because I couldn't find the Mercury dime I needed.
After having the pleasure of using the Detech 10 x 12 SEF coil a few years ago before they became widely available for distribution...I was hoping their new 13" Ultimate coil would be a similar rock-steady, deep performer....and possibly even better.
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Well only time will tell if the Ultimate coil ends up being touted as "better" for me but for now I'd say I'm very impressed...VERY!
At this point I feel it's EVERY bit as deep as the 10 x 12 SEF coil but MUCH LIGHTER.
I have been using a buddy's Ultimate 13" coil for a couple of weeks and have put quite a few hours on it on both my SE and E-Trac.
After all the nice finds I made with his I finally got one of my own recently and was quite excited to do so.
I took it to a couple different sites and it did well for me at both.
It was stable and I was able to run my explorer SE at 24 to 26 manual sensitivity at some spots with minimal falsing or chirping here in my IL soil if I wanted.
I truthfully liked it better at manual 20 though...because it was ROCK SOLID and quiet as a mouse...and for the explorer this is quite an accomplishment.
On my E-Trac I was able to run at manual 26 all day long....but I have always stated I feel the E-trac is a slightly smoother machine.
One important fact I will note is:
This coil feels LIGHT on my SE...and honestly feels ONLY slightly heavier than the pro coil if in fact it is any heavier at all...seriously! I was able to hunt for much longer durations before I noticed any shoulder fatigue like I do with some of my other favorite coils.
The first coin dug today was a barber dime so I was hoping for the great start to continue on through the hunt.
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How did it do in the iron for me?...well these pics of the seated dime speak for themselves!!
This lady was completely engulfed by little chunks of iron.
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When I got close to it with the probe before it came to light...little pieces started popping out until I finally saw the glimmer of grayish/silver with pieces laying directly on it as well as under it!
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You can clearly see the orange/brown rust stain on her which covers much of the back as well as part of the front.
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The most important trait I noticed about the Detech Ultimate coil??.....it absolutely BANGED loud and clear over deep coins.
The deepest coin I found was an indian head cent from a measured 10" depth...and it was a rare, "classic" sounding hit.
It was crystal clear and very distinct. So much so that I had to glance down at the depth meter to see if it was a shallow, clad hit!
I was shocked to see the depth meter nearly buried yet have a "dig me" sound so sweet coming through the headphones...and when I dug it up...sure enough it was an indian head cent.
Here's the kicker...I had dropped the sensitivity to manual 20 about 15 minutes before I located the indian head cent because I was getting a little more chirping than I like which makes it harder to discern good hits from iron falsing.
With the setting at manual 20 it STILL banged loud and crystal clear over the 10" deep indian head I dug which amazed me.
There were a few targets I took a chance on that were "iffy" type hits. The signal was strong but just didn't sound like a sure coin type hit..and simply didn't "lock on" like any of the other coin hits I dug.
When testing a new coil though...I take a chance on a few of those hits to get a feel for what it is saying to me because all coils have their own unique languange and nuances.
In each instance the "iffy" type hits turned out to be trash of some type such as sneaker eyelets, small washers, etc.
If this coil said "coin" though...I never even looked at the screen to monitor cursor flutter or movement because it ended up being a coin...and the sweet "warble" I like was VERY distinct.
I want to reiterate this fact because I have used a lot of EXCELLENT coils and have had the pleasure of field testing many EXCELLENT coils...but I think the Detech Ultimate coil absolutely "bangs" over deep silver and indians.
I got this old token from 10" down and I'm hoping someone can shed some light on it for me as I have no clue what it represents.
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I thought I had a large cent at first until I looked at it closer...so I then just stuck it in my pocket and cleaned it when I got home.
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After spending 3 hours each at a couple of different sites today with my SE I ended up with the following: Seated dime from the iron...Barber dime...2 Roosies...2 Indian head cents...handful of wheaties...and the sweet old token. These finds are from just one day of hunting at 2 sites and do not represent the total finds from the testing period. Why??...because my droid phone crashed and I lost all pics from before 4/1/12. Nothing special...but 7 more silver coins of which 4 were Mercs. Wish I could have found one of those mercs TODAY to complete the dime slam...but it is what it is.
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To sum up the test in a nutshell... this coil is a KEEPER and ABSOLUTELY says "DIG ME" over deep coins.
It will NOT be coming off of my Explorer SE anytime soon... unless it's to put it on the end of my E-Trac for a while.
