Terry In Florida
Full Member
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2005
- Messages
- 110
- Reaction score
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- Location
- Port Richey, Florida
- Detector(s) used
- Fisher 1280x Aquanaut
Minelab Excalibur II
- Primary Interest:
- All Treasure Hunting
I don't know if this has been beat to death or not but I figured I would share my DIY hip mount I made for my Excal II, I've been using it a while now, so I felt confident about posting it. I know the information has been posted before, so if it doesn't seem like it may be helpful, it won't hurt my feelings for admins to remove it.
I bought 2 nylon tool belts from Home Depot for $5 each, cause I'm big around the waist and needed two. Bought stainless washers bolts and wingnuts to hold the control and battery housings. Then I found out Lowes carries the nylon fasteners that I couldn't find at Home Depot. I used a 1/2" piece of plastic conduit cut to 10" to mount them to the belts.
DIY Hip Mount
Parts List:
1x Husky 2 in. Quick Release Tool Belt - HomeDepot
2x Hillman 2 Count 1/4-in-20 x 1-1/2-in Slotted-Drive Machine Screws - Lowes
2x Hillman 2 Count 1/4-in Nylon Standard (SAE) Regular Wing Nut - Lowes
1x Hillman 4-Count 1/4-in Nylon Standard (SAE) Flat Washer - Lowes
1x JM eagle 1/2 in. x 10 ft. PVC Schedule 40 Conduit - HomeDepot
Price List:
$4.97 1 Husky Tool Belt (Most will only need one, unless they are my size, lol.)
$1.24 2 - 2 pk Nylon Screws
$1.66 2 - 2 pk Nylon Wingnuts
$ .62 1 - 4 pk Nylon Flat Washer
$2.21 Conduit
Subtotal: $11.70
tax .82
Total: $12.52
Started out with the parts, I cut the conduit to 10" and placed the control and battery pods in place with the conduit in the center where I wanted it, then I used a permanent marker to place a center mark for my holes on the conduit. Next I used a 1/4" drill bit to drill my holes, I was careful to do one hole on one side of the conduit, place the bolt into the hole on that side and then get my mark for the other side, and then drill the other side from the opposite direction. instead of just drilling through the conduit from one direction. I did this for each of the three holes, in the end they all lined up perfectly for me this way.

Just have to be absolutely sure of where you are placing the holes and where you want the buckle at. After I knew where I wanted the control and battery pods positioned from the buckle, I made the first hole. I heated a big philips head screwdriver up to burn through the belt and it sealed the holes at the same time. I get perfect holes that don't come apart this way. Then I bolted the belt to the conduit through that first hole to hold it while I sized up and heated through the next hole and so on.

Once I had the holes through the belt, I removed the bolts and put the conduit into the pods, and then bolted it all together. I used a bolt and washer on the inside and a wingnut on the outside of each hole.


I have used it quite a bit and it seems like it is solid, it really made a difference for me. I have bad disks in my back and osteoarthritis in both hips. Using the excal out in front of me with the pods on it, makes a lot of leverage on my back. Putting the weight on my left hip, evens out a lot of it for me. I have to use mods like this or I just can't enjoy the hobby. Right now I drag my scoop behind me, or use it like a walking stick or to lean on, lol... It doesn't seem too bad to carry it along with me. I like the water, everything is a little lighter in the water and I can MD longer that way.



I don't know if it's a mod, I guess it would be, but I clipped a bungee up from my belt that tethers my excal to my right side. So I can let it go, or move it out of the way and use 2 hands on my scoop or pull out my pinpointer if I need to but the excal is only a hands reach away. It also keeps tension off of the cables. Bending is what gets me, so I try to take away as much unneeded bending as possible.

I DIY'ed my own straight shaft also, but I used a $4 aluminum tubing from the metal place down the road from my home and its a little too big of an inside diameter. It's in the last two pictures. I used my caliper and have the measurements, I'm going to try and source it locally but if I can't find the one I want, I found where I can get it online at OnlineMetals for about $35 at 3' which includes shipping. I was thinking of doing a DIY tutorial on that too, when I get the right tube but I would rather have a cheaper source.
Hopefully this one is helpful to someone else and others can enjoy it, like I have...
I bought 2 nylon tool belts from Home Depot for $5 each, cause I'm big around the waist and needed two. Bought stainless washers bolts and wingnuts to hold the control and battery housings. Then I found out Lowes carries the nylon fasteners that I couldn't find at Home Depot. I used a 1/2" piece of plastic conduit cut to 10" to mount them to the belts.
DIY Hip Mount
Parts List:
1x Husky 2 in. Quick Release Tool Belt - HomeDepot
2x Hillman 2 Count 1/4-in-20 x 1-1/2-in Slotted-Drive Machine Screws - Lowes
2x Hillman 2 Count 1/4-in Nylon Standard (SAE) Regular Wing Nut - Lowes
1x Hillman 4-Count 1/4-in Nylon Standard (SAE) Flat Washer - Lowes
1x JM eagle 1/2 in. x 10 ft. PVC Schedule 40 Conduit - HomeDepot
Price List:
$4.97 1 Husky Tool Belt (Most will only need one, unless they are my size, lol.)
$1.24 2 - 2 pk Nylon Screws
$1.66 2 - 2 pk Nylon Wingnuts
$ .62 1 - 4 pk Nylon Flat Washer
$2.21 Conduit
Subtotal: $11.70
tax .82
Total: $12.52
Started out with the parts, I cut the conduit to 10" and placed the control and battery pods in place with the conduit in the center where I wanted it, then I used a permanent marker to place a center mark for my holes on the conduit. Next I used a 1/4" drill bit to drill my holes, I was careful to do one hole on one side of the conduit, place the bolt into the hole on that side and then get my mark for the other side, and then drill the other side from the opposite direction. instead of just drilling through the conduit from one direction. I did this for each of the three holes, in the end they all lined up perfectly for me this way.

Just have to be absolutely sure of where you are placing the holes and where you want the buckle at. After I knew where I wanted the control and battery pods positioned from the buckle, I made the first hole. I heated a big philips head screwdriver up to burn through the belt and it sealed the holes at the same time. I get perfect holes that don't come apart this way. Then I bolted the belt to the conduit through that first hole to hold it while I sized up and heated through the next hole and so on.

Once I had the holes through the belt, I removed the bolts and put the conduit into the pods, and then bolted it all together. I used a bolt and washer on the inside and a wingnut on the outside of each hole.


I have used it quite a bit and it seems like it is solid, it really made a difference for me. I have bad disks in my back and osteoarthritis in both hips. Using the excal out in front of me with the pods on it, makes a lot of leverage on my back. Putting the weight on my left hip, evens out a lot of it for me. I have to use mods like this or I just can't enjoy the hobby. Right now I drag my scoop behind me, or use it like a walking stick or to lean on, lol... It doesn't seem too bad to carry it along with me. I like the water, everything is a little lighter in the water and I can MD longer that way.



I don't know if it's a mod, I guess it would be, but I clipped a bungee up from my belt that tethers my excal to my right side. So I can let it go, or move it out of the way and use 2 hands on my scoop or pull out my pinpointer if I need to but the excal is only a hands reach away. It also keeps tension off of the cables. Bending is what gets me, so I try to take away as much unneeded bending as possible.

I DIY'ed my own straight shaft also, but I used a $4 aluminum tubing from the metal place down the road from my home and its a little too big of an inside diameter. It's in the last two pictures. I used my caliper and have the measurements, I'm going to try and source it locally but if I can't find the one I want, I found where I can get it online at OnlineMetals for about $35 at 3' which includes shipping. I was thinking of doing a DIY tutorial on that too, when I get the right tube but I would rather have a cheaper source.
Hopefully this one is helpful to someone else and others can enjoy it, like I have...
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