deepest machine updates.....

mnruxpin

Sr. Member
May 20, 2013
349
214
Primary Interest:
Beach & Shallow Water Hunting
Hi All, I have excal 1000, wanna go deeeeeeppper..... is there a better coil? or do I need a new machine, money not an object, just want the ddddeeeppppeeeesssstttt! :) ..........anything new out there???? love the excal and would prefer to just update it, also have ctx3030...dont ever even use it...looking pretty dusty

How deep does the best excal go...like on a quarter....mine seems kinda weeks sometimes??!!!??

this detector would be for freshwater lakes and rivers only...

How can I get the deepest targets?????
 

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bigscoop

Gold Member
Jun 4, 2010
13,373
8,689
Wherever there be treasure!
Detector(s) used
Older blue Excal with full mods, Equinox 800.
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Contact OBN here on this website - see if he'll do the following mods for you on your Excal:
A) Headphones.
B) Remote switch.
C) CoilTech Coil connector so you can swap coils when desired.
D) Straight shaft.

Pop a WOT coil or 12 x 15 SEF on this setup and you'll be digging deeper then you want to a great deal of the time with surprising sensitivity. The great thing about this setup is that it is very versatile, allowing you to swap coils as conditions allow/require and it is very reliable. :thumbsup:
 

Beach Papa

Hero Member
Apr 25, 2012
584
271
East Coast
Detector(s) used
Tesoro Tiger Shark VLF
Whites Dual Field PI
CTX 3030
Aquasound (custom made)
Primary Interest:
Beach & Shallow Water Hunting
Have you compared your CTX and Excalibur side by side? If so, what kind of results did you get? I don't use the Excalibur, but I have a CTX and have pulled a silver ring at 18" twice (once with a pearl and once with a ruby). The signal was funky at that depth, but if you get a repeatable deep signal, you got to dig it. Note that the CTX does not seem to record any depth greater then 12", but I think that is where the accuracy of target ID stops not the actual depth you will pull signals from..
 

ron lord

Bronze Member
Apr 2, 2007
1,301
1,621
Zephyrhills Fl
🥇 Banner finds
3
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
6
Detector(s) used
excel 1000 with 8 inch coil, Garrett AT MAX and a silver U MAX
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
sand shark go's deeper than the excel.
 

Treasure_Hunter

Administrator
Staff member
Jul 27, 2006
48,433
54,827
Florida
Detector(s) used
Minelab_Equinox_ 800 Minelab_CTX-3030 Minelab_Excal_1000 Minelab_Sovereign_GT Minelab_Safari Minelab_ETrac Whites_Beach_Hunter_ID Fisher_1235_X
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
If your out of warranty do like big scoop says and put a wot or SEF 12x15" Butterfly coil on it and then have the remote pinpoint mod done on it........ I am finding targets over 19+" inches deep with mine..................... You still have the ability to switch between desc and pp only with mod it is on the handle and just a flip of the switch with your thumb....

Anyone who has done these mods will testify how much deeper it goes...................

I ahve done this on both of my excals............:icon_thumright:


The problem with the coiltec connector is it puts resistance on the cable which affects performance.....
 

bigscoop

Gold Member
Jun 4, 2010
13,373
8,689
Wherever there be treasure!
Detector(s) used
Older blue Excal with full mods, Equinox 800.
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Have you compared your CTX and Excalibur side by side? If so, what kind of results did you get? I don't use the Excalibur, but I have a CTX and have pulled a silver ring at 18" twice (once with a pearl and once with a ruby). The signal was funky at that depth, but if you get a repeatable deep signal, you got to dig it. Note that the CTX does not seem to record any depth greater then 12", but I think that is where the accuracy of target ID stops not the actual depth you will pull signals from..

"My personal opinion"......less the bells and whistles, the CTX has nothing on the fully modified Excal. True, you can upgrade the headphones on the CTX and go with the larger coil option just as you can with the Excal, but - the CTX has been having a lot of reports of reliability issues and I seriously doubt, from what I have witnessed so far, that the CTX is going to get you any significant added performance over the fully modified Excal. As for the coil connector effecting performance I've certainly not noticed a problem. With all of the mods and just the 8" coil on the Excal I'm routinely digging targets in the saturated wet sand at the 14 - 15" range. With the 12 x 15 SEF, the larger coil I now prefer, I honestly get worn out too quickly some days because of all the deep targets. I hear a lot of hunters touting how sensitive the CTX is to small gold but here again I've found my fair share of small/fine gold chains with the Excal and 8" coil. "Not trying to take anything away from the CTX, it is a fine machine" but personally I do think it is being over touted a bit. Just my personal opinion.
 

JJohnson

Full Member
Mar 14, 2013
193
48
Glen Allen, VA
Detector(s) used
Minelab: Explorer, XS, E-Trac, CTX-30/30
Garrett: Ace 250
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
My two cent worth: When talking "deepest machine" and Minelabs are the machine in question (almost any modern detector for that matter)...the person swinging the machine is the key to good depth. I have hunted exclusively with Minelabs for 10 plus years. I'm reminded quite a lot on how deep these machines will go. Just this past week I was in Virginia Beach and found several dimes at 12" plus using the CTX. I do not do a lot of beach detecting and was just playing around with the family. In the dirt, my deepest coin was a 3 cent piece at 18", very wet soils using ETrac. Deepest target ever Artillery shell at 36" using ETrac. My CTX has been a great machine to date. I use Grey Ghost headphones and have for years. I hunt with a lot of guys that do not use Minelab and they are constantly asking me to tell them what I think a target is before they dig. They have good machines, they just do not know them yet. Know the machine and the depth will come.
 

Midas_touch

Jr. Member
Feb 14, 2012
98
30
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I had OBN hook mine up as well. Wot 15" coil, remote pp switch, and skullies. I've dug a few target at 16-18 inches. Whisper signals. I had the water proof coil connector as well originally but didn't like the design and opted to just hard solder it into the board. I have an older excal that I have a small coil on now.

If you are talking really deep there have been claims that the Blistool really gets the deep stuff. But I've also heard its a bear to set up and tonal Recognition isn't that great either. But I've only read a little bit about it.
 

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