Pros and cons of each

The only con, on the 10" coil, I can think of is weight. Other than that the 10" coil goes deeper and covers more area. If I had an "either or" decision I would go with the 10".:yes:
 
The 8 inch coil is better in trashy area's if it was me buying a Excal I would go with the 10"
 
The 8 inch coil is better in trashy area's if it was me buying a Excal I would go with the 10"

Where I am hunting mostly there is tons and tons of trash beer cans bottle tops foil, it's behind a very large dance club and bar. The whole beach is just pretty much just one big trash can. So maybe I need to rethink and go with the 8 inch coil. Thank you for the information.
 
I would go 10in on the Excal, better coverage, I have never seen a huge difference between the 8in and 10in coil in trash area's but the extra depth and coverage would make a big difference in most spots.
 
Where I am hunting mostly there is tons and tons of trash beer cans bottle tops foil, it's behind a very large dance club and bar. The whole beach is just pretty much just one big trash can. So maybe I need to rethink and go with the 8 inch coil. Thank you for the information.

If its very trashy you may want to opt for the smaller coil...

Why not look at the Sovereign GT its a great dirt machine and is tops on the wet sand at the beach... it has so many advantages over the Excal... interchangable coil,you can use whatever headphones you want, a stock straight shaft and if you are near another guy with a detector that is talking to your detector you can change bands..
 
I'm going to agree with the others who advise the 8" coil.

Yes, the 10" coil covers more area and goes deeper, but what many don't know is that the larger coils go deeper to hit larger targets, not the smaller ones generally.

Also, the 10" coil is a bit cumbersome. Not quite like swinging a garbage can lid (that award goes to the Dual Field), but getting close.

You'll also find pinpointing with the 8" coil a lot easier.

Good luck with your choice.
 
Well here is my thinking. I do have a pi detector but it is no good for the sandy beach to much trash. Weather here can change fast and surf conditions are the same good for a moment and then time to get out. I was looking for a detector that would cover from the sandy beach to the water. I really don't want to take 2 detectors to the beach just 1 so i picked the Minelab Excalibur II to save me time. If I can water hunt then no problem sandy beach hunt no problem it goes to raining no problem lighting time to leave. So that is why I am looking at the Minelab Excalibur II as a time saver. Do you think I picked the right one? Please let me know. Thank you all for all your input so far been very helpful .
 
In the water there is less trash and the PI is going to be deeper than the Excal.. I use my PI on the wet sand I know is fairly clean but I also know my PI inside and out and rarely dig much iron or bobbiepins...

My set up is the GT for trashy and iron infested are's and the PI in the water... but you must do what you think is the right way to go for your area...
 
After viewing Nasa Tom's beach hunting seminar DVD (I hope that mentioning it is OK) I realize that depth is everything on a beach. Especially wet sand where the waves help sink things. Go with the 10" coil. Also he quotes some figures on there about coverage area of coils. You are not just talking about 2 " of coil difference. There is crazy math involved and the larger coil ends up checking a tremendous amount more real-estate. If you go too large of a coil you risk loosing the smaller targets. hit an area as hard as you can.
 
Put the Ex II on a straight shaft like pluggers here and it virtually becomes neutral to hold and swing. The 10" coil is counterbalanced wonderfully. Best accessory I've ever bought and a 180 turnaround ergonomically. Superb!
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10in coils are pretty much the standard for detecting today with 8in being less desirable, rarely will you find any high end detectors coming from the factory with an 8in coil anymore. I am not sure why, maybe they did not notice much difference in target separation and opted for the greater depth? If I was hitting beaches and bought an Excal I would go 10in unless they had a ridiculous amount of trash but even then an 8in wont help you much. Dont worry about weight, Minelabs tend to be heavy but I have used both the 8in and 10in on my old Sov and the difference was negligible.
 
You won't get the same depth with the Excal as you will with the PI, but it will be reasonable.

If you want your Excal to compete depth-wise, after your warranty expires, look at getting a WOT coil spliced into your machine.
 
I can't say for the 8" coil on the Excal, but the 10" does very well in trashy areas with the disc set, but with any machine with the disc set, you can miss some stuff, but if you don't want to dig hardly any cap's, tab's or nail's, it works pretty good. If you go with the Excal I'd go with the 10" mainly for more coverage. They run pretty deep in my experience. Deep enough for me anyways in the sand, wet or dry where I mostly MD.
 
I see no reason to take an 8" coil to the beach or water over a 10" one. If you could give me a 12" or 14" coil I would prefer that too. Depth & coverage are what you want at the beach.
 
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