So many coils so many questions :surrender:

[Goldshot]

Preparing to use an Explorer, I'd like to know what after market coil will be most useful in trashy places and if there is a general purpose coil better than the stock coil. So far I'm believing that a 5" round might be the best choice for badly littered spots and there might not be a better general coil than the Minelab stock coil. I've read conflicting reports and opinions about Excelerator, Coiltek and others so I'm also not sure which manufacturers are most dependable and I can't afford to make a bad choice. any and all input will be appreciated -- thanx

 

[Chuck@TreasureHut]

Hello Goldshot......in this dealer's opinion, it is very hard to beat the 5", Sun Ray, Stealth X-5 for trashy areas. The coil is precise, has excellent depth, and works realy well on the Explorer.

As far as the general purpose coil is concerned, it is also hard to beat the CoilTek, Platypus, 8.5"x11.5", DD eliptical coil.

Both coils are "as good as it gets" in modern coil technology.

You can see both at www.treasurehut.org

 

[Rick(ND)]

I agree chuck on the little 5 inch coil as it is great in those trashy sites many will avoid because of the trash. I like the Coiltec Joey coil too I use more than any other one as it will get into tight spots and light weight and does well. For my bigger coil the Sun Ray X12 has done a great job for me and lighter weight then the stock coil is. Also like you say the Platypus is a great coil too and will do great and less weight then the stock coil on the XS and XS II.
I have used a Sun Ray 8 inch coil too and it too was a great coil and did well. There is so many good one to pick from in the Sun Ray and Coiltec coils itis hard to pick one as they all are great coils.

Rick

 

[LarryK]

Goldshot,

I have the Excelerator 5" coil and love it. It is the one that stays on my detector 90% of the time. Just my opinion, but don't think you could go wrong with it.

Larry

 

[Goldshot]

Thanks Chuck, Larry & Rick,

I'll check-out the Coiltek, Excelerator and Sun Ray coils mentioned. I was happy to hear that good depth is achieved with the 5" Sun Ray (or other 5" coils ?) and then to hear about the Platypus as a general purpose champ.

Also found the Coiltek WOT which opens a third category for me, "beach detecting". I assume the larger diameter is better on the beach for some reason.

I was most skeptical of the Excelerator coils because I heard some specific negatives about them but as we all know we cannot believe everything we hear. You input is appreciated Larry.

Thanks again for all the input.

Bill

 

[Chuck@TreasureHut]

Your welcome Bill, and I inadvertantly left out the Sun Ray Stealth X-12 as a good, lower weight, but super deep general purpose replacement for the stock 10.5" Minelab coil. It's hot, and helps the balance alot.

 

[jeff & Maria]

I use one also. It easily finds items down to 6 inches or so, which is the norm for even old stuff here because of the clay/shale soil.
I have found items in areas that I wouldn't even call too trashy where the larger coils missed.

 

[WThesing]

I purchased a Sunray X-5 in early June when I started working a 103 acre historic farm (early 1700's). The large farmhouse had quite a few roof replacements, and there was literally a carpet band of nails and copper shards by the thousands at different depths correlating with the different time periods. I swear by the X-5 and it has OUTSTANDING depth for a smaller coil. I just had a Sunray X-12 shipped to me while on vacation at the NJ shore. This is another GREAT coil!!!! The house that I have rented for the past 13 consecutive years has yielded some silver under the pea gravel. When I got my Explorer II last year, I scoured the property thoroughly several times until there was nothing more worth digging. This year I checked the area where the clothesline used to be, as I pulled a merc and some wheaties from there last year. Nothing to be had. When I received the X-12 I tried it out in the same spot. Within 5 minutes I located 3 targets. One merc, 2 wheaties. All were on edge approximately 8 -10" down. There was 3-4 " of pea gravel and another 5 -6 " of bar sand. On the beach I found plenty, but due to Ernesto removing about 4 feet of sand, I cannot give an accurate comparison compared to using the stock coil last year. I like the feel of having less weight. I was also informed that Sunray works very closely with the Minelab folks, and the Sunray coils are "tuned" to the machines for better performance.

HH
Bill

 

[Bill W.]

Anything from SunRay or Coiltek is first rate and well built. I would recommend the SunRay X5 or even something like the Coiltek Platypus (8.5 x 11.5) which is oblong and would allow you to 'squeeze' in between objects like a smaller coil. The Coiltek Joey is even smaller at 5 x 10.

-Bill

 

[Goldshot]

Thanks Bill - The Platypus, as an alternate to the standard 10", and the X5 are actually the coils on my list after everyone's input and info I found elsewhere on-line. I hope to get started with the Explorer this weekend but I plan to use the stock coil until I feel comfortable with it. (I've been using a Tesoro which is so easy to use and as a more casual hunter I never seriously considered alternate coils).

Recently I've tried hunting the beach where it isn't terribly trashy so it will be tough to decide which coil to get first. The sure thing is that it will be a fun decision.

Thanks again to you and everyone else for the advise, I hope to be sharing some finds before too long.

Bill S