New CTX3030 user for 3 weeks - My findings.

[Kingspin]

Well i will give a fairly brief review of what i think of the ctx 3030 so far and what i like and dislike about this lovely machine , although i have many more likings than dislikings about the beast. Well she looks nice and handles really nice , no aching arms any more like i had with my explorer.
The swing is beautifull , i personally love it, minelab did a great job with the balance no question about it. The factory programs for modern coins - great! , coin shooting call it what you like. factory set programs are pretty good, the silver program i prefer over the coins program. You don't need to screw around trying to get better performance the factory settings work well. I found the ctx fast in the trashy sites , it seems to have no difficulty what so ever in sniffing coins out from the litter such as foil and pull tabs , it's very good at the job. The performance is great in these conditions even without adjusting settings hardly at all , the depth is good 8 - 10 inches depth on a medium sized coin is not too much of a problem for the ctx , larger coins can be found to about 12 inches. I have pulled lots of coins out of sites that i thought were worked out , most of the targets were masked by iron and tabs but the ctx hits the coins easily!. Battery life is good and lasts twice as long as my explorer se battery lasted , ctx battery lasts 13 hours on a full charge which is nice. Alkalines don't last long , the ctx really sucks alkalines dry in about 6 hours and thats a a good set of alkalines , the lion re-charge pack really has a massive amount of power to offer. The wireless facility is superb , something i could not do without now i am used to it, very nice to be wire free of the detector when swinging. I find the ctx goes deeper and finds more in wet soil , it works much better in wet soil this is a fact , but then most detectors like wet moist soil. The gps facility i have to say has me a little baffled , what use it is i am not sure yet , i am sure i will get to try it some time but i have just been too busy learning how to master the settings so far. Coils - I highly recommend the 6 inch coil is purchased if you buy a ctx 3030 , the 6 inch coil is superb in trashy sites , any one looking to find hammered coins on uk stubble and ploughed will need the 6 inch coil just as you need oxygen to survive, it's superb in the iron. The 17 inch coil i have used twice , depth on coins is a bit better than the stock 11 inch coil on coins, but it finds more , the extra ground coverage helps a lot, on ploughed soils i would use the 11 inch or 6 inch coil , the 17 inch seems best for beaches and pasture. When looking for a pot of coins 18 inches down the 17 coil is the coil to have, i found larger lumps of metal a foot and half down easily, a very deep coil for sure but deeper on larger targets, on targets like coins it seems only marginally deeper than the stock 11 inch coil. Summary- In a nut shell the ctx is a superb coin shooter , it really is great, but at two thousand pounds gosh it's not cheap! Why it's so expensive i don't know , i can't see the machine costing more than a couple of hundred pounds to manufacture but they are probably other reasons the ctx costs so much. The development and other hidden costs probably push the price up as do vat , import taxes and profit for the dealer.
I rate the ctx 3030 9 out of ten , loosing a point simply because it is over priced. So much for a short review . A nice detector for sure , get saving.

[Rodi££ian]

That's an excellent and honest report Kingspin, thanks. covering just about every aspect of the detector in an easy to read write up.
From what you have said I think that this one would suit me well, however the reason you give for the lost point (9 out of 10) is the reason that I will not be able to get one .
Looking forward to seeing some of your future finds on here.

[Oldest Swinger]

Great read I agree with most you say though I have no idea what the manufacture cost would be. I would think this would come down the more they make (economy of scale I believe it is called) though I doubt this would be passed on to the consumers. Unfortunately for those unable to afford the cost I don't ever see the used market getting any cheeper until technology moves on to the next stage. I am enjoying my detecting again since purchasing g my CTX though not because of any increase in finds but because of the intense learning curve involved.
Keep swinging a keep us informed how you are getting on

Paul

[FUBAR]

Many thanks for your report. It was well written and contained some great info. thanks again matey.

[Kingspin]

Thanks guys i do try my best to give as accurate review as i can considering i am not a propper author like authors in the mags. But it's fun writing about metal detectors (yea call me an anorak) but i totally agree! All in all the ctx is generally a very nice machine to own.
My only 2 real (personal gripes )i have about the ctx 3030
which i failed to mention in the review are that the screen is hard to see because of glare, i analyse the tones by ear and have the numbers set to BIG so i can see them easily but i cant make out all of the rest of whats going on about the screen as my eyes are not as good as they were 1o years ago. I personally think minelab did not put enough effort into screen clarity. The sticking shaft is annoying at times too , i squirt a bit of wd40 on mine to make it smoother at sliding in and out of the top shaft even though i have been told it's a bad idea. silicones are the best sprays so i have heard. A coin / ring hunters dream this detector hot on rings too which is fantastic.

[Biglewey]

Interesting post.

Just one thing and I'm NOT having a pop at Minelab or any other manufacturer of detectors.

On the price - never confuse COST and PRICE! It would be nice if the cost to us was always the price plus a reasonable margin but its not always so.

When you have something like the CTX such that what it provides cant be bought a different way then theres no direct competition - if you want a CTX type detector then theres no others... At the lower price end at say £150-200 then there is competition and several options so price is likley to be competitive.

Having said that I see equipment for industry is sooo expensive becuase the R&D must be shared over say 100 units sold vs a TV where they sell millions so the R&D can be spread out. Detectors especially at the top end must be very limited production runs and so R&D and set-up costs must be higher per unit.

[Bridex]

Thanks guys i do try my best to give as accurate review as i can considering i am not a propper author like authors in the mags. But it's fun writing about metal detectors (yea call me an anorak) but i totally agree! All in all the ctx is generally a very nice machine to own.
My only 2 real (personal gripes )i have about the ctx 3030
which i failed to mention in the review are that the screen is hard to see because of glare, i analyse the tones by ear and have the numbers set to BIG so i can see them easily but i cant make out all of the rest of whats going on about the screen as my eyes are not as good as they were 1o years ago. I personally think minelab did not put enough effort into screen clarity. The sticking shaft is annoying at times too , i squirt a bit of wd40 on mine to make it smoother at sliding in and out of the top shaft even though i have been told it's a bad idea. silicones are the best sprays so i have heard. A coin / ring hunters dream this detector hot on rings too which is fantastic.

I fitted an ipad non-reflective screen protector to my CTX, don't have the problem anymore.
Sticking shafts, go to a decent builders/plumbers merchant and get some "Hunter Silicone Lubricant" spray. Cures the sticking shaft with no fear of damage!