steveg

Thank YOU, Max! The very kind words/praise are very much appreciated! Steve

CPT -- you are too kind! I appreciate it! And thanks for sharing the great picture! Steve

THANK YOU for the kind words, CPT! I'm glad you are pleased with it! Steve

THANK YOU for the very kind words! I'm so glad that you are pleased, and I enjoyed making the shaft for you! Steve

Chuck, Sounds good! Thank you for the kind words! Steve

Cheddar, Carbon fiber tubes are weakly conductive, and touching a pinpointer on the shaft will confirm that. However, with the shaft not "in motion" relative to the coil, it is not "detected" by the coil on a VLF-IB detector. As such, it would not be the genesis of any "chatter" that you may be hearing. Further, the consensus is that any "alteration" to the coil's magnetic field itself, that would occur as a result of the weakly conductive carbon fiber residing within the coil's magnetic field, is minimal at best. Thus, using carbon fiber as the shaft material results in no deleterious effects on the detector's "detection capability," unlike what might be possible with a much more conductive (metal) lower rod (hence why so many detector manufacturers use carbon-fiber shafts on their high-end machines, but NONE use aluminum, for instance)... Steve

I'm glad to hear this. I've heard some rumblings that suggest there may be an update planned... Steve

Chuck, Long story short, but I can build you that type of shaft, for your 800 -- EXCEPT -- you'd have to be willing to "file down" that "nipple" on the bottom/inside of the lower part of the handle assembly. That "nipple" fits through a hole in the shaft, and as such, it "blocks" a middle shaft from being able to telescope/collapse fully into the upper. Any shaft made to allow for full telescopy of an Equinox 600/800 has to deal with that "nipple" in some way. One way it is achieved, is by sanding it down -- which then allows the middle shaft to slide unobstructed into the upper shaft. The only issue is that the purpose of that "nipple," fitting into a hole in the shaft, is to ensure that the handle assembly can't turn/twist. The solution, if you sand off that "nipple," is to apply a single layer of tape (two-sided tape, or a rubbery tape like electrical tape) underneath that area where you wish to install the handle. This -- via friction -- prevents any chance for the handle assembly to turn or twist on the shaft (i.e. it effectively does the job of the nipple/hole). Send me a PM or email (steve@stevesdetectorrods.com) if you are interested in a fully collapsible 3-piece shaft for your EQX 600/800. Thanks! Steve

Hi all! I wanted to introduce our Equinox 700/900 lower rods, which are now available for $69 plus $11 shipping for a standard-length lower rod (22") or $79 plus $11 shipping for a "tall-man" lower, up to 26" in length. These lowers feature 100% 3K carbon-fiber tubes, in a matte/ribbed surface finish to match the stock shaft, and include the red "warning line," 3 inches from the end. So, if you need an extra lower rod or two, to keep attached to one of your accessory coils for easier/faster in-the-field coil changes, please contact me at steve@stevesdetectorrods.com. I expect that this "first batch" will sell out quickly, with most of them reserved for my "wait list customers," but I will have a few left over once I get all of the ones shipped to my "wait list" customers. Meanwhile, additional parts/tubes are in production... Please contact me at steve@stevesdetectorrods.com for information, or to place an order. Thanks! --Steve

Dave, THANK YOU for the very kind words, and I'm so glad you are liking the shafts! I love hearing from satisfied customers, who are pleased with their purchase and experiencing some benefits "in the field," as a result... Thank you! Steve

Hunterjunk, that is some CRAZY-bad dirt. With your magnet picking up a "ball of ironstone pebbles" when you touch the ground with it, I'm not surprised that you can't find a mode that works well. Steve

Steelheader, Thanks for providing that information! Steve

strick -- I think this is true. It shouldn't be surprising, but just to confirm this...my buddy in Pennsylvania struggled a bit with his at first, but is really settling in with it now; not sure how many hours, but I would guess he's well up over 50 now. He's been fairly impressed with the unit, as of late. Meanwhile, I finished my 5th hunt today, which puts me at around 25 hours. The site I hit today has milder soil, and I ran it in ATHC. I feel like I just started to get a feel for it today. NOT a "lightbulb" moment, but some real progress in terms of understanding it; I turned a bit of a corner through the last half of the hunt. I am looking forward to continuing the progress. One thing I will note, is that I want to reiterate this...the "falsy" tendencies I've noted with the machine are -- I believe -- related to DIRT conditions. But the "falsing" from nails is NOT, in my opinion, a problem. I don't have much issue figuring out what is a falsing nail, and what is a deep high-toning non-ferrous, in most cases. It's no harder, NOR any more frequent, than on the Equinox, AT ALL, in my opinion. And that's after only 25 or so hours. I think, in time, it is going to be even EASIER to figure out what's a nail false, and what's a "legitimate" high tone, on the Manticore, as compared to the EQX, as the language is SO much more "rich" and "full." It's ONLY the "falsiness" in the hot dirt, that is somewhat problematic with the MC, and I didn't have much of that at all today. Here are my old coin finds, from the past 3 hunts (about 12 to 14 hours of hunt time)...

phrunt, Thank you for the kind words! I am working on it... Thanks! John, I'll be interested to hear your results... Steve

Rattlehead, Thanks for tossing in your experience. This is really good to hear, and it suggests that what I'm experiencing here is also repeatable in some other places/dirt types. Hopefully, this information is making its way to Minelab, in the event that there is something they may be able to "tweak" to allow a quieter experience when running ATHC... Steve