Metal Detectors- Whites vs. Minelab in England

It became the game of the day on the most recent trip to England with Discovery Tours. Would the Whites detectors (mostly MXTs) beat out the Minelabs (mostly Explorers)?  It’s an important battle if you are going over there to use your detector. You will want to be as successful as possible, and some detectors just don’t measure up. Don’t spend $3000 or more and take a $200 radio Shack detector with you. You will be sorely disappointed. Whites and Minelabs, although being the most common on our trip, were not the only ones. Tesoro was also pretty common. The battle however was between the giants!

Those that used the MXT, and to a lesser degree, the DFX had every successful trips. The Whites definitely had some advantages over the Minelabs especially as the day wore on. We usually hit the fields around 8 am and finished around 5 pm. The Whites detectors are markedly lighter and better balanced. You could swing for a long time without getting fatigued. You could also swing a heavier, larger coil. The two popular ones were the Bigfoot coil which covered a large swath but didn’t go very deep, and the large Hot Shot coil made for Whites detectors. This coil was larger and yet much lighter than the standard 10 inch coil that comes with the detector.

The other advantage of the Whites detector was the speed of the target response. There were times we were turned loose in fields which had never been searched.  You could go for a long time before targets started to show up. The faster target response meant that you could move quickly across an unknown field to locate the signals. My estimate is that you could cover twice the area in the same amount of time and still get good response from targets.

Response to large targets is a given. Any detector can find something as large as a large cent, or greenie in the field. The question is  can you find 1/4^th of a hammered silver penny that is as thin as the lid of a tin can but only as big as a fourth of a dime? Further, could you find them with any depth? The number of hammered coins and Romans found with the Whites was impressive making it a great detector for England.

The last consideration was the weather. The Whites detectors have waterproofing raincoats to protect them in the rain. It isn’t meant for a downpour which we encountered several times. Most everyone brought duct tape and plastic bags to wrap the detectors in to keep them dry and free of mud.

The Minelab Explorer definitely earned its points in England. It is a heavier and less responsive detector than the Whites. It does take some stamina to swing it all day long. The newer ones have lighter coils but still are heavier than its competitor. The speed for good target response is much slower, especially on small targets. I found that by shortening the rod and keeping the coil close to my feet, I could go longer.

Where the Minelab shines is once you know you are in a productive area. The response to very small targets is outstanding. Gold and ¼ pennies come in strong signaling in the lower tone id area that says hammered coin or gold. I found that this was the strong side of this detector finding as many as six hammered silver coins in one day. These are, after all, the target coins for English detectorists.

I have also attached a SunRay pinpointing probe to the Minelab. I believe they are available now on the Whites detectors also. These great little tools allow you to use the detector electronics to locate very small targets that you found in regular mode. Had I not had it, I would definitely have missed a ¼ penny in a muddy field! The problem with this tool is that you switch the detector from detect to pinpoint mode. If you forget to switch back, you will not be detecting when you think you are. That happened several times and can be very frustrating.

The key with the Minelab is DON’T GET IT WET! If you do, you are out of business. I always take two detectors to England just in case.  If you have the pinpointer coil, the connection box is a real problem area for water. Keep it wrapped if encountering wet weather.

First be aware that experience is key. I have used a number of detectors over the last 30 years. Reading the paragraphs above, you would think I would choose Whites over the Minelab. Not true. I took both to England and used the Minelab at least 90% o the time. I consistently ranked among the leaders in quantity of artifacts, number of hammered coins, and won the top banana award twice.  I enjoyed the competitive atmosphere and saw great finds with both. Searching unknown areas gave advantage to the Whites. When in an area that we knew had finds, the Minelab’s ability to pick out tiny targets from the iron junk in the field overtook the advantages of the Whites. As far as the weight, I had three ways to combat that. First, get that coil close to your body; second, learn to detect using both arms; and third, dig so many good targets that you’re not swinging all day. You spend a lot of time digging and showing off.

Enjoy your Treasured Pasts

Stuart