steveg

Exactly my experience, NCtoad. Steve

NICE Walker!! Great job!!! Steve

Mark -- Very good post. I agree with you and Happa -- I like Park 1, and YES -- the Minelab wiggle WORKS with the Equinox. It's so ingrained in me from all those years using FBS machines, that I just naturally did the same, with the Equinox. Absolutely a HUGE tool, with this machine, as it is with FBS... Steve

VERY nice hunt, Dan! NICE finds! Looks like you got along well with the little coil! Steve

Gwcracker -- Not sure what you are looking for, but if you are primarily looking for more ergonomically comfortable Equinox, I may be able to help. Send me a PM, if interested... Steve

WOW -- NICE ring!!! Great job! Steve

NICE digs -- very nice ring! Steve

Thank you, sir! Steve

INCREDIBLE!!! Outstanding finds!!! Steve

REALLY sorry to hear about your loss, sir. It's a tough thing... ...meanwhile, congratulations on two SUPERB digs! I would expect that even while grieving, you managed a smile when those two turned up! God bless -- Steve

cool river -- Yes, I thought about internal weight, but like you said -- with the arm cuff design, it's next to impossible; because the cuff bolt inserts through the shaft, the shaft has to remain hollow -- and as such, there is no room to add counterweighting in the butt-end of the shaft itself. As far the amount of weight needs to be added, there's no "increase" in weight required, that results from the length of the counterweight tube. In fact, the longer the counterweight tube, the LESS weight you need, overall. The science behind it all is explained by "lever/fulcrum" concepts from physics; I'll elaborate, for anyone interested, later in this post. Chuck -- I totally agree with you that small coils RARELY introduce any substantial balance problems, and yes -- shortening your lower rod DOES help reduce nose-heaviness/improve balance. Totally agreed. However, I differ with you on the idea that there is "something wrong with the picture" with respect to considering counterweighting of the Equinox. In fact, I'll go so far as to will make the argument that focusing SOLELY on "making a machine as light as possible" is in fact a mistake -- if you wish to make an ergonomically comfortable, well-balanced unit. I know that's not necessarily a popular statement to make, but it's a factual one. The whole "my machine is two ounces lighter than the competitor's machine" may be good for advertisements, and that argument may "sway" a good number of folks, due to its simplicity. But, it does NOT present the entire picture, nor an accurate one, in terms of ergonomic comfort. I think we can all agree that "light" is "good," and I fully agree that detector manufacturers should seek to make a machine as light as possible. BUT -- while designing a machine to be "as light as possible," BALANCE needs to be considered, as well (again, assuming ergonomic comfort is to be achieved). Here's why... If you take a look at the Equinox (or any detector, for that matter), and think about it from a science/physics perspective, what you essentially have is long, lightweight shaft (lever), with a relatively substantial amount of weight/mass (the coil) attached way out at the end of that lever. In the case of the Equinox and 12" x 15" coil, we are talking about a pound and a half of weight, out on the end of a lever that measures roughly 40" long (as measured from the handle, out to the coil). And so -- while you may say the coil is "only" a pound and a half in weight, the actual weight you are experiencing when holding the handle of the machine is MUCH greater -- because the force acting on that coil is MULTIPLIED by the leverage effect! In other words, the coil is "using leverage to its advantage." This is where the nose-heavy feeling comes from, and this is ALSO why many folks are experiencing fatigue -- or even pain -- in their wrist/arm/shoulder...because in order to keep that coil hovering above the ground, an upward force -- equal to and opposite the downward force of exerted on the coil by gravity and multiplied by leverage -- must be applied. And guess what has to apply that force? YOU do -- with your hand/wrist/arm/shoulder muscles! So, if you are experiencing pain or fatigue, while swinging the Equinox, THIS is the reason! YOU have to exert rather substantial effort to keep the coil "levitating" above the ground, and you have LEVERAGE WORKING AGAINST YOU. At this point, there are only a couple of choices, in terms of reducing the amount of effort you have to generate -- use a LIGHTER COIL, or else, APPLY COUNTERWEIGHTING. To understand counterweighting, it's helpful picture your grade-school playground's see-saw/teeter-totter, or even just an old-fashioned balance scale. Obviously, to balance the force exerted by a given amount of weight on ONE side of the fulcrum, an equal downward force must be applied on the OTHER side of the fulcrum -- and that downward, balancing force is achieved by ADDING WEIGHT, of course. In the case of a metal detector, the handle of the machine is essentially the "fulcrum." And so, adding weight toward the butt-end of the shaft, helps to offset the weight residing on the coil end of the shaft. And thus -- with counterweighting added, you begin to reduce the amount of effort/force that YOU have to apply, to keep the coil floating above the ground. And, again, using concepts of leverage, the farther toward -- or even beyond -- the butt-end of the shaft you apply the weight, the more you are using leverage to YOUR advantage, and thus lesser overall amount of counterweighting will be required. The problem with the Equinox, is that there is essentially ZERO weight on the "butt-end" side of the fulcrum (handle). Some machines, such as the CTX 3030 for example, have batteries, etc. near the butt-end of the shaft, which -- based on the arguments I'm presenting here -- results in a much better-balanced (though heavier) machine. With the Equinox, however, having essentially zero weight out beyond the handle, you have the perfect recipe for a nose-heavy (non-ergonomically comfortable) machine. The bottom line is that what I have written here, is the logic/scientific reasoning behind why I designed the counterweights. While I understand -- as you stated, Chuck -- that it seems a bit counter-intuitive at first to ADD WEIGHT to a machine, after begging Minelab to make as light as possible, the fact is that ABSOLUTE weight is NOT the entire picture; the DISTRIBUTION of the weight is also important, if you wish to achieve a comfortable machine. The last thing I'll say is -- this is why my counterweight is an OPTION, and not "standard equipment." There are indeed those who do not want to add ANY weight to the machine; in fact, many folks hope to REDUCE overall weight, by switching to a carbon-fiber shaft. And of course, my shaft does reduce the overall weight of the machine, and so these customers are the ones who choose not to purchase the counterweights. BUT -- I also know that the machine becomes more comfortable to swing, for those who struggle with the nose-heaviness, whenever counterweighting is applied. Every ounce of counterweighting that is added, absolutely, unequivocally REDUCES the amount of effort that must be exerted by user's hand/wrist/arm/shoulder. When a "proper" amount of weight is added, the machine simply becomes more pleasant to swing -- and there are a bunch of people who have added counterweighting to the EQX, who can attest to this. It's simply science... Steve

Bethany, There is not a lot I can offer, that Chase has not already said. Two things that confuse me are, 1. you say you are getting very good depth with a coin buried in your test garden, and 2. you say you had good luck digging many silver coins with a Bounty Hunter 3300, but not with your Equinox. These two things seem confusing. While you may have "hot soil," and you sound pretty certain that you do, if you were digging silver coins in large numbers at 6" deep with your BH 3300, you should be easily able to equal that, at least, with your Equinox. YES, it's a more sensitive detector, and thus can be more "noisy," but you should be able to run your sensitivity down to a lower level (mid teens), and still equal or exceed the depth capability of your 3300 -- while at the same time, reducing falsing/noise that you are receiving. I would think that these "solid high tones" you are getting are chunks of iron -- and iron will, of course, often report as high tone several inches away (off to the side) from the actual location of the target. I suspect that you are hearing nails, etc., that are probably 3-4 inches offset from where you are digging your holes, and that's my guess as to why you are "digging to China" and not finding the target -- it's off to the SIDE of the hole, not deeper down into the hole. I would suggest this -- take a silver coin (or your penny) along with you, to one of those sites where you are struggling with high tones that seem to be "ghost" or "phantom" tones. Then, dig a hole IN THAT DIRT, and bury the coin about 8" deep. I suspect you will be able to detect this coin. If so, perhaps this will give you some confidence that even in these sites where you are getting high tones that you can't seem to locate when digging, you will still be able to hear a coin, if there's one there. Also, I'm curious what you mean, when you say "repeatable" tones. Do you mean "repeatable" when you swing left-to-right over a target? OR, do you mean "repeatable" as you rotate your body 360 degrees around the target, sweeping the coil over the target from ALL angles, and listening to how the target reports/changes as you rotate around it? One big "telltale" sign of iron, is a target that may "sound good" with left and right sweeps from ONE angle, but then the target's tone begins to sound degraded/poor (and often changes in location) when you turn your body 90 degrees and sweep over it. If you are rotating all the way around the target, while sweeping the coil over it, and you are STILL getting solid, consistent high tones, then there may be something else going on. But, I suspect that the soil issues you are mentioning are at least somewhat of a "red herring," right now, and that what you are mainly dealing with is ferrous trash, that is "falsing" -- giving you a high tone -- especially when running fairly high sensitivity... Not sure if this helps any, but that's what I suspect you are dealing with. If you are getting good depth in your test garden, and had no trouble digging silver with your Bounty Hunter, there is NO REASON that you can't accomplish the same with your Equinox (unless there is something wrong with the unit itself -- which I tend to doubt given the good results from your test garden). Steve

NICE digs, Dan! You did well with the 15" -- and I LOVE those Dragoon buttons! Very nice condition! Steve

Thanks, guys. It was nice to get out and remind myself how much fun this hobby is! ? (Thanks for the kind words, Chase -- glad you are liking the shaft!) Steve

Elf -- Sounds like you have been as busy as I have! Yep, busy time of year, but I am sure I can squeeze in a hunt or two! I look forward to it! Sounds like the base's controlled burns have been a good thing, that might open up a few spots to find a couple of goodies! Steve P. S. -- let's hope you don't need to spend much time in that tornado shelter this spring! ?

First hunt in a LONG time; I was happy that I was able to prove to myself that I haven't totally forgotten how to run the Equinox! Oh -- the 1916 Merc? The mint mark -- if there was one -- was worn off... ? LOL! Steve

IMPRESSIVE!! WOW! Great hunt, Dan -- a whole pile of super finds, AND a bucket lister, to top it off!! CONGRATS!!! Steve

Thanks, BeachHunter! Steve

Bayard -- I know this deviates from your question about "S" rods, but the counterweight system I offer effects significant improvements with the ergonomics issue...FWIW. Steve

Sure! That small subset of the "silver" nickels is really odd... Steve

BeachHunter, LOL! THANK YOU for the very kind words! I appreciate it! I realize my opinion is biased, but I DO think that a high-quality carbon-fiber shaft with a proper, solid cam lock is MUCH more befitting of the Equinox, overall. It's a high-end machine, performance-wise, and it seems so much better matched with a higher-end shaft, from my perspective... I like to dream about an Equinox 1000, with a nice carbon-fiber shaft, and a 2-D FE-CO display brought over from the FBS line of machines. While that would put me "out of business," in terms of my shaft sales, I'd be one of the first to jump on board and buy that machine!!! Thank you, sir, for your compliments! I am really glad to hear you enjoy the shaft! Steve

BeachHunter, www.stevesdetectorrods.com www.facebook.com/stevesdetectorrods

Fskafish -- Thank you! I'm REALLY glad to hear that you like the shaft, and that the purchase process was pleasant as well. That's always the goal (providing a high-quality shaft, and a good customer experience), and it makes my day to hear confirmation from happy customers! Thank you! Steve www.stevesdetectorrods.com www.facebook.com/stevesdetectorrods

This has been a very good thread, with some very good information, in my opinion. Great stuff here. Kudos, GB_Amateur, for raising the topic. And I think your golf analogy is a good one... Steve

I agree with all of the posts here. Very good info. It's so hard to describe specifically, but like Happa said, after using Minelab FBS machines extensively/exclusively for eight years prior, and thus being immersed in multi-tone Minelab audio output the entire time, it has become kind of "second nature," now, for me to use 50 tones on the Equinox. I'd feel like I was missing so much "intelligence" about a target, if I switched to say a 5-tone option... Steve