RickUK

Must admit this detector is starting too really grab my attention for a deep pasture machine,i wont be buying one yet,as any new machine must have been out and been used for a minimum time period of 12 months before i part company with the 'folded' stuff,this criteria has always been adhered too as any new machine can have initial teething problems,so if i do decide to pull the trigger then it wont be till this coming december anyway. Will be following all the reports of those folks who do own one and see how it plays out and if it then fits my requirements,it may or may not happen,it all depends on the reliability and if it performs for my requirements.

Rr,must admit i have done the same thing but about 3 or 4 times,fantastic lifetimes detecting adventure,one of the all time classics.

I will answer this question with a few possible twists that may or may not help,i do own a Minelab 15x12 Commander mono coil and i also own a similar Coiltek coil but not identical,but it may help you in making a decision. As mention above i do own a use the 15x12 mono coil but dont use it for nugget hunting but i do use it for deep hoard/relic hunting an must admit its a terrific coil for the type of detecting that i do,but this is the 'twist' that i dont use this coil on a Minelab detector ie like the GPX but i do use it on the Whites TDI Pro straight out the box without any problems what so ever.It is slightly on the heavy side,so i always use a full harness either on its own or with a 'Hipstick' with both of these extras i can/could swing this 15x12 coil all day long,so this info may or may not help it does not directly help you but indirectly it could do. Regarding the Coiltek Elliptical mono goldstalker coil i dont own the exact size that you have mentioned the 18x12 but i do own the slightly smaller 14x9 mono version,this one again is not used on a Minelab machine but once again on my TDI Pro,and if i am honest this coil is my favourite all time coil for any Pulse machine as it is so light because its foam filled its as light as a feather,but of course it would be no good for surf detecting,but for all other uses like inland then this is without doubt a deadly coil,its very good depth wise but its also very good on small size finds.Mine use for both of these coils are not 'nugget' related but artefacts both large and small. So that my take on one of the coils that you have mentioned and also a different size version of the 2nd coil that you have mentioned,but i have highlighted how i use them and how i found them by using them on a totally different detector. What ever option you choose,good luck and keep us in the 'loop' about which coil you do buy.

Steve,would like to thank you for all the hard work and superb and interesting articles that you provide,make alot of sense for sure and been very helpful. As we go into 2019 is just over 4 hours time i wont be adding anymore detectors as i feel that i have about every niche cover and the coils well i have a crazy amount but they are mainly for site specific use,but 2019 for me will be more about refine my detecting techniques,surprising enough rather than using larger coils for deep pasture detecting which of course in theory is better suited for larger than normal targets,i am going the other way and reducing my coil sizes on both my VLF machines and also Pulse as well. Biggest problem that i faced in 2018 and going into 2019 is i am having major wrist problems as a result of a couple of bike accidents in the 70s and 80s and as a result these are starting to come back and haunt me due to age,but have adapted to accommodate this by using a full harness and a Hipstick even on light machines as well,so at least i can still get out for a full days session. Anyway would like to wish all those folks across the world all the very best for the coming year.

Interesting topic and thanks for starting it and Steve's reply,i own and use a Fisher TW-5 which is basically the same machine as the Gemini-3 model,only use it as has been suggested on the supplied rod that is suspended from the shoulder by the provided strap. Alas as we dont in 'theory' have gold in its raw state here in the UK i cannot comment on how it would fair for gold nugget hunting or gold detecting in general,how i use mine is for locating the deep container ie hoard or deep artifact/s after i have located what i suspect is a potential scattered hoard ie the top of a container that has been clipped by a piece of farm machinery usually deep ploughing,this then drags up some coins from the top of the pot/container and scatters the coin in a dragging fashion by further ploughing.Once i have located such a coin scatter then its time to use a twin box in this case the Fishers. My twin box does not come out too play all that often but is the ideal detecting machine for the job in hand,of course its totally useless for locating single coin size items,but i am not after those as i am after the 'holy grail' the pot itself.In the new year hope to be back on a potential celtic gold stater hoard site,we have located about 20 full staters all in a very tight radius and all the same style,so it ticks all the boxes for a possible container location rather than say a purse drop.

Enjoyed the video,i have used a GPX but i do own a TDI Pro,for my detecting needs which is mainly inland sites that have a very high mineral content then the only detector that will work on this and surrounding permissions is a Pulse machine and the machine that ticks my needs and requirements is the TDI,almost all the time i run it in low conductivity as most of my desired targets are silver hammered coins and celtic gold coins as well,and using low conductivity works a treat and very rarely do i dig iron,small iron is almost totally eliminated like nails etc,of course large iron objects like horseshoes then almost all machine including VLF will show these large items as decent ones. Great video,could not see after a very long period of research see any major advantage that the GPX would give me over the TDI especially for our finds here in the UK,for me it all boils down to the reward to cost ration on my sites and it just did not stack up in favour of the extra cost of buying a GPX.Of course just a personal opinion

I use both methods in my detecting arsenal,in the case for the defense of wireless coil and headphones then Deus for me wins hands down as a everyday use detector and the reason being is the major problems that i have with my right swinging wrist after coming off a bike at high speed in the 70s,i cannot take hardly any weight on the right wrist at all these days,so folks could suggest why dont i change swinging arms over to my left arm,it makes no odds how hard i try the coordination with the left arm just aint going to happen. I can use bigger and heavier wired combinations for special site situations when say i suspect a hoard is in that location,then i use a full harness and a hipstick and can do maybe 2-3 hours and that is about the limit of using such a detector/coil combination.But i can swing a Deus coil on a Golden Mask shaft or even a Deus shaft but its limited to a 9'' coil and although i do have a controller i mainly just use the headphones as i see them predominately as a 'audio' machine,but by doing it this way i can swing for a whole day but even then i still need to use a harness,which although seems crazy with such a lightweight machine,as long as it allows me too get out detecting still for a full days session then that is what i will carry on using. Regarding wireless headphones and wired headphones,of course on the Deus you do have a superb system that works exceptionally well and reliable,also i use a set of deteknix wireless headphones on almost all my other detectors and they are superb as i guess the Garratt ones are,really do work well and a major advantage being wireless as the wires dont get caught on anything,but i always carry a spare set or even 2 wired headphones as backup or even if someone else forgets a set. Its swings and roundabout is guess,although my main machine is the Deus i never carry just one detector as i carry about 4 that cover about every scenario that i would possibly encounter on that permission on that day.So some would be wired and some wireless,if i am a great distance from home then having a few backup machines is vitally important as its so frustrating driving say 100 miles and finding out that you have a malfunction on a piece of detecting gear and you cannot detect that day because of the problem. Its all personal choice at the end of the day and of course wireless coils the same as wired coils can both develop problems and both have good and bad features,for me i use both methods because of injuries and i will use what ever is available too prolong my detecting hobby.

Storing detectors and coils can be a massive problem,currently have 23 detectors and at last count 47 coils that i have accumulated over the years ? and all stored under lock and key at home,most of them get used as well.

The holy grail of UK finds a yellow hammy and in outstanding condition,alot rarer than celtic gold staters and guaranteed to make your heart skip a few beats when you do find one.

Steve,1st time that i have seen this old post of yours and makes alot of sense,in the last 12 months or so instead of running sensitivity as high as i use too i have reduced this setting down by massive amount,also either reduced discrimination down to zero or in most cases All Metal mode.My Deus and a original green T2 have all been running at reduced sensitivity on all my roman and saxon sites,but my finds rate has increased pro rata. For some reason everyone want too crank the sensitivity right up and use the biggest coils that we can buy and expect to find the holy grail of finds,alas it does not work like that,all my detectors had big coils on predominately for clear pasture sites,but the only real advantage gained was ground coverage,but detecting became a nightmare and in the last 2 years i have done a total reverse and not only running all my detectors at reduced power but also reduced the coil sizes below stock coil size and my finds rate and doubled. A tremendous article and have 'bookmarked' it for future reference......many thanks

That be Craig Denney from the west country,they speak funny and have a weird sense of Humour,but he is a very good detectorist,but he has been experiment in a big way with 'Geophyising' and combining this also with detecting,the Geophyising machine is a cheap setup compared with what is on the market,but it does add another dimension too his hobby. A few weeks back he was a on a old pasture site and found what is probably a DMV 'desert medieval village' and that would not have normally been found without him doing his 'Geophyising' so although is equipment is very basic but his interpretation of the basic graphs do make sense and you can see features that other wise you would not see,so this does give him some advantage of just using a metal detector. This is his Geophyising channel Must admit i am finding this additional subject interesting as its a bolt on piece of equipment that can aid 'relic/artifact/hoard' hunting especially here in the UK.

John,what large coil do you use on the MXT ??? is that the 14'' Detech one.

Terrific story,you cannot beat a bit of the old yellow stuff can you ? if you are finding cut quarters then your machine is setup spot on,pleased that you found a wide selection of finds.

Very interesting subject,i use a original T2 that i have had for many years and never really had trouble as such with EMI as i mainly detect farmland well away from EMI sources,but we do have problems occasionally with over head power cables. So although i dont have trouble with EMI i do prefer my T2 to run smoothly rather than on the 'edge' as they say,you may get some slight depth advantage but at the expense of giving your ears a real hard time with all the falsing and other non desirable audio signals,for a very long time i always used discrimination mode only and 80 sensitivity was the baseline figure and of course adjust up or down accordingly on the ground condition,but this last year or so i have been mainly using AM mode and with smaller coils,i do have a slection of large coils for deep clean pasture sites and for the most part that has worked well,i do occasionally reduce sens down too around 75. But i mainly use smaller than stock size coils these days mainly due on a wrist injury i received back in the 70s when i came off a bike,so these days i usually run any detecting unit with smaller coils on,also i have found that i am happier reducing the sensitivity down to 70 even in AM mode,always loved the 5'' factory coil as it gives great depth for its size and deadly on trashy sites,but always wanted a slightly larger coil but still gives alot of the characteristics of the 5'' coil for more ground coverage,i finally found the ideal coil recently when i located and bought a 6'' DD coil made by Coiltek,it was a prototype coil from them but it finally has given me everything that i want from the T2,no more EMI issues and runs as smooth as silk and just with 70 on the sensitivity in AM mode. Always fancied trying a F75 but while my T2 still finds me the holy grail of finds the celtic gold staters then i wont change this winning combination,1/4 staters are are not the biggest of finds,and even cut 1/4 and halves are found with ease. A great topic on EMI and some great information reply wise.

Spring,can be nice weather wise,but the biggest problem could be that crops ie wheat and barley could well be in full growth,some farmers dont mind and will allow you to detect even upto 3-4'' or more,other landowner/farmers as soon as the seed hits the ground then that is out of bounds till harvest time,which is of course autumn or fall for you guys,August,September and October are the prime month when the window for detecting and rallies is basically at its peak. This is why Detectival is usually in September/October as the weather is usually pretty good,i the spring we could have April showers.so if i was to choose it would be the later option.

Although i live and detecting here in the UK,it was exceptionally interesting reading your indepth report on your visit....must admit i rather enjoyed reading that and also the images that you posted....quality review Steve. Have found a few gold staters over the years including full and quarter ones,the main ones being the Whaddon chase version from 55bc,when these are dug out it really gets your heart pumping with all the excitment that it brings,must admit i did find that small piece of gold interesting and wondering if it was something that has come of a larger item caused by plough damage,i would have spent hours methodically doing that area as something could have been nice found in that location. A great read and really enjoyed your vacation adventure.

Steve,some tremendous information,think i will stay with my Coiltek,its the only coil that really suits my sites,as the coil is foam filled it really is ultra lightweight,as i dont use it everyday i even use it without the coil cover on like all my coils and suprising how heavy a cover can be especially on a very large coil.....cannot exactly quote the weight as i have never weighed one but my large 20'' Jimmy Sierra coil coil cover weighs alot and i can only swing that setup using a GPX full harness and the amazing hipstick,but i can swing the Coiltek 14x9 mono coil all day. Thanks again for your input,will be using the 14x9 coil this coming weekend on a very old pasture site.

Steve,i own and use a 14x9 Coiltek mono coil on my TDI Pro the main reason being that is ultra lightweight and i do suffer from a wrist problems,hence the main reason i use it,i also have the stock 12'' DF coil that comes with the TDI but not used it very much,so do you think the stock coil would give me slightly more depth ?? Another coil which i also have and will be using over the coming winter months also on the TDI is the 15x12 Commander mono coil,albeit it is heavier than the other 2 coils but being physically bigger i would have thought that the 15x12 should be deeper out of the 3 that i have mentioned.......i do have much bigger coils but those would be predominately use on very special occasions say on deep pasture for large artifacts and hoards. Your input would be most welcome

The subject on how fast or slow a find sinks in the ground has been covered many many times over the years,so many things too take int account,folks have tried to answer the question scientifically,but in my mind with so many variables its basically impossibly to give a reliable answer. My perspective is that i dont try and get stressed out try to work out the impossible,but from my perspective and from years of detecting in the UK the older finds can be down deep,especially on real ancient roman/saxon and celtic sites pasture etc,of course the classic reason why you can/will find deep coins and artifacts is the fact that of course here in the UK and Europa as well,we did not have banks or other safe house institutions,as everything was basically hidden in the ground,this is the sole main reason we find hoards. Normal everyday detectors that have say a 10-11'' coil size on can only go down so far depth wise,but when hoards or other artifacts had been buried for safe keeping in time of turmoil,items had been buried usually at arms length of a person laying flat on the ground,this is usually from previous finds are about the 18-24'' depth range,which is of course just out of range of a normal VLF machine. Hence this is the main reason its advisable to have some form of a deep detector this could be either a VLF or Pulse machine and once again with a bigger than normal coil size,i use a few such as the TDI Pro with upto 20'' coils and also the mighty Nexus MP with large coils as well,of course by using such large coils you will gain extra depth and ground coverage,but the down side is that you start loosing the sensitivity on smaller finds,but you can get a coil size say 15'' that will not only go deep but still give you some sensitivity on single coins etc as well. Depth on 'man made items' and the sink rate on them in my mind is nearly impossibly to give a exact answer,this is why i dont try and figure out scientifically why.This is of course just my way of thinking on this subject from my experience here in the UK,of course gold nuggets in other countries are not man made and also can come up at any depth......interesting subject for sure.

Tom,thanks for the information,its basically the same size from the looks of it as my Coiltek 14x9 and my Commander coil,thanks agin

I am aware that this is old post,but what grabs my attention more than anything is what is the coil that is on the TDI sl ?? is that a new coil under development or a after market coil ?? i use a similar looking one the 15x12 Commander mono coil on my TDI Pro.But does anyone have any information about the TDI sl coil that is in the picture please ??

Regis,terrific find me old mate,must admit i also use the Snake coil on my UK Vaquero,really does a tremendous job pulling decent finds out of trashy sites,well done and detecting is becoming harder here every week because of all the fields have crops in at the moment,so doubt that i will get out again till the combines start cutting again.

I use Lidar alot here in the UK for when i do research on a new permission,its improving all the time,provides a fantastic amount of additional information on activity on older sites,another additional tool that i have also experimented with is a quad copter,anything that gives you some extra help on a site is always welcome.

I hear exactly what you are saying,of course a dedicated front winch mounted on a purpose built winch bumper is the proper tool for the job and of course its wired direct into the main harness,thats the way forward especially if you do alot of off roading or miles away from any form of help,so thats is your insurance that it will get you out of almost all difficult situations. But for the most part on my permissions or my detecting sites on farmland in general here in the UK as yet i have never got stuck that requires a real heavy hitter winch setup,in my mind it would be a massive amount of money sitting on the front end of the truck that would maybe used once or if at all,so this is the reason that i went down the route of a temp recovery winch with the snatch block,i do have a plug in lead plug like what the use on forklift truck chargers so i can use the winch direct from the vehicles power source.But if the truck battery goes flat and i am unable too start the engine,i could/can still if need be use the temporary power supply and temp winch with the snatch block. So if the occasion ever did occur,which as yet its never happened then at least i could have a 'very good chance' of getting out of a stuck situation.With the snatch block method that i use it doubles the pulling power of a winch but reduces the speed of the line retrieval,but line retrieval speed is not a issue as such its the pulling power,also the added beauty is that if/when i was too sell my 4x4 then i could transfer it over to another truck.So although its not the ideal 100% setup it does work and as long as one is aware of the limits of the setup then use it accordingly.

Must admit i have both a heavy duty battery pack as well as a portable electric winch as well and snatch block,which i carry in a box,although i have never used it but when you mentioned about using it as a temporary recovery winch and it has the power to drive the winch then its going back into the boot of my truck for that odd occasion that i may need it. On its own i think the pull is about 2000lbs but with the snatch block it doubles it,thanks for a terrific idea