Did Minelab Beef Up the Coil "Ears" Where The Coil Mounts To The Shaft On The CTX Pro Coil?

One of MANY concerns I have (mostly they are depth/separation related and still unanswered as of yet in terms of seeing infield comparisons of it to a GT, Etrac, or Explorer, but I have other concerns too before deciding to buy)...Anyway, a friend bought a brand new Etrac and just hand tightening the coil bolt caused the mounting ears on the coil to snap when doing that...Brand new out of the box. I have heard of others who said the same thing about the coil's mounting ears failing without even abusing the coil by banging into trees or another. So, I have to wonder, since by eye (I know the coil is different internaly) the coil on the CXT looks to be the same externally as the Pro Coil. If that's true, I have to wonder how well that coil will hold up under the stresses of water resistance as it's moved through the water, as I already have serious trust issues with the mounting ears of that coil even just used normaly on land. My one friend who had the ears break when it was brand new and simply mounting on his Etrac by hand, has thus far only used a 12x10 on his machine even though Minelab shipped him another brand new Pro Coil. I have reason to suspect he hasn't tried the Pro Coil, let alone taken it out of it's package, for a good reason, and not just the fact that the 12x10 is said by some to get deeper, give louder hits at depth, and separate width wise better than the Pro Coil.

Not using the supplied spacers between the coil and the shaft end will put undue inward stress on the coil's ears when tightening the nylon bolt.

Been banging my pro coil around for over three years,many hundreds of hours and many,many miles without a hint of an issue.I suspect your friends coil was either flawed from factory if it was installed correctly.
If it was a common issue it would be well documented on various forums I would think.I have also used three different 12X10 SEF coils on my E-Trac with all three giving lesser performances than the pro coil both in the test garden and in the field.I also have several detecting buddies who arrived at same conclusions with their E-Tracs.
The FBS 12X10 coils weigh more than the BBS 12X10 coils for some reason as well.

A few people have encountered that problem......here is a link that shows how to repair it yourself

[www.findmall.com]

[www.findmall.com]
[www.treasurenet.com]
[www.findmall.com]
[www.thetreasuredepot.com]
[www.treasurenet.com]
[www.findmall.com]

[www.youtube.com]

Yes, I've read of the Pro Coil ears problem across the net various times over the years since the release of that coil on the SE and Etrac. And, the friend who this happened to happens to be a machinest who breaks down and repairs CNC machines and other equipment. I highly doubt he forgot to put the spacers on as he's very mechanicly inclined. This also isn't his first rodeo, as he's owned many machines including Explorers over the years and is well aware on what is involved in mounting a coil. I'll say it again, if they didn't beef up those coil ears then that's *probably* enough to stop me from buying one right there. It's not like there are cheap aftermarket coils out there to throw on it and still water hunt with if there is a problem.

As far as the 12x10/Pro Coil comparisons, one of my pet hobbies to kill time is to do a lot of research across the web digging up as much as I can on whatever topics that interest me. Obviously aftermarket coils for the Minelabs is one of those key things that really interests me, so I've done a lot of searching, reading, and digging to find out how various coils shake out.

In terms of as a whole, I'd say there is far more of a majority of FBS users who say the 12x10 is deeper, separates better, and runs smoother (less chasing phantom hits too) than the Pro Coil. I'm not knocking the Pro Coil, as it gets excellent separation compared to other conventional round coils. Probably the best DD "round" coil I've ever read (and used here and there when I use my friend's Etrac) about coming as standard on a detector. A close second to me in terms of coils I've used with be the 10" Tornado on the GT.

However, when it comes to the best coil I've ever used, and the one I've read more Minelab users praise over any other in terms of depth and separation, it's got to be the 12x10. For years there were various strong advocates of the WOT coil on both the BBS and FBS machines. But, even it doesn't compare to the enthusiam in terms of depth/separation that buzzes around the web about the 12x10. Even in terms of depth, the WOT is not by default a deeper coil by virtue of size in certain grounds or soils containing even somewhat moderate mineralization. Just too much ground signal being sucked in, as I found with the 15x12 as well. That's why some, including me, say the 12x10 is the deepest coil we've ever used based on it's ability to "ride on" and "see" even less ground than (I feel) a 10" or a 12" round coil. Not to mention it's amazind detection line being much more compressed width wise than a conventional round DD coil. The separation of this coil is beyond what I'd ever think even a 8" coil would do, let alone a 10 or 12" one. In fact, I might be wrong, but in terms of the width of the DD detection line I think the 12x10 *might* be sharper than my S-5 5.5" coil.