1st post- New excal 2 1000 questions

[RL419]

Hi everyone,

1st post here. I spent a lot of time on this forum researching which hybrid detector to purchase. I settled on the excalibur 2 1000 due to the general consensus that it is the premier land/sea machine. I am moving to FL in October and look forward to hitting the coast( I currently live in Michigan). I spent the past 4 days getting acquainted with the excal 2. I visited the local swimming hole with its 300ft. beach, 2 park, and my grandparents property with hopes of finding some misplaced jewelry or old silver coins. After 4 days running the machine I have found 3 buffalo nickles, 6 wheat pennies, 2 jefferson nickels, 2 Roosevelt dimes, modern Lincoln's, some Canadian pennies, 9mm spent shell casing. No silver but I did bring home a bucket full of miscellaneous non-ferrous trash. The park has produced over 20 old pull tabs thus far and very few coins.

I would like any advice you can give me on fine tuning the excal 2 in my quest for finding jewelry. I have been hunting with the discrimination set at 1-3, sens. in auto, volume at max. and threshold loud enough to hear the high or low discrimination feedback. The depth at which the excal will pick up even the smallest non ferrous really surprised me at first. I ran an air test to see at what level of discrimination would eliminate pull tabs and large non ferrous out of the equation but they sing out every time. It is just too hard for me to walk away from a high pitched signal like that, even though I am getting pretty good at predicting (based on pitch of return) when it is a pull tab or aluminum.

Is it really a quantity=quality game when dealing with non-ferrous returns? I must dig them or risk missing that gold or silver ring...right?

Thanks for your time & happy hunting.

Ryan

 

[dewcon4414]

gold falls on the scale of a penny down to foil..... so yes dig everything but IRON and a shallow BOTTLE CAP. Salt beaches wont be like hunting fresh water. The salt deteriates a lot more of the trash or burries the heavy stuff. You can cover a lot of beach with the Xcal down here since you wont hit as many targets. Threshold .... just a light buzz, disc.... NEVER off 1, manual sensitivity i run as high as it will let me... even with a little falsing in disc.. If there are very few targets..... i run PP full sensitiivty. There arent many minerals here in Fl compared to where you are hunting now so auto sensitivity wont get you nearly the depth. Yes..... its quantity something dirt diggers have to learn, dont find a reason NOT to dig a target since digging is easy. You dig it or at least kick the sand to see if its really foil. Those small gold targets that others miss are in the foil range and you NEVER avoid a pull tag.... we live to dig foil, pull tabs and nickels.... thats where MOST of the gold is. If you have done testing on small gold..... you already realized you cant have much depth between the coil and sand...... i keep mine right on the sand. I lengthen my shaft on the dry sand and shorten it in the water. I move at a pretty good click listening for nulls and bleeps..... thats when i slow down. Otherwise the Xcal recovers pretty well and keeping your coil low you dont miss as much as you might think.

Dew

 

[RL419]

Dew,

Thanks for your reply. I will take your advice to heart and keep on digging all non ferrous with disc. set at 1. It is unbelievable how much trash is in this old park I've been working. People have been littering it with crap since the early 60's...that being said there MUST be some silver coins from the period and hopefully some jewelry has been lost over the last 55 years. I plan on going to another local swimming hole after I get off work today. If you can think of any more tips regarding the intricacies of the excalibur 2 I would love to hear more.

Thanks again,

Ryan

 

[dewcon4414]

Personally i wouldnt be using the Xcal in a park..... you already know why. Thats like using a PI on dry sand. Most of my comments were for use on the beach. There are far better machines for parks, relics, and field hunting. Its just to slow of a recovery loosing depth every time you pass over a target. The coils do not separate as well as some of the better land machines either. But if thats what you got and you are learning the tones then digging trash and making adjustments can teach you a lot. You will have to be a patient man lol. Its one of the best for beaches thou.

Dew

 

[MHirschmann]

Welcome to the forum Ryan!

I have to agree with Dew. I have owned 5 Excal II's and I have never let any of them run any disc. Set that at 1 and forget that knob even exists, other than checking each hunt to make sure it is still set there. Set sens as high as you can until the machine gets chattery and then back it down a little. Threshold should be a mosquito in your ear and volume should be as high as you can comfortably take it. In water I always use max volume and on land I usually set it at about 75% or so.

To answer your question, it certainly is a quantity game. The more pull tabs/can slaw you are digging, the higher your chances that you will hit on some gold/jewelry. It really is that simple and there is no way around it. Dig the pulltabs and you shall find what it is you seek. I might even argue that the Excal is even better than many land machines for your purpose because you don't have the disability of a screen to hold you back from digging that "for sure pulltab/can slaw signal."

As for land use, I have done a lot of land hunting with the Excal and it does just fine. I am not challenging Dew's comments but I know Excal's better than any other machine after using them A LOT for the past 6 years. I would not hesitate for a second to take an Excal on a land hunt. It is more about knowing your machine than it is about having the "best/right" machine for the job. I know guys with entry level detectors that pull unbelievable finds that others missed simply because they know their machines better. put in the time and you Excal should serve you just fine, both on land and in the water.

I would just recommend a straight shaft of some sort if you are planning on longer hunts or moe land hunting. In the water, I prefer short shafts but on land a straight shaft is a must-have.

Good luck. I hope this helped and it sounds like you are off to a great start. Welcome to the forum and I look forward to seeing some of your finds!

HH -Marc

 

[RL419]

Marc,

Thanks for the words of wisdom. I plan on hitting a popular swimming hole that has been in use since the 40's after work today. I'll let you guys know how it "pans out". On another note- I have seen some videos on youtube of the excalibur failing to detect gold chains with small links. I haven't taken the time to test this myself. Have either of you guys found any small chains with the excal?

 

[dewcon4414]

Marc.... i make that statement about not using it because there is just better machines that can be used more effectively than the Xcal in say a park. i use an Explorer SE in most cases for field and park hunting. The ablity to change coils helps as does the smart screen. Would i use the Xcal if thats all i had .... no doubt. It is a little slow on recovery thou in those situations. I dont see it as a challenge Marc.... everyone hunts differently and the Xcal is an excellent machine. Learning comes from different points of view being batted around.

Dew

 

[RL419]

Just got back from the swimming hole I spoke of earlier. First time beach hunting with the excal resulted in 14 coins and some costume jewelry. Most interesting find was a rosary with what appeared to be a silver cross at first. Turned out to be some kind of alloy after I cleaned it off. Coins are mostly pennies..a few nickles and dimes. Nothing silver. I think I will go back there tomorrow. Attached is an old picture of the beach from the 60s or 70's. Thanks for the feedback guys. I am very happy with the machine thus far. No regrets here..

 

[MHirschmann]

Sorry to write back so late but I wasn't challenging you at all Dew. Sorry if it came across that way. I was just trying to say that if another machine is not in the cards right now, the Excal will suffice just fine for all-around hunting. I have various machines myself just because there is always just the "right" tool for a specific job/purpose, however, I am fortunate enough to be able to have these options. I just didn't want Ryan to think he "had" to go out and get something else because the Excal wouldn't cut it, that's all. It is a great machine that can be used for just about anything.

As for chains Ryan, it really depends on the chain. I have picked up plenty of chains, however, I have also done a lot of testing where I was not able to pick them up. This "problem" is certainly not specific to Excals, as most detectors are not good at picking them up. It all depends on the metal composition, the weight/thickness, the design of the links, the design of the clasp and even the way that the chain is laying (bundled up or spread out). There are so many factors that make chains difficult. I don't find them often, but I do find them. They generally are a much more faint signal as you tend to only hit on the clasp which is usually quite fine. Sorry, I don't have a great answer for you here.

Sorry again Dew if my message didn't come across as a friendly addition to what you said. I have nothing but respect for you as your posts have proven to be a wealth of helpful information on here.

HH -Marc

 

[surfman]

Great post and great advice given. Only thing I'll add is about land hunting with the Excal. The Excal should do great on land as it is really a water proof Sovereign. Check out that forum, those guys make some great finds. I've never land hunted with either of mine but have thought about it and just might try it back at one of my worked colonial sites. Good luck with it, Joe.

 

[RL419]

My best finds so far..

 

[Suncoast Kid]

Also, when you get down here in Florida at the beach, at the end of the day, make sure that you rinse your detector, sand scoop, and everything off real good with fresh water. The salt is really hard on everything. And the sand gets into everything, so taking the shaft apart often is a must. After the detector is clean and dry use some diver quality silicone spray on the wires, anything rubber or black, and it will help your detector last for a long time. HH at the beach.

 

[RL419]

Thanks for the advice. I plan on stopping by the local dive shop and getting some of that spray. I am paranoid that water is going to get in through the seal where the power cable attaches to the excal's battery. Do you spray the whole plug? Prongs and all?

 

[Suncoast Kid]

I use diver's Silicone Grease on the Black two hole rubber gasket, prongs, and female connector where the power cable goes into the pod, (and on the O-Rings end caps and knob shafts-I wouldn't worry about those since your detector is new and under warranty). A little bit goes a long way, and too much will collect sand. I wouldn't worry about the power cable connection. I have an Excal II and have never had an issue with that. I use the Silicone Spray to coat the knob shafts between the knob and housing, the power connector, wires, and everything else. While hunting the silicone spray will wash off in the saltwater as most of the silicone grease will not. Just keep an eye on the power connector prongs and holes after each hunt to make sure no corrosion is present. If you spot a little, just clean it up, re-coat with the grease, and you will be fine.