Minelab 705 or Safari?

[Dondada]

Hi guys,

I am new here.
Want to get into metal detecting as I think this would be a great activity for me and my son to do together + I have always liked the idea of "hunting for treasures"
I have kind of narrowed it down to the 705 or the Safari.

Looking to hunt coins, relic and jewelry in park and on the beach (Searching for gold sounds fun but don't think there is anywhere around Brisbane for this?)

What model would you recommend?

Kind Regards

p.s Did do a search but cant find a specific topic comparing the two. :Y:

 

[Ridge Runner]

well if you want to hunt the Beach then I would suggest the safari, It should work better than the 705 on the beach,

There has been Gold found up at Jimna which is about 45 to 60 minutes away from you, just a thought aye,

hope that helps,

John.

 

[Dondada]

Thank you John for your reply.
What is it that makes the safari better for beaches?

Also do you need a permit to go out and hunt?

Would it be possible to get another coil for the Safari to make it more suitable for gold or is it more to do with the actual unit? (Sorry not good with the terminology).

 

[Brunks111]

There are sales on for the 705
https://www.anacondastores.com/sports/electronics/metal-detectors/c/metal-detectors

 

[Ridge Runner]

Thank you John for your reply.
What is it that makes the safari better for beaches?

Also do you need a permit to go out and hunt?

Would it be possible to get another coil for the Safari to make it more suitable for gold or is it more to do with the actual unit? (Sorry not good with the terminology).

The Safari is an FBS Multi frequency machine and they can deal with the wet salt better than a single frequency machine can and because of that they go deeper on the beach,

The 705 will see Tiny nuggets but it won't match the Safari on the beach, If you want to search for Gold Jewellery on the beach or parks etc the Safari will be fine even with the standard coil, and you can get coils up 18x15 and 21x18 but you would need a Bungy cord to support the machine because the big coils will give you arm ache,

I prefer the Safari compared to the Etrac, They make loads of coils for the Safari/Etrac/Explorer, So you have heaps of choices, I would buy the Coiltek Little Joey 5x10 coil and the 12x8 Coiltek Platypus coil and for beach hunting I would get the Coiltek 15" WOT Coil, WOT is short for Wonderful Orange Thing, :lol: :lol: :lol: or at leased that's what some say, Lol.

The 5x10 is good for small targets and tight places and the 12x8 is a Great all rounder, and the 15" WOT coil is good for the beach and wide open spaces,

hope that helps,

John

 

[PhaseTech]

Yep, Safari will runs stable on the wet sand, and you can expect depth nearly double of what the 705 is capable of achieving.

 

[Dondada]

Thanks guys!
Very useful info and thanks for the heads up about the sale Brunks.

Just putting it out there.. how would you compare the Garrett AT Pro to the Safari and the 705?

Thanks!

 

[Goldpick]

You could always wait for the release of the Minelab Equinox, then you will have the best of both worlds with vlf and multi-frequency capability - all depends if you can wait for it to be released.

The AT Pro is a pretty popular detector and waterproof, though lacks the ability to run different frequency coils as on the 705. Either way, the AT Pro has now been superceded by the Garrett AT Max, which now has screen backlighting, and greater ground balance range to help cope with wet sand detecting, but still won't be on par with the Safari's performance on the beach.

Gold detecting is not the easiest activity to take up as a newbie, and can be pretty frustrating using some of non specialist coin/relic/gold vlf detectors. The Safari really lacks sensitivity to very small gold, hence is rarely utilised for that type of detecting, more of a coin/jewellery/relic detector.

Personally I would give gold prospecting a miss at this stage, and concentrate on detecting areas closer to home to gain some experience and confidence first up.

It is always hard to pick a truly multi use detector when you throw prospecting ability into the mix, better off saving for a decent pulse induction detector fit for purpose.

 

[Dondada]

Goldpick, makes sense!
Only reason I mentioned the Garrett AT Max was because I was offered a second hand one for $700 (good deal?).
Was just wondering if that would be something to be considered along the 705 and the Safari.. but you stil think the Safari for my needs? (taking gold out of the equation.. except for gold jewelry lol).

 

[Ridge Runner]

Goldpick, makes sense!
Only reason I mentioned the Garrett AT Max was because I was offered a second hand one for $700 (good deal?).
Was just wondering if that would be something to be considered along the 705 and the Safari.. but you stil think the Safari for my needs? (taking gold out of the equation.. except for gold jewelry lol).

You would be better off with the Safari to start with, Just to give you a good solid machine to get into the hobby and that has the power to suit what you want to do, maybe a year down the track you might want to try a Gold prospecting VLF if you are only going to go prospecting 2 or 3 times a year, If you really get the Bug then try and look for a good second hand GPX-4500 or an SDC-2300, but it is not worth buying one of those 2 if you are only going to use it once a year,

So your VLF prospecting VLF's are The Minelab GM-1000, The Whites GMT, and the Fisher Goldbug 2 and the Makro Gold Racer,

True multi purpose Prospecting Machines are the Garrett AT Gold, and AT Max, The Whites MXT Pro/All Pro and the E-series Tracker/300 Series, The Nokta Fors Relic, and the Nokta Fors Gold+ and the Nokta Impact and the Makro Racer, and the Fischer F-75 or the higher frequency Teknetics version the T2. and the Fisher Goldbug Pro which is a good machine but it lacks the horse power.

hope that helps.

John.

 

[Dondada]

Ridge Runner, Got you. What other accessories do you need? Is it a good idea to have a"pin-pointer"?
Other stuff like.. gloves, shovel, spade etc?
Also do you need to pay for a permit of some sort?

Thanks

 

[Ridge Runner]

Ridge Runner, Got you. What other accessories do you need? Is it a good idea to have a"pin-pointer"?
Other stuff like.. gloves, shovel, spade etc?
Also do you need to pay for a permit of some sort?

Thanks

A pin pointer will speed up the recovery time of your finds by about 70 to 80% so they are a must have Item,

I have never worn gloves personally but it makes good sense to wear them because I can't count the times I have cut my fingers digging targets because some of your finds will no doubt be in the ground with other junk and Glass near by and in the same hole, So Gloves are a Big Yes.

For digging in parks and such you want a Spade that has a blade that is about 5 to 6" wide and no bigger, for 2 reasons, 1) being that the wider the Blade the harder it is to get it to cut in to the ground so you want to sharpen it to make life easy and 2) you don't want to go digging monster wide holes in public places or you will quickly find your self in trouble,

You also want to carry a hand Towel to place next to the hole to put the Turf and the dirt on so you can easily tip it back in the hole and replace the turf without leaving a mess on the grass near to where you dug the hole.

Also you might want to invest in a Leasch Trowel/Knife which is a digging tool which is made soley for cutting neat holes in Lawn/Grassy areas, and also a smallish Pick because In Aus you will find that the dirt is like concrete and most of the time a Spade just won't make a dent in it, If you are going to go prospecting then you will need a proper Pick but Buy a Genuine Aussie company Pick, Like Walco.

This is the Walco No 1, Standard Pick but I would go with the next one up,
http://www.goldsearchaustralia.com/...e-tools-trowels-shovel/medium-walco-pick.html

This is the next one up and it is perfect for Aussie Prospecting, I think this is about the best pick money can Buy and the Only one I would buy.
http://www.goldsearchaustralia.com/...he-tools-trowels-shovel/large-walco-pick.html

for the beach you will need one of these type scoops,
http://www.goldsearchaustralia.com/our-products/accessories/long-handle-sand-scoop.html

This is a Leasch type thing.
http://www.goldsearchaustralia.com/...trowels-shovel/white-s-digmasterr-digger.html

Hope that helps,

John.

 

[Dondada]

Thank you John, very informative and helpful again!
I think I am leaning towards the Safari (unless you think the Garrett AT Pro for $700 is a good option?) didnt plan to spend this much initially but I think Im going to have to go for it!

Could you please just clarify if I would need some sort of permit or is that not needed?

 

[Ridge Runner]

Thank you John, very informative and helpful again!
I think I am leaning towards the Safari (unless you think the Garrett AT Pro for $700 is a good option?) didnt plan to spend this much initially but I think Im going to have to go for it!

Could you please just clarify if I would need some sort of permit or is that not needed?

No you should not need a permit but you need to ask guys that are in your area or at your local detecting shop, but whether you are beach detecting or on land just make sure you fill in your holes as neat as possible and you should not have any troubles.

good luck,

John.

 

[Dondada]

Thank you to Ridge Runner and everyone else here who helped me make my decision to join the "metal detecting community". Today I pulled the trigger on the Minelab Safari and a Minelab Pinpointer. I look forward to educating myself and practicing the art of metal detecting with my 5yo son. No doubt I think we would need to purchase matching fanny packs now. (Or is that something you need to graduate to? )

Again thank you all.

 

[Ridge Runner]

Just remember to take plenty to drink and something to eat because you will be surprised just how hungry you get so you will need an energy boost with all that digging and trying to keep up with Junior :lol: :lol: :lol:

John.

 

[Dondada]

Will do John, Toady we will see what hidden treasures we have in the garden
Thanks!

 

[Ridge Runner]

Will do John, Toady we will see what hidden treasures we have in the garden
Thanks!

Cooooool,

Congrats on the new machine, I like the Safari, I had the Quatro which is almost the same as the Safari but it was Blue, Let the games begin, :Y:

John.

 

[Way2go]

Hi I have the Quattro, which is basically the previous model to the Safari. It works great on the beach and in parks. A friend of mine has a 705, it works well; however, my Quattro gets down deeper on the sand, with less interference.

Dependant on your budget, I would go the Safari and possibly a Go-Find for your son.

Or

If you can a Garrett Max ( new to the market) these look to be a good all-round detector, at a reasonable price and water resistant.