WOT coil on Sovereign GT and Sovereign Elite falses way to much in salt water?

[southfloridabeachhunter]

WOT coil on Sovereign GT and Sovereign Elite false's way to much in salt water?

Hello,

I just bought a NEW WOT for my Sovereign GT and Elite and it not only is so hard to pinpoint with the gigantic coil it false's alot even with the sensitivity turned as far clockwise. It also loses alot of depth all the way clockwise. In the all metal mode it is even harder to distinguish targets. It has to be either me the operator or the coil. I have the stock 10" tornado and it does fine, but still in the shallow foaming saltwater I have to turn the sensitivity to at least 4 oclock to stop falsing. Now I just bought an older BBS 10" coil used on Ebay and it's heavier, but I can actually run that coil on AUTOMATIC in the saltwater foam and it doesn't false. I found more things with with this used coil. I found a Tag Heuer Formula 1 diver's watch still in perfect working condition, 2 14KT rings, a Tiffany Earring 925 and a 31 gram 925 silver bracelet.

So my question is am I doing something wrong with the WOT? Should I have it on a different setting? Or could the coil be bad? I am wanting to sending it back, because it is really frustrating. Any advice?

Thanks

 

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[Treasure_Hunter]

I only use large coils on my sov gt and i have no prob pinpointing with it. Not sure how you pinpoint, if your "Xing" thatis part of your problem. Both the excal and the sov can pinpoint using either the toe or heel of the coil.

Slowly move the coil off the target till it disappears, the target will be just off the the edge of the coil depending on if your using the toe or heel.

Take a large piece of cardboard or plywood, tape or stick a target off center,spin it till you dont know where target is and place it on the ground and pinpoint target then flip it over and check your pinpoint, with practice you will get very good. It is like anything else, practice makes perfect.

 

[hamiddetecting]

You need big sand scoop. As Diablo scoop.

 

[John (west central FL)]

I've had a Coiltek 15" "WOT" coil for my Sovereign for many years. Most of my best finds were found with that coil. I use it mainly for wet sand hunting. I don't try to hunt the slope where the waves and foam come rushing in because of the falsing. It will false even if I swing the coil from wet sand to a wetter area with standing water. On uniformly wet sand it's usually stable and very usable. I usually pinpoint with the front or back of the coil like "Treasure Hunter" posted but sometimes I'll use the X method in the pinpoint mode for really deep targets. If your WOT falses a lot in just plain wet sand then you may want to send it back to Doc in Las Vegas to have it checked out.

 

[bigscoop]

Hello,

I just bought a NEW WOT for my Sovereign GT and Elite and it not only is so hard to pinpoint with the gigantic coil it false's alot even with the sensitivity turned as far clockwise. It also loses alot of depth all the way clockwise. In the all metal mode it is even harder to distinguish targets. It has to be either me the operator or the coil. I have the stock 10" tornado and it does fine, but still in the shallow foaming saltwater I have to turn the sensitivity to at least 4 oclock to stop falsing. Now I just bought an older BBS 10" coil used on Ebay and it's heavier, but I can actually run that coil on AUTOMATIC in the saltwater foam and it doesn't false. I found more things with with this used coil. I found a Tag Heuer Formula 1 diver's watch still in perfect working condition, 2 14KT rings, a Tiffany Earring 925 and a 31 gram 925 silver bracelet.

So my question is am I doing something wrong with the WOT? Should I have it on a different setting? Or could the coil be bad? I am wanting to sending it back, because it is really frustrating. Any advice?

Thanks

"Coil control" is the key with the WOT. Because it is larger is becomes much more difficult to swing the coil "flat", especially where there is moving water. Every little tilt, twitch, pause, thrust & bump will be magnified because of the coil's larger surface area. You can't get away with the same elementary swinging habits you get away with when swinging a smaller coil. The larger size and signal area of the WOT simply makes it "a lot" more sensitive to these errors. I had these same issues when I first started using the WOT but now I can hunt in some fairly rough surf & current over some fairly uneven bottoms and I can still maintain very steady operation. It just takes a lot of time to adjust your habits to using the larger coil. I don't know where you hunt but my standard settings for the areas I hunt here on the East Coast of Florida are: Disc 1, Sensitivity about half, volume about half, and I run the threshold "just so I can barely hear it". I doubt you have a coil issue, probably just a control issue. If you really want to learn how to control that WOT so you can achieve smoother performance, just find yourself a trough about waist deep with some fair current and don't come back out of it until you've got the swing of things.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

I hunt in the surf with both my wot and the sf 12x18 butterfly coil on my other excal, I personally have no problem swinging it in the water or pinpointing in the water, but i have a lot of experience doing it.

 

[Buried Crap NJ]

All the above post are right on. The user has the ultimate control over the end result. Some things I'll add. Minelab BBS/FBS/FBS2 machine always need to have a user with good coil control (unlike any other type detector) Minelab users should be the slowest moving hunters on the beach. For those just starting out, a 10 in coil is a giant powerful coil compaired to what we had 38 years ago! A 10 inch coil on a Excalibur or GT is a so powerfull machine and doesn't need every bit of sensitivity you can muster out of the controls.The detecor has no way of telling you its no penatrating the ground other than lack of finds. A 15 in WOT is so powerfull they the reccomend you NOT to wear a Belt buckle or have change in your pockets,and you have to hold you scoop on your shoulder. While you may not hear the coins or metal in your pocket, the metal will react to the coil and it will desensitize the coil. Guling a nickel to your shoe is always a bad idea with a GT or Excalibur. Same as boots or waders with steel toes bad. By fiberglass toes, again you won't hear the detector react but it will desenitize the coil. The 15 WOT is the coil used by most beach hunter on the Jersey shore for digging 8 Reales at depths you wouldn't believe me if I told you. Scoops can't be use we carry shovels, many times it a two person operation!
Don't give up on that coil learn to tame it. Good luck you will see great results.
BCNJ

 

[Octopulse]

My stock 10" coil is deeper than my WOT as I can dial in more sensitivity with the smaller coil.
The WOT is for coverage as far as I am concerned. If I want to hunt out the deeper stuff then the WOT isn't my first choice.
Tony

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

I get a lot deeper with my WOT, I have pulled targets with mine over 15 inches deep, same with my SEF 12X18 butterfly.....

 

[OBN]

One thing, not all machines (Of the same make) are created Equal. As of resent I've just started doing a Few Repairs on Excaliburs..With this Op I have been doing Controlled Air Test on each, documenting serials and Video, I have noticed several diiferent performane levels on all, ranging from affect by EMI, to depth. For Two machnes to have the same issue with the WOT might be rare, but possible and hunters around you that it works fine I would guess the coil...But several years ago I jumped on a WOT for my Excal..and found it to be too much for the summer beach's. So I pulled it off and parked it....Several years later, and more experance I gave it another try.............I found the problem was me, the season and location. Call Doc's and see what they say..

 

[hamiddetecting]

Good work you did. I can not find the words to thank you OBN (Joe).

 

[bigscoop]

Here's the "hard learned" truth about the Excal & WOT setup......In all metal it will hunt as deep, if not deeper, as many PI's and it can do it with some "tell-tell" user-learned discrimination. However, in order to achieve this level of performance it takes "a lot of dedication" and "a very long time" to learn how to use this setup to its full potential. Most Excal & WOT users simply don't want to take the time to learn how to use this setup beyond what is the easiest to learn and to apply. I was the same way. In fact, it wasn't until I had exchanged a few PM's with OBN, Casper, Dewguru, and a few other members of this site that I decided to keep trying to learn more about the Excal & WOT setup and it has really paid off. Today I am routinely pulling good targets from around 15 - 18 inches, and that is not an exaggeration. BUT I AM NOT DOING THIS IN DISCRIMINATION MODE! The reason for this; you cannot achieve this same depth, sensitivity, and stability in discrimination mode. At best, in discrimination mode, you'll only be hunting at about two-thirds of the setup's full capabilities. In all metal you'll be gaining another third in performance and you'll also have "some variation in the tonal responses" that can be learned to a point that you'll be able to judge, with a fair degree of accuracy, what is below the coil. Also, the machine can be run with greater sensitivity and more stability in the salt environment in the all metal mode. But you must endure the frustrations and dedicate yourself to learning these things. Not too long ago I had all but written the Excal & WOT off as being nothing more then a simple larger coverage setup but I was way wrong in that assessment. In fact, at the peak of my frustration with the setup I think I even said, "The WOT sucks!" Man, have I learned to eat those words!

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Very true bigscoop, I get amazing depth with both my excal and the large coils, I do hunt both in all metal and in desc, just depends on what I hunting. If it is a crowded beach with the potential of lots of fresh drops I usually hunt in descrimination, if it is off season and slow, I hunt in all metal to seek the deeper stuff. Even in descrimination I get great dept with my large coils, I have pulled rings up from 15 inches and more in descrimination with mine......Also like OBN says it is a known fact some get better depth for what ever reason, most likely just a lucky combination of the electronics in them....For some reasons they just seem to come together and for lack of a petter word 'purr".....

My Excal I bought for $475 is amazing in depth with the WOT.... It may look rough due to the scratched faded decals but it is a great detector as is the one with the SEF !2x15 Butterfly coil. They are both the Blue headphone style, but I also sold one that was the blue headphone that didnt seem to quite have the depth of these, it worked perfectly just didnt seem to be quite as deep was all... Then again it could have been just me...

 

[bigscoop]

TH, I agree. My "standard" setup is discrimination at 1 and as much sens as I can run without becoming unstable, but when the pickings are slim I go to all metal and crank up the sens for the added depth, which is quite noticeable. Took me a very long time and I endured a lot of frustration to become comfortable in all metal and to learn how to judge the variations in tone response, in fact, I'm still learning more of this every day. And "good headphones".....this is another area that has made a huge difference.

PS TH: Thanks for insight you've offered me over the course of my learning mission.

 

[RL48off]

Has anyone actually removed the scuff plate off the 15" Coiltek (WOT) and sprayed the bottom with bed liner ?? I'm thinking of doing it. because the scuff plate in the middle of coil (wide part) doesn't fit tight up against the coil itself ? And maybe adds falsing when on the beach.

Ron

 

[TheSleeper]

Coil control and sweep control are paramont with this coil as others have said.

The only time I ever used a WOT was on beaches that had been picked hard and the only targets were the deep ones. On deep targets "it worked great", with a trade off that even Doc confirmed, mind you this was 15 or so years ago perhaps things have changed. The trade off was shallow targets sometimes got missed, or shadowed as Doc said, and you would miss them.

One of the best coils I have ever used on a minelab(and regretably it is no longer produced) was a 10x14 elliptical coil, ones kellyco sold. Wether it was because it had the long blade with narrow sides ( similar to the platerpus (sp.) models Doc sells) or what but it was the best coil I have ever used, it hit deep and never missed the shallow targets. I never tried one on my excal, was tempted to buy the sovi model and mod it but never did, now wish I had as they are discontunied.