Minelab Sovereign XS2a Pro Modification
Obligatory Disclaimer: I make no guarantees and I take no responsibility for any damage caused by any modifications to your metal detector. Proceed at your own risk, your mileage and results may vary..
I have had my Minelab Sovereign XS2a Pro since 1999 and now it is getting a bit long in the tooth. It sits in the closet because the NiCAD battery packs are no longer available. I had a detecting trip planned and I decided I wanted to breathe new life into my faithful old machine. It was time to make some modifications. I never really liked the expensive proprietary battery pack or the battery compartment on this machine from day one. So, my goal was to modify the battery compartment to accept a standard off-the-shelf 12 VDC re-chargable battery pack. Also, using the newer Ni-MH cells and 1800 mAH instead of the stock proprietary 1000 mAH Ni-CAD pack. My goal was to do minimal damage to the SOV detector body so I could restore it back to original if I ever decided to do so. The solution also needed to be relatively cheap and easy.
So armed with some battery compartment measurements, I set off to Home Depot to wander the isles of the electrical and plumbing department for a few hours and try and come up with some ideas and inspiration. Then it happened, while on the electrical isle I spied an electrical extension box. Light weight, durable, already had a hinged door, and best of all it appeared to be exactly the right size. It should fit right inside the existing SOV battery compartment with the old cover removed; it doesn't get any better than that. Be aware there is a deeper box and a more shallow one, the shallower one is the one you want so it does not stick out any further than necessary.
I drilled some holes in the top of the electrical box, large enough to allow the SOV's battery spring terminals to protrude into the new electrical box when it is in place in the SOV's battery compartment. I drilled four small angled holes total, two in the left side, two in the right side, to secure the electrical box in place in the battery compartment. I used blind pop rivets in the holes to keep the box in place. The holes were carefully drilled in the electrical box and in the sides of the battery compartment. Do not drill into the bottom of the box, you may risk damaging the detectors circuit board electronics. See the first two pictures on the left below for reference. Also, there will be a slight gap at the top of the battery compartment when the electrical box is in place. I cut a piece of weather stripping and put it in place to fill the gap. Next I created a small cord with two insulated alligator clips on one end and a quick disconnect on the other. Then I put a quick disconnect on each of the battery packs. The new battery compartment can now accommodate a variety of battery packs.
I have had my Minelab Sovereign XS2a Pro since 1999 and now it is getting a bit long in the tooth. It sits in the closet because the NiCAD battery packs are no longer available. I had a detecting trip planned and I decided I wanted to breathe new life into my faithful old machine. It was time to make some modifications. I never really liked the expensive proprietary battery pack or the battery compartment on this machine from day one. So, my goal was to modify the battery compartment to accept a standard off-the-shelf 12 VDC re-chargable battery pack. Also, using the newer Ni-MH cells and 1800 mAH instead of the stock proprietary 1000 mAH Ni-CAD pack. My goal was to do minimal damage to the SOV detector body so I could restore it back to original if I ever decided to do so. The solution also needed to be relatively cheap and easy.
So armed with some battery compartment measurements, I set off to Home Depot to wander the isles of the electrical and plumbing department for a few hours and try and come up with some ideas and inspiration. Then it happened, while on the electrical isle I spied an electrical extension box. Light weight, durable, already had a hinged door, and best of all it appeared to be exactly the right size. It should fit right inside the existing SOV battery compartment with the old cover removed; it doesn't get any better than that. Be aware there is a deeper box and a more shallow one, the shallower one is the one you want so it does not stick out any further than necessary.
I drilled some holes in the top of the electrical box, large enough to allow the SOV's battery spring terminals to protrude into the new electrical box when it is in place in the SOV's battery compartment. I drilled four small angled holes total, two in the left side, two in the right side, to secure the electrical box in place in the battery compartment. I used blind pop rivets in the holes to keep the box in place. The holes were carefully drilled in the electrical box and in the sides of the battery compartment. Do not drill into the bottom of the box, you may risk damaging the detectors circuit board electronics. See the first two pictures on the left below for reference. Also, there will be a slight gap at the top of the battery compartment when the electrical box is in place. I cut a piece of weather stripping and put it in place to fill the gap. Next I created a small cord with two insulated alligator clips on one end and a quick disconnect on the other. Then I put a quick disconnect on each of the battery packs. The new battery compartment can now accommodate a variety of battery packs.
Take the alligator clips and clip them to the correct polarity springs protruding into the electrical box. Make sure the spring polarity (positive or negative) matches the battery pack polarity or you risk damaging the metal detect0r electronics. Connect the alligator clips to the spring terminals with the battery pack disconnected. (Notice that I used insulated battery clips that are correctly color coded.) The other end of the cable will connect to the battery pack using the quick disconnect connector. Again, double check your wiring polarity before you hook the battery pack up. The reason I keep warning about this is that if you look carefully at the picture of the two battery packs above, one pack is actually mis-wired. If I would not have caught it making a last minute check I may have done some serious damage. But you guys will be smarter and more patient than I am :). See the images below.
A little bit of foam was added to pad the battery pack inside the new battery compartment. Now make sure your battery pack is fully charged and snap the door closed - you are ready to go. See the final pictures below.
I did some initial testing and everything worked very well. Now the SOV is back in action again.
I hope you will find this article helpful. Happy hunting - Cheers!
I hope you will find this article helpful. Happy hunting - Cheers!