Excalibur II - out of the box - seems cheaply made - thoughts

[Barry NY]

new to the metal detecting world

I know the unit is great BUT the pole hardware and nut/bolt assembly was really done cheaply - can't even tighten the coil nut enough to keep the coil from moving (to the touch) - should i use a wrench to hold down the nut side while i tighten the wing nut?

also, bought the lucite loop bracket support "angle piece" from KellyCo because I had a "feeling" this would happen and the plastic bolt that comes with the unit isn't even long enough to accommodate the extra 1/16 of an inch thickness of the loop bracket so i can't even get the nut to thread.
are all these plastic nut and bolt assemblies hard to tighten up?

do i need to go right into a new aftermarket shaft?

i read that the hip mount (which i bought to lighten the weight) can cause problems to the cable connections??
any thoughts? much appreciated. thanks.

 

[babulin2002]

hi barryny
welcome to the world of this great hobby
the nylon\plastic screws are not supposed to be super-tightened, i find it useful to be able to adjust the plane of the coil to the ground\arm position, especially useful on uneven ground. i just push the coil against the ground to obtain the angle i want. surely the coil should not be loose so that i moves too easily. i wouldn't use a wrench unless you cannot tighten it reasonably by hand. get used to the thought that the plastic bolt will have to be replaced eventually, they are cheap so i wouldn't worry, just get some spares so you are not left hanging when it breaks. i have just broken mine btw, no wrench , maybe the previous owner abused it or something. in my previous machine the bolt was fine for 3 years and was still ok when i sold it.
as for the cable and hipmounting, just loop the cable around as shown in the manual (at least the one for the sovereign) so that when sweeping the detector the cable doesn't pull directly on the plug. the hipmount bag has a strap that you can use for that purpose. i use it in the way shown in the manual and have no problems.
hh

 

[GraveDiggerMax-VaBch-Va]

straight shaft...............a must

hip mount...................many of us use belt mounted, with safety wire to coil wire for protection, but many many more use the shaft with the excal. mounted under forearm or longer model where it sticks out behind elbow

whatever floats your boat, but u can not mount it like the factory says................hercules could not tote it like that.

good luck

cheaply made.....................i agree, but the best for what we do.
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make sure u have a nice sturdy scoop

 

[Ray-Mo.]

If you are going to use it on a shaft order a strait shaft as soon as possible.Minelab should be ashamed to sell the Excal with the factory shaft It is about as worthless as possible in my opinion and can only be appreciated by a chiropractor needing more patience! I can not understand how a company can build such outstanding machine and then give them the complete lack of balance with the idiotic stock rod.Ok I am getting off my soap box now,Sorry Ray.

 

[babulin2002]

oops, sorry, i was thinking of the sov and not excalibur when writing about the hipmount bag and cable. excal is a different story.

 

[UncleTom]

Do you have the rubber washers in place between the coil and shaft on each side?

 

[kered]

You won't be disapointed by Pluggers rods, amazing the difference between S and Straight, more noticable out of the water than in

 

[familycache]

I've had some of the same concerns as above and looking to make or purchase a straight shaft for the Excalibur. What straight shaft is preferred over the other: with the unit directly under your elbow or the unit directly behind your elbow. Interested in balance/noticeable weight. I used the hip mount recently and liked it with some reservations. Thanks