Big Boys Hobbies

V3I vs Etrac... Which would you buy?

NavyDT

NavyDT

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2010
Messages
362
Location
Norfolk, VA
ive searched the forums and maybe ive missed the thread but if you had 1500 bucks to spend with no consequences which would you get? the V3I or the Etrac?

the things im looking for are

Versitility - Harsh mineral conditions
Silver locating abiliy - does it get that deep silver?
Target Separation - how well does it separate?
Recovery Speed - how fast?
Target id accuracy - im talking targets an hour and accuall in field results.
Ease of use - How easy is it to get the most out of it?

anyways just asking some of the more experienced detectorists.
Very Respectfully,
NavyDT
 
The next one I am aiming for is the V3i.

Even though it can find stuff right out of the box, you can control and change just about every setting and feature this thing has...which I would love.

Lots of hunters hate this, and many got rid of theirs because turn on and go is more their style, and to get the very best out of this you do have to tweak it, but that learning curve to understand how to do this for every situation is the kind of thing I would live for.

From all the info, reviews, comments and head to head comparisons I have read, the E-Trac is deep and great on silver and great around iron, but so is the White's, if you put in the time to learn and set it correctly.

I also believe the V3i is the more all around unit for just about every situation you could think of, and a perfect compliment to my arsenal.

The weight does not scare me, and I love a challenge, so the long learning curve to master this is very appealing to a guy like me.

I also hope this will finally end the upgrade madness...but I am not sure if that ever really goes away!
 
I would go for the V3I hands down. They are both good machines, I believe the V3I is a bit more versatile and the V3I 'WILL' pick up small gold items.
 
The E-Trac win hands down for silver and ease of use. I cant tell you how many people come to me frustrated with a V3i and want a Minelab E-Trac Metal detector. They get the E-Trac and start finding silver right out of the box with the settings I give them.

Look at the forums posts of all the finds with the Minelab E-Trac Metal detector. How many V3i posts do you see?

Holler with any questions. Love to help you!
 
V3i. No question. Put in the work and the V3i becomes a super fun machine to hunt with. It goes really deep and it gives you ALL kinds of information.
 
I found more silver in one week with my v3I than I did in years with my other machines.Im also not tech smart and used factory settings. This machine found 1874 half 1896 quarter 1866 dime 1833 dime 1913 quarter.No problem finding silver at all.I also find small gold as I found a 14k cufflink that was very small at a strong seven inches down.Again all on factory settings with no problem what so ever.My ground is very good though.Extremely capable machines (Both of them) I would love to hunt with an E Trac Owner, and I invited beef cake and his friend down to my super site and I bellieve he owns one.Cant wait.Im getting the f75 lmtd for some relic hunting down south I plan on doing and then Im done spending fo a while.Yeah sure.;)
 
kireta said:
I found more silver in one week with my v3I than I did in years with my other machines.Im also not tech smart and used factory settings. This machine found 1874 half 1896 quarter 1866 dime 1833 dime 1913 quarter.No problem finding silver at all.I also find small gold as I found a 14k cufflink that was very small at a strong seven inches down.Again all on factory settings with no problem what so ever.My ground is very good though.Extremely capable machines (Both of them) I would love to hunt with an E Trac Owner, and I invited beef cake and his friend down to my super site and I bellieve he owns one.Cant wait.Im getting the f75 lmtd for some relic hunting down south I plan on doing and then Im done spending fo a while.Yeah sure.;)
Click to expand...


liar.gif

Man, I was hoping after I get a V3i the upgrade madness would end!
Thanks!
 
Big Boys Hobbies said:
The E-Trac win hands down for silver and ease of use. I cant tell you how many people come to me frustrated with a V3i and want a Minelab E-Trac Metal detector. They get the E-Trac and start finding silver right out of the box with the settings I give them.

Look at the forums posts of all the finds with the Minelab E-Trac Metal detector. How many V3i posts do you see?

Holler with any questions. Love to help you!
Click to expand...


Couldn't agree more........... E-Trac!
 
V3i is the most adjustable detector out there, also is great on small gold.
 
My thoughts...

For me.. the V3i was just not for me, I sold mine and bought an E-Trac and have been very happy. I also am one of those guys who runs whatever machine I am using in factory preset mode they come with. I have owned Whites XLT, DFX, Fisher CZ7a, Minelab Explorer, Whites V3i, and now the E-Trac..

I really think that getting the coil over the target (regardless of which it is) is the key to finding stuff.. I also think (as I have stated before) that many E-Trac users are expecting to find deep silver, so we are willing to dig a bit more than others, but I might be totally wrong in this... again in the end, it doesn't matter what machine it is, if you don't put it over the target you'll miss out.

On another thought, I know a few who sold their V3i's like I did, and seeing what used ones sell for versus E-Trac's.. the E-Trac's tend to sell for a bit more used.. which might mean something.. Whites makes great products, but the V3i for me was not what I wanted.

Good luck either way..
 
Both have strong followings. Personally, I would opt for the v3i - more adaptable.

I will put a caution out that there are dealers out there that promote the brands they sell under the guise of advice. Find a dealer that sells both and talk to them.

HH
 
Dirty Money said:
Both have strong followings. Personally, I would opt for the v3i - more adaptable.

I will put a caution out that there are dealers out there that promote the brands they sell under the guise of advice. Find a dealer that sells both and talk to them.

HH
Click to expand...

Very well put! This is very true, some people are just out to make a buck. I own the V3i but i was torn between the E-Trac and the V3i and I did about 2 months of comparison and I took a leap and got the V3i. People will say there are more people finding stuff with the E-trac than the V3i but it is all about What your hunting for, your location, and how often you go. In the the end sit down and see what is really best for you! The E-Trac is a very good machine but I know the V3i is a more well rounded detector. Good Luck!
Kolby
 
Thanks for everyone advice, i really appreciate everything everyone does on this forum to make this hobby what it is.
 
Me since Im pretty much a beginner I read about both and got the Etrac for turn on and go. But since I started lat year I am tweaking it more which works well too. I am thinking about getting the V3i as well to play with, since it can be tweaked more.
 
Dirty Money said:
Both have strong followings. Personally, I would opt for the v3i - more adaptable.

I will put a caution out that there are dealers out there that promote the brands they sell under the guise of advice. Find a dealer that sells both and talk to them.

HH
Click to expand...
Lol.....that dealer sells more than just minelab. :laughing:

The best advice i can give you....look this this forum, look thru other forums. Make note of the people finding 100, 200, or even 500 silvers a year, what are they swinging? That speaks volumes, nuff said. If your after a deep silver machine, the answer is simple.
 
i got a brand new etrac today and i payed a price i should go to jail for. thanks again for everyone help, i really do appreciate the input. cant wait to learn this thing!
 
NavyDT said:
i got a brand new etrac today and i payed a price i should go to jail for. thanks again for everyone help, i really do appreciate the input. cant wait to learn this thing!
Click to expand...

Good choice IMHO. Look forward to seeing all that silver your gonna dig :yes:
 
Smart choice, if you need any help at all, free feel to pm me. I also set up a website, link in my sig, that has a lot of info to help etrac users, settings, how to videos etc....
 
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