GPX coil question

[garikfox 75]

I was wondering if the aftermarket coils were that much better than the Minelab, i.e Coiltek.

I'm very hesitant to go Coiltek because the GPX was designed to use only Minelab coils?

My fear is i don't want to hurt my GPX 5000 in the long term by putting a coil on it that Minelab doesn't like?

It seems like everyone with a GPX is using a aftermarket coil. I especially like the Coiltek 9" Elite

I'f you were me would you get a Coiltek coil?

[Desertpilot 570]

I’d learn the minelab 11in and 8in before buying a bunch of coils. The 8in does awesome on bed rock and the 11in is good in shallow ground. Once you get the hang of it and in a area that produces then get a coil to fit your needs. I’ve learned over the years you find more gold with solid research than aftermarket coils.

[garikfox 75]

Okay thank you. I will stick with Minelab coils

[garimpo 2,265]

Good advice from desertpilot but just for the record for years Coiltek made the coils for Minelab and possibly they still do. 

[BMc 991]

On 7/27/2019 at 4:22 PM, garikfox said:

I was wondering if the aftermarket coils were that much better than the Minelab, i.e Coiltek.

I'm very hesitant to go Coiltek because the GPX was designed to use only Minelab coils?

My fear is i don't want to hurt my GPX 5000 in the long term by putting a coil on it that Minelab doesn't like?

It seems like everyone with a GPX is using a aftermarket coil. I especially like the Coiltek 9" Elite

I'f you were me would you get a Coiltek coil?

If you have an 8" and 11'' Minelab Commander Mono, most experienced nugget hunters would  consider you to be pretty well equipped. Problem is, the sales packaging for a new GPX5000 doesn't include either one (so I'm told). The 5K ships with an 11" DD and 15 x 12 inch Mono, (not their best sellers?), so if you want the tried and true preferred combo (IMO), you have a choice. Open another vein and drip out a few hundred bucks for what you should have had a choice of to begin with, or, go aftermarket.

Personally, a 9" Elite Mono would fill a gap I could live with. (Although I wanted an elliptical and went with the 14 x 9 Elite and am very happy with it on my 5K)

[garikfox 75]

I was wondering about the Coiltek and Minelab partnership, you're probably right. Yes it came with a 11 DD and the 15x12 Mono. I was thinking today about also getting the Commander 11 inch Mono. But i really love small coils not sure why but i do.

I'll probably order a 11" commander mono and a Coiltek Elite 9" for the future. Also for some weird reason im thinking i also need a smaller DD coil, the only one i can find is the Detech 8" DD coil.

The main reason why im hesitant about purchasing a aftermarket coil is, if Minelab is superior why aren't their coils the best? Don't they have experienced engineers better than Coiltek? I'd assume they do but than again i'm not sure.

Edited July 29, 2019 by garikfox

[Desertpilot 570]

For me I personally stick to minelab or nuggetfinder coils based on build quality. For some reason the Coilteks I’ve owned became bump sensitive over time but maybe I’m too rough on them, so your mileage may vary.  Like I said before I’d still wait until you learn your machine before purchasing extra coils. I’d also wait until you find some producing ground before making a purchase as well. For example what if your first patch is deep and on open ground? Then the 15in has you covered. If it’s shallow to medium depth and brushy then the 11in will do fine. I’d also wait on the small double d unless your battling crazy EMI on a shallow patch your working. If you really feel like you need a coil I’d buy the commander 8in mono to work the bedrock and maybe a 11in mono if your in a heavy mineralized area (fine gold/enhance timings). Remember that any timing outside of normal is a trade off on performance and if you use a timing that is for higher mineralized ground than you are working then you will lose depth. Too often I’ve seen people just run fine gold in mild ground when they should be running normal or sensitive extra. When I’m patch hunting a new area I start in normal with a double d and jump to sensitive extra if the ground is very mild. Now on the other hand one of my claims is covered in large chunks of magnetite and is highly variable in soil mineralization so I have to run a mono with fine gold or enhance to get a steady threshold. Only reason I’m telling you this is to avoid buying a bunch of coils then find a patch and realize you have to buy another coil because what you have isn’t optimized for the ground your working. Also be sure to fully understand your timings and other features before heading out on your own. Detecting is a mental game and you need to be confident that your settings are optimal for the ground your working.

Edited July 31, 2019 by Desertpilot
Hooked on phonics

[garikfox 75]

Excellent thank you!

I'm going to grab a minelab 11" mono. 

So no matter where you go you start off in Normal? What Gain do you set it at? I was thinking of starting at 13

[TomH 2,637]

11 hours ago, Desertpilot said:

For me I personally stick to minelab or nuggetfinder coils based on build quality. For some reason the Coilteks I’ve owned became bump sensitive over time but maybe I’m too rough on them, so your mileage may vary.  Like I said before I’d still wait until you learn your machine before purchasing extra coils. I’d also wait until you find some producing ground before making a purchase as well. For example what if your first patch is deep and on open ground? Then the 15in has you covered. If it’s shallow to medium depth and brushy then the 11in will do fine. I’d also wait on the small double d unless your battling crazy EMI on a shallow patch your working. If you really feel like you need a coil I’d buy the commander 8in mono to work the bedrock and maybe a 11in mono if your in a heavy mineralized area (fine gold/enhance timings). Remember that any timing outside of normal is a trade off on performance and if you use a timing that is for higher mineralized ground than you are working then you will lose depth. Too often I’ve seen people just run fine gold in mild ground when they should be running normal or sensitive extra. When I’m patch hunting a new area I start in normal with a double d and jump to sensitive extra if the ground is very mild. Now on the other hand one of my claims is covered in large chunks of magnetite and is highly variable in soil mineralization so I have to run a mono with fine gold or enhance to get a steady threshold. Only reason I’m telling you this is to avoid buying a bunch of coils then find a patch and realize you have to buy another coil because what you have isn’t optimized for the ground your working. Also be sure to fully understand your timings and other features before heading out on your own. Detecting is a mental game and you need to be confident that your settings are optimal for the ground your working.

Nugget finder EVO for me I have two coiilteks that are bump sensitive also. 

I am usually in Fine Gold as the ground above PHX seems to have a lot of iron stone and hot rocks. Run my gain at 9

Tom H. 

 

[garikfox 75]

Hey TomH, Gain at 9, interesting...

Edited July 31, 2019 by garikfox

[Desertpilot 570]

I start in normal and factory presets to get a baseline on what the conditions are. If I cannot get a stable threshold then I refer to minelabs recommended procedure to stabilize the threshold. 

• Select an appropriate Search Mode
• Select the desired Audio Type
• Adjust Rx Gain until the threshold starts to break up
• Adjust Stabilizer to smooth out the threshold.

I don’t use a set gain since it will always change with your soil/environmental conditions. Now if I find gold I note my settings so when I return I’m ready to go with the exception of maybe a slight tweak to gain for any environmental changes. I try to remain fluid with my settings since the ground can be highly variable in most of Arizona’s goldfields.

[BMc 991]

1 hour ago, garikfox said:

Hey TomH, Gain at 9, interesting...

Factory preset is Normal, plus gain at 11. Once you learn how to use it, you might tweak it hot or push it to the margins like Desertpilot. The ground and the detector will tell you what to do (threshold static)

[BMc 991]

If you don't have a manual, you might want to download one off the net and take a look at it. It's a pretty good initial learning source 

[garikfox 75]

I downloaded and read it already

[LukeJ 1,981]

If you can acquire a 'hard' copy of the manual, you should.  Place it anywhere you have a tendency to sit, and thumb through it as often as possible.  Just reading it once isn't good enough.

I'll second everything Desertpilot has said.  Perhaps, read through his suggestions again as well.

My coil of choice, above all others, is the 11" commander mono.  I've found gold as small as you'd want to find with a GPX and several 1 gram plus nuggets at 10 inches or so.

As far as the gain is concerned, you won't know where to run it until you get there.  Ground conditions and EMI will dictate where you end up.  Coil size is a factor as well.

Good Luck.  Keep reading the manual.....

Luke

[garikfox 75]

Thanks LukeJ. I'm going to get a 11" commander mono to go along with my 8" commander mono

Edited August 2, 2019 by garikfox

[Relichunter2016 699]

Commander 11" Mono......Killer coil on a Minelab...

[garikfox 75]

Hi again everyone. I went ahead and bought my coils. after many hours of thinking and reading i decided to get 3 additional coils for my GPX. I should be set for life now

11" Minelab Commander Mono

Nugget Finder 14x9 EVO

Detech 15" Ultimate Spiral DD

[Relichunter2016 699]

46 minutes ago, garikfox said:

Hi again everyone. I went ahead and bought my coils. after many hours of thinking and reading i decided to get 3 additional coils for my GPX. I should be set for life now

11" Minelab Commander Mono

Nugget Finder 14x9 EVO

Detech 15" Ultimate Spiral DD

Garifox,

You have it covered, don't even think about buying anymore, unless they go bad...od course. 

Edited August 12, 2019 by Relichunter2016

[garikfox 75]

Yes don't buy anymore lol. these things are expensive !!

[garikfox 75]

I seem to have messed up and bought another coil

Nugget Finder 17x13 spoked

Now im good...I swear im good now...  

[Desertpilot 570]

Congrats on buying a pile of coils. Hopefully they fit your mission set and ground you will be working.

[garikfox 75]

Thanks Desertpilot

Edited August 20, 2019 by garikfox