Newbie Pin pointer question

[jasonph]

Hi,

I have just joined the forum and have been enjoying reading some of the excellent posts.

I used to have a Garrett pin pointer, which is a great pin-pointer, but too expensive for it to sit around and not be used that much. So I have sold it and I'm looking to build a pin pointer which is 'good enough' for the little I manage to get out in the field (weather, work and family commitments).

I have seen quite a few ideas including a simple mod to a wall metal finder by bringing the coils out into a probe pipe, and a Velleman kit.

I had a quick search but haven't found any direct comparisons between the different diy approaches (difficulty in building v performance).

Has anyone had a look at the different diy pin pointers and if so can they point me to the right place?

Thanks very much in advance.

jasonph

[bernte_one]

hello jason,

what are your electronic abilities?
for example just soldering, soldering and circuit layout, µ controller ...


regards

[golfnut]

screwfix in uk had a clearance item was £24 then £5 the ferrite rod antenna in the end could be rotated 90 and housed in platic tube glued in .

Sens was ok not great. Did false if you pressured it into the soil.

[sinclairuser]

hi jason, dont waste your money on velleman kits,i'm an experienced engineer with plenty of resources, and while i got a working pinpointer out of it it is not worth the effort in diy terms, and also no proper pinpointer cases are available.
take a look at the bounty hunter probes, they work better than the £35 that they cost would suggest.
the problem with any diy pointer projects is a lack of decent cases to put the projects in, they end up looking like a high school projects, simply put not worth the time and effort.
the users of this forum are still looking for a decent pinpointer project, none i have seen operate as well as the cheaper commercial pinpointers

[jasonph]

thank you all

Thank you all very much your help. Perfect.

Jasonph

[jasonph]

Thanks Sinclairuser. A very well made point. I was beginning to wonder myself.


I guess it might be fun to mod the wall cable and voltage detector (you can buy the Silverline badged one from Amazon for £7 something), and a bit of water pipe is probably knocking around the shed.


I think I will buy a proper entry level pointer for serious use and use the diy'd one for fun or comparison.


Thanks for your help.


Jasonph

[sinclairuser]

that what i was suggesting, i did not want to put you off tinkering, but you still need a reliable proper pointer for real use.
and there are some crackers for under 40 pounds, i now use a whites bulls eye 2, but still have a bounty hunter cheapie as back up.

[Koala]

screwfix in uk had a clearance item was £24 then £5 the ferrite rod antenna in the end could be rotated 90 and housed in platic tube glued in .

Sens was ok not great. Did false if you pressured it into the soil.

Can you post the URL can't seem to find it ???

Had a good look i am probably doing something wrong

[Koala]

Can you post the URL can't seem to find it ???

Had a good look i am probably doing something wrong

Answered my own question ScrewFix own search fails but Google found

http://www.screwfix.com/p/3-in-1-stud-sensor/27558# at £7.49