I have enjoyed the hobby of metal detecting since 1974. I suffered a spinal injury a few years ago, and have not been able to metal detect due to my physical impairment. When Minelab came out with the new Musketeer Advantage, I read about the lightweight thin coils and hip mount capability and decided that these features may allow me to once again participate in the hobby I relished for so for many years. A hobby that I had only enjoyed in my dreams since the injury. My doctor encouraged me to give it a try as the physical exercise will benefit my cardiovascular, not to mention the psychological benefits of being outside in the fresh air. Like he said, I know my physical limitations. What I can do and what I can't. So, I decided to give it a try.
I bought the new Minelab Advantage with the additional accessories offered in the Pro Pack. I have used many different brands over the past 29 years, but this is my first Minelab product. Although I have only had it a few months, I will say that it is very well balanced and the hip mount allows me to detect without putting undue stress on my body. The Advantage is, without a doubt, the deepest seeking detector I have ever owned. It is a pleasure to use. I am quite pleased with the new Advantage. Let me tell you why. Living in the Midwest, I don't have access to the early coins of the 1700's or the old battlefields I read about. My part of the state was not settled until the mid 1850's, so digging Indian cents and Barber dimes makes for a good day. Finding an occasional Seated Liberty is very exciting. I spend a lot of time in the winter months reading about and researching places where early settlers may have congregated. Old Chautauqua Grounds, Fair Grounds and Picnic areas are among my favourites. I might still stop by an old school ground or abandoned church yard, but most of my time is spent in places that to the "normal person" appear as a corn field or pasture. This is where I like to hunt. I don't have to worry about tuning out pull tabs because these areas were long forgotten when aluminium came into the marketplace. I'm out there in the field, literally, where the only noises are meadowlarks and my detector telling me that I may have found a good one. There is an old picnic area about a short drive from my house that I had searched thoroughly back in the late 70's. A relatively small parcel of ground, surrounded by pastures and a creek. I had only been there once in the past five years, but had found a couple of Barber dimes during my last visit. I was anxious to get back there with the new Advantage and see just what was buried "beyond the reach" of my previous detectors. We have had quite a bit of rain here the past month, so the soil is very damp and easy digging. I arrived at the site and strapped on the Advantage. I connected the 10" coil, hoping to find some of the deeper coins that had avoided my earlier trips. After searching for about 30 minutes, I got my first signal. It was a clad quarter, about two inches deep. Finding this newer coin told me that, although this site was abandoned, there had been others here in the recent past. Possibly other metal detectors! So much for my "secret place". During the next half hour I found a memorial cent, making me wonder if this area was "hunted out", as so many seem to be. Feeling fatigued, I decided to switch to my 8" coil to lighten the load. I had only walked about 30 feet when I got a sweet - solid signal. I checked the discriminator to make sure I had it advanced to null out the occasional piece of junk and found that it was running full discriminate. This had to be a good target. I carefully dug a hole to a depth of seven inches and removed the plug of soil (I know it was seven inches because my digging tool is marked for depth). I rescanned the area and found the target was still in the hole. I dug down another couple of inches and there it was, glimmering in the sunlight. The distinctive reeded edge of a silver coin. Not just a silver coin, but THE silver coin that had eluded me and undoubtedly others in our previous hunts. During the past 29 years, I have found hundreds of old silver dimes, quarters and half dollars. But this was not a dime, quarter or half-dollar. This was a beautiful 1888 O Morgan silver dollar and it was in excellent condition. My first Morgan silver dollar, found in an area that I (and countless others) had missed during our previous hunts. I have no doubt that I had walked over this coin several times in my previous hunts and had not gotten a signal. Why was today the day that she decided to give herself up? Was it the deep-seeking characteristics of the Advantage or was it fate? I'll leave that for you to decide. All I know is that the Minelab Advantage paid for itself many times over with that one find. A beautiful day to be alive - a Minelab Advantage and a Morgan silver dollar that had avoided detection for over 100 years. Thank you for building the lightweight, deep-seeking Minelab Advantage. An affordable machine that allowed me the opportunity to rediscover my dreams, in more ways than one. Randy H. - Iowa, USA