Veterans Selling V3i, Why?

[MartinL]

I've known for a while that many veteran THs have bundled up and sold their V3i machines. Call me a skeptic maybe, but I always go into protective mode, i.e. Is the V3i a sick technology? Many mods from another site sold theirs late last year, and I see a mod here selling his. Surely the economy hasn't disabled all of these people to cause this. Me, I'd take close to my money back on mine, which was bought through a mod on another site, at a decent price. I just never felt the V3i was anything like it was built up to be, by many of the same people I now know have sold theirs. Am I too suspicious? martin

[pulltabsteve]

Martin, The V3i is a great machine. Its not for everyone. Its for people who like to make adjustments and take the time to learn what these tweaks do. I started detecting 6 years ago with the M6. The machine is easy to use and finds good items. Deep too. Im just comfortable with it. Most of my hunts last 4-6 hours. The battery life on the M6 is excellent. For me, Id rather be swinging the machine than making adjustments. I have 4 other machines besides the M6 and V3i. Its a matter of choice for me. If my V doesn't sell, then I will keep it, learn it and find great stuff with it. My second trip out with the V I found a 1722 spanish reale in a very hunted out spot. 2 weeks later I found a nice gold ring on the beach. Its like any tool, learn it and it will work for you.

[CyberSage]

I think you have summed it up very nicely Steve. I would add that the V3/V3i was designed for versatility, and for pushing the envelope in a variety of environments. It is in fact a turn on and go detector, but to maximize your results you do have to have an understanding of not just what the individual controls do, but also how they interact with each other. As Steve so wisely stated, Its not for everyone. For me the experimenting and adjusting is a lot of fun. Keep the faith brother Martin, you have a great machine there! lol

Jack

[BOWSER]

some people like to hit a spot ,turn on and go, others like to fiddle and didddle for an hour and then wonder if thier settings are right, They are the very same people that wonder what they missed after all the setting choices they made.Then you come on to a forum and find out that a guy with an ace 250 is doin a heck of a lot better than you are, and his kid with a 150 came home with a gold ring. To be honest at least my prism11 paid for itself and found most of my best finds.I put out 500 for an mxt and that's as far as i'm goin money wise. 8/

[Trigem]

The V3i isn't for the weak at heart \
There's so many variations in this detector you have
got to enjoy technical electronics, This machine
will probably take the average person 6 to 12 months
to get a real good basic understanding of what you have....
If you are over whelmed with complicated electronics,
get you a two knob-er,
For me, I love complicated I have only had the V3i for three weeks
or so, and I love it <:
I also love all the helpful info you can find for it on the net

Above all, just get out there and dig, dig, dig

[Rebel8]

I would like to add, the veterans you speak of, I sure hope
they are in my hunting grounds. It took me a year to dig my first
silver dime in excess of 10 inches with the v3i. That came at a price I was willing
to pay. You can find treasure without a detector just by eyeballing.
You can find it with an inexpensive detector. You can give someone
a v3i and without due dilligence he won't find that 10 inch dime. Some accept
the challenge, some don't. For most it is a hobby. If you are not having success
or fun, don't blame it on the equipment. Lower you expectations. lol

[Coinstar]

I just got my V3i about 5 days ago. I absolutly love it. Before I decided on the V3i, I had 2 other detectors I was thinking about. The 3 machines were the E-trac, F75LTD, and the V3i. I went online and looked at the different used machines available and the price points. I found that the V3i and the E-trac had about the same amount of used units for sale. The F75LTD seemed to have a tad more. Of the V3i's I saw, only one had the wireless headphones. It got sold before I could blink twice. So I went to my local dealer, he gave me a great deal. My point I guess, is that I didn't see any more used V3i's than any other detectors out there.

Right now I am just getting used to the basic machine pre-sets. After a couple of weeks, I will be getting into programming for my specific needs.

[MartinL]

All valid points! It just gets confusing when some of the soapbox standers(not this board) who make a solid statement like, The V3i is the best detector of all detectors and then learn that some of those same folks sold theirs already. I like my V3i, even though I always get out done by my brother with a really delapidated Fisher 1260. Kinda takes some of the fun out of it all when the $1500 Whites gets smoked by a detector all eaten up by salt. martin

[cnr_dogs]

All valid points! It just gets confusing when some of the soapbox standers(not this board) who make a solid statement like, The V3i is the best detector of all detectors and then learn that some of those same folks sold theirs already. I like my V3i, even though I always get out done by my brother with a really delapidated Fisher 1260. Kinda takes some of the fun out of it all when the $1500 Whites gets smoked by a detector all eaten up by salt. martin

I agree 100% but its all user and machine and that users knowledge of the machine. My dad has been swinging his MXT longer than I have mine. He knows the intracacies for it in his area of Colorado and will beat me down in finds. Come to Idaho and he cant hang with me. He has also lost some hearing and has diminished vision but he still throws down with his detector. and amazes me with the finds he gets.

[RWJR13]

Well said.......

[russellt]

i think its all in what you are comforatable with . i would be willing to guess that MOSTLY .the people who are selling their V's are not buying other detectors . they are going back to what they had before purchasing the V3i.. this is not true all the time but i would say that is the majority.. i like ruger guns, my pop likes smith & wesson. i ilke volkswagens, he likes trucks . its all relative

[Epi-hunter]

I bought a V3 when they first came out, used it for a couple of days, almost wrapped it around the neck of my detecting partner (who was using an E-Trac) out of frustration, so I sold it and bought an E-Trac. Love the E-Trac. Then a few months ago I bought a V3i. I like the V3i too, but for different reasons.

[digginpa]

I went from a green machine to a v3i, and never looked back. Its versatile and goes deep. The learning curve is steep but kept pluggin away, am now comfortable using it. If someone were to give me a new machine Free...Id take another V3i for my daughter...she's using the other machine which is good turn on and go. Before I spent the money on the V3, I studied all the other detectors, and the manufacturers, and the customer service issues, along with any modifications these companies may offer in the future...Whites wins hands down. Another big plus is, just check out the other detector forums,the most helpful people are on the whites forums. Nuff said.............

[MartinL]

I really don't mean to try and have the last word here, yet my point is that several of the veterans I speak of were the same ones stating emphatically that these were the King Of The Hill of detectors, THEN we find they have sold theirs. This, folks, is where I become confused. IF the V3i is, in their own words, the BEST of the best, and they own one, THEN sell it,,,something smells fishy IMO. I assume that some are dealers hawking their wares, and some are simply antsy for testing new detectors, yet if I ever said that that ANY detector I owned was the King, I'd sure not sell it!

As far as the White's forums being really saturated with lots of helpers on the V...that in itself says there is a lot of help needed. We won't mention the particular forum name here, but those gurus were best known for giving page numbers from the manuals. I never considered that as real help from an active discussion board. IF, IF IF, the V3i is the King, then logic says all of the true veterans would keep their V3i. Mind you, I am highlighting the ones who stood on their soapboxes about the V3i, not the casual TH'r we realizes the V3i isn't their cup of tea. martin

[Trigem]

I really don't mean to try and have the last word here, yet my point is that several of the veterans I speak of were the same ones stating emphatically that these were the King Of The Hill of detectors, THEN we find they have sold theirs. This, folks, is where I become confused. IF the V3i is, in their own words, the BEST of the best, and they own one, THEN sell it,,,something smells fishy IMO. I assume that some are dealers hawking their wares, and some are simply antsy for testing new detectors, yet if I ever said that that ANY detector I owned was the King, I'd sure not sell it!

So what detector are you using?

[MartinL]

So what detector are you using?

I have a V3i. martin

[midas]

MartinL, The King of detectors is the brand or model in the hands of the person using it that yields the most finds. Whether it be an ETrac, V3i, GTI, Coinmaster, Ace, Xterra, etc. etc. My Dad used to say that it is the Mechanic and not the Tool that gets the job done right. Obviously you haven't found the right tool that you are comfortable with yet. Each detector has it's own language to learn, it's not something that can be learned overnight. Like the Mechanic, it's takes practice and experience. Go to a local Multi Brand dealer and try every machine he has to find the right one for you.

[MartinL]

You are sort of missing my point. My point for this discussion is that many of those touting the V3i as The best, hands down, sold theirs late last year. Me?, I'll continue to play with mine. The whole point of the thread was to clear the confusion over why some of the same people who say one thing(Best detector hands down), then sells theirs. It is illogical.

martin

[Coinstar]

Here's another theory. I went hunting with a friend of mine yesterday at a big park. When we pulled up someone with an E-trac was swinging away. We got out and did a different area of the park. I have a V3i my friend has an MXT. This place was full of trash. Since we were hunting for jewelry, we were crouching down digging pull tabs about once every minute. My friend found a small 10k gold womens ring. I found very little clad, one wheatie, and about a pound of tabs (seemed like it anyhow). Anyway, the E-trac guy came over and asked if we found anything. I showed him my wheatie. My friend showed the ring. First thing out of his mouth was.. I haven't found anything in this park in months. I am thinking about getting a white's and selling this e-trac. So maybe, the Veteran's are reading Minelab forums about all the GREAT finds, or, going out with friends with different machines and they clean house. Only they can answer.

[Dimeman]

You are sort of missing my point. My point for this discussion is that many of those touting the V3i as The best, hands down, sold theirs late last year. Me?, I'll continue to play with mine. The whole point of the thread was to clear the confusion over why some of the same people who say one thing(Best detector hands down), then sells theirs. It is illogical.

martin

In my area there were quite a few locals who had bought the DFX and said the same thing. It was the best and nothing could match it. After a few years, all but a couple of them have changed brands. stretcher:

It's whatever you are comfortable using at the time. I had a Whites M6 for 4 years and it was the best detector I have ever owned. Now I own a Garrett AT Pro and presently it is the best one I have owned.

New models come out and/or peoples mindset about what they are willing to adjust on their detector to make it work to their satisfaction. Having the most expensive detector doesn't make it the best. It's what the operator can learn how to operate the detector he owns, that makes it work to the operators advantage.

I have seen old timers with old taped up rod, and glue on the coil, crappy looking detectors, run circles around guys with top of the line detectors. And those guys with the expensive machines wonder why that old detector works better. And it comes down to the knowledge of the detector by the person using it. If you aren't satified or comfortable with the detector you own, you aren't going to get it to work to its peak performance or your peak performance in your finds.

You seem to have doubts in the V3i and people who have owned them. Maybe they sold it because it was a great detector but not to their liking. I have had some detectors over the years I liked for a while. One I owned for 4 months and got a cheaper model of another brand and was very happy.

There is nothing illogical about it.