excal hip mounts pros and cons

[tonyweston]

i made a hip mount for my 1000. when it was :-
BACK MOUNTED , i couldnt see or adjust the knobs,
BELLY MOUNTED , it got in the way and it got knocked about a bit
BALANCED SHAFT , i considered it but you are still carrying the full load on one arm ?? ( TOO HEAVY ) !!!!!!
GUN SLINGER STYLE , mounted at the belt and right thigh , i fancied this style ?? has any one out there mastered this style of mounting ??
come on lads and lasses give me some info as to what style have you found to be the best and why ??
let me know iv got big ears and an open mind
happy hunting tony weston

 

[jbow]

I tried a chestmount using a binocular harness from Cabelas and the hipmount bag but I did not really like the feel of either the chestmount or the shaft without the box under the armcuff. Yes, it's heavy but it balances better that way. I mostly use the 10" BBS coil.

J

 

[tonyweston]

thanks JBOW,
i have asked the same question on minelab owners but only 1 reply !! This is an ongoing problem facing many scally users ,i thought it would get mega responce ??
i am buying a new 1000 ( spoiling myself !! ) by selling my old unit and cashing in my gold,silver and euros it should fund itself ?? so i dont want to mark or scratch it by using the wrong kit !! my old 1000 has a few battle scars so i want to try and keep this one mint
surely someone out there uses the gunslinger method please let me know your thoughts good and bad
regards tony weston

 

[Bobbie]

that Excal users who hip or back mounts have a problem with wire breakage from movement. I just got mine in July and Minelab makes a hip/back mount for it, so far I have not had any problems. I just got a straight shaft and I will see if that works better as far as balancing the weight. I know of several people who use the straight shaft and they say that is the way to go.

 

[syfta]

I have a hip mount but it is definately in harms way. It will get in the way of something sooner or later! Mounted on a belt behind your back it is safer. I know some will tell you about stress on the cable but if you use a tether- a cord or my favorite a harley davidson dog leash to make sure the cable cannot be pulled on you should have no problems. as far as adjustments it takes no time to learn what knobs are where and just reach behind your back or loosen the belt and look. use a dive belt(nylon) melt the 3 holes in it w/ a philips head screwdriver and put a peice of pvc or aluminum where the shaft would go for support- drill it also and go to home depot for 3 nylon nutd and bolts.

 

[tonyweston]

thanks for taking the time and interest to reply, many others havnt !!
as i say the b.shaft still puts the kgs on the one arm,when go on holiday i make the most of it detecting for 6/7 hours a day ( tooooo heavy ) !!!! so i like to lighten the 1000.
if there is someone out there that has perfected a gun slinger style rig PLEASE PLEASE get in touch i need to know more
regards tony

 

[tonyweston]

thanks for repling SYFTA,
yes i agree with what you say, I too have anchored the wires to my hip mount with my old 1000, but dont you think that it could be bettered ? I will strip my old 1000 down and experiment with different mount ideas when my new 1000 comes (Keep you posted )
This is a brilliant forum where we ( STRANGE PEOPLE ) can share ideas across the globe like this.
good luck tony

 

[normdiver]

Here it is, nothing to it

 

[normdiver]

[attachment 35383 hipmount.jpg]another photo

 

[tonyweston]

Hi Normdiver,
thanks for the photo, my rig is similar to yours, but i find it hard to adjust any knobs whist hunting without the OH SHIT FACTOR :- turning the wrong one , catching the others by mistake and maybe i dig more coz i cant reach the pin point ??
I have sent a p.m. re an old thread by Charles in the mods forum, in which he made a gunslinger rig in 2005 i do hope he gets back to me .
Thanks again please keep your ideas coming in
tony ( yorkshire u.k. )

 

[tonyweston]

HELP !!!! Im trying to contact Charles (upstate NY ), he has made a gunslinger rig in the mods forum, but im having trouble getting a message to him as im not to good on the computor. if anyone can help contact him my email is LesleyDugg@aol.com regards tony weston

 

[Raoul]

I have had my Excal for 3 years now always hipmounted behind my back and its been in for repairs twice with the same problem which i can only put down to cable strain,at the end of summer last year i bought the Babbs straight shaft only used it 4 times cause the summer ended but i have only one word which describes it, HEAVEN.
Can't wait untill it gets hotter here which is only 2 months away and then i will get the pleasure of using the Babbs shaft again.
If you know of someone who has one see if you can use it and try it out,i will garentee you that you will get one also.

Cheers Raoul