Minelab Excalibur 1000
Price: $1000
Avg. Score: 
3.86
Based on 64 reviews
3.86Based on 64 reviews
Avg. Durability:
1.00
Avg. Ease of use:
1.80
Minelab Mysteries
February 12, 2008
In mid November of 2007 I bought a new Excalibur 1000 and in the beginning
of Dec. I bought a used once Excal 800 for my son. Well first day out with
the 1000 I found like 62 coins- I really like the way you can pretty much
distinguish if the target is junk=a low bong sound or if its a coin with a
high zing sound like. The Pinpoint feature helps out a lot on digging the
target up usually on the first scoop.The detector started to act up some on me for an unknown reason? Also the knobs on the control switch shafts are push on's and moved on me several times/not a set screw style like most other detectors have=I had to get my Gerber Multi-tool out to turn the detector off and reset another control/same thing on the 800 the control knobs spin on the shafts. Well i got it home and started to cleaning off the fine sand/Well I found a silver like chip that looked like wire on the battery wire 2" out from the battery towards the control unit and there was a chip of plastic missing that was 1/2 way through the battery pod.
Called the factory=Ended up sending the 1000 back. They replaced the battery pod and the wire from the battery to the control unit. I Got the unit back and used it again and the Sens. Control is messed up=Every time I'd move the sensitivity above say 12 O'clock position towards say 9 or into the Auto position it would go from a threshold sound to a Buzz after 15 seconds=Overloads 90% of the time rather I went up on the Sens. or lowered it towards the 12 O'clock position. Back to the factory it has gone again. I tried the 1000 in different places figuring electrical interference? Nope, still defective. The 800 would work fine after the Sens. knob was turned either way and in the same area as I tested the 1000/so that tells me the 1000 had a problem.
Other drawback I dislike about the Excal's is that when you go over iron it will Buzz letting you know you went over iron/but the tone will still stay buzzing until you go over a good target again. If you went over a good target it will sound and go right back to the threshold sound a few seconds later. Kinda defective design there if you ask me on the iron continuously buzzing.
I don't honestly believe the Excaliburs are worth $1,100+ USD. More like $7-800 would seem like it. I definitely wouldn't buy another one. $5-600 Maybe?? Not $1,200 that they want for them now.
Overpriced!!!
Overall Rating
6000 Di Pro from
New Hampshire
735
Excalibur is the best U/W detector
January 22, 2008
I have 7 excaliburs all with different coils for different locations. I
have never sent one in for repair. I use my original unit the most (serial
number 153) one of the originals...I prefer the originals as they have more
better quality parts in them & were built better then the 800-1000. They
also seem to be a hotter detector then the newer models. I have been into
water hunting "big time" for over 12 years and had broke the 1400 gold ring
count last year. I have also found thousands of silver rings. I do think
they could improve on this detector by putting in a way to gauge battery
life left but otherwise it is an excellent machine. (Duracell alkalines
last about 8 hours, I have found out from experience) I do use a straight
shaft on all of my machines and the new soverign shaft is a great straight
shaft, I have broken many of so called Florida shafts so I do not prefer
them. I have hunted in over 30 states, fresh & saltwater and 12 different
countries. No problems!!!
Great detector!!!
Overall Rating
JIMABEACH01 from
THE MIDWEST,USA
316
Excalibur 1000
October 31, 2007
The worst detector I ever bought, so much so that I just got 2 that were
total junk, don't work properly underwater, 1st 1 didn't work at all. The
second worked well on land but erratic in water "beware of this product"
Overall Rating
Dave sorton from
Cape coral florida
2331
I love my Excalibur 1000s
September 10, 2007
I love my Excalibur 1000 so much that the back up for my Excal is another
Excal 1000. I have owned one for about 11 months and the other for 2 months and I have had no break downs or problems with either one.
Suggestions.
1. Get rid of the stock S shaft and get a balanced straight shaft. I use the Florida Straight Shaft.
2. Get a long handle big scoop for those deep targets in the water.
Overall Rating
Treasure_Hunter from
Orlando, Fl USA
334
Very Good Machine
August 21, 2007
When I first used the Excalibur 1000 I considered it as a fair machine
but as I learned more about the Excalibur, the more I like it. I now
considered it to be an exceptional machine.To get good results I would turn up the sensitivity all the way, without going to Auto. Then set the threshold until there it little threshold tone or just turn it a little above threshold until it is silent.
What I also found is that the target tone is very different from all types of tone one may come across. So even if there is a lot of noise that is not targets you will definitly know. The target tone is a low hum very different from other signals. I have a CZ20 and it is a good machine but if I was to get another water machine it will be an Excalibur 1000.
Overall Rating
Bert from
Hawaii USA
160
Slow down part two
July 09, 2007
made adjust ments to excalibur 1000 with new hand rod from Kellyco for the
1000 it balances will now and easier to handle.went to same location off LBI this time found silver dollar, silver dollar size civil war botton, found solid gold botton, three rings, one was 4K ruby 14 band 2 sinkers, barber dime 1911 and a 1913 wheat great shape
from some of the complaint that I have read it seems that those units maybe lemons. So far been using my minelab 1000 three weeks and found it much better than the others with one same flaw, light beach hunter they have the lights , but you have to get use to the music. again I like all my other machines dfx, mine se, beach hunter and new kid on the block 1000, after these pass weeks 1000 is my number #1 machine in water and dfx #1 on land love that pin point for dfx. In the water 1000 and locks on to the target GREAT!
jw slow your swings down .
small story! watch other detector people work their machines went over the same spots 1 hour later, found over 15 dollars in change with the dfx, slow down or someone like me will have the rewards been detecting for 7 years seen them all good lock!
Overall Rating
Jw slow down 2 from
Jw sayrville nj
197
Slow down
July 02, 2007
please to say that testing the minelab se, whites dfx, whites beach hunter
, and finally minelab 1000.a) whites beach hunter is a good metal detector a little bit light in the nose and it dose not lock on to target as hard as the minelab 1000
b) the minelab 1000 is heavy and that is to keep the unit down in the water. however minelab has made a new rod to balance of the feeling of being to heavy (kelly co sale the parts). Also the 1000 locks very hard onto targets in the water.
minelabs ex se is really nice machine and is easy to learn and its not that heavy, have to love that iron masking set-up, had a lot more fines.
white's dfx great pin pointing and great machine over all easy to learn and easy to handle look into the programs that are supplied to set-up pin pointing correctly
BUT minelabs do go deeper.
in wet sand or dry.
went to vero beach with whites beach hunter got down as far as 16inches dry sand found hair spray can
minelabs ex se in same area found picnic table 25 inches buried in sand from pass strom, still chained to the beach post
whites beach hunt found 1781 reale in new jersey 6 inches in the waters off oflong beach island
just received the minelab 1000 pin pointed 4 inches to find a flying eagle one cent
those 4 machines I find to be the best but slow down your swings and let the disk touch the ground or sand
good lock jw
Overall Rating
Jw from
Sayrville nj
135
Beach Detector Show Down
December 24, 2006
Me and a few friends of mine all love to beach hunt. So one day we where
all talking about how deep our detectors go and so we decided to see which
of them was the king of deep. We packed up our detectors and headed to Daytona beach. It was a nice sunny day and perfect for a day of fun and sun.
We decided to make it fair we would take a small ring tie a string to it and bury it, then each of us try to detect it. We got close enough to the waves that each time the waves came in it would fill our hole in and we could go alittle deeper each try.
Here is our results:
Minelab 1000 7" inches max
Fisher CZ 20 9"
White's PI pro 12"
Garrett Infinium 15"
Keep in mind this is a very small 14k baby ring. It won't even fit on my pinky finger.
Overall Rating
Steve from
Florida
756
I've owned all three
December 09, 2006
I have been metal detecting since 1972. I have had alot of different
brands and kinds of metal detectors. My 1st detector was a BFO it was a
good unit and I found a ton of coins and some jewlery as well. I use to
come home with so many coins in my pockets my pants would fall off. I knew
right then I was hooked for life. When VLF detectors came about I bought
one and went to the same areas and found alot of targets out of reach of my
BFO's depth capabilities. I have owned all major brands and some foreign
models as well. One thing I can say is there is no one perfect detector for
all situations. Some detectors do better than others. Most of the time we
expect because we paid a high price for one. That it is the best detector
ever made. But the reality is. It's not what you buy it's how well you use
it. I have filled many jewlery boxes with detectors that where not top of
the line. I have owned a Whites 6000d for over 20 years and it still finds
treasure and has never failed me.I currently have a Minelab Excalibur. Not the 800 or 1000 but the original Excalibur with the blue sword on the side. I think Minelabs 1st Excalibur was the best one built. I have never had any loose knobs or rusting post that I often read about. Plus the head phones are way better than the 800 or 1000. I have found alot of very nice items with it. It has more than paid itself off. But with that said it has been to the repair shop more times than I would have liked. It is a good detector but not a fantastic detector. Very costly to repair and very heavy. It does have a learning curve. Mostly to get use to the threshold changing. But over all it's a decent detector.
I prefer my Garrett infinium for most situations it is lighter easily hipmounted and does a wonderful job once you learn how to use it. It has NEVER been to the repair shop and is built like a tank. My Fisher CZ 20 has also NEVER been to the repair shop and is about the easiest of the 3 to understand how to operate. Here again you must take time to learn and understand the detectors capability. Some people just say it's junk after a couple hours of use and go back to what ever brand they had before. If you are after small gold objects most VLF detectors just can't do the job PERIOD. I don't care if you rub it on the coil it will not detect it. The sensitivity of the detector isn't designed to pick up a object that small. Make sure that the detector you chose can do the job you want. I like all 3 and have learned with time all detectors even the older models can find great treasure. You just got to stay at it and be at the right place at the right time. If I had to pick only one detector for all detecting I would take the Infinium. It's not for everyone it is a PI detector and you do dig more junk than a DISC model detector but the sensitivity and versitality make it my personal favorite. I have dug thousands of pull tabs over the years. But that 3 carat diamond set in platinum I found makes me dig them all =)
When I hear some of the stories on the forums about people finding a coin 3 feet deep or a gold ring 20 inches in the gound it makes me laugh. No detector EVER made can do that. If you really want to see how deep a detector can detect a object. Dig a hole about 3 ft deep and get a yard stick. Place coins or any type of metal in the walls of the hole. This way it is in undisturbed ground. Take a measurement of how deep each object is and then fill your hole in. Now get your detector out and see if it can detect any or all of the targets you buried.
I found this a good way to see how well a detector works. Old detectors or new most don't go deeper than 10 to 12 inches deep. That is one with a large search coil and give a feint signal at best.
Now get out there and find a treasure you will enjoy the rest of your life...
Overall Rating
Steve from
Orlando, Florida
925
Great Machine
September 18, 2006
The knobs on the Excalibur 1000 does slip but there is a way to fix this
problem. Sand paper the lenght of the shaft then place knobs back and
tighten. This will fix the knob from slipping. I found that the CZ20 does produce false signals when working the shore line when the coil hits the water. I was told the SurfMaster PI does the same thing too. The Excalibur 1000 DOES NOT do that. It perfectly stable: does not produce flase signals.
Overall Rating
Bert from
Hawaii
251