Tip on Coil Cords

[Nugget Shooter 4,034]

Just a tip for some of you newer folks, run your wire from the coil straight up the shaft almost to the control box before winding it onto the shaft. The windings will give falsing if wrapped around the shaft just above coil as you swing. We use velcro wire wraps to hold it in place.

[Miner Matt 0]

Good point Bill B)

I also thinks it helps in protecting your coil cable from getting cut on rocks while working in that kind of terrain.

[Hoser John 1,214]

Thanx-John

[garimpo 2,088]

A couple of areas that have given me problems on the coil cord is

first the little screw under the screw down ring...it can vibrate

loose and believe me Ace don't have them...a good fix is take your

Phillips jewelers screw drive...ever beeper should have a set...

take the screw out and put "thread lock" on the little sucker...

end of problems there...

I don't know if anybody else thinks of this or does anything about

it but metals(except gold)forms a layer of oxidation(just another

form of rust)and may cause false signals or static...my solution

about every six months is this: go to your local school supplies

store and buy a pencil eraser

it looks like a lead pencil but inside the entire length is an

eraser instead of lead...I whittle the ends for different functions

then on the one I whittled to

a point I take a very small drill bit and make a hole in the

eraser so I can clean the male prongs on the detector...slip it on

each prong...give it a couple of turns and it's clean...go to the

nextuntil they're all clean..

Now for the female connectors...I make a small diameter Q tip

swab...take a tooth pick and

put a very small amount of cotton on the end

at this point it helps to add a very small amount of non-abrasive

metal polish to the swab(Wenol or Flitz) works great...then put

the swab into each of the female holes and turn it a few times and

you'll be surprised how much black oxidation you'll get..

then do the same to the

other end of the tooth pick for the final clean up...now you have

two new tools forfuture use....

[Miner Matt 0]

Wow Garimpo that is some excellent advise and new tools to boot!

[DustyRoundup 0]

Thanks !!

Excellent Idea's

[FlakMagnet 160]

Garimpo/Don and Bill S.

Excellent advice, especially that cleaning-the-contacts info.

Easy to do and highly important.

Many thanks,

Flak

[Hoser John 1,214]

Electronic tuner cleaner and a old toothbrush, isopropyl alcohol evaporates and leaves a clean surface also-John

[garimpo 2,088]

Another head scratcher for Dick...after buying some used

Minelab detectors I've ended up with a couple of old 11" DD

coils and one of the cords has the outside of the cord coming

"unraveled" from age...which leaves two wires inside hanging out

in a mess....a guy here makes coils so I took it to him to

see if he could replace the cord...he said he could if he had

a DD cord...is a mono and a DD cord not interchangeable? Also

where can I get a DD cord?

[FlakMagnet 160]

Don, check PM's.

Flak

[Birddog 1 0]

Hi Bill does these false signals happen with all detectors like pi ones? And would this false signal be at the apex of the swing when you start to swing back?

Birddog 1

[Nugget Shooter 4,034]

Hi Bill does these false signals happen with all detectors like pi ones? And would this false signal be at the apex of the swing when you start to swing back?

Birddog 1

This can happen on ANY detector PI or VLF and the falsing is caused by the detector "seeing" the cable coils move with the flex of the shaft and you get a signal, bumping objects will also move the coiled wire giving falsing, when still it is quiet.

When the cord is run straight up halfway or better this problem is virtually eliminated. If one must coil the wire down low be sure it is tight at least or there will be issues especially when bumping the coil.

The falsing is normally at the end of swing when swinging back and the faster the swing the more the problem will show.

Often the coil is blamed by an operator as "noisy" when scrubbing or bumping objects and in many cases I have cured this problem for newer hunters by giving this tip....

[FlakMagnet 160]

Perfect explanation Bill.

[munizaga 0]

Another head scratcher for Dick...after buying some used

Minelab detectors I've ended up with a couple of old 11" DD

coils and one of the cords has the outside of the cord coming

"unraveled" from age...which leaves two wires inside hanging out

in a mess....a guy here makes coils so I took it to him to

see if he could replace the cord...he said he could if he had

a DD cord...is a mono and a DD cord not interchangeable? Also

where can I get a DD cord?

Garimpo did you ever get an answer to this. I also have a Commander 11" DD and if you touch the connector at the end where the control box is it gives off a whine - it has been slowly getting worse to the point I think I need to change the cord

[garimpo 2,088]

Munizaga....I was hoping that Dick would give us his answer to this but so far he

hasn't....I'm thinking that the only place possible would be Minelab in AU...I could

be wrong but I don't think the repair center fixes coils....but about your problem...

I believe your having issues with the connector itself...probably a solder joint has

broken loose....I've had this three times in the last 12 years...and it's not just

one coil company either....my fix is to take the coil to one of two TV repair shops

here and they cut about an inch off the cord and then re-solder it back on...problem

solved....

[Nugget Shooter 4,034]

Minelab does not do coil repair to my knowledge....

[Desertsunburn 44]

Electronic tuner cleaner and a old toothbrush, isopropyl alcohol evaporates and leaves a clean surface also-John

John, isopropyl alcohol leaves a film. You do not use it on critical electronic components.

Also, FYI: If you start polishing connector contacts, you stand the chance of removing the gold plating or cadium plating that is on them.

Great thread, Bill...I am correcting my cable now. Thank you. Over time, I really have not noticed but it is coiled down close to the base.

Question... Do you really need to coil it at all on the arm??? How about just coiling it in a loop near the top somewhere and tyrap it there??? Is there any effect there???

Jim

[Nugget Shooter 4,034]

Question... Do you really need to coil it at all on the arm??? How about just coiling it in a loop near the top somewhere and tyrap it there??? Is there any effect there???

Jim

You can do that I guess, I just coil mine below the control box and plug it in.

[frank c 689]

Desertsunburn, take your isoprophyl, denatured, rubbing, and any and all alcohol types, get a piece of mirror throughlly clean the mirror.

Now apply in a circular motion as if you were removing a stain and then stop lift away the rag, or what ever you use to apply the alcohol with do this with all your alcohol types and then SEE which if any OR ALL leave a film....... SURPRISE !!!!!

[garimpo 2,088]

Frank I believe it was you that suggested using Glycerin on the cords to protect them from splitting...

by any chance do you know how long it takes to treat 18 friggin cords??? Also one whole bottle of Glycerin!!!!

Thanks for letting me know about this product...at least now I have 18 beautiful coil cords!!!!

[Desertsunburn 44]

Hi FranK

There were several times in my life where as a tech, we were not allowed to use alcohol to clean components. When I owned GTS (electronic assembly plant) we had a few contracts where we could not use alcohol (Plessey, DEC and Hughes), mainly on edge care connectors. This was at a time period where other cleaning solutions were being outlawed and I actually wanted to try it in our cleaning tanks. Answers came back no.

I use to use alcohol on tape drives I worked on. Never had any issues. Then Nortel issued service bulletins stating to not use alcohol on the tape heads. Other manufacturers, we learned, also has similar requirements. I beleive Belden discouraged it's use when cleaning BNC and N-type connectors.

Desertsunburn, take your isoprophyl, denatured, rubbing, and any and all alcohol types, get a piece of mirror throughlly clean the mirror.

Now apply in a circular motion as if you were removing a stain and then stop lift away the rag, or what ever you use to apply the alcohol with do this with all your alcohol types and then SEE which if any OR ALL leave a film....... SURPRISE !!!!!

[highbanker58 10]

Some great tips thanks all. Dave