commander coils question

Hi all just wanted some experienced opinions regards Commander Coils.
I have a 4500 and have a dd that came with it and a 11 inch mono and am looking for a larger coil but was wondering whether a ;arger 15 or 18 inch commander would be generally more stable with a 4500 than the other brands.
On a recent trip I had the luxury of a friend lending me his 18 inch NF coil and even though I thought it was a really nice coil it didn't seem to run as smoothly as the 11 inch commander I have.
I met a fellow in clermont last year that swore by commander coils , he had an 18inch mono and said that apart from the added weight it was the best coil he had?
Any opinions???

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yes thats what I was thinking I guess you could support the weight with one of those hip sticks.

Artrix, The fellow prospector you spoke to gave you some sound advice.As GoldstalkerGPX stated, if your prepared to put up with the extra weight,you'll find the 18 inch Commander mono almost bullet proof,coupled with superb sensitivity and depth.I prefer to use an "Easy Swing Arm" instead of the Hip Stick,when I'm ploughing with the larger coils.

Cheers kon61.

.

Gday


There is no doubt that the commander coils are good quality, but the weight of the bigger coils has always been an issue, really I suppose it all comes down to the amount of time that you are having to swing one of them, if you are only doing small areas at a time in a spot thats been worked looking for deep missed pieces then they are a great coil for that.

But if you are trying to cover open ground, patch finding or whatever then a large lighweight coil makes more sense, they are more manouverable and comfortable to use, the advent of the hipstick though has made the job of using one of these heavier coils more often a reality so it really only comes down to your personal preference and how fit you are, after years of swinging heavy coils and some form of rsi in my right shoulder even if I bought an 18" commander I know that I would probably look at it and opt for the 18" nuggetfinder mono instead, so for me it would be a waste of money, I have worked with these coils in the past and pre hipstick days and I know that the longer you swing the heavier they get.

My advice though would be to borrow/hire/beg one of the bigger coils from somewhere and give it a try out for yourself if it suits you then commit to buying one, the smaller commander coils are a whole different kettle of fish, the 8" and 11" coils are great on the 4500 and are goldfinders without a doubt and I would have no hesitation in recommending either one, I have recently purchased a nuggetfinder 12" round mono so I plan to do some comparison testing between it and the 11" round commander mono the next time out, my 11" commander mono has done an awful lot of work and paid for itself many times over, and looking a bit worse for wear, so I want to know whether to replace it with a new one or replace it with the nf 12" only if I feel that has an edge on it, but the 11" commander will still get used in some situations for sure.

The other thing I might mention with the commander coils is that the skid plates will take a lot of punishment and will last quite a while, they are quite a bit thicker than the nf plates which tend to wear rather quickly, the other thing is, like all coils that are not fully potted they can loosen up inside and become touch sensitive and sound off when brushed against things, but as they are so well made they tend to reach this point more slowly than other brands built the same way.

cheers

stayyerAU

Artrix, I just purchased a 15x12 Commander Mono. I previously had a 16 NF but found it too hard to use as a reasonable beginner. The NF seemed to pick up a lot more ground noise and ghost tones, this was mostly probably my fault though, as I may not have had the machine set up correctly for it.

Spent a whole day out with the 15x12, and found it to be a pleasure to use. Heavy, yes! but as far as low and slow goes, you just have to be slow, the low bit takes care of itself. I found just the use of the bungie was sufficient to carry most of the weight, but will definately be looking into the hipstick option in the near future. Good sensitivity, no gold, but the normal shot gun pellets and tack heads that I find with the 11 mono were coming through okay.

Not sure if the sale special is still on, the 15x12 was selling for $245, as part of a Minelab xmas special. You may wish to make some quick calls around.

Hope this helps and not hinders,

regards h2k3

cheers for the input all sounds like I may look into a 15 inch commander

Have to agree with Hunter2003 if the bungee is adjusted correctly so the coil floats just above ground level with out hands on am able to swing a 20" NF from dawn to dark. Developed this idea back in the days of the "dust bin lid", they were heavy but had no problems swinging all day.
While holding the bungee in one hand adjust it up or down the shaft until the coil hangs down just below horizontal. I have a loop connected to each shoulder "D" shackle. Now hook the bungee to both loops the bungee hangs from centre of chest distributing weight between both shoulders, now adjust the tension so the coil floats as mentioned above.
Have tried the hipstick but it still puts unnatural pressure on one side of the body, with the load centred there are less aches and pains at end of a day.

Peter

I've been thinking of another coil , the 15 commander. Good comments i think the commander is it .

A brilliant coil the 15" X 12" and remember...they lose weight with a Hipstick

P.S. the Summer special price of the 15" x 12" ends on the 28th

by madtuna on Sun Feb 27, 2011 11:56 pm

A brilliant coil the 15" X 12" and remember...they lose weight with a Hipstick

P.S. the Summer special price of the 15" x 12" ends on the 28th

Great i must rush out and buy both , where do you suggest i buy them madtuna?

I agree with "Tuna"
Brilliant It is my main coil very good thick skid plate, sensitive on tiddlers and reaches down for the deep ones.
If you find it a tad heavy grab a hip-stick you wont be sorry
Cheers Dave

anywhere you wish Shicer!