Minelab Explorer II

explorer se 2 TOTAL RUBBISH

graham in lincolnshire -
NEW to detecting read all the reviews so I bought one BIGGEST COSTLY MISTAKE I have ever done, the second getting married. This machine has been so hyped up.. The instruction book you need to have studied at Oxford to understand it ...my mate also has a cheap Garrett, the stuff he finds blows me away, mine is usually tractor bearings, horse shoes, brass door knobs, rubbish ... Decided enough was enough Part exchanged it best thing I have ever done for fisher f75 looks good very lite and easier to use and doesn't gobble batteries like the miss s downing 6 pints in half hour...

FEELs LIKE I was conned by all the hype now really looking forward to enjoying my hobby without feeling frustrated with a dreadful machine which is over priced ...
...warning to anyone starting this hobby don't go out and blow your dough on gadget that will do your head in go for something ...SIMPLE...

Jan 22, 2012

3 Yes
1 No

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Expensive or cheap detector

Albi Pinnion in suffolk -
I have had three minelabs, whilst they may take time to learn, its worth persevering, this year with the explorer 2 which I've had a few years, I've played around with the sensitivity with brilliant results.
Peaces of ground that I've found very little have proved productive. I've compared against my mates garret 250, the only pluses we can see in the garret are in very small deep targets. We have checked each others finds and guessed what they may be, he has pulled far more tiny finds whilst I have been able to save a lot more digging, by having a good idea of the cartridge cases etc that are everywhere.

So many people that write reviews are biest to a particular company why free detectors etc, we have compared out of interest on what they cost and is it worth spending the extra amount of money, our conclusion is yes, we would be interested to hear of others experiences or findings, regards Albi.

Oct 07, 2011

11 Yes
1 No

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New to the Explorer

John in Cambridge UK -
I have had my Explorer for about 2 months and used it probably half a dozen times with little success.
On my last outing with the club I was getting the usual noisy sweep and deep nails giving a good signal, so decided to instead of turning down the sensitivity I turned it up, for some reason this made it less noisy and I did not dig another nail at all ?
I tried this again on yesterdays dig but it just would not work and the noise was so bad I gave up.

This is a very deep seeking detector and in fact the deepest I have ever known but it can be just too noisy to use.
I love it and will persevere with it, but I am not 100 percent convinced it is worth the money I paid.

Jul 04, 2011

5 Yes
2 No

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Using explorer 11 for 7 months

STUART in ENGLAND -
My first time out with this machine was in may 2010, my first impressions were good, hammered 6 pence etc - since then the detector as produced large Victorian silver down to the smallest 4d.recovery iron is very slow not had great success on iron infested sites, on clean ground this detector can not be beaten coins at 12 inch easily registered.

Number 1 tip- never run this machine too hot, always noise cancel and keep coil cover clean - would give the explore 11 5 star but does seem to struggle on iron but still learning. People thinking of selling, stick with it like playing a guitar one day Eurica.

Jan 10, 2011

12 Yes
2 No

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Nay sayers

E D in reno -
This machine rocks if you know how to use it right....

Nov 15, 2010

4 Yes
10 No

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Minelab beat other machines hands down heres why

Patrick in London -
People who write a review here and knock the Minelab are either barking mad or work for another company.
One of my first finds was a ring that was tiny for a babies christening or such. It was roman made of gold and copper and weighed hardly anything could not fit it on the tiny end of my small finger. I found that ring after much digging around about ten to twelve inches under the ground. When I did finally dig it out it took me more time to find it when it was out of the hole as the signal was so strong I naturally thought it would be much larger.

On the beach it is a dream as long as you have sensitivity at a good level and threshold not to high. Tom Dankowski builds detectors and works with Nasa. EEERRR I think he knows a thing or two and The minelab is one of the machines he loves. So people who don't take the time out to learn their machine get no prizes...take my word for it they are hot hot hot.
Oh and by the way minelab runs in 28 different frequencies unlike most others in one or two. Deeper targets are located by lower frequencies so you will find what others miss. You can also detect in ferrous mode or conductive mode.

Aug 05, 2010

56 Yes
10 No

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Works well but to much work!

Richard A. in La -
I would much rather use a Troy X5 less buttons for a old fart like me.

Jul 31, 2010

5 Yes
15 No

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First coin james vi 1606 hammerd silver

stuart in england -
Bought minelab ex 11 last week, first trip out found James v1 hammered 5 inches down on edge. Not yet familiar with settings but seems straight forward, also picked up silver watch face 9 inch down bit heavy but so what, love it already. Can't wait for next trip, no patience needed with this detector just large finds bag.

May 17, 2010

5 Yes
10 No

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Nice Machine, but they don't last more than a few years

Greg in Portland, MI -
I am on my second Explorer II machine. The first one I purchased I used heavily for about five years. Performed above and beyond what I expected especially for the money I paid for it.

I had upgraded from a Bounty Hunter detector. No comparison in those two, Explorer trumps it. BUT, I think after heavy use it starts to break down. I purchased a second unit because the first one would beep on things that were not in the ground. The screen ended up going out on it and Minelab wouldn't repair or replace it siting that I went above 'normal wear and tear' by using it constantly. That I don't get. I used it for probably fifteen to twenty hours a week during the summer and stored it in the winter. I did use it heavily, but if the Explorer II can't take that kind of use, it should be taken off the market. Plain and simple.

I have tried the Ace 250 from a friend and while it is a great unit, it doesn't give me the depth that I want while the Explorer does. I pulled a Merc from 10 inches with the Explorer and I set up a test with the Ace and it couldn't detect the same Merc at 7 inches. So in my opinion, Explorer is very good, just don't expect great customer service from Minelab when something goes wrong with it.

Mar 12, 2010

63 Yes
5 No

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Explorer XS

Bobby Dadario in New England -
I have been detecting for over 20 years. Started with a Whites Coinmaster and graduated to a Fisher 1265x (which still works!). I read a lot of good things about the XS and decided to purchase a used one because it had target ID and because it can handle saltwater mineralization. If all I detected were beaches, I would rate this a 4. Too heavy and not balanced well enough to earn 5 stars. Impressive depth and backlight is great for early morning hunts. Also, works in wet sand..... I mean, really works!

Now the bad news.... 1/8" adapter stinks, and it broke, hard as hell to pinpont using the stock doubleD coil, heavy, not well balanced, coil works loose and is sloppy, mostly plastic, damn noisy machine with all those tones, and ugly color. I really think these machines are overrated. I used it for a 1+ year and thought it was very difficult to pick out the good tones from the junk. Also you will be swinging very very slowly. This machine is in no hurry to reset.

Sep 07, 2009

39 Yes
5 No

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