Coils. What does changing size buy?

[nad]

I have both a Silver UMax, and Vaquero..For the Silver,I am interested in pin pointing and finding small items in reasonably clean areas.( I haven't found as much trash in three months as TabDog shows in one hunt.)Stock coil is 8 inches, Is there any real advantage to the 5.75 or 4 inch coils..Will ear posts show up any deeper, or hit harder with the smaller coils? Dan Brown has a four inch coil I might be able to borrow, and I am willing to buy a 5.75 when a good used one comes up..At that time, I'll be able to do air comparisons..Right now, with Winter settling in, I am planning my hunts and trying to get the equipment ready. So, that is the reason for asking about the advantages / disadvantages.Thank you, cordially NAD

 

[jabbo]

Larry, read you post and tested the sensitivity of 3 coils (9x8, 8" round donut, and 5.75") on this very tiny silver earing post, the penny is for scale. The notepad shows the results of air test, no depth difference to speak of. Then I put a small nail on the left and right 3 inches from the target and all 3 coils sounded the same, not exactly a smooth signal, but still detecting the post. The meter display read iron for all 3 coils. The post was found in the wood chips with the 8" donut. I like the donut, rarely use the 5.75 or 9x8, but a lot of guys love the small coil. Dave

 

[tab-nabit]

I like the 5.75 coil. It gets good depth but in some of my places, the depth may not be the factor. For trashy areas, separation - better chance of having less targets under the coil at any given time. I'm not much in a hurry so careful overlap sweeps with the 5.75 helps keep me in check.

 

[BarberBill]

Tab-Nabit makes a very good point that I haven't seen on the forums much even tho I've mentioned it a time or two. That is, by using a smaller coil properly, one is forced to slow down and hunt more carefully than many of us do, generally. That is a good thing and should be our habit even with the larger coils. In my own experience, I find I use the stock or SMALLER coils much more than the larger coils even though I have several. My favorite is the 7" concentric for most hunting other than extreme trash. Pinpointing, separation, possibly a bit more sensitive to small items, and a delight to swing are all pluses for the smaller coils. Minuses - a bit less depth and ground coverage. When I first started detecting, I had the notion that smaller coils were probably a handicap and the larger the better. With time and experience, I've found that notion, for the most part, is just backwards unless one is a cache hunter or serious relic hunter in decent ground.
HH
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