Blisstool (V3 try out)

[ysbytymike]

Tested the Blisstool V2i yesterday and was very impressed.  RJM was kind enough to pop down to one of my farms and lend me his Blisstool machine for the day.

Just to clarify that I have no connection with this company or their suppliers in this country. Just my ramblings on this new machine.
I'm no expert, as I've only been detecting coming up to seven months but I know enough to be able to tell what I like and don't like and I do like this machine...

First impressions were of a machine with a build quality equal to anything I've owned and a lot better than some I've handled. All the controls were clearly marked and positioned for easy
(in the field) usage. Apparently, no aspects of this machine or its electronic circuitry is produced in China, so its all down to one producer in Bulgaria. You might think that a bit
risky but this product is actually a sideline to one of the leading robotic development companies in the world. So, were not talking a backstreet production line here, were talking
experts in the field of leading electronic innovation and product design who have looked at what's available and probably felt that they can do it better.

Its a single tone machine but that tone can be altered to suit your preference. I though on coming from the E-Trac that a single tone unit would be totally inadequate for the purpose
but to my surprise it was a really pleasant unit to use. The tone when you hit a coin really shouted at you and spitted and spluttered when you were over iron. It was so refreshing after
the Minelab to just enjoy the detecting without having to evaluate constantly changing numbers and tones. For those who can click with the Minelab "fine" but I just could not get on with
the inconsistency of the display (along with the weight factor) which in turn affected my enjoyment of the hobby.

The Blisstool on the other hand was so well balanced that I didn't really notice the weight, despite using it for around three and a half hours. Within a half an hour I was beginning to understand the variance in her signal tones. Bob set the machine up for me at the start of the day, as he's familiar with it and it just meant we could get straight into the detecting which was
why I'd invited him down. The controls, when Bob set the machine up for the land we were using were minimal. He ground balanced and fine tuned the discrim and gain effectively. Which means if your detecting on various farmlands, provided the texture of the soil (pasture, ploughed) is similar to your previous search area, the machine will only need minimal fine tuning.

There's no point me going into the technical aspect of this machine, as I'm not qualified to evaluate the various functions and settings the machine is capable of but I do know that I found
the Blisstool a refreshing, pleasant and effective machine to use and on arriving home contacted the supplier to order my new Blisstool V3  (latest model) Which currently is being sold with
a spare lower stem and a fifteen inch coil that is reputed to be razor sharp in its signal clarity and strength.
The coils themselves have no coil cover as there's no need. The whole bottom are of all Blisstool's coils are covered with a hard resin coating that elevates the need for a cover which in my opinion is so much better. It was a pain to have to take the coil cover of to clean all the sand and salt deposits that gather between the cover and the surface of the old coils.
These deposits if left there, would affect the signal on different types of land.
The machine I used had the standard 10" coil, which was incredibly sharp and precise in its signal and pinpointing. Every single target I pinpointed and dug up was exactly in the middle of the clod as the coil indicated. None of this weaving back and fore for minutes trying to figure out the exact location of the signal.  The tone was so sharp and precise you knew exactly where the target was within seconds of finding it. The 15" is supposed to be even better, so really looking forward to using that when my new machine arrives.
As far as the depth discussions that have been going on are concerned, I cannot contribute, as we only managed to work two fields and were not there to perform 'party trick' as they've been called. I wanted to evaluate a possible buy in a working environment which I did and based my decision to purchase on those findings.

I'd like to say a big thank you to Bob (RJM) for taking the time to come down to my neck of the woods and lending me his machine for the day. I suspect this machine is going to cause a great stir in the MD world and if you get a chance to try one out, you'll not be disappointed I'm sure.

Mike Davies

 

[digger]

What price range is it? Digger

[Mike]

great report mike ,will have to try yours out when it comes  

[ysbytymike]

What price range is it? Digger

Currently, and I mean currently as I'm sure its no going to stay there for very long. The top of the range V3 including a spare lower stem and 15" coil is
an incredible £700 inclusive of postage.

[rjm]

Thanks for taking the time to write that up, Mike.

I enjoyed the day out in a part of the World I don't travel to very often. On the way to Merthyr the fog was thick
and I had my headlights on, and I did wonder what sort of day we were going to have. It was a bit chilly when
we started but by 3pm I was starting to cook with my Deerhunter jacket and scarf !

The machine you were using was my V3 with 11" standard coil and not the V2i as mentioned but they are the
same in looks but there's an extra chip in the V3 which enables it to get even more depth than the V2i.

From the way you went about things I was under the impression that you had been detecting many years
and was quite surprised when you said it was since last September! Not that it makes any difference
but you were off like an 'old pro' after a short while.

It made me laugh that you deliberately kept your headphones off so that I could hear the signals from the
Bliss loudspeaker (the volume was on 3) and I could here you checking signals about 50 metres away at
one stage! Withut saying anything I could hear you walk away from the spitty ones and dig out the nice
'diggie' sounding ones.

Although we had a couple of worn coppers we didn't have anything to titilate anyone. You did have a couple
of very small buttons down 6-8" and you were still picking them up nice and loudly about the same above
the ground prior to digging.

What you have ordered is a lot of machine for the money with the 11" and 15" coil. I have found that I liked
the machine more each time I used it and got used to the controls and into the groove with it.

As said, I didn't think I would want a bigger coil than the 11" but that 15" is so sharp on small targets that
I may well leave it on most of the time (mine is on order).

Maybe it was a total fluke, but my one monastic fob seal find, I suspect has a value that is a big chunk of
what the cost of the machine was...

I know depth isn't everything but the V3 (especially with the large coil) smashed that hoard test with
several inches to spare.........and a big dose of discrimination on to boot!

There's several more being delievered tomorrow, I believe, to the early pioneers (taking advantage of the
promotional price) and it'll be interesting to see how they get on.

[KGB428]

thanks for that review. gives me a bit of confidence in my purchase. it hasn`t arriived yet but hoping to get it in time for a rallie in worcester on the 24th and 25th.

[stickygreen]

Where do you get em from? i cant find them.

[rjm]

Where do you get em from? i cant find them.

It's on a who you know basis      ............have a look here:

www.blisstooluk.co.uk

[Zorro]

on a "who you know basis?"  . if this machine is as good as it claims to be it'll be stocked by the biggest dealers. if not it'll be another false dawn, and god knows we've had a few over the years. so let wait and see which dealers come biting their hands off to stock it.

[rjm]

on a "who you know basis?"  . if this machine is as good as it claims to be it'll be stocked by the biggest dealers. if not it'll be another false dawn, and god knows we've had a few over the years. so let wait and see which dealers come biting their hands off to stock it.

The 'who you know basis' was a bit of humour as indicated by the smilie.

I'm informed the 'big dealers' were offered the opportunity to sell but declined as the profit was not sufficient.

That's why the brand has only recently been made aware of in the UK but available elsewhere in Europe for
a while.

You'd be horrified if you knew the profits the retailer/s make on the Deus and ET for example!

It's currently on test in America with a view to it being sold there too.

[Mike]

on paper and video and a few field tests it looks the real deal , deep ,  good , discrim ,  lightish , and at the moment a very tempting price for the top end machine , me i would want to speak to the owners in 6 / 8 months and see how they have got on

bob 's got a Deus , mike had an etrac , both very top end machines , it will be interesting reading in the near future how this new machine really does compaired with these .



                                                                                mike.

[rjm]

on paper and video and a few field tests it looks the real deal , deep ,  good , discrim ,  lightish , and at the moment a very tempting price for the top end machine , me i would want to speak to the owners in 6 / 8 months and see how they have got on

bob 's got a Deus , mike had an etrac , both very top end machines , it will be interesting reading in the near future how this new machine really does compaired with these .



                                                                                mike.

You're correct in what you say, Mike.    How good a machine is, or isn't, is always judged after a couple of years
when it's been used by many.  A good yardstick is if that machine becomes a detecting classic. There's been
a few over the years such as the Arado, Whites XLT, Explorer, etc., and lately the XP Deus.

It's a bit like cars in a way with the VW Beetle, Mini, VW Golf GTi.   

I see it as complimenting my Deus. However, to buy the Deus and the large coil is £1600-1700 which is a lot
of money in anyones book.........even the ET and a couple of coils will be £1500.

If I had the Bliss V3 and large coil  for £700.............would I go out and buy an XP Deus?

No.......I don't think I would. May be a second hand Deus and small coil only for £800


I'm looking forward to seeing what other users think after using them for a while........but I can't see them
moaning about the quality or price if they have any negatives! 

[ysbytymike]

No bull here Mike. I had more 'fun' detecting with that Bliss in 3/3.5 hours than all the time spent with my ET. Don't get me wrong, the ET is amazing but
to someone who can't get on with it, its a pain and doesn't make you want to go out as I constantly found myself concentrating on the negatives aspects.