Big Boys Hobbies

Another Coil Question

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D-Man

New Member
Joined
Jan 4, 2009
Messages
3
Hi Everybody,
I just recently upgraded from a prizm II to an mxt (though I'm still a rookie) and I've been debating how best to take advantage of the All-American GIft Pack deal White's has going on at the moment. I've done a lot of research at this and other metal detecting forums to try to determine which coil in the deal would be the best to get. I'm mainly detecting at schools, playgrounds and parks, though I might hit a beach every once in a while. I have no idea about mineralization in my area, but just today we were at a spot where the mxt was sounding "hits" of constantly changing id's on every sweep. I've read about "trashy" sites in this forum, but I hadn't experienced it in my limited detecting so I'm guessing that's what I had found. Or could it have been a mineralization problem?

Anyways, I seem to be getting off topic. Back to the coil questions. At first, it seems that the Eclipse 4x6 DD would be a good compliment to the stock 950, and from what I can tell, it's a standard setup for many people. However, I keep coming back to the D2 10" DD and I wonder why it shouldn't be the only coil that I use. I'm sure I'm misunderstanding something basic, and would appreciate any clarification with the following conclusions I've pieced together from all of my research.

  1. From what I understand, the concentric coils differ from the DD type coils in that the they send a cone shaped signal into the ground vs. a vertical "rectangular plane" shaped signal. Because of this, the DD coils are better at separating and identifying closely spaced objects, so they're better at trashy sites that contains a lot of targets.
  2. Because of the concentric coil's cone shaped signal, the effective area that is scanned during each sweep decreases at lower depths, so you need to make sure to overlap your sweeps. This isn't as much of an issue with the DD's coils, so you can cover more area with each sweep.
  3. If I'm correct with the above, it seems that the 10" DD coil would be a replacement for, not a compliment to, the stock 950 coil.
  4. The 10" DD coil will have greater depth than the 4x6 DD coil.
  5. This is the big question, and where I'm sure I'm missing something. If the 10" DD and the 4x6 DD both send out a similarly shaped "rectangular plane" signal, shouldn't they both be equally good at separating small items in trashy areas?
Again, I'm sure that I've missed something here, but it seems like the 10" DD coil would would do a very good job as my one and only coil. It can't be that easy. Where have I gone wrong? How would a 950 and 4x6 set up be superior to a lone 10" DD coil? BTW, the All-American GIft Pack deal will be my last metal detecting purchase for a while. Thanks in advance for any help.
 
Because the 10" coil's plane is longer, it's more likely to pick-up more than one target at a time in a trashy area.
 
On the UK forums, there are lots of debates (and arguments) over which coil is best for
"this or that" type of detecting environment. If you carried a coil for every eventuality , apart from costing you a fortune you'd have to carry a lot of weight around. :)

Apart from having the larger 12" coil fitted to my Ace, on other detectors I have (or have owned in the past) I just stick with the stock coils they come supplied with.
I was recently considering getting another coil for my Goldmaxx, but was advised to save my money, by others who had bought it.

I can't advise what is better for other machines, but the phrase "chasing rainbows" comes to mind. If you're making finds, why change ? If you're not making finds, perhaps there's nothing there ?

I'm sure others will disagree ;)
 
Hi D-man, since you are primarily hunting inland I would want a small coil for more target seperation. The 5" Bullseye coplanar or the small 4x6" DD elliptical would be nice. These coils would be great for those grassy strips by the streets and sidewalk edges. I can't give you any advice on the beach type hunting since I have no beaches here. Ok Good hunting D-man and be safe out there.

John T.
Best Little Detector Shop in Texas!
 
Like Alan said above, there are constant debates about which/what coils are best, and there is no "right" answer. Here's my info. Keep in mind that I hunt in parks and woods in northern California with a MXT. I don't use the MXT on the highly mineralized, wet California beaches.

I have the following coils for my MXT:
1. 12" "spider"...a heavy, cumbersome coil that is great in open spaces. It covers a lot of ground in each sweep.
2. 950 "standard" coil. Good all-purpose coil, but I seldom use it.
3. Excelerator 10DD (like the White's 10D2) that I've used for about 12 hunts. This is my favorite coil for all-around hunting.
4. Excelerator 4.5 x 7" DD...my "second-favorite" coil. Works great in trash, but is still big enough to cover open areas. I haven't used it much since buying #3.
5. 4 x 6 DD "Shooter"...a great, tiny coil for very trashy areas with shallow targets. I seldom use it in other applications because I have to turn the gain way up to get any depth and it is too small for open areas.

IMHO, you can use a DD coil for every application. The 10D2 sounds like a good choice...given the situation you described in your original post.

I won't editoralize any more, as others will surely have opinions too.

Hope this helps.
 
Thanks for all the feedback everybody.

Ed in KC said:
Because the 10" coil's plane is longer, it's more likely to pick-up more than one target at a time in a trashy area.
Click to expand...

Duh! I knew I was missing something obvious. Thanks. Am I right in assuming that the 10" DD will be better than the 9.5" concentric coil in a trashy area.


~Alan~ said:
On the UK forums, there are lots of debates (and arguments) over which coil is best for
"this or that" type of detecting environment. If you carried a coil for every eventuality , apart from costing you a fortune you'd have to carry a lot of weight around. :)
Click to expand...

I think my preference would be to use one good all-around coil. The only reason I'm considering another coil is because I was looking to get a pinpointer and headphones and with White's All-American GIft Pack I can get a free coil in the process. The difficulty is figuring out the best choice.


Lowjiber said:
Like Alan said above, there are constant debates about which/what coils are best, and there is no "right" answer. Here's my info. Keep in mind that I hunt in parks and woods in northern California with a MXT. I don't use the MXT on the highly mineralized, wet California beaches.

I have the following coils for my MXT:
1. 12" "spider"...a heavy, cumbersome coil that is great in open spaces. It covers a lot of ground in each sweep.
2. 950 "standard" coil. Good all-purpose coil, but I seldom use it.
3. Excelerator 10DD (like the White's 10D2) that I've used for about 12 hunts. This is my favorite coil for all-around hunting.
4. Excelerator 4.5 x 7" DD...my "second-favorite" coil. Works great in trash, but is still big enough to cover open areas. I haven't used it much since buying #3.
5. 4 x 6 DD "Shooter"...a great, tiny coil for very trashy areas with shallow targets. I seldom use it in other applications because I have to turn the gain way up to get any depth and it is too small for open areas.

IMHO, you can use a DD coil for every application. The 10D2 sounds like a good choice...given the situation you described in your original post.

I won't editoralize any more, as others will surely have opinions too.

Hope this helps.
Click to expand...

As mentioned above, I guess I'm kind of leaning towards the one coil, and it's good to hear one person saying that the 10" DD coil would be a good choice. On a side note/question. I too am in northern California (Sacramento Area) and the beaches I would be trying would be in California. I didn't know they were highly mineralized. Isn't another plus for the 10" DD, that it will do better in mineralized areas?
 
My MXT goes nuts in the wet stuff...works great in the dry sand. While a DD might help somewhat, I think you'll end up staying in the dry sand in northern California.

I have easy access to the beaches (just a short drive), so I added a couple of dedicated beach machines to my arsenal and leave my MXT at home to play with Barbie Dolls.
 
CyberSage said:
The spider 12 or "Super12 is less than 1 once heavier than the stock 950. Not exactly heavy and cumbersome.
Click to expand...
It just seems to throw the center-of-balance too far forward for me (I have a very bad right elbow) and I have to shorten the lower shaft which puts the darn thing too close. Likely just an ergonomic thing for me.

I hunt a lot of wooded areas and any large, open coil is a pain...the 12" just exacerbates the problem.

As I said, it's great in the "open".
 
I've never used the 10" DD but use the 6x10 DD as my standard coil. I use my 4x6 DD and Super 12 for limited situations. Although the 10" DD is not so much a compliment item but a replacement, I think it's a very worthwhile addition.
 
Like John I have the 10" excelerator and it is my main coil. It has replaced my 6x10 because it separates about the same and is deeper. It works great on soccer fields, football fields, etc. There is not way it will work in parks around picnic tables, bleachers, etc. The trash is just so abundant in these areas. I've got too many coils for the MXT and I'll get rid of a couple this spring. I think I get by about 95% of the time with the 10" and 6".

The 10" can't do it all. There are too many places it won't fit or where there are just too many targets that will be under the coil at the same time. The 10" will be a great beach coil for you. Rob
 
Lowjiber said:
It just seems to throw the center-of-balance too far forward for me (I have a very bad right elbow) and I have to shorten the lower shaft which puts the darn thing too close. Likely just an ergonomic thing for me.

I hunt a lot of wooded areas and any large, open coil is a pain...the 12" just exacerbates the problem.

As I said, it's great in the "open".
Click to expand...

It does get hung up a lot on stuff when I am down by the river. I have been looking for a solid coil cover and it does get me right in my neck after awhile though. I am getting old I guess. :lol:

Keep Swing'in
Jack
 
Thanks for all the help. I'm really glad that I stumbled onto this forum. There is so much useful information to be found here. Hopefully I'll be able to share some cool finds with my new coil which I think that I'm pretty sure that I might be leaning towards it may be the 10" DD :).
 
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