Garrett Apex Superfly Air Test

[Mike305]

I haven't bit the bullet yet kac, but will share once I do.  The Reaper looks nice.  Would be nice if Garrett would post coil weights on their website.  I contacted customer service regarding the Raider coil and was initially told it weighed 2 lbs.  When I questioned that as unusually heavy for the size and asked for the weight in grams, the same representative then said it was 'about' 453.59 grams.  I pointed out that was 1 lb not 2...but the representative continued to state it was 'around' 2 lbs.  I gave up.  I'm guessing 1lb/453.59g is likely correct but can't say with certainty.  Garrett is likely to lose coil sales if customers are being told it weighs twice as much as competing coils.  In any case, the Super Fly is still lighter.

[kac]

Still lighter than the Nel Big. With heavy coils I shorten the shaft so the coil is closer to my feet. Helps offset the weight a little. Performance wise I think the Superfly is a really nice coil but it is thin. I swap back to my stock beefy coil on my Multi Kruzer when woods hunting because of that.

My Apex should be here thurs with the stock viper coil. Want to see how it performs and may just stick with the one coil on it.

[Mike305]

Apologies for the delay in reporting.  
The Super Fly did resolve the issue with identifying silver on edge.
Super Fly TIDs are in red.
The lower numbers sometimes occurred when targets crossed the middle of the coil, but I found that I could clean up the signal and get it to lock on at the higher end by using the heel/toe or left/right edges of the coil.
In any event, all targets I’ve tested now ring up as diggable targets regardless of orientation to the coil or position under it.
Fat/heavy .925 ring (TID flat 92-99, 92-98; TID on edge 1-30, 76-96)
Thin intertwined Tiffany .925 rings (TID flat 94-95, 95-98; TID on edge 1-33, 77-99)
1941 US Silver Half-Dollar (TID flat 98-99, 99; TID on edge 'iron range', 99)
1968 US Silver Half-Dollar (TID flat 98-99, 96-99; TID on edge 0, 46-99)
1971 US Silver Dollar (TID flat 99, 99; TID on edge 0, 52-99)
 

[kac]

Looks like it is much more stable.

Thanks

[karlchick]

@Mike305, 

I know this is a few years old... but am in the same position as you (viper on apex, thinking superfly). 

I see Regtons now has a warning that there is an issue using the superfly Nel coil in MS mode on the beach, and they've reduced the price due to this...

Have you used the superfly on MS mode at the beach in salt saturated sand? Noticed any issues?

Any update on you experience of using the superfly to find on edge silver coins?

I'm hoping you are still around to reply,

Best regards,  Karl.

[karlchick]

FYI, here is the notice on Regtons website:

It has been brought to our attention that NEL coils for Apex units have a small glitch that’s unlikely to affect many users however it’s there. In MS mode ONLY the ability to detect larger high conductive targets is diminished or non-existent, large Silver targets are affected however Gold is not affected, this will only affect saturated salt, wet sand users, as that is the only place you would use that mode. For this reason, we have reduced the price of these coils to reflect.

[Gold Seeker]

2 hours ago, karlchick said:

@Mike305, 

I know this is a few years old... but am in the same position as you (viper on apex, thinking superfly). 

I see Regtons now has a warning that there is an issue using the superfly Nel coil in MS mode on the beach, and they've reduced the price due to this...

Have you used the superfly on MS mode at the beach in salt saturated sand? Noticed any issues?

Any update on you experience of using the superfly to find on edge silver coins?

I'm hoping you are still around to reply,

Best regards,  Karl.

@Mike305

@karlchick you didn't get your "mention" of Mike305 correct for him to be notified so he will see your question, so I mentioned him here in my post in hope it will get him to see you post, according to his profile he was last on the forum on June 22.

I've found that to properly mention someone you have to type the @ symbol then start typing the username, a user list will popup below where you're typing, keep typing until you see the correct name and then click on it and it then should look like the mentions I did above, if you type the complete name and not click on the user from the list the mention doesn't seem to work.

[Mike305]

Thank you Gold Seeker for making sure I saw this!

And hello karlchick!

This has not been my experience at all....either in testing or real world.
I hunt almost exclusively in MS in wet and dry on the beach and have found plenty of silver...including large fat rings, Gucci dog tags, bangles, and many silver coins including a large commemorative.
The notice on Regton's site leaves me with more questions than answers...
  Who brought this to their attention?
  What is considered 'large' silver....an ingot?
  Is there any video demonstrating this issue?
  Is this true of all Super Fly's ever sold or only a certain production run/period?
First and foremost, I'd like to see a video demonstrating the issue...or at the very least, example targets it can't detect.  With that info, I could do my own testing.
I'm interested in knowing more.  It's my favorite coil and I was about to order a second for backup.
I'll try to find time this weekend to email Regton and NEL to see what they'll tell me.
 

[kac]

6 hours ago, karlchick said:

FYI, here is the notice on Regtons website:

It has been brought to our attention that NEL coils for Apex units have a small glitch that’s unlikely to affect many users however it’s there. In MS mode ONLY the ability to detect larger high conductive targets is diminished or non-existent, large Silver targets are affected however Gold is not affected, this will only affect saturated salt, wet sand users, as that is the only place you would use that mode. For this reason, we have reduced the price of these coils to reflect.

Are you saying it iron wraps where large silver sounds like iron?

I have 3 coils on my Apex. Stock Viper, Ultimate 9 and Reaper.

Of those coils the viper has best separation with fair depth and very good stability. My first viper had an issue and Garrett replaced it right away.

Ultimate 9' has slightly more depth and handles coin spills and does not iron wrap.

Reaper coil is only a little bit deeper than the other 2 coils. Handles the salt like a champ and even pretty stable in some of the crappy iron infested grounds. It isn't quite as good on small targets as the Viper but is a good coil for open fields for coin and relic hunting. Downside is it is bit heavy so I end up swinging it closer to my feet.

Recently I picked up a Viper to replace the stock coil on my AT Pro and to compare those the depth is nearly the same, Viper is slightly hotter so I found I need to drop the sensitivity on it just a bit where the stock coil I could run flat out. Viper is also slightly less sensitive to small targets, ie chains. Few targets finds from quick hunt other day. Chain is white gold, pendant near clad is plated junk.

[karlchick]

@Mike305 that's very reassuring. I am very tempted to get the Superfly from Regtons with 10% off, comes in at £90.

Wondering if you get much extra depth compared to the Viper coil? Or perhaps just an improved signal and consistent VDI?