New Minelab Manticore

[FreeBirdTim]

You never answered my question. Why aren't you swinging a $100 Bounty Hunter instead of that expensive (by comparison) AT Pro? By your own logic, you could've saved yourself a few hundred dollars to invest into silver dimes!

Because I was dumb enough to believe the hype a few years ago. Everyone told me that my Ace 250 was a toy and to buy a "real" metal detector. I bough my AT Pro and couldn't wait to hit all my old spots. You know what I found? Nothing, nada, zip. I didn't find one coin in around 25 spots I had hit with my Ace 250. I will admit that I dig less trash (especially bottle caps) with my AT Pro, but I think I would have been fine with my Ace 250.

Bottom line, there isn't much difference between a $200 detector, a $500 detector and a 2k detector. You'll probably dig less trash (or maybe not) with a better detector. They will all find coins. The cheaper ones MIGHT miss a coin or two, but is that really worth paying a grand more for a few coins? Not in my book...

 

[FreeBirdTim]

As for your comment about "a lot of guys hyping detectors being dealers", yeah... I saw where you accused a long time TRUSTED and RESPECTED member (Kevin aka IDXmonster) of being a dealer/shill just because he had something positive to say about his experience with his new detector. I think maybe some of you guys are just a little bit paranoid. Its gotten to the point that NOBODY can say anything positive about a new detector without backlash from the naysayers.

This coming from someone who sells metal detecting gear on HIS website. You do have a website that sells metal detecting gear, don't you? Maybe you should come clean on that one...

 

[Rattlehead]

This coming from someone who sells metal detecting gear on HIS website. You do have a website that sells metal detecting gear, don't you? Maybe you should come clean on that one...

Yes, OMG you busted me! I sell homemade belt clips for long handled shovels! Not sure what the hell that has to do with anything being discussed in this thread since I’m not trying to promote or sell them here, so maybe you can explain that one to us? Am I somehow benefiting from belt clip sales by talking about the Minelab Manticore? Man, you’re really grasping for straws here, aren’t you?


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[UT_Dave]

Yes, OMG you busted me! I sell homemade belt clips for long handled shovels! Not sure what the hell that has to do with anything being discussed in this thread since I’m not trying to promote or sell them here, so maybe you can explain that one to us? Am I somehow benefiting from belt clip sales by talking about the Minelab Manticore? Man, you’re really grasping for straws here, aren’t you?


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Wasting your breath man.

The dude tells us about the dead fish on his wall and the next sentence claims he's just too simple to even think of trying to impress anyone.

Says he doesn't care what others do or like and the next sentence calls them stupid for spending more money than him.

Apparently is in the hobby for profit. Yah, regular Mel Fisher.

You can't get anywhere talking to him.

- Dave

 

[KOB]

Because I was dumb enough to believe the hype a few years ago. Everyone told me that my Ace 250 was a toy and to buy a "real" metal detector. I bough my AT Pro and couldn't wait to hit all my old spots. You know what I found? Nothing, nada, zip. I didn't find one coin in around 25 spots I had hit with my Ace 250. I will admit that I dig less trash (especially bottle caps) with my AT Pro, but I think I would have been fine with my Ace 250.

Bottom line, there isn't much difference between a $200 detector, a $500 detector and a 2k detector. You'll probably dig less trash (or maybe not) with a better detector. They will all find coins. The cheaper ones MIGHT miss a coin or two, but is that really worth paying a grand more for a few coins? Not in my book...

Hard to believe you didn't find anything going back to your old spots with a supposed better detector. Are you sure ?

I have a buddy who hunts more than I do , and has quite a few machines. Anyways , he has had The Legend about 2 weeks now and has gone back to 4 parks where he has swung his Nox and CTX. He has found more clad , silver and gold going over the exact spots in these parks. He can't figure out how or why. He is still learning the machine but so far he likes it better than the Nox , but not the 3030 as far as I'ds.

Just saying your statement is very odd compared to what my buddy experienced.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

Hard to believe you didn't find anything going back to your old spots with a supposed better detector. Are you sure ?

Yup, I was so disappointed. The Ace 250 is a decent machine and does go fairly deep. I found my first colonial shoe buckle with it and the buckle was close to 10" down. Big target, obviously, but still impressive for a low priced machine.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

Yes, OMG you busted me! I sell homemade belt clips for long handled shovels! Not sure what the hell that has to do with anything being discussed in this thread since I’m not trying to promote or sell them here, so maybe you can explain that one to us? Am I somehow benefiting from belt clip sales by talking about the Minelab Manticore? Man, you’re really grasping for straws here, aren’t you?

My point was that not everyone here is 100% honest about their recommendations of things here. They hide the fact that they are dealers, their relative is a dealer or their buddy is one. I can always spot the dealers because they keep putting the brand of their detector in every post. Who does that and why? To promote the detector, that's why.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

The dude tells us about the dead fish on his wall and the next sentence claims he's just too simple to even think of trying to impress anyone.

I caught those "dead fish" between 1986 and 1989. I probably did get them mounted for bragging rights, but I was just a kid back then.

Apparently is in the hobby for profit. Yah, regular Mel Fisher.

Anyone who knows me here is aware of the fact that I spend most of my time in the woods hunting for colonial coins and relics, which I would never sell. It's just a hobby for me, period.

You can't get anywhere talking to him.

Can't argue with that one! I am pretty pigheaded and stubborn in my ways. Never take it personally, though. We love to argue and trash talk here in New England!

 

[E5USMC]

I purchased a Garrett Grand Master Hunter II back in 92 and used it up until 2019. Heavily at first then off and on over the years. With so many hobbies and interests I stopped a couple years back but never lost my love of the hobby.
I replaced the broken analog meter a few years back (I should have taken a picture; it wasn't pretty but it worked) and it limped along, but by that point it was definitely time to invest in a new unit. I’m now without a detector and researching new units as I type this.

Was that Garrett one of the "Better" detectors at the time, probably. It sure was expensive for my pocket and looking back I probably could have spent less. At first it was awkward, not knowing much and not understanding the units’ capabilities and how to interpret the responses, but over time I learned, and I knew each sound and what that sound meant. It came apparent that knowing the unit well, not the cost, and researching areas was what was going to bring results.

With the advancement in tech since my first detector I know I’ll get a great detector under $1,000.00 and enjoy it for years.

Bottom line IMO is do your research on areas that have a higher probability of finding what you are targeting, have a good reliable field-tested instrument for those targets, know it well, and most importantly have fun doing it.

 

[Rattlehead]

I can always spot the dealers….

Let’s see, first you accused IDXmonster of being a dealer. Nope. 0 for 1. Then you just accused me of being a dealer. Nope! 0 for 2. Your record doesn’t look so good to me.

BTW, I couldn’t help but notice that you keep on rambling about how good the ACE-250 is. Maybe you’re a dealer with a bunch of leftover ACE units that you’re trying to move… Hmmmmm….

Wasting your breath man.

Yep. I believe you’re right Dave.


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[FreeBirdTim]

You sell metal detecting gear, therefore you are a dealer. IDXmonster wanted posters to PM him for info about buying an XP Deus II (if I remember correctly, since he later deleted it), which sure makes him appear to be selling them.

If you feel you are wasting your breath, let it go. I will always defend myself and my comments. Or feel free to continue this nonsense...

 

[Rattlehead]

I will always defend my nonsense...

Well thats something we can agree on. Just about everything you’ve said here is nonsense.


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[sumrtym]

You sell metal detecting gear, therefore you are a dealer.

Home Depot isn't a home builder just because they sell nails and lumber. Dynamic diodes selling LED lights for automobiles doesn't make them a car dealership. If I 3d print an Equinox coil stregthener and sell it, I'm not a metal detector dealer by any stretch of the imagination.
To say a guy making a bracket / clip to hang a shovel on ya makes him a metal detector dealer is beyond ridiculous and I think you know that as well.

 

[Surf Master]

Just Wondering

IS this just a replacement for the E-trac that's discontinued-with a faster processor , 50 % more power to the coil - so Minelab found a way to put more power to the coil besides Deus batteries inside the coil, resulting in more depth to compete with the Deus 2- and capture sales in that price range , maybe more bells, and whistles not really needed , no plane jump , it will be interesting seeing live real tests from you all in the field & on the beach , I will kick back & watch , in economic tough times , I don't jump anymore , PS I hope you guys get it by Christmas happy hunting , Earl

 

[Cherry Picker]

it will be interesting seeing live real tests from you all in the field & on the beach , I will kick back & watch , in economic tough times , I don't jump anymore

Agreed!

 

[KOB]

IS this just a replacement for the E-trac that's discontinued-with a faster processor , 50 % more power to the coil - so Minelab found a way to put more power to the coil besides Deus batteries inside the coil, resulting in more depth to compete with the Deus 2- and capture sales in that price range , maybe more bells, and whistles not really needed , no plane jump , it will be interesting seeing live real tests from you all in the field & on the beach , I will kick back & watch , in economic tough times , I don't jump anymore , PS I hope you guys get it by Christmas happy hunting , Earl

Thanks for bringing this thread back down to earth ! I think this will be a pretty good machine. Much better than the Nox. But I also believe it will be out next year sometime.

 

[longbow62]

The Manticore is going to be fully mature Multi-IQ, and better than the Equinox. How much better? $1600 better than the Equinox, CTX, Etrac that you already have? Probably not if you are looking for a return on investment.

How many people buy a new truck every 4-6 years when the one they have will get them where ever they are going just fine. I'm more the drive it till the wheels fall off than I am swing it to the coil falls off.

 

[jmaclen]

Wow, this thread got brutal fast. Whether it was just some good banter or people being jerks……..for me it’s just metal detecting.

Let’s see. I used to own half a dozen VLF detectors so I could do some gold prospecting, hunt relics in thick iron trash in mild to moderate dirt, hunt modern clad, older coins and hunt jewelry in thick aluminum trashed areas with high iron mineralization, hunt in freshwater, and finally sometimes hunt saltwater beaches and surf. No single detector that I owned could do all of those things. In fact no single detector I owned could even do half of them very well.

Manticore is about to be released. Equinox, Deus 2 and the Legend preceded it. So as it stands, I now have four detectors to choose from that can do all of those tasks and do them very well while being lightweight with wireless audio and great features. Like Rattlehead, I could conceivably just own one SMF VLF detector soon if Manticore pans out. Right now I own a Nox 800….but it leaks…..I own a Deus 2 Lite…..not waterproof and currently sucks for gold prospecting but man is it fast…….I own a Legend….fantastic detector that is priced as low as a Garrett Ace Apex but the Legend is not as fast as Deus 2….

I no longer own a single frequency detector thank heavens. I struggled for years with poor depth, terrible up averaging of target IDs and basically was about to give up the hobby except for gold prospecting with a VLF detector when out of nowhere came the Equinox which made detecting fun and productive.

So location, location, location can also be a curse depending on how bad the dirt/saltwater beach conditions are that one is stuck with. All the silver coins that were shallow are long gone where I detect and any silver coin deeper than 4” or so sounds like a nail or steel crown bottle cap with single frequency detectors and with most older SMF tech since they wrap around into the iron zone.

If we all had mild ground/beach conditions, no one used a VLF detector underwater, no one used a VLF detector for gold prospecting and micro jewelry, good targets were easy to detect accurately even at 8”+ absolutely everywhere, many people weren’t irresponsible and didn’t litter public areas, ghost towns and abandoned habitations weren’t full of nails, and there were never, ever any site specific digging restrictions…..……there would be no need for all of these fancy new SMF VLF detectors.

Get real and think about the rest of the detecting community not just your personal detecting area.

 

[FreeBirdTim]

Well thats something we can agree on. Just about everything you’ve said here is nonsense.

Now you're misquoting my comments?

 

[FreeBirdTim]

Home Depot isn't a home builder just because they sell nails and lumber.

Poor analogy. I never said he built metal detecting gear, I just said he sold it.