Coil Care Help

I am only new at detecting but enjoy it heaps i would like to know the basic care i should take with my coil,should i remove the skid plate on a ragular basis
or leave it alone?
Should i seal the coil and skid plate with tape or not?
Thanks Lyndon

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GoldstalkerGPX wrote:Lyndon it is a good idea to remove the skid plate and clean out between it and the coil, no matter how good you seal it up it will get dirt/dust in there which in turn will make ground balance hard with a build up inside.

I seal with tape my goldstalker coil only because it will not stay on, on it's own.
My other 2 commander coils I do not tape as they are a tight fit.
My nuggetfinder coil has tape on it, but I have not used the coil yet so don't know how that will go until I take it appart.

Cheers Pol

your tape will be tougher than the nugget finder skid plate!...damn shirt box plastic

Use tape. It protects the edge of your coil and skipplate. Run a double layer around the coil.
Any dealer will have the correct tape for about $8.
Some skidplates are held on with silicone so be careful trying to pry them off.
When you put the skiplate back on, end for end it if you can to spread the wear.

Robert

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the advantage skid plates...paper thin!

I have a 17" eliptcal white and the skid plates are tougher....just cant get them!

According to Nuggetfinder the coils should never touch the ground..................

i was talking to a bloke that tests the N/F coils and he did say that not to run them on the ground what so ever. he even said that you shouldn't with any coils as well.
cheers
stoppsy

stoppsy wrote:i was talking to a bloke that tests the N/F coils and he did say that not to run them on the ground what so ever. he even said that you shouldn't with any coils as well.
cheers
stoppsy

Good advice. Leaves a lot of gold for those of us that do run along the ground.

If you don't run on the ground-either all the time or occasionally-why would you need a skid plate?



Perhaps you may get coil overload in certain areas but I'm yet to find one.



With most of the gold now very shallow, I can imagine how much is being missed by those whose coils are 3-6" off the ground





Robert

i swing mine so it's just touching the ground. now and then i will run the coild flat on the ground tho...
cheers
stoppsy

G'day boys.

Stoppsy; Robs pretty much right in saying that coils with skid plates should be run scraping the ground.Its that first layer of mineralization that we're trying to break through,not to mention any other might be layers underneath.Whether this is possible or not,with mono coils,i don't know,but Coil Manufactures should consider this when making any coil.Why should anyone have to carry,for instance a mono coil,continually elevated,above ground just so we can keep it running smooth and stable over hot rocks or hot ground.This type of use comes at a cost of wear and tear on our backs,especially as coil size increases,not to mention loss of depth on targets.

Cheers kon61.

that's why god invented skid plates!
I could not begin to count the number of targets I would have missed had my coil not been on the deck. Often with leaf litter etc.. you're already an inch above the ground.

Spot on there tuna.Some prospectors just don't realize how much depth they're actually losing by keeping the coil a couple of inches above ground.By making coils with slots in them for lightness, manufacturers are deliberately forcing people to keep mono coils elevated off the ground.Why i say deliberately?I'll tell ya.
I for one get pi**ed off with the current line of "holey" coils on the market(not in terms of their performance)but with them trapping rocks and getting stuck in between shrubs,sticks or roots of dead tree plants,sticking out of the ground,preventing one from swinging.With solid filled coils you know that no matter where you bulldoze that coil through,at least you won't get it stuck anywhere,nor will it slow you down from swinging. Also,I'm use to dropping the tiniest of targets on top of the coil,just to hear it "ping",making finding the target far more easier than with any scoop or trying to pinpoint it in your hand.Now unless I'm using DDs(solid filled coils) I'm forced to waving the target in my hand,over the coil,listening for a signal and if the target is tiny or camouflaged it takes ages to find.Pinpointing a target is actually the least of my problems,even with an 18 inch round. 3 to 4 hand fulls of dirt and its in my hand.Deceifering a tiny gold target from the surrounding dirt is the hard bit.

Cheers kon61.

kon61 wrote:

Spot on there tuna.Some prospectors just don't realize how much depth they're actually losing by keeping the coil a couple of inches above ground.By making coils with slots in them for lightness, manufacturers are deliberately forcing people to keep mono coils elevated off the ground.Why i say deliberately?I'll tell ya.
I for one get pi**ed off with the current line of "holey" coils on the market(not in terms of their performance)but with them trapping rocks and getting stuck in between shrubs,sticks or roots of dead tree plants,sticking out of the ground,preventing one from swinging.With solid filled coils you know that no matter where you bulldoze that coil through,at least you won't get it stuck anywhere,nor will it slow you down from swinging. Also,I'm use to dropping the tiniest of targets on top of the coil,just to hear it "ping",making finding the target far more easier than with any scoop or trying to pinpoint it in your hand.Now unless I'm using DDs(solid filled coils) I'm forced to waving the target in my hand,over the coil,listening for a signal and if the target is tiny or camouflaged it takes ages to find.Pinpointing a target is actually the least of my problems,even with an 18 inch round. 3 to 4 hand fulls of dirt and its in my hand.Deceifering a tiny gold target from the surrounding dirt is the hard bit.

Cheers kon61.

This is a very annoying feature of the trade-off for lightweight coils.

I have overcome this by siliconing a thin sheet of clear "Lexan" polycarbonate to the underside of the skidplate.
It is as tough as teak and I have never worn it through.
I'm fortunate to have got mine free of charge but here's a link to a possible supplier.

http://www.plasticsfactory.com.au/

Robert

You are 100% right-on Kon! I am also pi**ed off at open spoked coils, I prefer solid filled ones. I have the exact same problem that I want to rectify. My new NFA coil catches on ground twigs and as you said on, "sticks or roots of dead tree plants, sticking out of the ground, preventing one from swinging, etc." For me it gives false signals being a bit touch sensitive as the twigs sticking out of the ground are bent over by the center spokes of the coil then letting go whipping against the inside of the sensitive part coil like a bow or catapult letting go with a snap and also giving a false signal. With the annoying potential of hanging up on rocks and sticks.

Does anyone buy full "solid" skidplates from Nugget Finder, CoilTek, or Commander to install on open spoked coils ?

Yes as I said annoying also I agree Robert, I am now also in the process of trying to seal the bottom of my open spoke coils. I have a sheet of about 1/8", type of acrylic white colored board that I can use for this. Thanks for the tips. "I have overcome this by siliconing a thin sheet of clear "Lexan" polycarbonate to the underside of the skidplate."

Robert,
1) What is the thickness of the Lexan, is it rigid or flexable, and is it either clear or what color?
2) What is your proceedure for installing it, do you trace out the coils skidplate exact size(or make it a bit smaller) on the Lexan, then cut it out?
3) I suppose you use silicone as it can be removed if necessary because permanent glue cannot. To the underside of the skidplate do you put a bead of silicone only the outer edge or also the inner spokes to the Lexan, then stick it on to dry?
4) I was told aquarium silicone is a good one to use, there are various kinds of silicone(bath, kitchen, exterior, etc.), what kind do you use?
Thanks for any help.

i was told if you wont to get that little more out off your N/F coil you run them with out the skid plate. but then you can run the chance off doing something to the coil. they say you get that little more depth and all that. would be good on a big open paddock but i don't know if i would do it in the bush just incase off a stick or so hits up inside. has anyone tryed doing this with there N/F?
cheers
stoppsy

Giday BB

Beer Beeper wrote:Robert,
1) What is the thickness of the Lexan, is it rigid or flexable, and is it either clear or what color?
I'd guess about 1mm. It is flexible but not floppy and it is clear.

2) What is your proceedure for installing it, do you trace out the coils skidplate exact size(or make it a bit smaller) on the Lexan, then cut it out?
First, I thoroughly clean the skidplate-inside and out-then refit it and tape it.
Next I cut out a profile about 25mm bigger all round than the coil profile.
I then run a 4-6mm bead of neutral cure silicone around the perimeter and up the middle of the spokes.
I then press the coil on to the lexan and place two 5 litre containers full of water on top of the spokes at each end and leave it to cure.
When cured, I run a bead of silicone around the edges of each spoke to seal the lexan to the skidplate so no crap can get under the lexan.
When this has cured, I use a new blade in a good quality trimming knife-one that is quite solid-and VERY CAREFULLY trim the excess lexan from around the perimeter of the skidplate

3) I suppose you use silicone as it can be removed if necessary because permanent glue cannot.
Yes. I actually had to remove one yesterday with a long bladed trimming knife and it took all of 2-3 minutes. I just cleaned the old silicone back as well as I could without cutting into the skidplate and followed the above procedure.
To the underside of the skidplate do you put a bead of silicone only the outer edge or also the inner spokes to the Lexan, then stick it on to dry? Answered above

4) I was told aquarium silicone is a good one to use, there are various kinds of silicone(bath, kitchen, exterior, etc.), what kind do you use?
Neutral cure is what I use but I guess and good quality silicone will do. I would not use interior silicone though.
Thanks for any help.

Hope this helps

Robert

I'll post some pictures of the coil I'm ressurecting at the moment. They won't be up until tomorrow or Monday as I still have to trim and silicone the spokes.

Robert

Here's the coil pictures with a "Lexan" base.
I have used these bases on several large and small coils over several years without any problems.

1. Waiting for the silicone to dry.



2. The untrimmed "Lexan" and the liberal coating of silicone.



3. The trimmed "Lexan"


4. The silicone bead around the top of the spoke



5. Ready to find more nuggets.

ROBERT(Goldnomad), ACE, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE HELP!!! This will help many people, very clear and understandable!! Also for the extra effort to post those photos as it is appreciated!

Now I just need to get some ~1mm rigid and flexible but not floppy clear Lexan. Also some black(or white, just not clear) colored neutral cure(or exterior, not interior) silicone!

(Maybe those plain smooth clear thin anti-static chair mats from office supply stores that are made for putting under office roller chairs used for carpet or hard floor wear protection and so the chair rollers glide better on them, will work for this coil skidplate purpose when cut out. A person just has to be careful that when cutting it, it does not crack.)

No worries BB. My pleasure to help.

I posted this link further up the thread. It may be a good source for the "Lexan"

http://www.plasticsfactory.com.au/

Robert

Gday BB
If the material you're going to use is capable of cracking while you're cutting it, don't use it. Impact on rocks etc will also crack it.
cheers
Brett

Gday


Although I have found some issues with the open nuggetfinder coils getting caught on things I prefer it be open than to have a plastic sheet on the bottom, only because when I had a 24x12 coiltek ufo it had one on and it used to p me off because it would make a drumming sound and also bounce of things.

You might also find that if you decide to sell the coil there would be a lot of people that would find the attachment to be unatractive and have concerns about why it was done etc.

I dont drag my coils on the ground as I find that the noise produced by this alone can muffle any subltle signals, so for me I try and just keep it a little above the ground, everyone has their own method, although you cant avoid the odd knock here and there though so side tape is worthwhile.

Its a good idea to remove the skid plates every now and then , firstly because the open coils dont have the skid plate taped on the inside of the spokes, dust and moisture can find their way in and when you get enough in there you can get falsing issues with the coil, also because I do this regularly I found one of my coils was cracked under the centre part below the mount bracket, it still worked ok but if I had continued to use it, it may have gotten water in it and failed while in the bush so its good practice to do this, there is also no reason if you dont mind using tape, that you cant tape the insides of the skid plate as well or add a small amount of silicone or whatever to the inside edges as you are fitting it back on.

The skid plates are often brittle too so take care when removing them, this combined with thinning along the edges from wear will have it falling to pieces in your hands while removing it, so if its looking a bit average make sure you have a spare on hand before you take it off or you may get caught out.

I believe that there are some heavy duty skid plates for the nuggetfinders, and that they are the black ones, I dont know how many models they do them for, I have seen the 14x9 eliptical ones and a 14" round one only.

cheers

stayyerAU

Members

Little trick i know of is
with all your solid built coils, every now n gen loosen your strain releif where the cable enters the coil and
pressing down hard in the centre of your coil wiggle the cable from side to side,
this expels any trapped air in the coil and allows the guts of it to sit tight in the case.
This stops any touch sens due to a loose foam insert,and stops that annoying fake sound we get when swinging the machine
out bush.
this problem arrises from the heat in our ozzie summer expanding any air in the coil, but when it cools down again the plastic stays
"popped out" and rigid causing the coil insert to be loose inside the outer skin.

Pete in WA

Hi everyone,

It appears that the Coil manufacturers have a like it or lump it attitude towards their customers. We all realise that there are advantages with the lightness of the new coils however there are also disadvantages with snagging on objects. I would have thought that they could still provide both light/solid coils or at least have a suitable fill in skid plate for the newer coils. We pay big dollars for a coil without having to go to the inconvenience of having to construct our own skid plate. More competition is needed.

Happy days, MacRob

Hi everyone,

It appears that the Coil manufacturers have a like it or lump it attitude towards their customers. We all realise that there are advantages with the lightness of the new coils however there are also disadvantages with snagging on objects. I would have thought that they could still provide both light/solid coils or at least have a suitable fill in skid plate for the newer coils. We pay big dollars for a coil without having to go to the inconvenience of having to construct our own skid plate. More competition is needed.

Happy days, MacRob