CTX 3030 6'' coil changed my mind

[G. E. Edwards]

Hi guys and gals,

Just lately my 11'' stock coil went bad where the wire connects to the coil, a broken wire I suppose, anyway I put on my 6'' coil and my coin finds have increased three fold. I'm thinking due to the amount of copper, brass, lead and aluminum small and medium size targets there was just to many good metals below the 11'' coil for the CTX to lock on to just one, making it hard to figure out which one was the coin. But since I put on the 6'' the coins are rolling in like hot cakes. This coil seems to be hitting quarters and dimes at 10 to 12 inches. I work the salt water beach in southern California around some old piers that have long since been gone. Nickels at about 8'' with a pretty quite hit. but if I hear that sweet low tone no matter how broken or odd sounding 90% of the time its a nickel. Buffalo nickels give me a lot higher different sound in the clad penny range. I use 4 tone co., fast on, deep on, normal target sound, seawater on even in the wet sand, if I turn it off I have to reduce my sens. by at least 6 numbers or more. So if you have a 6'' coil give it a try in your trashy area, I'll bet your coin take increases. remember slow and low and in all directions. Thanks for listen, Gene

 

[Des D]

"Well done G.E. I'm a FIRM believer in 'small coils'.
Case in point: the CTX 6" is a beauty: during it's development it often unmasked multiple metals in holes.
Next best one up would be the 6ix's for the X-Terra, most notably the 505 and 705.
It always 'tickled me pink' at rally events to see participants swinging 15" coils and large spades in 90 degree heat!"
Amen brother..welcome to the world of smaller is better!"

Good Hunting

Des D

 

[Dekeyser68]

my dad got the 6 inch and he pretty much hunts with it exclusively now

 

[coondog]

Thanks for the input Gene. Coming from one of the gold masters like you, well it gets my attention to say the least.

I really haven't given the 6 incher much thought but maybe I should.

Please keep us informed if you have any more thoughts or opinions on that coil.

 

[AngelicStorm]

The 6 inch coil defiantly has an advantage on target separation. Considering the EMI advoidance it has compared to the 11 inch coil, I would much rather prefer the 6 incher in areas with high EMI.

 

[hershey1]

It seems to me the 6 inch due to it's size makes a person hunt more thorough by going much slower. I too find just as much if not more using the smaller coil not just on the beach but relic hunting as well. Good post Gene! HH

 

[INSAYN]

It seems to me the 6 inch due to it's size makes a person hunt more thorough by going much slower. I too find just as much if not more using the smaller coil not just on the beach but relic hunting as well. Good post Gene! HH

Absolutely right.

I purposely choose the 6" when I hit a new curb strip. Keeps me from covering it too fast.
It's also much more "bush whacking" friendly.

 

[GKMan]

It definitely has it's place! I would think it would be a killer on those curb strips.

This morning I had my seventeen incher on in a large field and was thinking about this post and saying..uhmmm, I don't think this is the right place for the sixer

But then I visited a cellar hole nearby and I couldn't even keep a threshold because there is so much iron, sheet metal etc. But, last year using the six inch I pulled a large cent out of there with it before I sold it. The thing is I just don't detect those very trashy sites often and if that changes, I'll pick another one up.

I am cautiously optimistic about this new Coiltek coil... If any sponsors out there will take $300 for one you have a deal

 

[INSAYN]

Yeah a sixer would be silly in an wide open field, but around corn stubble.... your set!

The sixer is also great around play structures and fences.
It's less opt to chirp crazy on ya when you get close to the metal bars.

But the curb strips is where I love it the most.
Being so light, I could work a single 5' x 12' section all day and clean that sucker out with no arm fatigue.

 

[GKMan]

I am working that corn stubble now, and the coiltek or sixer would be nice to try in those hard to reach places...

 

[sube]

Told you Gene that little coil is a killer that's all I use at the fairgrounds. sube

 

[G. E. Edwards]

I tell ya, yesterday I was doing the wet sand high up the bank and tagged a silver rosie, an old silver bracelet, 20 quarters, 15 dimes, 11 nickels, 1 kennedy half, 1 buffalo 1929, in a 20 by 30 foot area with the six''. And I realized that in four tone conductive if I got a high tone with the circle down in the iron area, that if I dig at least one scoop of sand then recheck that 90 percent of the time the circle would then show up in the coin area too. Which tells me I have left alot of deep coins thinking they were iron. I assume the six hears them but doesn't report them with the circle but with just the audio. Remember that in 4 tone conductive, iron and coins have the same tone in that bin, but the coin being deep it may not show the circle till you dig down a scoop or two. Good luck.

 

[INSAYN]

How long did you spend working that 20x30 area?

 

[G. E. Edwards]

Insayn, I worked it 4 hours. I would work one direction then the other. Sometimes just meander around in circles. Today I got a silver 1964 quarter and 49 clad coins. Only about 2 hours.

 

[INSAYN]

That's some serious accumulation in a small area.

 

[BartOscar]

Gene rules supreme at the beach! I have detected with him in the "spot' that keeps on giving. That spot however prefers Gene and I have the same machine. He has been kind enough to put new programs on my CTX and what is great about him is he keeps learning-keeps tweaking the programs to get more out of the CTX and passing the info on to the rest of us. Thanks Gene!

 

[Dirtbag Kevin]

You were getting really good depth for the 6er. We're you using auto or manual sensitivity? How high was your sensitivity? Any discrimination?

 

[G. E. Edwards]

Hi Kevin,
I use manual sens. on theses beaches in southern California I run at 18 to 22, some areas I can get it up to 28 but that's rare. There is a lot of black sand here and it really effects the sens. along with depth. But over all I'm really impressed with the way the CTX can find a coin next to a old very large rusted bolt in salt wet sand. The six inch coil makes a huge difference in iron infested areas like I detect. To me the 11'' picks up to many targets at one making it harder to figure out who's good and who's bad under the coil. Like I said earlier if you have say 2 pieces of copper, and 2 pieces of brass, and a silver coin along with a small fishing weight all which are acceptable targets under your 11'' coil I'm sure the CTX is saying what the hell? I have found out that the CTX will show the iron icon at the lower right bottom, and nothing else, but if I dig one scoop of sand away a lot of the times it will change and also give me a coin icon. so by taking a lot of sand off the deep target the CTX finally says hey there's a good target too.So even though it says iron I will remove one scoop of sand if it still says iron it is what it is. But if the coin icon starts appearing then there is something good with the iron. so now I know I have left a many a coin behind due to this. So with this in mind when you guys and gals are out detecting and the detector just reports iron and you keep on walking, you gotta wonder, what are you really leaving behind? It's pretty easy to check the target in my type of sand detecting, but for you dirt diggers this would be a pain to check every iron target. I'm sure this is only happening on deep coins, shallow coins the detector shows both icons for iron and coin. I Think I should have taken up gold panning.

 

[qlipphotic]

Gene,

I'm here in southern california too, San Pedro/Long Beach area. I just started using my 6" today, and the finds have changed DRAMATICALLY. I mostly do parks though, there's way too much competition at the beaches right now. Once summer picks up after Memorial Day I'll start hitting the beaches more often.

What target separation do you run with your 6" coil? I'm running High Trash, I'm afraid of the other ones and am not too sure how they really work quite yet either.

Are you here in the LA area? I'd love to get together with another CTX user sometime so we can compare notes etc

-Chris

 

[G. E. Edwards]

I use ground coin, but I also have my second program set the exact same except I use Ferrous coin. When I get a target I check it with both modes. I have found that when I use ground coin in iron infested beach if there is a coin with the iron the icon shows up in the coin area along with the iron icon at the bottom, if no icon appears in the coin area but just in the bottom iron area there is no coin with it. Now Ferrous coin when you hit iron will also give a coin icon and there is no coin there. Only time there is a coin is if the coin icon fills red. Another thing I have noticed is in ground coin if I get a iron icon, and dig one big scoop full then recheck the hole sometime a coin does show up. I assume it's just to deep or to close to the iron or under it. It's really hard to detemine where any target is in wet soupy sand or where it really is in relation to the iron. I just know when your working in wet black salt sand the numbers coming from the detector can be all over the place. Salt, heavy black sand, and iron can be really hard to detect in.