Excal Issue/Help

[bigscoop]

Was having another pretty good outing this morning when all of a sudden my excal started groaning like tom cat in heat. Eventually it just tapered off into a very weak and low threshold tone, so I figured it was the battery. Swapped machines and finished the day out. Now here's the thing, when I got home I put the battery on a volt meter and it read 12.34 volts, and, the machine was running fine again. This is about the third or forth time this has happened and I've checked all the wiring and fiddled with them while she is running and can't cause any issues. Best I can figure is that the battery voltage is up but that maybe something is causing the flow of current to get disrupted and the current isn't sufficient? Would get a new battery but not sure if that's the issue or not. Anyone ever had this issue?

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Minelab PRO-FIND 35 Waterproof Pinpointer Metal Detector for Experts with Tone ID & Adjustable Sensitivity - Grab it through Amazon!

[lonelyduckhunter]

My new excal did the same thing after about 10 hunts on it had good voltage as well I tried a new battery that did not solve the problem. Sent it to Minelab turned out to be a bad pcb panel. If you can get your hands on a spare battery try it out and if its still doing it more then likely its the pcb panel. I would try a spare battery out before you buy one of possible.

 

[OBN]

I'm guessing but this happened in the water each time and submerged?

 

[bigscoop]

I'm guessing but this happened in the water each time and submerged?

Yep, water. But the entire control housing is staying high and dry, not even getting splashed. Though about a coil leak but I would think by now it would be a permanent thing from the saltwater.

 

[bigscoop]

My new excal did the same thing after about 10 hunts on it had good voltage as well I tried a new battery that did not solve the problem. Sent it to Minelab turned out to be a bad pcb panel. If you can get your hands on a spare battery try it out and if its still doing it more then likely its the pcb panel. I would try a spare battery out before you buy one of possible.

Would yours be just fine after letting it sit for a while, only to do it again in another hour or so?

 

[dewcon4414]

Mine did that..... what i found out was when i rinsed it water was staying in the headphones. As the water finally dripped out while i was hunting it would quit. I took the headphones apart where the cable entered..... the cable casing was cracked and i believe water was getting in. My first thought was battery on mine too. ML put me a new pair of headphones on..... and its be high 5 every since.

Dew

 

[HARRASS]

I have 2 excals... they have there moments when they go nuts. I have to clean the sand out of the covers about every hour if the waves are pushing me around and there is quite a bite of sand being stirred up. Once cleaned it settles down. Also, working the beach near some hotels is impossible. I don't know what happens, some sort of interference, but I have to give up and move further down the beach before they quiet down. It may not be your problem... its just some things I have found what causes my machines to go wonky. Hope this helps you. Gary from the frozen north.

 

[bigscoop]

Mine did that..... what i found out was when i rinsed it water was staying in the headphones. As the water finally dripped out while i was hunting it would quit. I took the headphones apart where the cable entered..... the cable casing was cracked and i believe water was getting in. My first thought was battery on mine too. ML put me a new pair of headphones on..... and its be high 5 every since.

Dew

Just the coil and coil wire are the only things getting wet.

 

[bigscoop]

I just sat in my man room passing various objects under the coil for about fifteen minutes and all of a sudden it started doing it again. So, it doesn't appear direct water is the issue. The only thing I can figure is a bad battery. If it was a bad board wouldn't it act up all the time?

 

[dewcon4414]

If you are just wiping them off you are right..... but i sprayed mine or got spray into them. What i realized i was spraying water on the headphones cleaning them. I still suggest you open that headphone..... just a couple of screws to rule it out. 3 or 4 min. job. Water stays in those headphone unless you are hanging them up so it drains thru the bottom.

Dew

 

[OBN]

A guess.......

Kind of seems like a leak issue, I would get a lope and check where it wraps around the shaft, For stress/hairline cracks. I had a little 8 inch excal would freak once it was in waist deep water after maybe 30 minutes, ended up being a few hairlines. And being the excal are famous for cables problems "alot" thats the first place I check.... headphone, batt and coil. It did calm after removing it from the saltwater. I can't figure why none of the other detectors have this problem, as often.

Lets hope it's not the PCB, a 800 dollar price tag (new)

Eventually it just tapered off into a very weak and low threshold tone

Seen this before, saltwater in the headphone cable...audio fades/degraded..took apart, copper wiring turning black from saltwater..

 

[seeker41]

a bad component on the pcb that is only faulty after heating up would act the same way you are describing. be sure to eliminate/troubleshoot all issues before sending it to minelab!! old beechnut and davespen are probably faster options than minelab.
is it faulty in all metal and in disc?
are you using connecters to switch between your coils?
chuck.

 

[bigscoop]

I have a AA battery pod on the way so we'll see what happens after I get that here. Will take a few days. Everything in the headphones looks good, cable looks good under a lope, but...did notice some fracturing in the plastic "between" the battery pod pin receivers. Appears that crack is running from insert to insert so maybe that's where the problem is. (I hope!)

 

[lonelyduckhunter]

Would yours be just fine after letting it sit for a while, only to do it again in another hour or so?

Yes I could turn it off and sometimes it would reset itself but sooner then later it would start doing it again.

 

[bigscoop]

Yes I could turn it off and sometimes it would reset itself but sooner then later it would start doing it again.

I would have felt much better about this if you would have said, "no...that never happened." Man, I hope this battery is the issue.......

 

[Sir Gala Clad]

Harrass: Is your sensitivity set at auto?
If you manually tune your sensitivity to the beach, you should have less trouble when you have sand in between the search coil and the cover (I suspect the trapped sand becomes part of the tuning) . In auto I have to clean my cover every hour, in manual I get by with cleaning it about every three to four hours.
I also ran into Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) near some hotels (usually an entrance or open door). Just walk down the beach till your detector becomes stable.
You can also be jammed by other detectors (within 20 feet if you).

 

[Sir Gala Clad]

Bigscoop: You should swap out the batteries with known good batteries.

The 12.34 volts you are measuring is a no load voltage reading.
What you need is the voltage reading when the batteries are under load to determine if the batteries are good.

 

[bigscoop]

Bigscoop: You should swap out the batteries with known good batteries.

The 12.34 volts you are measuring is a no load voltage reading.
What you need is the voltage reading when the batteries are under load to determine if the batteries are good.

Yea, I'm hoping it is a current flow issue. I know DC requires a steady flow of current and that a bad battery can show full charge and still be unable to deliver the required flow as the battery starts to break down. But, not wishing to risk shorting something out to rig that test I'm just going to wait on the AA pod to simplify the process. If that don't do it it's off to Minelab and my small coil hunting will be over for a while, which will be a real bummer since my entire game plan is geared around it right now.

 

[OBN]

I have a AA battery pod on the way so we'll see what happens after I get that here. Will take a few days. Everything in the headphones looks good, cable looks good under a lope, but...did notice some fracturing in the plastic "between" the battery pod pin receivers. Appears that crack is running from insert to insert so maybe that's where the problem is. (I hope!)

??

 

[dewcon4414]

You have one hot coil.... my Xcal rarely notices the sand in my coil, but i do clean it every time out. I also GB in the water with a low sensitivity setting. Now my Exp hates anything between the coil and cover.

Hope you get the issue resolved BS..... believe me i know what it feels like to have one go down during a prime hunting time.

Dew