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3030 vs excal is it worth a 1000 dollars more
- Thread starter nightman
- Start date
dewcon4414
Well-known member
I highly recommend having them both. I now strickly beach hunt...... in the water mostly. The CTX can be a bit of a chore to move in swift shallow water and you cant get nearly the coverage with a shorter shaft. That thick shaft displaces a lot of water..... its like having seaweed on the coil. The CTX has a lot of information to offer on the smart screen and the combined tone adjustment can make all the difference. The CTX seems a little deeper especially on quarters.... something the Xcal II can miss unless running in PP. I use a 2.5 MM O ring and havent had an issue........ but some do with flooding and other issues if used in DEEPER water constantly. The shaft lock ........ well its just a bad design with CF. But then.... who likes the Xcals S shaft? Headphones....... well both machines need those replaced. You also have the advantage of other coils...... not to mention a heck of a lot faster recovery in disc on the CTX. BUT...... if you are a dirt, sand and water hunter i dont believe you will find a better all around machine....... something the Xcal cant do IMO. This to me makes the CTX worth the money. Its very difficult to say one is deep on a given target...... especially in the water with out side by side testing. but, ive not found a gold target that either wont hit on. Speaking of side by side........ you wont be hunting near your buddy if both of you have an Xcal. Something you can do with a CTX with noise cancel. Lets get honest....... you can pick up a used CTX for around $1500 with some warranty and you dont need to modify it for that extra depth and faster recovery. I used the explorers for years so my transition was fairly easy. The CTX isnt for everyone........ but if you are a dirt hunter the Xcal wouldnt be my first choice either.
Dew
Dew
Champ Ferguson
New member
I heartily agree with Dew, tho finding a 1500+ some warranty might take some doing. Most of what I see are 1700 and up.
fwiw, I swing my CTX most everywhere, including wading at the beach. But if the surf is rough or I know I will be dunking my machine that day, I take the Excal. yeahyeahyeah, I know the CTX is rated for 10', but i don't like risking that much money in saltwater.
fwiw, I swing my CTX most everywhere, including wading at the beach. But if the surf is rough or I know I will be dunking my machine that day, I take the Excal. yeahyeahyeah, I know the CTX is rated for 10', but i don't like risking that much money in saltwater.
I have never used the CTX and I'm sure it's an excellent machine, having said that, I have the Excal and TDI Pro, the Pro I use in wet salt sand to get the deep, deep targets that most machines can't see and I mean Deeeeep....the excal, my go to machine when hunting in the water is hard to beat, it has found me so many gold rings and jewelry that I will never sell mine, have had it for 4 years and has paid for itself several times over, when it finally bites the dust I will buy another one, period....that's how much I love the excal but I have never used the CTX, I just know my excal and what it can do, hope this helps.....
It depends. If you can only get one...
If you are diving/hunting mostly in the water - get the Excal. Its definitely more waterproof.
If you want to mod the Excal and get a better shaft (which you will do this), bigger/different coils, different headphones, just get the CTX as it already has this capability without modding it and wont need a new shaft. And once you mod the Excal you nearly paid for a new CTX but have broken the warranty (assuming you bought it new and paid for the mods)
The CTX allows you to create your own programs, which can very helpful. The GPS feature is nice as well. Neither of these are necessary though, just nice.
The ability to change coils on the CTX is awesome as is the ability to change headphones. I use earbuds on mine because they are 100x easier. There is a wireless headphone option too for the CTX but I don't really use it much. On a longer hunt it would definitely be nice.
I can see reasons why people would prefer one over the other. My preference is the CTX hands down. If the excal was engineered better (didnt need new shaft and could change headphones/coil) I would say Excal. But being able to change coils/headphones, having a good stock shaft, and having the wire in the shaft is just a huge engineering improvement imo...Then again I don't really water hunt and don't plan to take my CTX in the water.
If you are diving/hunting mostly in the water - get the Excal. Its definitely more waterproof.
If you want to mod the Excal and get a better shaft (which you will do this), bigger/different coils, different headphones, just get the CTX as it already has this capability without modding it and wont need a new shaft. And once you mod the Excal you nearly paid for a new CTX but have broken the warranty (assuming you bought it new and paid for the mods)
The CTX allows you to create your own programs, which can very helpful. The GPS feature is nice as well. Neither of these are necessary though, just nice.
The ability to change coils on the CTX is awesome as is the ability to change headphones. I use earbuds on mine because they are 100x easier. There is a wireless headphone option too for the CTX but I don't really use it much. On a longer hunt it would definitely be nice.
I can see reasons why people would prefer one over the other. My preference is the CTX hands down. If the excal was engineered better (didnt need new shaft and could change headphones/coil) I would say Excal. But being able to change coils/headphones, having a good stock shaft, and having the wire in the shaft is just a huge engineering improvement imo...Then again I don't really water hunt and don't plan to take my CTX in the water.
icurabeachguy
New member
I've used a CTX, Excal and CZ21 for submerged salt water beach hunting. Neither seemed deeper than the other for gold/platinum jewelry, but for the price paid, I couldn't justify having a less waterproof/robust CTX over the CZ21 and Excal so I sold it. The GPS, ability to change coil & headphones and the programmability were nice to have but not really essential to finding jewelry at salt water beaches.
If all you do is hunt beaches like myself or Dew, get the Excal (or CZ21). If you hunt more than just beaches, the CTX is worth it for the adaptability.
If all you do is hunt beaches like myself or Dew, get the Excal (or CZ21). If you hunt more than just beaches, the CTX is worth it for the adaptability.
icurabeachguy said:
This may be true with stock coils but as soon as you change coils this is no longer the case, which is where the 17'' CTX coil shines over the others. To change the coil on the Excal you need to mod it and you cannot change it on the CZ21. In addition to depth, the 17'' coil allows you to cover more ground.