Hellooooooooooo anybody listening ........................................

[opa81]

My name is Andre and I live in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

I have been metal detecting for more then 30 years and I owned my share of different detectors. About 4 weeks ago I bought a new Minelab Excalibur 1000. Before I bought this detector I did a lot of reading about this machine.

Now that I own this detector I'm really happy with it and it really lives up to my expectations.

One thing did suprice me and that was that in all the old posts from several different websites about the Excalibur you see several problems coming back, like the charger, battery pack, knobs, headphone .etc,

I' m wondering why a big company like Minelab does not make any changes to this detector while they know that these problems do excist for the last couple of years.

Andre

 

[dewcon4414]

I think its called the bottom line. The charger works, headphones work, shaft works and knobs.... well they do for awhile. People ask the same question about the Explorers weight ect. I dont think you are going to see changes while they are at the top of their game..... they just arent having to compete. In fact they made no changes but in creased the cost on their more popular machines...... and they still keep flying off the shelfs dont they? Until Fisher or another company makes them step up their game they just dont seem to be concerned with what we want. I for one think they might give us a break in cost by just selling us the pods and coil...... heck everything elce we are putting together any way.

Dew

 

[erikk]

If it ain't broke don't fix it and when it does-dew

 

[ZOFCHAK]

IMO the batteries are actually a decent design on Minelab's part. As for the knobs, I think they're left unimproved to be a sacrificial weak point. If Minelab used the over sized knobs (with the set pins) they would be getting a lot more machines in need of work to the internal pots.

 

[TwoRivers]

Zofchak...................makes sense about knobs etc.........

 

[Darkflamedesign]

Most of the time it's the hunter that is more brutal with is equipment .
All my equipment looks and performs like new , just because it is an outside electronic device , doesn't mean you can just shove it in the truck bed or car trunk.
You have to take care of the coil connectors , batteries ( can be flawed by design or just wear out ) , knobs ( is obvious that the hunter uses and abuses these )
Clean your equipment always , discharge your batteries ( for extended battery life and storage ) , check your cables , ( keep some electrical with you in the field for field repairs )

I have a minelab xs-2a and it's looks like new ... I have modified coil bottom with trunk liner sealant to protect.
My white's 6000 xl pro is in pristine condition ... I clean the control box with protectant to save the paint finish .
My sov . Gt is my beach machine and NEEDS the most cleaning , I NEVER store machines that are dirty .

Minelab makes great equipment and I never had problems ... Don't rely on a few negatives

 

[Tin Fin]

DFD,

Being a manual laborer by trade, I too, take care of my tools. Cleaning your rig seems to save a lot of trouble. With electronics, clean-and-neat makes any kind of trouble-shooting easier; it makes things so that anything that is abnormal, will stand out, which makes finding a problem, and fixing it, quicker. Protecting cable sheathing was a big one for me to learn initially; working in the brambles/thorn-riddled woods takes a toll on cables fast if they are not protected. But I also make sure to wipe some protective coating on the cables, as they are a vulnerable area. This is one of those areas of "the easier way to do this, is to not be lazy, and just do it now, so it won't be a problem later" catagories. I'm lazy that way - would rather do whatever is needed, get it done, then I can play.