Topic: 981 vs. 997

[Jolly Roger]

Hi Robert,
I gotta a question for you since you own(ed?) a 987 and have a newer 997 to compare.
What is the better unit for treasure hunting in your opinion?
I know that the 997 has a better resolution, but I think that counts more to see fish.

[RGecy]

The 997 is a better unit all around.  At the time, the 981/987 were excellent!  I wasn't at all impressed with the 262khz though. 

I mainly use the 455khz for searching and then switch to the 800khz to get better detail on objects and wrecks that I find. 

The 997 also has a faster processor and larger screen size than the 987 had.

It is also very important to learn what targets are going to look like on the side scan.  Anglers are usually just looking for structure and dont typically pay attention to what the structure actually is.  They just care that the fish like it and hang on the wrecks.  We want to know if the wreck might have boilers, single or double screw, or what a cannon or ballast pile might look like. So having the ability to get a higher res image can mean alot.  Is it a log or is it a cannon?  With the 987 you couldn't necessarilly see that detail.  With the 997 you can.

997 hands down and only wish I had an 1197!

Robert

[Jolly Roger]

Thanks for your answer Robert!
I'll get familiar with my 981 and see what I'll find with it. I assume there will be a lot to learn.

[RGecy]

Harald,

Depending on what you are looking for, the 981 is a good unit and you will get just as good of results with your 455khz transducer as with the same transducer on the 997!  The 800khz is the difference.  Again, I do not use the 800khz for searching, just for better clarity when I do find a target.

Robert

[Jolly Roger]

  As long as I can recognize an airplane or shipwreck with it, I'll be the happiest camper on earth.
But I see your point about the resolution. Would be pretty frustrating to dive for a cannon and come up with a beam.
There is a story about a cannon that was transported from a monastery to a castle across the ice in the medieval. But the ice was too thin and the cannon was lost with the carriage and cannonballs. One of the things I wanna check out with my unit.
Keep your fingers crossed!

[RGecy]

Harald,

I have some great images of what I thought was a cannon with my 987c.  It was tapered and looked to be about 8-10' long.  I had a couple guys come in to dive with me and I thought it would be great first dive for them and if we found a cannon, how cool would that be.  Long story short, it ended up being a dock piling!

It was a great story though.  Go read this link on TNet.  These guys are now some of my best friends.

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,37894.0.html

Robert

[Jolly Roger]

Great story!
Very interesting and informative. The piling really looked like a cannon.