Minelab Excalibur PCB repair

[aaronbokelmann]

I recently acquired a Minelab Excalibur 800. I know nothing of this machine, but have read it is a great machine. I sent it to Minelab to check (which they apparently do for free) and the call came back that it needed over $650 dollars in repairs. The main problem according to them is the PCB is bad and needs to be replaced. The board costs about $580 dollars. The problem is the sensitivity can not be adjusted and doesn't seem to working among other things. The gentlemen said that these things go bad when they sit for a while. The charger is broke and the adapter is missing. I have several questions that I hope can get answered.
1. Is there a cheaper way to get this fixed? (used board/after-market board)
2. Is this machine worth fixing? (I know nothing and have wanted to have a metal detector for years, but the repair cost is more than many new detectors
Any help would be greatly appreciated. My wife about passed out when I told her the repair cost so having Minelab fix it is out of the question, but before I have them ship it back, I would like a plan to do with it.
Thanks,
Aaron

 

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[cudamark]

Welcome to Tnet! $650 for a good working Excalibur is not a bad price. I prefer a bigger coil but yours would be great for a trashier area. There are independents out there that work on those but I don't know if they are much cheaper. The parts would probably still have to come from Minelab. Maybe the board is repairable? Who knows?

 

[aaronbokelmann]

Thanks

Welcome to Tnet! $650 for a good working Excalibur is not a bad price. I prefer a bigger coil but yours would be great for a trashier area. There are independents out there that work on those but I don't know if they are much cheaper. The parts would probably still have to come from Minelab. Maybe the board is repairable? Who knows?

I know nothing about this, but would love to know more. My wife about passed out when I told her the price so for now, that is too high. I live in Florida so I think it would be great, but being a beginner, I don't know enough. Thanks for the info, I found this site, and now have the bug.

 

[Metal Detecting Stuff]

I don't know how long ago you bought it, but maybe the seller will work with you on the repair cost.

Even broken excals have some value in the aftermarket. If you decide not to fix it, consider selling it for parts.

I've heard good things about OBN (old beechnut), he sometimes repairs old excal units for a fair price.

Wayne

www.metaldetectingstuff.com

 

[aaronbokelmann]

This was given to me, now I know why. Actually they said they didn't know that it was broken. I have already bought a new battery, was going to buy a charger, and then found out the board is no good. I'd love to use it but since it doesn't work, it will merely be another thing to sit in my garage until I get tired of moving it around. I may actually at selling it on ebay as is. Thanks for the advice.

 

[OBN]

Excaliburs are a very good investment..

Sorry to hear the bill would be so much. On repair, I can do all...but not the board,. I have a friend that does repair on them for me but he is so slow I have stopped sending the PCB's to him. He still has one after two months. They are a real SOB to pull apart, I can change the Pot's but they are hard to find. If you could swing the 650, get it fixed. I would say put the time in the water and she will pay you back in one summer, maybe even plus. Or you can go the other route, part her out...easy 300 in parts. Those pots are gold and I would guess they would bring 30.oo each x 5, coil 80.oo, and then the rest a easy 80.00..but you would be without. I would try and swing the 650.oo. And nothing wrong with the 8 at all, I started with the 8 several years ago and in one summer she paid for itself...

Anything else I can fix and like wayne said, I really enjoy repairing them and my prices are half of what minelabs charge.

Good luck and keep us informed....Joe

 

[buckhunter102001]

OBN...I just purchased a used Minelab Excalibur II from a gentleman that said he had only used the detector for about a year and it is now two years old. I used it today and it did fine, then I switched to my AT Pro for awhile and then went back to the Excalibur to discover that when I turned on the threshold knob it wouldn't power on. When I turned it to the far right limit I could hear a clicking sound in the headphones and it would sporadically give me a threshold tone but now the knob turns all the way without stopping. I'm assuming the Pot failed. I definitely want to get this repaired...is this something you can do and what do you charge for replacing the pot?

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

OBN...I just purchased a used Minelab Excalibur II from a gentleman that said he had only used the detector for about a year and it is now two years old. I used it today and it did fine, then I switched to my AT Pro for awhile and then went back to the Excalibur to discover that when I turned on the threshold knob it wouldn't power on. When I turned it to the far right limit I could hear a clicking sound in the headphones and it would sporadically give me a threshold tone but now the knob turns all the way without stopping. I'm assuming the Pot failed. I definitely want to get this repaired...is this something you can do and what do you charge for replacing the pot?

If OBN is busy you can send it to Kellyco, they are an authorized Minelab repair center and do great work and cheaper than Minelab in Chicago.



Posted From My $50 Tablet....

 

[michael nagy]

I'm trying to get some grey ghost amphibians put on my excel 2 . Does any one know how to get a hold of beechnut?

 

[TheSleeper]

Michael, he posted 3 above you "OBN", click on his name then send him a private message. He does great work and is very knowledgeable.

 

[michael nagy]

Awesome thanks