It's interesting to find out what others tend to prefer compared with our own choices, which of course is also dependent upon the hunt sites we usually search..
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DruidImpact has not arrived as yet, everything shipping now moves like molasses in November 
There's no really good reason for shipments to be delayed like they are. Let's hope it arrives soon. Of the selectable-frequency models, the Impact is my favorite because it offers a lot of adjustment features and in-the-field performance, is land-based, and has easily replaceable batteries.
• Top three hunt sites in order?
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Druid
Parks, tot lots, freshwater beaches
Parks and tot-lots I am inline with. I just got home a little while ago after heading out to a ghost town this morning to meet up with OregonGregg. I'm supposed to limit by driving to 1 Hr. to 1½ Hr. per day. It's usually a 45 Min. to 1 Hr. drive there and the same on the return so that wipes out my daily driving schedule.
I've enjoyed ghost town hunting since May of '69 occasionally, and since July of '83 to devote 90%-95% of my annual detecting time .... but that's winding down now. My mobility issues make it tough to cover much territory, and especially to handle the rough, uneven terrain with tripping weeds and brush. I managed to hunt 1 Hr. 15 Min. this morning and that was it. My cane & I struggle to deal with most of the old-use sites, and I decided today during my return drive home that I'll still get to some old town sites whenever I can, but I need to shift my dedicated time to more urban Coin & Jewelry Hunting. Locations where I can park close to where I want to hunt, be able to take a comfortable sit-down break so I can maybe go another hour or so.
I can't work the loose-sand beaches, but we do have a few freshwater sites with a more rocky, firmer ground where I can maneuver about a little. Tot-Lots I always can put in a quick hit-and-run in the bark-chip / sand / shredded tire material. Generally I can park close enough to maneuver w/o fatigue, and I grab one of my two light-weight Tesoro models w/6" Concentric coil for quick work in them.
Most parks and sports fields are relatively flat and lack the tangling weeds and brush so they will be more of my focus in the future. Private yards, too, when I get permissions for flat yards.
• Two favorite search coils?
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Druid
7" concentric & 5x9 elliptical
For yards, parks, schools and other urban Coin & Jewelry Hunting areas, those would also be my two favorite search coil picks. I consider both of them to be a 'mid-size' coil, and I like the 7" Concentric as a 'general-purpose' use coil, especially for Coin Hunting use. I am not fond of the larger 7X11 DD coil or anything larger
(other than the 11" on the Simplex +), but the elliptical 5X9½ DD is a very nice 'general-use' coil as well. When I further trim my Detector Outfit I will have a round Concentric coil on a main-use Coin & Jewelry Hunting detector, and a 5X9½ DD on a different model as well.
In very dense Iron debris I prefer a smaller-size coil on the Impact, such as the round 5" DD, so the 5" DD and 7" Concentric are the two coils I bought for the new Impact I ordered, but it's another detector I am going to thin-out.
• Three favorite search mods ... also in order of preference?
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Druid
Hmmm, that is a poser.. generally 3 tone, & VLX1, VLX2.. but... sometimes the gen modes for threshold tone & reverse disc hunting, and/or 2 tone (very site/target specific)
I just didn't get comfortable with, or felt no benefit from, either VLX mode. Probably 85% of my Impact hunting was done in 3-Tone when hunting mixed-littered sites. I like 2-Tone when most trash is Iron Nails or other wire-iron type junk. I do like the All Metal mode w/Disc. adjustment of the low-tone break-point, and in wide-open grassy parks I like the Deep mode.
• In order, your Operating Frequency preferences?
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Druid
Turf hunting in general 14KHz, tot lots & beach , 20KHz for tiny jewelry drops, seldom use 5KHz might try if EMI is a problem
I'm the same, seldom selecting 5 kHz. Probably 80% or more of my Impact hunting was at 14 kHz, but 20 kHz on the sports fields and around sunbathing locations and around swimming and wading pools, naturally, being places to increase the odds of finding good jewelry.
I look forward to you receiving the Impact and posting some of the results you'll enjoy.
Monte
"Your EYES ... the only 100% accurate form of Discrimination!"
Stinkwater Wells Trading Post
Metal Detector Evaluations and Product Reviews 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.Pinpointers: Pulse-Dive & ProPointer AT .. Headphones: 'Hornet' & 'Wasp' .. MS-3 Z-Lynk .. ML-80 .. N/M Green edition*** All working well today to make memories for tomorrow. ***