Excalbur shaft advice

[Pointman]

Hello everyone! It has been quit awhile since I’ve posted.

I am seeking advice on purchasing a after market Excalibur shaft. First question is that I’m looking at either a Plugger or Anderson shaft. I’m leaning toward a Plugger because they are made in the US and I’ve purchased one before so I know the quality. I was wondering about anyone else’s experience? Second question is I will be using my detector for shallow water and I plan to eventually do a little diving with it. I’ve been looking at possibly getting a Plugger 4 piece diving/beach shaft where I will have both options. I was wondering if I went with one shaft instead of the 4 piece if there were pluses or minuses with going with a rear mount versus a side mount shaft for the control box? Can the side mount be easily used for land detecting? Will it get in the way of the swing and how is the balance? Anything additional will be appreciated. Thank you all!

 

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[cudamark]

I prefer the Plugger shaft over the Anderson (I own both), but, I hip mount mine and haven't used the 4 piece setup or one where you mount the control pod to the shaft. I'm sure someone here has used those other types.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

I love the Anderson myself, I use the tall man shaft, controls mounted behind my elbow and I have the pinpoint mod installed on all my excaliburs. I even bought a anderson over under travel shaft and modified it, made it into a tall man straight shaft and it now breaks down into 4 pieces and will fit in a 22" carry on luggage suitcase for air travel.

 

[lisfisher]

A side { or over/under} mount will put slightly more weight forward { useful in the water to help keep the coil down}, but can certainly be also used on land. Can also be converted to a dive shaft if you have a really short extension. A straight shaft or aka " balanced shaft " is designed to balance nicely {you can adjust to fine tune as well}, but I think it all comes down to personal preference in the end. I was going to pull the trigger just last week on the 4 piece but decided i will not be doing much diving so i really don't need all that. I ordered the 3 piece which has options for a straight balanced shaft or convert to a hip mount which I'll use along with the chest harness. If i ever do have the time to dive a bit i'll rig something up with my stock "s" shaped shaft.

 

[islamoradamark]

my vote plugger real happy with them got more than one and they are made in the U.S.

 

[ctdirtdigger]

I love the Anderson myself, I use the tall man shaft, controls mounted behind my elbow and I have the pinpoint mod installed on all my excaliburs. I even bought a anderson over under travel shaft and modified it, made it into a tall man straight shaft and it now breaks down into 4 pieces and will fit in a 22" carry on luggage suitcase for air travel.

Treasure, I'm a newbie here and just got an Excalibur, what is the Pinpoint Mod ? Where can I get information about it or purchase it ? Thanks !!

Also, I got a two-piece Anderson Travel Shaft for my Excalibur where the controls get mounted on the bottom shaft and the battery gets mounted to the opposing side. I went to connect the battery and the plastic casing makes contact with the plastic housing of the Controls BEFORE the holes are in position for the Stainless pins to snap back in place to holed the battery securely. Is it common to have to grind or sand some of the plastic housing to get the battry to lock in place ??

 

[cudamark]

The pin point mod is where the pin point switch is located in the handle for easy access instead of having to turn the switch knob on the pod. The one I use is a push button type in the end of the handle. A quick press with the thumb and you're in disc to check for iron targets. Click back and you're in pin point. You are hunting in pin point, right?

 

[ctdirtdigger]

The pin point mod is where the pin point switch is located in the handle for easy access instead of having to turn the switch knob on the pod. The one I use is a push button type in the end of the handle. A quick press with the thumb and you're in disc to check for iron targets. Click back and you're in pin point. You are hunting in pin point, right?

Thanks Cudamark, I just got the Excalibur and purchased it in New Hapshire, they still had ice on the ponds ! I live in CT and things are warming up, but still need to get a wet suit to spend extended periods in the water. I will hunt in Pin Point as everyone recommends but was wondering if someone sells a "Pin Point" retro kit or is it something everyone has to piece together on their own ? My first adventure with the Xcal will be the Outer Banks.

 

[cudamark]

OBN here on TNet used to have kits and install the PP mod. So, did Kellyco, who you might want to check with to see if they still do. I have a friend here locally who does mine. He also builds custom headphones for the Excal. PM me if you need his contact info.