DetectingWales.com

what do you reckon ....a new macro racer or a used minelab explorer .....also if explorer what one xs or se or is there no difference ????

You can't really compare them as they have different systems and have their own strengths and weaknesses though the Explorers have far more pluses than minuses and if you could have both it would be a good system but if only one then it has to be the Explorer, as to which one it comes down a lot to personal preference I use the original XS as I can't fault it but others favour the II which is slightly more user friendly and others the SE which reverted slightly to a more aggressive set-up but with the improved tones of the Etrac then there is the Etrac itself which is even more user friendly and adaptable.

there's a lot more to all this than I realised I never realised there was different operating systems etc ....the reason I said the racer was I rang a dealer to see about buying a used explorer on Friday and he said why not buy a new racer instead as there far better and the explorer had gone

well your doing alright with that prizm ;D

Well the reason he told you they're better is because the Explorer was gone lol, don't get me wrong the racer is a lovely little machine and if you've never had an Explorer then you aren't going to miss it. If I were on 75% arable land then I would probably choose the Racer but if 75% pasture and some beaches then it has to be an Explorer ;)

Explorer se all the way and stick a 13" ultimate on it and bobs your uncle. You will get sick of digging iron with the racer. A lot more to learn with the explorer but once there then you won't regret. Get it from a dealer as you will have 3-6 months warranty. All the best. Sj

Minelab fbs great on the beach that is a fact . But in land on small targets such as small thin hammered not so good  and small gold chains you can forget it  ??? (even the ACE 250 picks those up). Yes you can dig iron with the Racer but as with any detector the tones are far more important than  screen ID.  I dig very little iron with the  Makro racer. The minelab is made for the USA market for relic hunting and coin shooting in the park not that its a bad machine infact was a very good detector around 15 years ago. They still sell them in Etrac and safari today but very overpriced new. In my view to heavy and slow , but that's just my opinion  ??? There will alway be die hard detectorists with brand loyalty to the Minelab , i was one then i seen the light . The Deus suits my detecting style but some people detect slower so then a minelab would be more suitable to them . After all we are all different and like different things so we choose accordingly to are style and needs :-\

They were only released 16 years ago lol

Totally agree but with the minelabs you get the screen I'd and the tones and it was only last week I was digging a Lizzie 3p hammered at 7" with a belter of a signal and never dig iron but admittedly that's after a lot of practice and swearing and eventually gd old andI sabisch . will speak to you again in 6 months to see how it's going  ;) I've gone through many brands from the bliss with no screen , an excellent machine for depth ,whites, garret, Nokta forse cor and the racer. I even took the makro and explorer out together and found the racer was missing loads .. So inland explorer hands down. That's not from a die hard just an honest opinion. Sj

to be honest I probably am ...but since I've been on this site and read a few of the forum posts there's a line that's stuck in my head and it said....I'm doing OK with my starter machine  but can't help wondering what I'm missing that a more advanced machine might find.....ha ha I keep having one of them ...the grass is always greener moments....although the prizm was on loan he has told me to keep it as he will never use it  :)

You know what, that's spot on. I found a gold ring within a month with my ace 250 so payed for itself. I also had my first and earliest hammered and also my Bronze Age axe head at 14" . I researched for ages and then I upgraded from ace 250 as I also thought targets were being missed.. All the best. Sj.

Hemmm!it's always going to be difficult !! Because so many factors  come into play,coil size,dryness/wetness of the soil and what you actually walk over and detect during the time you own the detector,I often think that we pitch our detectors on the success or not of the detector we owned at the time, and the intrinsic value of what is found ! Well you know,to be quite honest I still have a great respect for the very basic Garrett ACE 250,well I found hammered coins with it.!!
Just my thoughts !!👍

yes sorry I should of said....I live on the Llyn Peninsular so surrounded by beach and also hills and grazing land not much ploughing here

Racer 2 all the way....Blows everything in and around the same price bracket away!

And on the beach, wet or dry, black sand and underwater it is fantastic!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPC61KTvkoA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPC61KTvkoA)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KY6R0SQ3Aac (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KY6R0SQ3Aac)

Matt

I still say that the Macro RACER (red) fitted out with a MARS "TIGER" coil is probably the best detector out there at the price.... ;)....good hunting to you all ..👍

I think it depends on the machine you are used to and also the good old luck.
I have a fisher f44 with a nel coil and providing you have a bit of moisture on the soil regarding discrimination and deepness its bob on,although I should be digging more ferrous signals because you never know what you are missing.
I would like to try a Deus to see the difference,if there's any.
They cost a few bob and you have to be sure the time you spend detecting justifies the money they cost.
for know I think I am fine with mine

I have the Racer 2 and the E-TRAC.

I've just bought a Mars Goliath coil for the Racer - up until yesterday it had the standard coil. I've got an ultimate coil fitted to the E-TRAC.

So far, I've been really disappointed with the Racer - on a like for like basis - i.e half a day with one and half a day on the same ground with the other, my E-TRAC beat hands down the Racer - now maybe that was just luck (although it was the same ground), maybe it was because it was coke infested.

On a quick beach comparison (which might be unfair, as I gave my son the Racer to use), the E-TRAC again won (in this case same ground, same time)

Many of the fields I detect are pasture, and often have power cables - again in these my E-TRAC wins hands down.

I have found a sestertius with the Racer (so not completely useless), but that's about it. I'm hoping the larger coil (15") might reach those parts that the ETRAC hasn't.

I haven't done a ploughed field comparison - it is here where I think the Racer would do better, but this is on my list of things to try.

I bought the Racer because of reviews and because I learned to detect using a T2 which I thought was fantastic (although it missed the hoard that my Minelab found).

I also haven't done a comparison

Sorry Probono,but as I said,for the price,the Macro RACER (red)was absolutely brilliant in all classes in its own price range ,and also a whole lot lighter than any Minelab !!!
After all,why spend a shilling,when sixpence is more than enough !!!.. LOL 😂

I agree that the Racer is much lighter (one of the reasons I let my son use it).

I bought my Racer II new, and the ETRAC secondhand, so (for me) there wasn't much of a price differential, but you are correct, for new machines there is quite a difference.

I was hoping to have some opportunity to try out the RACER with the new coil this week after work sometime, but I'm not sure I will given the rain. My plan was to go to a worked out, pasture field - I realise that not finding anything isn't a good test, but if the field becomes productive again, then the coil has done its job....

All useful and still relevant information but hasn't anyone noticed the date of the original post  -  Nov 2015

I reckon he's already made up his mind  ;D

Well you cant rush these things you know ;D

I should know that nobby. It takes me a month to decide which jeans to buy  ::)

Yea,can't make up me mind either...now is it  a .. Prefect .!!!..or an.Anglia !!😁