When it comes to search coils selection for the types of hunting I have primarily done this past 5½ decades, I am especially concrned about the:

► Search Coil 'type' such as Concentric Vs Double-D. Some types work better on come detector circuitry designs than do the other types.

► Search Coil size, shape and appearance.

• Size: Small enough to 'fit' in and around dense brush, heavy concentrations of good and bad metal objects, allow hunting close to metal structures as well as in and around foundations or demolished sites. In modestly-littered areas I do like a 'mid-size' search coil for slightly additional coverage and depth, but still designed to separate well in trashier conditions. Target 'depth' has never been a major concern for me because I use detectors and coils that can easily locate the vast majority of desirable targets in the places I usually search. Having a detector and coil that can provide me with better 'separation' is much more important in order to find good targets that are partially masked by undesired trash, or are located in a more confined area. Therefore, 'bigger-coils' are not usually anything I use or even have on-hand.

• Shape: I prefer a round-shaped coil, or one slightly out-of-round like the 4.7X5.2 on my FORS CoRe. I also like a 'pleasantly-sized' elliptical coil design, such as the 5X8 DD 'Ripper' coil on my Apex or 5X9½ DD HF on my ORX. I don't mind having an 'open' design on the smaller to mid-size coils because the shape and design are still less likely to cause snagging in tangling brush environment like a bigger-size coil. I don't care for any odd-shaped designs, like a tear-drop or double-o or other strange designs.

• Appearance: Other than those mentioned, if I have a choice, I prefer a white-colored coil to a brown or black-colored coil. Why? Because when I am searching in and around heavy weeds and brush it makes it easier or me to spot and monitor the search coil sweep and coverage in the vegetation. Also helps when working in some rocky areas and in and around building rubble. For example, I have white-colored coils on my FORS CoRe, FORS Relic, Bandido II µMAX, Silver Sabre µMAX and ORX.

Therefore, most of my Detector Team sport a smaller-size to mid-size search coil, with the 'Ripper' being my favorite coil on the Apex for day-to-day use. All other devices I use have a smaller-size to mid-size coil mounted full-time. The ONLY detector and coil combination I use that I consider to be a 'larger-size' coil (and that means larger than a mid-size coil) would be me 2nd Apex that keeps their 'Raider' coil mounted full-time. That 8½X11 size does give me a bit more converge and slightly better depth-of-detection when needed, and when capable due to a limited amount of masking targets in a wide-open area.

With the Apex, one of the strengths I enjoy from its performance is the ability to 'separate' well and recover on my Nail Board test. Both the 'Ripper' and 'Raider' coils can provide me with 7-out-of-8 hits, yet many of the competitive detectors out there can't do better than 4 or 5 or perhaps 6-out-of-8, even with their smaller size 5" or 6" or maybe a 5X8 coil.

Just one of the strengths I found using the Apex and Garrett coils in a variety of tests and in-the-field applications.

Monte

"Your EYES ... the only 100% accurate form of Discrimination!"
Stinkwater Wells Trading Post
Metal Detector Evaluations and Product ReviewsI'm now 'back home' in Farr West Utah monte@ahrps.org ... or ... monte@stinkwaterwells.com 503-481-8147Detector Outfit: A selection of my chosen makes and models, with the best coils mounted for the tasks I'll take on.F-19 .. Racer .. Vanquish 540 .. FORS Relic .. Silver Sabre µMAX .. Bandido II µMAX .. XLTPinpointers: Garrett AT Pro-Pointers .. Headphones: 'Hornet' .. MS-3 Z-Lynk .. ML-80 *** All working well today to make memories for tomorrow. ***