Calling CTX 3030 Owners of the 17" coil.

[Rainer Rocks]

Do you find yourself using the 17" coil much ?

Or have you used it just a few times and now it lays dormant due to it's weight making it cumbersome ?

Thanks

 

[goodmore]

It weighs a ton. I use it on the beach and that is about it. I can not use it around old houses because of the iron. I never really hunt open fields. For me it is all about ground coverage. It does that very well.

 

[Mason Jarr]

Mine has been on since I bought it. I might have put the stock coil on once, but it's been so long that I don't remember for certain.

 

[GKMan]

Mine has been on since I bought it. I might have put the stock coil on once, but it's been so long that I don't remember for certain.

Pretty much the same, had it on almost exclusively since I got it a little less than a year ago

 

[nolanation]

Use it more than the 10"....although I recently started water hunting and next time I am out, will be comparing drag between the 10" and 17". If it is considerable I may change back to the 10" in the water, but the 17" is great for low trash beaches. I used it for 8-9 hours a day when I was at the beach last time.

 

[coondog]

I use mine about 70% of the time. It's lite for its size but yah by the end of the day you will know it's heavier.

I would not think about not having it on for ballfields, farmfields, large parks or beaches, anywhere with long grass. I have evenused it in trashy areas wit good success because the ctx can lock on to those high tones pretty well.

When it's time for a break I will switch to the stock coil and hit the trashy areas, the stock coil then feels like a feather.

I also hunt an old golf coarse that has some coins but they are few and far between. With the stock coil it would take me a lifetime to cover that much ground.

So I guess I could some it up by saying my 17 inch collects coins but not dust. The only thing collecting dust since I got it is my couch.

 

[Dwayne2010]

Well, I have been using the 17 inch for about a month. It is heavy, but I found that if I adjust the strap on the arm closer to the elbow, its weight is reduced.
I use the 17 inch for recent drops in all fields, inlcuding schools, then out with my propointer. The reason that I don't use it in sensitive areas is because I can't seem to pinpoint well with it and don't want to dig huge holes in these areas. Once I get most of the drops within the first 4 inches, I go to the 11 inch which I seem to be able to pin point a lot better, thus small hole is dug. I just can't bring myself to walk around a school field with a shovel.

I have no experience yet water hunting.

 

[Rainer Rocks]

Thanks to everyone for the replies , appreciate it !

 

[AgileMJOLNIR]

I've used it a bunch for park hunting and for it's size it does a pretty darn good job at target separation. I think it's best used on the beach or low trash areas though.
My only complaint with it is that the depth readings seems to be a bit wonky with the 17in. It can be off as much as +/- 4in and can take a little practice pinpointing with.

Otherwise a fantastic coil but I'll probably keep the stock coil on for now and to see if there dis much of a difference.

 

[coondog]

My depth readings are off also but always a constant 2 inches deeper. If mine says 7 inches it's really 5 inches.

 

[twangator]

I use it at the beach and I love it, I also use it in Mexico in open fields and the depth is amazing, but I do agree that the pinpointing is a little off sometimes. I don't use the 17' at parks, there is just too trashy.
All in all I am glad I have it.

 

[Rototiller]

I am a newbie with the CTX. I was having trouble getting any depth out of the stock coil. My soil is extremely mineralized in the northwest due to the small round cobble. I out on the 17" and am getting some amazing depth. The stock coil signals seemed to be scratchy and sometimes iffy. The 17" rings in loud and clear. This may be due to me getting more accustomed to the CTX. I love the coverage I get out of the 17". I may try the 10" again soon for comparison now that I am getting used to the CTX. I expect the 17 will go right back on. I do like the 10" in trashy lots. I went over a lot I have pounded with my explorer and set my coil right on top of a v nickel that I had missed. I left that lot with some wheat's, v nickel, cool token, and a Barbie. I am getting more barbies and Indians with my 17" than I was with the 10. I love it.

 

[Shayne]

I live in Japan, own two CTX3030's, and have to deal with the most mineralized soil on the planet! One of my detectors is two years old and the other is 3 months old. My original stock coil that is 2 years old would only penetrate the ground 4 inches with a sensitivity setting of 19-21 before it got crazy noisy and unstable; Minelab replaced it under warranty. The new CTX stock coil they sent me still only works to about 6" before the same thing happens, but now my old and new CTXs detect to the same depth and are stable at about 23 sensitivity. I also have a 17" coil that I received for FREE with my new detector. That monster is even less stable in this soil - essentially unusable. Why am I telling you all of this...I personally think you have a a bad stock coil. I recommend you call Minelab, explain that the stock coil is struggling in mineralized ground, but your 17" works just fine. Ask them to send you a new one under warranty and send yours back. There are a number of posts out there regarding bad or weak stock coils. I am confident Minelab will work with you - they are very responsive.

Bottom line - if your soil is mineralized to the point where the stock CTX coil is struggling, then your 17" should NOT be deeper or more stable - it should be worse than the stock coil in just about every application. Essentially, big coils are traditionally more unstable in mineralized soil than small coils because they force the computer to process MORE unstable data. My 6" is more stable in my mineralized ground than the stock coil, waaaaay more stable than the 17" and routinely capable of seeing coins at 8+ inches. The trade-off.....the 6" is not going to help you cover a lot of ground in a limited amount of time. It is a surgical instrument! HH - Shayne

 

[coondog]

That's real good advice there Shayne.

Let us know how that works out for you Rototiller.

 

[electricmetal21]

I use mine if I'm hunting in ground with very little trash. Otherwise, I stick to the smaller coils.

 

[BIGBOBINMAINE]

I have used mine so much it broke at one of the ear mounts, had it about a year and Minelab replaced it under warranty. It is a depth monster and I find it to be vary sensitive to small gold, works great but it is heavy and harder to maneuver over varying ground levels.