Garrett ATX Backpack Modification

[kac]

7 hours ago, BeachBunnyTRHunter - DP said:

That's very interesting.  I think it's a great detector but the weight is a killer.  This backpack idea is a cool idea. Obviously, the parent article about the subject is seven years old – so it's not exactly a new idea but it's new to me. Garrett made an Infinium double D coil, 10 x 14" and that would also be awesome on the beach but with the ATX's limited ability to discern iron, it may not be very desirable.

Now I have two pulse induction units, one is a Garrett Sea Hunter II, and the other is a White's TDI beach Hunter.  I've only had the second detector in the lists for about a week or so and I am still figuring out what is capable of but I think it would do pretty well – nevertheless I'm not quite convinced how it is going to do on very small targets? To wit, that is where the Garrett ATX comes in but I don't know that I want another detector for that, and an expensive one at that.  The ATX package is very inconvenient in could be said to be outdated – the whole concept of everything from just north of the coil all the way up to the control box is great if you are on the battlefield, and that is where the technology came from but that is not here when you're swinging it for two or more hours and getting ready to scream in agony over the weight. I have the MINELAB-brand harness, and while that is great and would work here, nearly 7 pounds is still nearly 7 pounds. No matter what.  So the backpack idea that Steve brought up as an excellent one.

Fact is, it's all a tricky business because gold targets go deep and go deep quickly. So what are you going to use?  Some VLF detector? Detection depth is limited at best, and even if it wasn't, the deeper the target the less accurate the VDI numbers will be so you will need to dig more than you thought. The XP Deus II?  That's a great detector for the beach but may not have the depth necessary to find gold because gold does not stick around at shallow depths very long.  Nevertheless, it should be able to detect a gold ring at least two a foot down – per Calabash Digger, found on YouTube.   I can't speak about all the beaches in Florida but I can tell you here in South Florida that the dry beaches are very sandy, and targets can go deep quickly in that loose sand – so the question is whether you go to find and where? Also the question is how much trash are you willing to dig per square meter or per square yard just to get to the treasure? We have an overwhelming amount of aluminum this and that – twist caps, bottle caps and everything else in between.  Why say so because I have the TDI and there's only so much you're gonna get out of discerning what is under the ground from the audio signal. On the other hand, the XP Deus II is not to be ignored on the beach, and will do very well – as people will show. Super effective at avoiding bottle caps and iron as needed – not to mention idea what the target is before you have even dug your first scoop of sand or dirt. Furthermore, from what I've seen, it is the foremost consumer-focused metal detector available on this planet as of December 2021. At least, one that does not require for you to sell a kidney to purchase.

In summary, a huge proponent of PULSE INDUCTION technology utilized both on the beach and in the water – nothing better. If you going to operate in dry sand, parks, fields, underwater, or on the moon – the XP Deus II is good to be an excellent choice for anyone. LOL. Price is reasonable around $1500.

 

 

#Deus #TDI #ATX #Minelab

I have the Seahunter II also and use the 10x14 coil. There is no problem with sensitivity on it with small targets if disc is set to 0. I pick up some of the tiniest pieces of fish hooks and foil at descent depth but the trouble I do have with it up here in the NE lately has been EMI and the storms have been blowing up lobster traps over the place. Not having any iron checking or being able to discriminate out iron makes using it very difficult. At bets if the lobster trap pieces are long enough I will get a double beep in one direction.

This puts be back to using vlf's and hunting the cuts. Curious how the Nokta Legend does in the salt. Deus with a 9" coil I doubt will get you very deep. Have used the Orx on the beach and it was ok but lacked depth. I have an Apex with 9" that works well and actually goes deeper than the Orx did and mainly use my Multi Kruzer with 12" coil at 5khz to do the job.

[BeachBunnyTRHunter - DP]

On 12/15/2021 at 10:47 PM, kac said:

Already good on scoops for now. got a stainless last year for the deep stuff and still have my old beat up basket scoop i use for beach combing and towel lines.

The scoop you have looks like it is mig welded? Not a bad thing just curious. If so Tig will give you a smaller cleaner weld.

Based on everything you said I would go with the Minelab Excalibur 2.  That detector automatically nulls out iron and has been known to detect targets to 16 inches, regardless of whether it's in the water or on land. Do your own due diligence to verify this but it is well renowned and been around for decades.

[Off Grid]

What a coincidence this post has resurfaced. After a long and agonizing journey my Infinium 10x5 DD is now in Africa (US dealer said Garrett prohibits them from shipping out of country. Is that right or just BS?), Right after Christmas I'll be modifying my ATX to an "ATX-Ultra Lite" with the coil on a Gold Bug Mk1 rod. May look at a backpack for the housing but I've already played around with an arm sling and it seemed OK. It's going to be real interesting testing it on clayey ground that I've already hammered with the GB2 10x5 and 6x4 coils but I suspected the ground was not the best for VLF.

[BeachBunnyTRHunter - DP]

52 minutes ago, Off Grid said:

What a coincidence this post has resurfaced. After a long and agonizing journey my Infinium 10x5 DD is now in Africa (US dealer said Garrett prohibits them from shipping out of country. Is that right or just BS?), Right after Christmas I'll be modifying my ATX to an "ATX-Ultra Lite" with the coil on a Gold Bug Mk1 rod. May look at a backpack for the housing but I've already played around with an arm sling and it seemed OK. It's going to be real interesting testing it on clayey ground that I've already hammered with the GB2 10x5 and 6x4 coils but I suspected the ground was not the best for VLF.

Not sure about your questions.  Call/write Garrett in Texas - they'll respond.  On your ATX mods, please share because that all sounds very interesting.  

[Steve Herschbach]

5 hours ago, Off Grid said:

What a coincidence this post has resurfaced. After a long and agonizing journey my Infinium 10x5 DD is now in Africa (US dealer said Garrett prohibits them from shipping out of country. Is that right or just BS?), Right after Christmas I'll be modifying my ATX to an "ATX-Ultra Lite" with the coil on a Gold Bug Mk1 rod. May look at a backpack for the housing but I've already played around with an arm sling and it seemed OK. It's going to be real interesting testing it on clayey ground that I've already hammered with the GB2 10x5 and 6x4 coils but I suspected the ground was not the best for VLF.

Yes, dealers have restrictions on territory and where they can sell. Out of country sales are normally prohibited, as each country or region has their own distribution channel. I was a multi line dealer in Alaska, and could sell almost nothing into Canada, for instance. You can find dealers who will violate these policies, but the buyer of the detector can run afoul of issues if warranty work is needed, as these are considered “grey market” merchandise.

I also got a sling for a broken arm that worked well holding the ATX body next to the side instead of on back.

[Steve Herschbach]

On 12/21/2021 at 12:04 PM, BeachBunnyTRHunter - DP said:

Now I have two pulse induction units, one is a Garrett Sea Hunter II, and the other is a White's TDI beach Hunter.  I've only had the second detector in the lists for about a week or so and I am still figuring out what is capable of but I think it would do pretty well – nevertheless I'm not quite convinced how it is going to do on very small targets? To wit, that is where the Garrett ATX comes in

The ATX design is decades newer than either the Sea Hunter, which is old school straight PI, or the TDI, which is a direct port of the Eric Foster ground balancing PI, the Goldscan. The Goldscan/TDI is a single channel ground balancing PI, and as such has a huge “hole” in the detection of items around the ground balance point. Some gold rings will experience a 50% or greater loss of depth in this “hole”, and it is a major reason you should run ground balance off in a beach scenario if at all possible with the TDI.

The ATX is a modern dual channel design more akin to the Minelab SD series, which uses overlapping but offset dual channels to eliminate the ground balance hole. Details Here and More Details Here

The ATX is also very good on smaller items like small gold nuggets, able to hit 1/10th gram gold nuggets with no problem.

I’m a huge ATX fan but frustrated by the heavy military housing. If we ever get an ATX in a modern housing, I’ll be first in line to get one.

 

[Pyriteboy]

Steve, I'd be right behind you if it was also waterproof/water resistant. I think offering an all-condition ATX would serve everyone well...

-Jerry

[EL NINO77]

I still had the impression that the ATX electrical unit itself with batteries .. it has an emotionally more or less acceptable weight .... even though it is quite massive and fully waterproof ... and it looked more like the weak spot is simply harder to beat the rods are connected with a coil ... So I found the time..and considered both parts separately ..

The impression did not deceive me ... The ATX main unit itself also weighs less than 1.6kg from the battery .... and on the contrary, the coil itself with a set of rods is already heavier than the 1.6kg/it's exactly 1.69 Kg!/ ,,, -may it is conditioned by the military tactical use of ATX from the smoother good compactness and durability ... detector ....

I think that in the event of an ATX upgrade it would be very helpful to make it a bit longer .. but lighter in weight and ... only a 2-piece rod system that is more suitable for civilian use of this detector ...

Of course, putting the ATX main unit in a backpack ..is one of the easy and very good options ... how to deal with a certain overweight ATX .... especially when using infinium coils ...

[Steve Herschbach]

The coil/rod combo is horrible. Extremely heavy due to the fiberglass rod. And very expensive because with every coil, you must buy the same rod you do not need over and over!! First thing an ATX makeover needs is new rod and coil combos.