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kac
I really liked the Gold Racer, found it incredible in bad grounds and even squeaked out a nice trime with it but as ground phase in many areas here where I hunt in the low/mid 90's the Gold Racer would get slaughtered in depth.

The Gold Racer was one of the more recent detector models I liked a lot, and it handled the very mineralized ground in the gold mining area ghost towns I hunted, nd it provided very adequate depth-of-detection for my needs in those trashy places. Seldom to I work sparse-target placed where 'depth' is achievable, and, when I do, I have other detector & coil combo nations for that.

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kac
[bMid frequency machines do well in my neck of the woods. I tried to get a Superfly coil for the Gold Racer but the only importer here would not order one for me and not even with money up front!! So with just the stock coil options and the largest coil they make too heavy and just too big I let the machine go.[/b]

"Mid-Frequency" detectors have been my favorite frequency-range models since the latter '70s when I started using the 15 kHz Garrett Ground Hog and similar models. Since then, and with the introduction of the Tesoro Inca and other models working in the 12 kHz and then most in 10kHz to 12 kHz range, Matter -of-fact, other than a few favorite White's models working at 6.59 kHz and a couple of others , for the past ±45 years most of my main-use detectors, and the ones that produced the greatest success at a wide-range of sites, have operated at 10 kHz to 15 kHz "mid-frequency" range

Today, I rely on my 10 kHz Tesoro Silver Sabre µMAX and Bandido II µMAX and my 15 kHz Nokta FORS CoRe. They are complemented by my slightly higher 19 kHz Nokta FORS Relic and my three Garrett Apex devices, each sporting a different search coil. We don't know exactly what frequencies the Apex is using in the 'MF' selection but it sure seems to work well with their selection. However, it does offer 4 different Single Frequencies and, when I do opt for one, it is either 10 kHz or 15 kHz, with `5 kHz generally the choice and working the best for the site encountered.

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kac
[bThe Apex though not a high frequency machine is very fun to use and fills a spot for a light weight high performance machine that works good in parks and woods for me. Weighing in just over 2lbs with the carbon shaft, I can swing it all day long. Use it quite a bit to scout new areas.[/b]

Yes, I agree about the comfortable weight and balance, the great performance, and my favorite and most-used coil is the 'Ripper' which, as you noted, makes a very good combination for a 'scouting unit' for fringe areas of old ghost towns, checking any old locations for or working out away from cellar holes, etc.

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kac
[bThe deeper machines are the Tejon with 10x12 widescan and the Multi Kruzer with 12" Superfly. MK with 12" coil hits a clad dime in high mineralized soil at 12" with a faint audio but solid ID's. Tejon I believe does better with lower conductors and close in depth as the MK. MK and Tejon I also have concentric coils for them which I use for hunting in areas that have bog iron as that can mask out a target very quick.[/b]

Having had both the Multi-Kruzer and Anfibio Multi, my favorite was the Anfibio, but for my needs in really tough iron contaminated places they didn't match or beat my CoRe or Relic (although they came very close), and so far the Apex with a comparable-size coil kept up with what I got out of the Kruzer and Anfibio with regard to depth. The Tesoro Tejon can do okay, but I found them to work better with a Concentric coil and not so well with a DD, especially in an Iron Nail littered condition. Also, they are a bit hotter on lower-conductors, due to their 17+ kHz frequency and design, but my 19 kHz Relic provides that in-the-field performance for my needs.

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kac
[bI still use the AT Pro with a Mars Tiger 10x13 for fresh water hunting in ponds. Coil is very stable and has just a little bit better depth over the stock coil. AT Pro is very easy to swing in the water.[/b]

You keep mentioning larger-size coils which I never, or seldom, use. My largest is the 8½X11 DD 'Raider' on my 2nd Apex and all the rest of the coils I use are about 5", 6", 5X8 or 5X9½. Also, I don't swim so I never work out very deep when I would Beach Hunt (that's why they call it 'beach' because I'm just wading) and today I only work rocky, solid-ground freshwater beaches because my cane doesn't get along well in loose, soft, wet sand. I don't either. But the Garrett AT series have proven their abilities to serve well as waterproof detectors, and should I decide to snag one, it would be the AT Max just for the very wet days and working in and around water.

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kac
[bI just finished a batch of diggers. I used to sell them on ebay but ebay has changed their fees and shipping is more through them than I can get. I never got a website going for them, been word of mouth and have a garden shop that has sold some. Been looking for a dealer to distribute them but haven't gone full blast in making them due to supply costs probably from the pandemic.
I'll post info for you guys once I review shipping costs etc. and get my pricing in order.[/b]

No e-bay fees here, and I am sure some readers would find your tool to be of interest. I looked at one photo on-line to see a difference in how the 'handle' design was since you mentioned wrist issues with the digger you got with the AT Pro. It's tougher to market things today in this hobby because we have very few 'local' dealers left to inventory and display products.

Get some photos and post on the B/S/T Forum.

Monte

"Your EYES ... the only 100% accurate form of Discrimination!"
Stinkwater Wells Trading Post
Metal Detector Evaluations and Product ReviewsI'm now located in Clyde, Texas monte@ahrps.org ... or ... monte@stinkwaterwells.com 503-481-8147Detector Outfit: A selection of my favorite makes and models, with the best coils mounted for the tasks I'll take on.Apex .. FORS CoRe .. FORS Relic .. ImpactInca .. Bandido II µMAX .. Silver Sabre µMAX .. MX-5Pinpointers: Pulse-Dive Pointer and AT Pro-Pointer .. Headphones: 'Hornet' & 'Wasp' .. MS-3 Z-Lynk*** All working well today to make memories for tomorrow. ***