out to be a 1937 Mercury dime in XF condition. I continued hunting the area on one side of the school for nearly an hour and in that time found 19 coins including four wheat cents dating back to the 1927.

Before I left I switched to the 1000 (10 inch coil) and re-hunted the same area I had just gone over to see if the larger coil might pick up targets that were a little deeper than the 800 coil could reach. I left all of the settings the same as those I had used with the 800 coil to provide a true comparison. I did receive several signals that would not repeat; however, when I switched to All-Metal in order to check them, I found that what I had come across was a large, shallow trash target. That is one drawback to using a larger coil in areas where you are likely to hit large trash targets. I did receive two faint signals that registered good on the meter as I re-checked the area. Marking them, I switched back to 800 coil to see what response I would receive with the smaller coil. One was questionable even knowing there was a target there and the second one was not detectable at all in the AUTO setting. Switching to Manual sensitivity adjusted to 11 o’clock did allow the 800 coil to see both targets; however, with the coal cinders in the area, the detector was not as stable as it had been in the AUTO setting. Both targets turned out to be coins — a 1917 and a 1910 wheat cent — between 9 and 10 inches deep.

All in all, the Sovereign XS-2a Pro functioned perfectly in the highly mineralized ground I used it in. Having hunted the central Pennsylvania area for almost 20 years, I know that many detectors have trouble handling these ground conditions and loose a considerable amount of detection depth because of it. The XS-2a Pro kept a constant threshold at all times, required no additional adjustments as I used it and detected targets at depths of up to 18 inches at the sites I visited.

Summary

I’m not a marketing expert so I won’t even try to explain the new pricing on the Sovereign XS-2a Pro; however, I will say that at the new lower price, it offers a real bargain in terms of what you get for your money. The new XS-2a Pro sells for $760 with your choice of either the 8 or 10 inch coil. For around $80 more you can get the hipmount bag, nicad pack and charger which then gives you virtually the same detector (less the added features on the XS-2a Pro such as the tone selector switch) that would have cost you almost $200 more with the XS-2 Pro!

Since the price is the same with either coil, consider what you will be using it for when you make your choice. If you plan on hunting wide open beaches or searching for deeply buried relics in areas that are not too overgrown; the 1000 coil is probably the one for you. If you will be hunting for coins in schools and parks or typically search very trashy sites, the 800 coil will be better suited for your needs. If you have any questions, ask your local dealer and if need be, try them both before you buy.

If you have been thinking about trying the Minelab BBS technology but held back because of the cost or the learning curve needed to get accustomed to the multiple tones it produced, you no longer have any excuses. Sovereigns have proven themselves in areas other detectors were unable to detect. It is versatile enough to meet the needs of all types of treasure hunters from coin and relic hunters to avid beach hunters at a new, more affordable price.

Minelab Electronics Explorer XS Metal Detector
By Andy Sabisch


Metal detector technology has come so far since I started treasure hunting in the 1960s that sometimes it amazes me that any of us in the hobby back then were actually able to find anything. Features such as discrimination, ground balance, target ID, depth reading and even “turn-on-and-go” operation were not even on the drawing boards.

Well, over the years, metal detector manufacturers have spent countless hours and $1,000s of dollars developing the technology that has produced new and improved detectors year after year. When I got word of a new detector from Minelab Electronics which had some “revolutionary” new circuitry and features, I was anxious to see if a new chapter in detector technology had been written.

Features

The first thing I noticed when I received the Explorer XS was the wealth of accessories that came standard with the detector. Rather than having to buy them separately, the Explorer XS comes with a coil cover, NiMh rechargeable batteries, car and home chargers, detector stand and a set of padded stereo headphones.

The Explorer is the result of more than two years of research and development using input from treasure hunters worldwide. The Sovereign and Excalibur models, utilizing Broad Band Spectrum (BBS) technology, had developed the reputation of being able to handle extreme ground conditions and provide top-notch detection depth. Capitalizing on the processing power of today’s micro-processors, Minelab engineers were able to develop an enhanced detection circuit as well as extract additional information from the target signal to more accurately identify it in the ground.

Full Band Spectrum (FBS) is the newest detection circuitry from Minelab found on the Explorer. Increasing the number of frequencies used by the detector from 17 in BBS to 28 in FBS and the upper range of the frequencies from 25 kHz to 100 kHz, the Explorer is able to provide even greater detection depth and accuracy of target identification than the BBS models that have become so popular. In addition to the FBS circuitry, Minelab found that with the aid of new microprocessors, additional characteristics regarding the composition of a target could be obtained and displayed on an LCD display panel. Now, by combining the conductivity value of a target used on all other detectors to provide target ID with the object’s inductance value, the ability to differentiate similar targets such as a gold ring and a pull tab can be achieved. This 2-dimensional target identification circuit, called SmartFind (discrimination) is found only on the Minelab Explorer series.
With the SmartFind circuitry, a greater degree of target acceptance or rejection can be obtained than with conventional conductivity-only discrimination circuits. This allows users to select specific targets to either search for or eliminate which translates into more finds in less time when in the field. For example, if you are hunting a site where you know there are Indian Head pennies; however, it is also littered with screw caps and pull tabs, the SmartFind circuitry allows you to open a “window” where the Indian Heads will be accepted while ignoring most of the surrounding trash. And, once you have setup one of these “discrimination patterns” as they are called, it can be saved for use later on. Up to six different patterns can be created and saved on the Explorer XS which is convenient if you do different types of hunting; i.e., beach, coin, relic, etc., and want to create a pattern to locate specific types of targets.

The LCD display screen provides a wealth of information, both in terms of target ID and depth as well as when adjusting the detector — and is easily visible at all times thanks to a contrast control and backlight for low or no-light conditions. All of the adjustments are made using the 6 silver touchpads surrounding the display screen and 8 touchpads below the screen on the control panel face. The controls are fairly self-explanatory; however, if you are not sure of the function of a control, pressing and holding the touchpad will cause a help box to pop-up on the display screen that explains most features. Combine that with the 100 plus spiral-bound manual and pocket-sized menu short-cut sheet, it is apparent that the factory has put more effort into the manual than typically found on metal detectors today.
Another extremely useful feature on the Explorer is the ability to select the degree of iron elimination through the Iron Mask circuit. Sovereign users may remember the Iron Mask toggle switch on the original Sovereign. On subsequent models, this switch was removed as 99 percent of all hunters left it in the ON position. This was the right setting for most applications; however, it was not ideal for relic or beach hunters who may have wanted to find ferrous artifacts. Well, the Explorer has restored this control and now allows users to select any degree of iron-rejection ranging from none to full. Again, depending the type of hunting you do, you now have the ability to define precisely what type of target will produce a positive response thanks to the SmartFind and Iron Mask circuitry.

The Explorer has multiple display options which aid in identifying objects. The Digital mode depicts target ID with a numerical value ranging from 1 to 32 and a corresponding picture icon; i.e., coin, nail, pull tab, etc. The Digital mode is best suited for basic coinhunting. The increased target differentiation of the SmartFind and Iron Mask display modes make them more suited for most forms of treasure hunting. In the SmartFind and Iron Mask modes, the unique Conductivity and Inductance value for each target will define a point on the display screen and this point will be indicated with a cross-hair icon that can move around the screen.
The Explorer XS comes with a 10.5 inch Double-D search coil. Double-D coils take a little practice to become proficient at pinpointing targets; however they do a more through job of covering the ground than a concentric coil. Pinpointing is aided by the depth indicator which appears on the display screen and registers depth in the motion search modes. At first glance, one may question the ability of the Explorer to operate in trash-filled sites due to the large coil size; however, there are advanced settings that allow it to handle all but the trashiest sites after one has some experience with the detector.

The NiMh battery system has been designed to avoid developing a memory often associated with conventional Nicad batteries. It provides approximately 10 hours of use and can be recharged at home or in your vehicle using the cigarette charger that comes with the Explorer.
Field Test

The Explorer XS is a detector that requires some time in order to become proficient with in the field and fully exploit the advanced features and capabilities it offers. Rather than start out with some of my initial forays in the field which were somewhat disappointing, I will jump ahead to some of the sites I searched once I had some time using the Explorer under my belt.

Civil War relic hunting is extremely popular where I live in north Georgia and many of the less-obscure sites have been hunted continuously since the 1960s. These are ideal areas to test out new detectors as any remaining targets are either extremely deep or masked by trash. I took my son to a site where a small skirmish had taken place during the siege of Kennesaw Mountain. Much of the area has been developed, so we started in the last remaining stand of trees adjacent to the road. Setting the Explorer in the Iron Mask mode, I began scrubbing the ground. Signals were few and far between as I would have expected; however a repeatable signal did come through near a section of barbed wire fence that was laying on the ground. It registered in the center area of the display screen, so moving the fence away, I started to recover the target. Removing several inches of dirt, I rechecked the hole and saw it was deeper still. Finally, after cutting through some tree roots, I saw a .58 caliber Minnie Ball resting in the bottom of the 9 plus-inch deep hole. As I approached the road, the number of trash signals increased significantly. In order to reject the trash and still try to detect some relics, I switched to the Advanced SmartFind mode and recalled a discrimination pattern I had created at home which was done using a number of Minnie Balls of varying caliber’s. The Explorer ran quiet as I re-hunted the area I had just passed over — now ignoring all the more recent trash that littered the area. Less than 5 feet from the road I received a signal that registered near the bottom of the depth indication scale (12). Another Minnie Ball came to light from just over 8 inches. We spent almost an hour hunting the area near the road and thanks to the “Civil War Bullet Pattern” I was using, recovered 9 more Minnie Balls from an area that would have otherwise been virtually un-huntable due to all of the trash that had been deposited over the years from traffic passing by on the road.

Another site I hunted was a small beach on a nearby lake. Lake levels here in Georgia vary widely as the Corps of Engineers often lower the water 20 plus feet in the winter for spring flood control and this beach was now high and dry. Two fellow treasure hunters — Bill Pfautz and Keith Utz — accompanied me to see how the Explorer worked in the field. Leaving it in the QuickStart mode, we started hunting the beach. Pull tabs were everywhere, so I switched o the Advanced Learn mode and “taught” the Explorer what targets to ignore. With most of the trash now being eliminated, we continued down the beach. It was obvious from the open holes and trash laying about that others had hunted the site before we did; however, we were still able to find some coins at depths of up to 9 inches. I re-visited this site a few more times over the next week and found a total of 26 coins, one gold ring, some keys and miscellaneous items that other detectorists had missed. All were deep and most were adjacent to trash including a large anchor chain which was where the gold ring was found.

Several old home sites that I and others have hunted repeatedly also gave up numerous targets dating back to the mid-1800s including coins, artifacts and at one, an 18KT gold cufflink. The ability to create and save customized discrimination patterns at home for specific targets such as old coins or relics and then quickly recall them for use in the field made hunting these worked-out, trash-filled sites seem like hunting “virgin” sites again. I was amazed at the number of good targets that came out of sites that most of us had long since given up on.

Summary

Unfortunately due to the space limitations of this field test, I am not able to delve in detail into many of the unique features found on the Explorer. It is a detector that really must be seen in order to appreciate all of its capabilities. The new FBS technology and SmartFind target analysis circuitry in the Explorer has taken metal detecting technology to a new level. The ability to hunt in even the most adverse conditions and obtain information to aid in identifying targets with accuracy not found on other detectors make the Explorer XS a “detector of choice” for a wide range of applications. The Explorer is a detector that requires time to master all of the inherent capabilities and, as one gets more experience under their belt, the detector will become even more powerful in terms of what it can do in the field. However, even the Quick Start mode will provide treasure hunters with above-average performance right out of the box.

Minelab Electronics Golden Hawk Metal Detector
From Lost Treasure Field Test By Reg Sniff

From page 14 of the December 1999 issue of Lost Treasure magazine.
Copyright ©1999 Lost Treasure, Inc.

 

Before I begin, I have to apologize to Minelab for the limited time I had for this field test. Although time was restricted to begin with, a near fatal accident involving a close family member further reduced my time to search.

With that out of the way, I can say I did have time to fully evaluate all the features of this new detector, but as any serious nugget hunter knows, time and luck are two great assets necessary in finding gold. Unfortunately, I didn't find any gold, but did find more than enough similar targets to do a fair evaluation.

First of all, for those of you who may be unfamiliar with prospecting for gold with a metal detector, Minelab is one of the most popular machines for this type of treasure hunting.

The simple reason for their popularity is they work and work well. The Golden Hawk is no exception. It is one of Minelab's top line machines.

Working on the same fundamental principles as the popular XT 18000, the Golden Hawk is a VLF instrument that can be set to 3 different operating frequencies, 6.4Khz, 20Khz, and 60Khz. If an analogy can be drawn, the best way to describe the differences between an XT 18000 and a Golden Hawk is to think of XT 18000 as a Ford or a Chevy and the Golden Hawk as a Cadillac or Lincoln.

The differences between the Golden Hawk and other similar Minelab's lie in both physical layout and operating features. Physically, the Golden Hawk more closely resembles Minelab's SD series of detectors than their other machines, but with enhancements.

Unique to this gold detector and its sister machine, the Relic Hawk, is the design of the shaft/stem and coil cabling. Like the Relic Hawk, but unlike most detectors where the search coil lead is of straight design that is wrapped around the detector shaft, the coil lead on the Golden Hawk is straight where it goes up inside the stem and coiled where it attaches to the control housing.

Physically, the main control housing of the Golden Hawk looks more like the SD 2000 housing than any of Minelab's other gold machines. Like other Minelab's, the controls are very well laid out and clearly marked on this detector.

It is clear Minelab put a lot of thought process and engineering into this detector. Subtle features in the overall design make any adjustment quick and easy. For example, lengthening or shortening the shaft or moving the handle is easily done by flipping a lever, making the adjustment, and then easily locking everything in place with the same lever. The control housing can be carried three different ways, mounted on the stem, or it can be chest or belt mounted using the control bag.

Unlike the XT series of detectors that come with an elliptical coil, the Golden Hawk is supplied with an 8 inch round coil, and, at the present time, is the only coil available. Somewhat different in appearance than previous models, this new coil has a great built in feature -- a gold trapping tray.

The natural curved indentation in the top of the coil works great when trying to recover very small targets. One can grab a handful of dirt, hopefully with the nugget, and slowly drop the dirt onto the top of the coil. The natural trap will help keep any target from sliding off.

Power for the Golden Hawk is supplied from a 12 V battery-pack and comes with its own charger. The pack is designed to be belt mounted. Power for the Golden Hawk is supplied from a 12 V battery-pack and comes with its own charger.

The pack is designed to be belt mounted. Like the SD series of detectors, the Golden Hawk does not have a speaker. However, Minelab does supply a very respectable set of earphones.

General Features And Initial Testing

After quickly reviewing the owner's manual and the one page instruction guide I began testing. However, later I did sit down with the manual and carefully re-read it before doing any serious testing in the field. This is something I strongly recommend to all owners.

With basic knowledge of the instrument, I took the Golden Hawk outside along with a few gold nuggets ranging in size from about 2 grains to a quarter ounce. Testing consisted of evaluating each control and its functions on the overall actions of the detector.

Initially, the large number of controls (7 toggle switches and 4 knob adjustable controls) found on the Golden Hawk might seem somewhat intimidating. Fortunately, a new owner or perspective buyer can relax, the layout of the controls is such that initial setup is a snap. Also, the detector works extremely well at those settings.

I set all the controls to their recommended settings (top 6 toggle switches up, the Sensitivity and Volume at maximum, and the Threshold for a slight audio). Then I re-adjusted various controls and re-checked the gold targets.

The Sensitivity and Threshold controls perform typical tasks of increasing or reducing the sensitivity and initial audio level. The Volume control on the Golden Hawk, like on other Minelab's, only sets the maximum volume level. In other words, reducing the Volume level does not effect weak signals, but rather limits the overall loudness.

Next it was time to try adjusting the 7 toggle switches located across the top, one at a time, and comparing the results with what the manual had to say. The results were as follows:

Top left switch, labeled Recovery, determined the autotune speed, slow (up position) and fast (down position). Selecting the fast mode reduced the sensitivity ever so slightly but did smooth out many of the minor ground variations.

The second switch, labeled Balance, adjusted the rate the ground balance adjusted to the ground conditions. Track 2 (up) is the normal speed. Options include the center position where ground tracking is off or fixed, and Track 1, the down position tracks about twice as fast as Track 2. The Track 1 speed is very fast and very effective. However, both tracking modes will reduce the signal strength somewhat from a gold target after multiple passes.

The third switch, labeled Signal, is basically a modified or specialized sensitivity control. Up is normal operation, the middle position labeled Fine filters the signal to enhance signals from small targets near the surface, while the down position labeled Boost, amplifies all signals. Testing indicated that Normal and Boost seem to work better on all targets tested.

The fourth switch is labeled Soil and can be best thought of as another modified sensitivity control that allows the operator to switch between Normal (up) and Difficult (down). Difficult mode also seemed to smooth out some of the small audio variations but did reduce the sensitivity slightly. This mode is useful in areas having concentrations of blacksand.

The fifth switch labeled Discriminate selects between All Metals (up), and Discriminate (down). When down, the Discriminate control directly below is activated. Increasing the discrimination level increases the probably of rejection of small iron objects. Unlike other Minelab instruments where the audio changes to a stuttering sound on iron objects, the Golden Hawk's discrimination feature mutes the audio on iron objects.

Finally, the last top switch labeled Freq selects between three different operating frequencies, 20 (up), 60 (mid), and 6.4 Khz (down position). Concentrating on smaller targets, I found the two higher frequencies to give a better response, especially on the extremely small ones.

Field Test

Actual field tests included multiple trips to known gold producing sites in the Colorado mountains. The first site searched was at an operating placer operation. With permission, I was able to search a range of soils from the surface to depths of about 30 feet. Ground conditions changed from typical surface vegetation to rocky terrain of a river bottom.

Throughout this area the Golden Hawk adjusted to the varying ground quickly and easily. Unfortunately, no gold was found but various metal targets were recovered from depths up to a foot or so. Those included everything from lead bullets to metal shavings from the blade of the digging equipment.

I initially set the controls as recommended in the quick setup. All top selector switches up, volume near maximum, and the threshold for a very low threshold signal. I also set the discrimination to on and at maximum.

Metal targets were very sparse, so every one brought excitement. I typically found extremely small slivers from the blade of the caterpillar, none of which was rejected by the discrimination. Two larger metal objects, a bolt and a nut were rejected.

At another site, I elected to vary the controls more than normal. For example, I decided to use the ground tracking to initially adjust to the negative rocks and then turn it off.

Although this site has proven to be very difficult for other detectors, the Golden Hawk tackled it with ease. Even with the tracking off, I had very few false signals. Furthermore, I found it easier to hear very weak signals.

Conclusion

Overall I found the Golden Hawk works and works well. Built with a large number of great features, this detector adds subtle but distinct increases in sensitivity and conveniences not found on the XT line of detectors. However, it is more expensive, and presently no elliptical coil is available. It is also somewhat heavier than the XT 18000.

This is a great machine that comes complete with almost everything except a digging tool. It is easy to recommend the Golden Hawk to those who are willing to pay top dollar for a top machine.

 

 

Minelab Electronics Excalibur 800 Metal Detector
From Lost Treasure Field Test By Andy Sabisch

From page 22 of the June 1999 issue of Lost Treasure magazine.
Copyright ©1999 Lost Treasure, Inc.

 

Despite the fact that Minelab Electronics is a relative newcomer to the metal detecting industry, they have developed a worldwide reputation of producing high quality products that incorporate new and innovative technology rather than simply repackage existing circuits in a different housing. Their early detectors were focused on the electronic prospecting market -- based on the overwhelming demand in their home country of Australia -- but as the acceptance of the Minelab name increased around the world, they branched out into the coin hunting, relic hunting and water hunting sectors. I have used both the Sovereign and Excalibur detectors with great success since they were originally introduced and looked forward to field testing one of the re-designed Excaliburs.

FEATURES

After nearly ten years, virtually any treasure hunter that reads a magazine or logs onto the Internet knows that the single most important feature of the Sovereign and it's waterproof brother the Excalibur that sets them apart from other detectors on the market is the Broad Band Spectrum or BBS circuitry they use. Unlike other VLF detectors that operate on only one or two frequencies, BBS detectors send out 17 distinct frequencies ranging from 1.5 to 25.5 kHz simultaneously. What this does is enable the circuitry to remain unaffected by even the most adverse ground conditions which typically cause conventional detectors to lose a significant amount of detection depth -- and all of this is done without ANY complicated adjustments by the operator!

The Excalibur is also the only waterproof detector that offers tone target ID which allows the user to hunt at low discrimination settings and use the different audio tones produced by various targets to determine which are worth recovering. One of the best ways to use this feature is to set the discrimination low; i.e., "3" and then ignore any high tones which indicate a coin. By doing this you can focus on targets that fall between Foil and Coins which in most cases will be rings, pendants or chains. You may pass up a few coins but with a dozen pieces of gold in your pouch at the end of the day, it's a trade-off most of use can live with.

The waterproof housing has been time-tested and has an enviable record as far as being leakproof. The housing never needs to be opened since all of the controls and connections are on the outside of the case, and as a result, should provide years of dependable operation.

There are two versions of the Excalibur currently available, the 800 and 1000 -- with the only difference being the size of the search coil (8 and 10 inches in diameter). Both coils feature the Double-D design which eliminates the cone-shaped search pattern found on most detectors and ensures that maximum detection depth is achieved across the entire width of the coil with each swing. One no longer has to overlap each swing by 50 percent or more to avoid missing the deeper, more valuable targets which allows more ground to be covered effectively in less time.

The Excalibur's come with a rechargeable battery system which provides between 10-15 hours of use per charge.

Note: I did not discuss several other features on the Excalibur that have not been changed since the unit was initially introduced. Read the original field test report I did in the March 1997 issue of Lost Treasure for more details on this detector.

FIELD TEST

As Murphy's Law would have it, I received the Excalibur 800 to field test in early January; obviously not the best time temperature-wise to put a water detector through it's paces. Luckily my family and I were heading to Charleston, S.C., to visit relatives so in addition to our suitcases, I packed the detector, scoops, my dive gear and a thick wetsuit.

The beaches in this area of South Carolina consist of fine, hard-packed sand layered with heavily mineralized black sand that causes most detectors, including many pulse models, to be marginally effective at-best.

Placing the Sensitivity control in AUTO and Discrimination at "3", I headed away from the seawall towards the surfline. It wasn't long before I received the first signal. At close to ten inches I found an encrusted clad quarter. As I approached the wet sand, the threshold remained completely stable, with no adjustments required as would be on most detectors. Even when I got into the actual surf, it did not change. This is characteristic of the BBS circuitry and one of the main reasons Minelab detector users have been so successful worldwide. After recovering several more coins at similar depths, I headed towards a nearby pier. I recovered a handful of coins near the low-tide line and other than an occasional screw-cap, was not bothered by any of the iron I knew was still there from when hurricane Hugo passed though. One of the last targets I recovered before I left was a small 10 kt., pinky ring from just under seven inches in the wet sand.

Walking to the truck, I ran into a local treasure hunter who was just starting out for the day. When I showed him what I had found, he was taken aback, especially when I told him that I had not dug any rusted iron and had only hunted for an hour.

To put the detector to the true test, I headed out the following morning to try diving a popular freshwater swimming lake about 90 minutes north of Charleston. With temperatures in the 40s, my normal hunting partner in the area agreed to come along and hunt the beach area. Standing there at the waters edge with the wind blowing off the lake, I had my reservations but as long as I was there I opted to see what I could find.

Converting the Excalibur 800 from the conventional configuration to the shortened dive version took less then five minutes and did not require any additional parts or kits -- another positive feature! Slipping under the surface I kicked along the bottom until I reached the anchor chain for one of the three large floats. The silt layer was almost a foot thick; however, by pressing down on the coil, I was able to hunt and still get close enough to where the "goodies" were. Signals were there but not as plentiful as I would have expected. Nearly every target was 6-inches or more down in the sticky sediment below the silt and I quickly realized that I was not the first diver to hunt the site.

After almost 1 1/2 hours, I surfaced and swam in to see what I had found. Emptying my goody bag on the shore, I counted 32 coins including five silver quarters, four silver dimes and several wheat pennies. I had a few pieces of junk jewelry but the best find was a nice 14 kt gold man's ring with a small diamond in the center and a 14 kt gold ladies ring with three colored stones. One thing I did not have which my partner had been plagued with were rusty hair berets lost by swimmers over the years. Despite the fact that I knew they had been there, the Excalibur's circuitry had completely ignored them while still picking up the coins and jewelry in the same area and at depths greater than whatever detector the previous divers had been using. Even my partner said that a new detector might be a wise purchase with the upcoming water hunting season approaching.

I used the Excalibur 800 on several other lakes in South Carolina and Georgia as well as the eastern coast of Florida when I flew there on business and in each case, found it to operate without problem. No adjustments other then those made initially to achieve exceptional detection depth on a wide range of targets. I even had a chance to do a little Civil War relic hunting with it and recovered several bullets and other artifacts at depths of up to 15 inches which for mineralized, red Georgia clay is impressive with any detector.

SUMMARY

The BBS technology has proven to be technology that can actually re-open previously worked-out sites by providing above-average detection depth, accurate target identification even at the fringe of the detectors capabilities and doing so without any complicated adjustments. Many treasure hunters have opted to purchase an Excalibur for all of their treasure hunting needs -- since it performs equally as well in the water as it does on dry land.

With the addition of a hipmount kit, one can search for hours without tiring. And now with your choice of two coil sizes, there's a model that fits the needs of a wide range of treasure hunters. Even if you only plan on doing some beach or water hunting a few times a year, you need to take a closer look at the Excalibur line before you purchase your next detector. The Excalibur comes with a one-year parts and labor warranty with service handled by a repair center located in the United States.

 

Minelab Electronics SD 2200 Metal Detector
From Lost Treasure Field Test From page 12 of the March 1999 issue of Lost Treasure magazine.
Copyright ©1999 Lost Treasure, Inc.


Almost every serious gold nugget hunter has heard of the SD series of detectors made by Minelab. To be more specific, a large majority of the serious nugget hunters I know are already using one of the three SD models, either the SD 2000, SD 2100, and now the new SD 2200.

In fact, at one site during my field test, it looked like an SD promotion since there were four different nugget hunters, all using SD's. There were two SD 2200's, one SD 2100, and an SD 2000 in use amongst the four people. Oh yes, all found gold, some really nice gold, but let's discuss that later.

The SD 2200 Machine

Unlike most typical metal detectors designed for gold hunting, the SD series are not typical VLF type detectors. Minelab refers to the operation of the SD series as "Multi Period Sensing." In my opinion this means these detectors are a sophisticated high-powered pulse detector.

The SD 2200 package, like its predecessors, is expensive, having a suggested retail of $3,495. One big question that goes through people's minds, is the SD really worth the cost? Well, talk to most owners as I have and the general consensus is yes, simply because it provides extra depth capabilities and ignores most ground and hotrocks.

Besides the SD 2200 machine itself, Minelab includes in the package, one 11-inch DD search coil, a pair of headphones, a hefty battery, a backpack (to carry the battery). Also included are two battery chargers including a 110 V charger for home use and a 12 V charger that can be used in an automobile, a hat, a bag (to carry found trash/treasure), an arm rest cover, and a bungie cord to assist in reducing the weight of the detector while searching.

Each generation change of the SD has shown distinct improvements and changes of controls over the previous model. The new SD 2200 is no exception. For example, this new detector has two new automatic features, automatic ground balance, and a "Tune" control. The latter is designed to reduce many forms of interference by merely pushing a button. One other significant new feature was the addition of Iron discrimination.

A total list of the SD 2200 controls include the following: Power (off/on switch), Threshold control, Audio (three position switch; Shallow, Normal and Deep), Tone control, Tune push-button, Balance (three position switch; CH 1, Both, CH 2), Search switch (Fixed or Tracking, ground balance), Iron Discriminate (three position switch; Disc, Disc plus ID, and All Metal), and Level Adjust control (for Iron Discrimination).

Initial Testing

I began testing the SD 2200 at my home. Instead of the typical coin targets I normally test for, I cleared an area in my back yard and buried pieces of lead, obscuring some of the buried targets with typical hotrocks I had previously found in gold producing areas. I then compared responses from the targets using the new SD and of a couple of popular gold hunting machines including Minelab's 18000.

In all cases the SD 2200 clearly outperformed the VLF instruments. The SD 2200 simply ignored the rocks and detected the targets. On targets such as a 357 caliber slug, the SD 2200 did not display a tremendous depth increase over the VLF's. It did display a depth advantage of somewhere between an inch and two inches where hotrocks were not involved.

On some of the targets hidden under the hotrocks, the VLF's ignored the lead targets even though they were within detectable range. The SD, on the other hand, easily responded to the hidden pieces of lead. It was obvious that where this new SD detector really excelled was finding the targets hidden under hotrocks. What was apparent, the more severe the conditions, the better the SD 2200 seemed to perform over other gold machines.

Black sand and hotrocks are two of the major problems for a nugget hunter. Although I didn't test the black sand advantage of the SD, Pat Whitehead who has found almost 2 ounces in a short time with his SD 2200 did. He related how well the SD 2200 performed in severe black sand environments, especially when compared to typical VLF's.

A couple of big drawbacks of the SD came to light quickly during my initial testing. They were the weight of the instrument and its ease of swinging of the coil. Simply stated, this instrument was both heavy and bulky. Carrying the battery supplied was awkward and heavy since it was to be carried in the backpack supplied. To help overcome the battery weight problem, I elected to purchase the optional smaller battery and the hipmount pouch that I used during most of my field testing.

Going for the Gold

True testing of the SD 2200 required I hunt in gold producing areas. For me this was a perfect opportunity to visit some of the areas in Arizona that have been good to me in the past. Unfortunately I only had a week's time to field test this instrument.

One of the two main areas I visited was a location known to have both gold nuggets and meteorites. I hoped to find both with the SD 2200. After three days of hard hunting, I did not find any gold, but did find one meteorite. Ironically, I found the meteorite, not with the detector but by simply stepping on it.

I should point out the SD 2200 is designed to find gold, not meteorites. However, I was hoping there was sufficient iron content in the meteorites that they would respond positively. Unfortunately, as I found through testing, the type of meteorites found at this location responded very similar to basalt (a typical hotrock), something the SD 2200 is designed to ignore, especially when set to the tracking mode. My father did find one meteorite with his SD 2100 but it gave only a faint response.

With time running out, I headed for my second selected area to hunt. Since my dad wasn't having any luck either, he decided to meet me at that location the next day. I had already made plans to hunt with a couple of fellow nugget hunters at this second location.

Upon my arrival, Pat Whitehead, who as mentioned above uses an SD 2200, Tony Pancake who hunts with an SD 2000, and myself discussed several possible sites to hunt. We finally decided to try a nearby site which we visited the next day.

After a few hours of serious hunting at this site, I decided to deviate from the specific area known to produce nice gold nuggets. My meandering turned out to be the best thing I could have possibly done. In less than an hour, I had detected a fairly weak signal in what was an old tailings pile. Expecting to find a nail or trash I was stunned when, after digging a hole about a foot deep, I uncovered one beautiful half-ounce gold nugget.

About an hour or so after my first great find, I got another reasonable signal. Digging down about 7 or 8 inches or so, I recovered a nice solid heavy lump. Rubbing the unknown object gently quickly brought out the color of gold. I couldn't believe it, I had just found my second half-ounce nugget.

Although Tony and Pat had each found one small nugget (about a pennyweight in size, I was holding the two prize finds. My "king of the hill" position was short lived. A short time later, Pat came up the hill and informed me my dad had just "kicked my butt." I walked down to where my father was sitting, looked at the manhole he had dug and asked to see his prize. He quickly popped his newly found ounce nugget into my hand he had found with his SD 2100.

A short time later Tony found a nice quarter ounce plus nugget and one more small nugget with his SD 2000.

The second day at this site began with Pat disappearing for quite some time. Later he returned with a 7 pennyweight beauty he found with his SD 2200. Late in the afternoon, I stumbled into another great signal, which ultimately turned out to be my third nugget. This third nugget weighed in just short of a half-ounce. That was the last great find of the trip.

Conclusion and Comments:

The new SD 2200 provides significant improvements over previous models, including automatic ground balancing, push-button noise reduction, and iron discrimination.

When compared to other gold hunting detectors, the SD 2200 is expensive, somewhat awkward to swing and it is heavy. However, it clearly finds gold deeper than other detectors especially in really hostile environments containing black sand and hotrocks. For serious nugget hunters the added depth and other enhancements clearly outweigh the negatives.

It is a pleasure to use simply because one doesn't have to fight the abundance of false signals normally associated with nugget hunting. Gone are the strong reactions to large pieces of magnetite, the SD basically ignores them. If the detector responds with a reasonably strong signal, one can be almost assured the object is not a rock, but is a piece of metal, hopefully gold.

For the really serious gold hunter, the SD 2200 is one detector to seriously investigate. Simply stated, it does a great job of finding gold. As such, I can heartily recommend this detector to the serious nugget hunter who wants a truly deep seeking machine.

 

Minelab Electronics SD-2100 Metal Detector
From Lost Treasure Field Test By Andy Sabisch

From page 43 of the January 1998 issue of Lost Treasure magazine.
Copyright ©1999 Lost Treasure, Inc.

Minelab Electronics has been building metal detectors designed for electronic prospecting for more than a decade and during that time, they have acquired the reputation of a company that produces a high-quality product that gets consistent results where it counts -- in the field! Beginning with the GS 15000, Minelab detectors have been responsible for the recovery of literally thousands of ounces of gold in Australia, the United States, South Africa and South America.

Despite the success experienced by Minelab customers over the years, the engineering staff has continued to solicit feedback from users in an effort to "build a better mousetrap." The new SD-2100 is the latest metal detector developed by Minelab for the electronic prospecting market.

FEATURES

The SD-2000, which was released in 1995, earned the reputation of a metal detector that was completely unaffected by even the most severe ground mineralization. It was the first detector to use the patented Minelab circuit called Multi Period Sensing or MPS for short. This circuit was designed to allow targets, both large and small, to be detected at maximum depths even in areas of extreme mineralization. Feedback from users as well as additional testing by the Minelab staff, identified several enhancements that could be made to the SD-2000's design, and after two years in development, an entirely new model called SD-2100 was released.

The first thing that stands out when you unpack the SD-2100 is it's unique configuration. Due to the SD's inherent sensitivity, the shaft is considerably longer than that of a conventional metal detector in order to keep any metal away from the coil itself. In addition, the detector uses a rechargeable 6 Volt gel-cell battery which is about the size of a motorcycle battery. To keep the weight of the actual detector assembly at a minimum for operator comfort and keep it away from the coil, the battery is held in a small nylon backpack. To put the SD-2100's sensitivity in perspective, the manual states that "if the battery pack is worn on your side, the 18-inch coil will detect it resulting in false signals."

The SD-2100 has two toggle switches, three knobs and two internal potentiometers that control it's operation. The ON/OFF switch is located in the center of the rear panel. Beneath the toggle switch is an LED indicator which warns the operator when the battery voltage becomes low and should require recharging. The gel cell should provide approximately 20 hours of use between charges. The Threshold knob below the LED allows one to set the background audio signal to a level at which faint signals are easily discerned. Beneath the Threshold knob are two plastic caps. Removing the caps will reveal small potentiometers which can be adjusted using the special screwdriver that comes with the SD-2100. The control on the right is labeled Tone and allows you to vary the pitch of the signal produced by a target. The other control labeled Tune is designed to allow the operator to reduce or completely eliminate the effect of external electrical interference such as that caused by power lines, transformers or even radio signals. This feature greatly enhances the actual in-field performance of the SD-2100 as compared to other detectors which must typically be run at lower sensitivity settings when used near any source of electrical interference.

The control panel.

On the front panel, there are two knobs labeled Balance 1 and Balance 2 along with a three-position toggle switch. This panel really holds the secret of the SD-2100's overall success in the field. Each balance control is used to compensate for the mineralization present in the ground independently of the other. Minelab describes the SD-2100 as "essentially two detectors in one where each half must be ground balanced separately." Ground balancing, while being manual in nature, is simple and straightforward. Once the detector has been ground balanced in both the Balance 1 and Balance 2 setting, the toggle switch is placed in the center Search position to begin hunting. The location of the three-position toggle switch makes it quite easy to periodically check the ground balance settings as you move from one area to another to ensure the SD-2100 is always operating at it's optimum setting.

The SD-2100 comes with two search coils -- an 8-inch Mono Loop (similar to a standard concentric design) and an 11-inch Double-D. The 8-inch coil is designed to provide maximum sensitivity to smaller targets. The 11-inch coil provides maximum coverage with each sweep due to the Double-D design and will detect medium to large sized targets some 25 to 40 percent deeper than the 8-inch coil.

An optional 18-inch Mono Loop coil is available for maximum detection depth in areas where targets may be buried at extreme depths.

The SD-2100 does not have an internal speaker so a set of comfortable, durable stereo headphones come with the detector. Other accessories provided at no charge include both a 110-volt and 12-volt cigarette lighter battery recharger (so you can charge the battery in your vehicle), coil covers for both coils, trash pouch and audio and video instructional tapes that cover all aspects of the detectors operation.

FIELD TEST

I'm fortunate to live in the area I do since it offers me a wide range of choices when it comes to treasure hunting. From Civil War campsites and popular swimming beaches to old parks and the Georgia gold fields, it affords me the ability to test virtually all metal detectors under the conditions they were designed for. As a matter of fact, my home is situated in a section of the north-Georgia gold belt that was one of the most productive of the 1800s -- with several profitable gold mines operating nearby from the 1820s up until the 1930s.

Author field testing Minelab's SD-2100 metal detector.

While this area has produced a large quantity of gold over the years, the highly mineralized red clay and hot rocks have limited the ability of metal detectors to be used with any degree of success. I was hoping that the SD-2100's new MPS technology would enable me to work some of the old mine sites without the adverse affect the ground mineralization typically produces.

The first site I took the SD-2100 to was a wooded area with a small creek running through it. The creek had been heavily mined several times over the last 150 plus years and much of the gold recovered had been in the form of coarse nuggets. Installing the 8-inch coil, ground balancing the detector and adjusting the audio threshold to a faint hum, I began searching the gravel bar on the inside bend of the creek. After a short period of time, I was able to distinguish the difference between the repeatable sound produced when the coil passed over a target and the random signal caused by changing ground conditions.

I had moved only a short distance when a smooth, repeatable signal came through the headphones. Using a trick I picked up from some seasoned prospectors in Alaska, I put a shovel-full of gravel into a large plastic gold pan and then passed the coil over it to see if the target had been recovered. I repeated this process several times until I had the target in the pan and there was no longer any signal in the hole. Typically I would have dumped the contents into a 5-gallon plastic bucket and continued hunting -- waiting until the bucket was full before panning the contents down and recovering the targets. Curious to see what I had found, I walked over to a pool and panned out the sand and gravel. Unfortunately, I hadn't found a nugget but rather a lead fragment from a modern bullet. This had been nearly 10-inches deep so I was still hopeful that the SD-2100 would prove productive at the site.

As I walked along the creek bank, I found that a minor adjustment of the two balance controls was needed on occasion to accurately compensate for changes in the mineralization. This was easily done by simply tipping the control housing to one side and "tweaking" the two ground balance knobs and returning the 3-position toggle to the Search mode.

Near an outcropping of bedrock the SD-2100 produced a sharp signal. Clearing away all of the surrounding gravel, I found that the signal was coming from a narrow crack in the rock. Laying the detector on the ground, I used a hammer and pry bar to break off a portion of the rock. Brushing out the debris, I saw a beautiful coarse gold nugget wedged in the bottom of the crevice. While weighing just under a pennyweight, it was probably the nicest specimen of Georgia gold that I've recovered in the last few years. And considering it had been buried under nearly 6 inches of coarse gravel and then encased in 3-4 inches of mineralized bedrock, the SD-2100 had done an excellent job in detecting a nugget in an heavily-hunted area.

I continued searching a short section of the creek and over the next few hours recovered three more nuggets, along with an assortment of other metallic objects including bullets, shell casings, several square nails and even a deeply buried screw cap. Many of the targets had come from depths exceeding 12-inches which was indicative of the unit's strong in-field performance.

I tried the SD-2100 at several other sites throughout north Georgia and in each case I found that the high mineralization and hot rocks which had plagued me and others in the past were not even noticeable. Once the ground balance controls had been adjusted, the response of a target was clearly distinguishable from the slight variations caused by changes in ground mineralization. I'd like to say that I found enough gold to retire on, but such was not the case. I did find a number of deeply-buried targets at depths far greater than I had recovered similar targets with other detectors so I know that had I gone over that 100 plus ounce nugget I would have found it.

SUMMARY

The SD-2100 was developed by Minelab in response to feedback from prospectors world-wide who found that most of the productive gold fields contained highly mineralized ground that adversely affected virtually every other detector on the market. While these detectors were able to locate small pieces of gold at limited depths, seasoned prospectors wanted a detector that would be able to find the larger, and more valuable, specimens at the maximum depth possible.

Based on the results of my field tests as well as feedback received from prospectors in the United States, Australia and South Africa, Minelab's engineering staff obviously did their homework. The SD-2100 does what it was designed to -- detect gold nuggets at previously unreachable depths with a only a limited amount of adjustment required on the part of the operator.

At $2,995 the SD-2100 is admittedly one of the most expensive detectors on the market; however, when you look at the performance it provides in the field, it would be easy to recoup your investment in a short period of time hunting areas that others have had trouble searching due to adverse ground conditions or where targets are buried beyond the range of conventional detectors.

Minelab Electronics XT18000 Metal Detector
From Lost Treasure Field Test By Reg Sniff

From page 15 of the August 1997 issue of Lost Treasure magazine.
Copyright ©1997, 1999 Lost Treasure, Inc.

The Minelab XT18000 gold metal detector is a perfect example of the improvements that have occurred in metal detectors over the last few years. This new turn on and go detector is both sophisticated, easy to operate, and most importantly very sensitive to the elusive gold nuggets while doing an excellent job of compensating for the wide variations in ground conditions that normally occur in gold hunting areas.

What I found that really makes the XT18000 metal detector stand out is its excellent automatic ground balance capabilities. This feature has been significantly improved over previous models to the point that tackling extremely tough ground ladened with a wide variety of hotrocks is a relatively simple task.

THE CONTROLS

Before going into the field test portion, I need to mention the features of this instrument. The Minelab XT18000 metal detector has 9 different controls that may look complex to a new user. Fortunately, this is not the case. Also Minelab has included a "Quick Start Instructions" page in the owner's manual that makes setup a snap for the most novice of users. More importantly, once set most controls can be forgotten about in most cases.

Some of the controls are easily recognizable to a casual metal detector operator such as the TONE control (sets the initial tone of the threshold signal), the THRESHOLD control (low level audio level heard with no target present), and the Sensitivity control (how deep it will go). A control called SIGNAL VOLUME is a little different than a typical volume control. Instead of reducing the volume of all signals heard, this control only limits the maximum volume allowed, a feature that allows a wide range of earphones to be used without worry of too loud of a signal.

The remaining controls are toggle switches that allow the user to refine the settings of the detector by simply making a choice between two or three options. A recognizable toggle is the discriminating control marked SELECT. This control allows the owner to select between All Metals and Iron Reject. When in iron reject, large or easily identifiable iron targets still respond but give a staccato (stuttering) sound.

One toggle labeled SOIL allows the operator to select between normal and difficult ground conditions while another toggle labeled SIGNAL effects a target's response. This latter mentioned switch is one of two toggles that will likely be changed on a more frequent basis between three settings, Normal, Fine and Boost. The difference between normal and boost is the target signal is further amplified in the boost mode. The Fine setting does something a little different. In this mode a target responds with a "double beep" making it easier to distinguish a target from a ground change.

The second most likely toggle to be adjusted is labeled FREQ. This toggle allows the operator to select between 3 distinct operating frequencies, 6.4KHZ, 20KHZ, and 60KHZ. The three settings allow an operator to select a lower frequency for larger deeper metal targets or select one of the higher frequencies for nuggets.

Finally, the last selector switch to be discussed is the GROUND ADJUST toggle. This toggle has two settings, Auto and Fix. In almost all cases this toggle will be left in the Auto mode.

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

When you purchase a Minelab XT18000 metal detector, it comes with extras not normally accompanying a detector. For example, Minelab provides a ni-cad battery pack, a corresponding charger, a coil cover for the standard 10-inch elliptical coil, and a blue hipmount bag that allows an operator to either hip or chest mount the control housing. Minelab also provided a set of basic earphones, as well as a belt mountable pouch to place retrieved trash items. Finally, included is an excellent instruction booklet, which takes a new user through a systematic explanation of the XT18000, its assembly, setup, and discussion of each control, plus some brief but valuable prospecting tips.

The metal detector itself is equipped with a 3-piece breakdown shaft assembly for compact portability. The control housing is high-impact plastic; equipped with Minelab's quick wedge fit shaft mount design, which makes attaching the control unit to the shaft, a breeze.

IN THE FIELD

I received the XT18000 metal detector while I was vacationing in Arizona on one of my nugget hunting ventures. Unfortunately, the metal detector arrived midway through my week's vacation, and because of the late arrival plus the battery required a 12-hour charge, I was severely limited in time.

Although I had enough time to evaluate the metal detector and its many features in some really tough ground conditions, as any serious nugget hunter knows, you don't just run out the door and find gold nuggets. Such was the case with me. I was able to get a good feel for all the controls, how the detector responded to the typical conditions that plague a gold hunting site, but I personally didn't find any gold with it.

Fortunately, because my brother-in-law was staying in the area for a while, I left the metal detector with him and, wouldn't you know it, he found 2 small nuggets the first day he used it. Such is the luck of nugget hunters. His success also indicated how easy the XT 18000 metal detector was to use since I didn't give him any specific instructions.

Because of my personal time limits, I started out at daybreak with the metal detector assembled as recommended with the control housing mounted on the shaft. Because I had been accustomed to body mounting metal detectors, the metal detector seemed somewhat heavy in the uneven terrain. After about 1 hour of hunting, I returned to my vehicle and converted to a chest mount using the provided hipmount bag. To make it more comfortable, I installed a second strap to the bag that went around my back. This second strap kept the control unit from falling forward when bending over. With this combination, the XT18000 was extremely comfortable over a full day of hunting. I also abandon the basic earphone set provided and began using one of my favorite pairs.

In the field the XT18000 metal detector was a pleasure to use. The automatic ground tracking worked excellent, tackling the worst of conditions including hotrocks. The normally highly reactive pieces of magnetite that normally would knock your earphones off responded with little signal. In fact, with the exception of one small type of reddish rock, which has fooled every detector I have used, I could easily distinguish a rock from a very weak target.

Although I tried all of the different settings, I settled on the following settings as the best for the area; Sensitivity at maximum, Signal on Boost, Freq on 60KHZ, Soil on Normal, ground tracking on, and Iron Reject on. In essence I had the detector set at maximum sensitivity and was able to hunt comfortably.

The first location I picked, I hoped I would at least find a small nugget, but that was not to be. Instead, I managed to pick up several pieces of small lead shot (about a #6 to 712 size), among other things that had been left behind by other hunters. Because I was finding targets that small I knew I could easily find a very small nugget if I passed over it.

One feature not mentioned earlier I liked was the pitch variation that occurs when a target is encountered. In other words, as the signal volume goes up so does the pitch of the audio. I felt this feature made distinguishing some small targets an easier task such as pieces of tinfoil or little piece of iron. When I encountered a very small target that caused the detector to squeal, I was relatively sure it was foil or a small piece of wire.

The iron reject feature worked about as expected. In most cases, small iron objects responded as good targets and only larger iron objects produced the staccato sound. I know how easily it is to reject a small gold nugget with typical discrimination and I realized Minelab doesn't want to reject a piece of gold.

CONCLUSION:

All in all, I really enjoyed using the XT18000 metal detector and look forward to more outings with this detector. I had extreme confidence in the automatic ground tracking and its ability to positively distinguish between the ground, a rock and a deep target, which are the most common problems. Except for the above mentioned type of hotrock which I could readily see in most cases, everything that indicated a metal target was just that, some type of metal.

The metal detector also displayed exceptional stability even when in use for long hours. Depth capabilities were also excellent. Although I didn't personally find gold during my brief field test, retrieving non-ferrous items such as lead bullets indicated the depth abilities matched or exceeded any other comparable metal detector I had used before. One controlled test of burying a 38 slug about 8-inch deep indicated all frequencies could easily detect a similar size gold target well beyond that depth. Also, controlled testing indicated an exceptional response to gold nuggets, including to extremely small ones.

It is easy to recommend the XT18000 metal detector to both recreational hunters and professionals for all types of gold hunting whether it be for extremely small nuggets or large deep ones. This metal detector seems to do it all and do it extremely well in all types of ground conditions.

 

Minelab Electronics Excalibur Metal Detector
"Minelab responded to the requests of many of their customers who had asked for a waterproof version of the Sovereign by introducing the Excalibur."
From Lost Treasure Field Test By Andy Sabisch

From page 16 of the March 1997 issue of Lost Treasure magazine.
Copyright ©1997, 1999 Lost Treasure, Inc.

In terms of metal detector manufacturers, Minelab Electronics is one of the more recent entrants into the market. Founded in 1985, Australia-based Minelab has quickly established itself as a producer of high-quality metal detectors that can be found in use worldwide. Originally focusing on the electronic prospecting market due to the huge demand for this type of detector in Australia, they received limited acceptance in other countries due to the interest in other types of treasure hunting. In 1991, they recognized the need to expand their line and developed a revolutionary new circuit called Broad Band Spectrum (BBS). Introduced in the Sovereign, treasure hunters worldwide found that the BBS circuitry excelled in coin, relic and beach hunting applications.

As a company that has recognized the importance of listening to their customers, Minelab responded to the requests of many of their customers who had asked for a waterproof version of the Sovereign by introducing the Excalibur.

FEATURES

The Excalibur is a VLF-type detector; however, its circuitry is unique in that it does not operate on only one or two frequencies, as is the case on other VLF units. Instead, the BBS circuitry on the Excalibur sends out 17 distinct frequencies ranging from 1.5 to 25.5 kHz. What this does is enable the Excalibur to be unaffected by even the most adverse ground conditions which typically cause conventional detectors to lose a significant amount of detection depth.

Notice the Excalibur's slimline control housing.

Another distinct difference between the Excalibur and other detectors is its ability to identify targets through a distinct audio signal. Each target that the coil passes over will produce a unique signal allowing users to accurately identify objects before recovering them. After a short learning period, it becomes easy to distinguish the low tone of a rusted nail from that of a gold ring, pull tab, penny or quarter. In terms of waterproof detectors, this feature is unique and can significantly improve your success rate in the field.

The sensitivity control on the Excalibur also deserves an explanation. When the knob is turned fully counter-clockwise, it clicks in a setting labeled Auto. In this position, the micro-processor brain of the Excalibur automatically sets the sensitivity level as high as the ground conditions in the area will allow. No longer do you have to think about what sensitivity setting to use in order to ensure you are getting the most detection depth your detector can achieve without getting any falsing or chattering. The Excalibur senses the ground conditions and makes the adjustment for you.

One of the most striking features of the Excalibur is its innovative waterproof housing. Through the use of advanced circuit board design and high-impact plastics, the entire tube containing the electronics measures a diminutive 1112 inches long and 112 inches in diameter. The entire unit has been designed to remain waterproof at depths of up to 200 feet, well beyond the range of even professional treasure divers. While some Excaliburs were originally assembled in the United States, Minelab decided to consolidate their production facilities earlier this year in Australia to ensure all of the units were built to a consistently high standard of quality. With numerous checks conducted on units coming off the assembly line, the Excaliburs are designed for years of trouble-free operation.

The Excalibur comes with a rechargeable battery system which provides between 10 and 12 hours of use per charge. Additional battery packs can be purchased if you will be in an area where recharging the batteries may not be feasible.

FIELD TEST

A few days after I received the Excalibur, I took my family to Florida to visit my parents. Having hunted the saltwater beaches of the Florida treasure coast with a number of detectors over the years, I was anxious to see how well the Excalibur worked under the adverse conditions found in this area. The combination of saltwater and black sand found on most ocean beaches typically results in a significant loss of detection depth on VLF-type detectors. Pulse detectors can ignore these conditions, but they lack discrimination, and with 200-plus years of metal accumulation, you usually spend a great deal of time digging junk targets. Since the Excalibur was designed to offer discrimination while ignoring even the most adverse ground conditions, I was hoping to hunt these beaches with more success than I've experienced in the past.

After talking with my parents, we decided to try a popular beach known as The Bathtub. It gets its name from the coral reef that protects the swimming area. With the sensitivity control in the Auto position and a faint audio threshold present in the headphones, my son Paul and I began hunting the dry sand area. Almost immediately I received a high-pitched tone indicating a probable dime or quarter. Paul dug furiously with the hand scoop and from a depth of nearly 10 inches recovered a heavily encrusted clad quarter. Several more coins were uncovered along the dry sand ridge - all from depths ranging from 6 to 12 inches. It's interesting to note that we watched another treasure hunter search the same area and not recover a single target during this time.

Hoping to find some jewelry or possibly a piece of eight from one of the Spanish galleons that sank just off the coast, we decided to try the shallow water area. Fully expecting to have to make an adjustment to the sensitivity control as I reached the wet sand, I was pleasantly surprised to hear no change in the threshold signal. My previous experience with VLF and even some pulse detectors was that frequent adjustments were needed in order to hunt this area with any degree of success. During the next 30 minutes, the two of us found a small handful of coins along with a hotel room key and a small piece of copper sheathing from some unknown ship that sank many years ago. One could imagine that it came from one of the galleons in the famous 1715 fleet. Wading out into the shallow water just off the beach I immediately noticed that the Excalibur's slim profile presented almost no resistance as I swept it back and forth. Compared to most of the water machines I have used over the years, the Excalibur was extremely comfortable to use both in and out of the water. My son's height limited how far out I could hunt, but we traversed the shallow swimming area in search of targets. Signals were plentiful and combining the Excalibur's discrimination and audio target ID circuits, I was able to bypass all of the iron trash along with most of the pull tabs which littered the area. Unfortunately I had brought only a hand scoop along and as a result, the Excalibur was able to detect a number of targets that were buried deeper than I could reach. Even so, almost 30 coins and a small ring found their way into our goody pouch before a tropical downpour accompanied by lightning put an end to our hunt. Based on the detection depth I experienced using the Excalibur, I would strongly recommend buying a sturdy long-handled scoop capable of recovering deeply buried targets.

Returning to this area once more before we headed home, I experienced similar results recovering coins that had obviously been there for quite a while despite the number of times the beach had been hunted by local detector users.

The author and his son Paul recover another deeply buried coin from an ocean beach in Florida.

Arriving back in Georgia, I took the Excalibur to several smaller beaches on lakes surrounding the Atlanta area. The first beach was a pay-to-swim site that I had hunted heavily in the past. Hoping to find at least a few targets that were beyond the detection depth of our other detectors, I turned the Excalibur on and waded out toward the ropes defining the swimming area. Signals were few and far between, but I did receive several clear signals that produced coins, a brass buckle and a small 10k gold nugget ring at depths ranging from 8 to nearly 14 inches.

Hoping to make a few more finds in deeper water, I took my scuba gear out of the truck and brought it down to the water's edge. Converting the Excalibur to the diving configuration was quite simple, taking less than five minutes to complete. Swimming out to the deeper section of the beach, I dropped to the bottom and began searching. The unit was extremely comfortable to use in this configuration and was just the right length to cover a wide area with each sweep yet not being unwieldy when recovering a target. Just to test the Excalibur, I took it down to 65 feet at the far end of the lake. Neither the electronics housing nor the battery compartment showed any signs of leakage, a real tribute to Minelab's engineering staff in a designing detector intended for use in the water.

Searching other beaches throughout northern Georgia and Tennessee produced a generous amount of coins along with a mixture of items such as keys, toy cars, sunglasses and several pieces of jewelry including nine gold rings, a gold earring and a 14k gold chain. In all cases I was able to identify most of the targets with a high degree of accuracy before recovering them with the aid of the audio target ID circuitry.

This unique feature gives the Excalibur an unbeatable advantage over other detectors. How this feature can be used to increase the number of valuable targets you recover is actually quite simple. Let's assume you are planning on searching a beach that contains the typical mixture of a few hundred coins, some gold jewelry and an assortment of trash such as tin foil, bobby pins and bottle caps. With other detectors, you would have to recover every target that registered above foil to make sure you didn't miss any of the gold we're all hoping to find. To recover the requisite 500-plus targets would take a considerable amount of time. With the Excalibur's target ID circuitry, you could cruise through the entire beach area and ignore most of the trash and all of the coins, focusing on recovering just the gold jewelry.

Over the next few weeks I used the Excalibur at several sites, both on land and in the water. Surprisingly, I had a good deal of success hunting some Civil War sites surrounding Atlanta even though they had been heavily hunted. Minnie balls were recovered at depths of up to 10 inches, and larger artifacts such as a scabbard tip and horseshoe were unearthed at depths exceeding 18 inches. What makes the Excalibur attractive to relic hunters is its waterproof design. No longer do you have to worry about ruining your expensive detector in the event you get caught in a sudden downpour a mile from your car.

SUMMARY

Minelab's engineers revolutionized the metal detector industry with the introduction of the unique BBS circuitry found on both the Sovereign and Excalibur. No longer does a water hunter need two separate detectors to hunt saltwater and fresh water beaches. And combined with the audio target ID and discrimination circuits, the Excalibur is equally at home in a park, long abandoned ghost town or battlefield as it is on a beach or 200 feet underwater.

If you are looking for a detector that is unaffected by adverse ground conditions, extremely simple to operate and offers above-average detection depth, you need to stop by your local dealer and try out the Excalibur.


 

 

 

 
 

 

 
 
 

 




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TIPS & TRICKS

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AirTests

Beach Hunting

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