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Anybody use a pinpointer
- Thread starter Grayrider
- Start date
They can speed you up quite a bit and that means you can dig more targets. They can pay for themselves pretty easy.. The Fisher F2 package comes with a pretty decent one. Harbor Freight has a serviceable one for a few bucks too. The switch on the HF one will fail, be ready to solder in a decent switch.
kozman4907
Member
I started with out one few years ago. I almost gave up the hobby. what a pain in butt locating target. Now I have a Garret PP and then upgraded to a carrot. I find those pesky targets and I am less frustrated!
You never miss what you never had. Once you start using a pinpointer you'll never want to detect without one. At least detecting in the grass. If you're relic hunting, not so necessary. Those guys just dig a big ass hole and spread the dirt around to find the target. I seldom use one hunting ghost towns but anywhere you need to make as small a hole as possible, a pin pointer is great. I have a buddy that's detected for years that doesn't use one. He has to use a small coil on his Minelab so he can pinpoint in the grass without making a big hole. I can hit the parks with an 18" Bigfoot coil for coverage and using a pin pointer I can easily double his coin count just about every outing.
attackcat1
New member
Its a must IMHO once you use one , you won't want to go digging with out one its worth the money ! its a must have.
only have 16 posts on the Findmall Forums, thus I am not sure if you're a long-time detector operator and new to the Forums, or if you are just a newer member of the detecting hobby. I am sure you will read report from some folks who are newer to the sport and started out with a pinpointer early-on. Then there are those like me, such as Tom Slick and D&P-OR and other who've replied, who got started when metal detectors were a bit more 'crude' or 'basic' or 'limited in abilities' when compared with what we have available today, and there wasn't any such thing as a 'pinpointer' like the hand-held devices we have today.
It was quite easy to learn how to 'isolate' or 'pinpoint' a target once located using your metal detector. When hand-help pinpointers first started to show up on the market I tried quite a few of them but never was overly impressed with the size, bulkiness, and especially how they functions. Performance wasn't all that impressive, and I could usually locate my detected target very quickly with out needing or wanting one of them. A good 90% of the targets I find in typical urban Coin Hunting locations, mainly grassy lawns at parks, schools, easements, etc., are recovered with a rounded-off screwdriver, and I can probe down and find and extract them w/o a pinpointing device.
On some difficult recoveries I do use one of my pinpointers, and I have one with me all the time, just in case. The "just in case" covers the two times I might put the pinpointer to use. Those are:
1.. Some Coin Hunting and a few Relic Hunting recovery needs.
2.. Often the more often used event is when someone I am hunting with has a problem finding a target. I then use the pinpointer which helps, and the reason for using it is that the detector operate hadn't mastered the simple skill of isolating or pinpointing a targets with their metal detector in the first place.
Nope, not necessary, but at times a good pinpointer can be very useful.
There are some terrible pinpointers on the market. Shop for one that is a quality built devise. Try to find a local detector dealer, club member, or friend who uses a pinpointer and check them out first so you will know what they can do, how they feel, know if the speaker and/or vibrate function is satisfactory for you. I use both the Makro Pointer and the Nokta Pointer and they work quite well, and are well constructed.
Monte
It was quite easy to learn how to 'isolate' or 'pinpoint' a target once located using your metal detector. When hand-help pinpointers first started to show up on the market I tried quite a few of them but never was overly impressed with the size, bulkiness, and especially how they functions. Performance wasn't all that impressive, and I could usually locate my detected target very quickly with out needing or wanting one of them. A good 90% of the targets I find in typical urban Coin Hunting locations, mainly grassy lawns at parks, schools, easements, etc., are recovered with a rounded-off screwdriver, and I can probe down and find and extract them w/o a pinpointing device.
On some difficult recoveries I do use one of my pinpointers, and I have one with me all the time, just in case. The "just in case" covers the two times I might put the pinpointer to use. Those are:
1.. Some Coin Hunting and a few Relic Hunting recovery needs.
2.. Often the more often used event is when someone I am hunting with has a problem finding a target. I then use the pinpointer which helps, and the reason for using it is that the detector operate hadn't mastered the simple skill of isolating or pinpointing a targets with their metal detector in the first place.
No, a pinpointer is not 'necessary,' but once we got some decent pinpointers available, that work quite well, then they are more of an 'on-call need' ... much like a spare tire, an extra can of gas when traveling out in the desert, having some emergency supplies on-hand during stormy weather, heading off on a detecting outing and taking along extra batteries, and that sort of thing.Grayrider said:
Nope, not necessary, but at times a good pinpointer can be very useful.
What! Not if you want to own a quality metal detector and outfit of necessary search coil's, recovery tools, headphones and the like. IF you want a pinpointer, they are out there at a reasonable price for a top-end unit. Naturally 'reasonable' to me, or "pretty expensive" to you, can mean very different things. If you shop at 'big box' stores or do some on-line selection of a detector purely based on a too-tight budget to not be expensive, then you'll likely end up with a very cheap, poorly built, weak-performing detector to begin with and that might make s pinpointer seem expensive.Grayrider said:
There are some terrible pinpointers on the market. Shop for one that is a quality built devise. Try to find a local detector dealer, club member, or friend who uses a pinpointer and check them out first so you will know what they can do, how they feel, know if the speaker and/or vibrate function is satisfactory for you. I use both the Makro Pointer and the Nokta Pointer and they work quite well, and are well constructed.
Monte
My first thought when I saw this thread - is there anyone in 2016 who doesn't?
When Garrett introduced the Pro-Pointer, it was a game changer. Faster and easier recoveries. An already enjoyable hobby became even more enjoyable.
In 2008 when I first got the Pro-Pointer and I raved about it, the majority of the responses were that it was unnecessary.
You see the same basic premise in this thread over and over: I never thought I needed one until I tried one.
It's very telling to me that the few people in this hobby who still don't use a pinpointer never have used one.
No one says I bought a pinpointer but I didn't see an advantage so now I've decided not to use one anymore.
Go back 100 years and there were still people saying my horse is all I need, I don't want one of those newfangled horseless carriages.
When Garrett introduced the Pro-Pointer, it was a game changer. Faster and easier recoveries. An already enjoyable hobby became even more enjoyable.
In 2008 when I first got the Pro-Pointer and I raved about it, the majority of the responses were that it was unnecessary.
You see the same basic premise in this thread over and over: I never thought I needed one until I tried one.
It's very telling to me that the few people in this hobby who still don't use a pinpointer never have used one.
No one says I bought a pinpointer but I didn't see an advantage so now I've decided not to use one anymore.
Go back 100 years and there were still people saying my horse is all I need, I don't want one of those newfangled horseless carriages.
Thats like saying, why still use a knob and switch, manual GB adjusting, non screen, single tone detector. Today, there are automatic GB, push button, digital readout, multi-tone, multi-freq., GPS enabled, pre-set modes, plug into computer to update it's software, waterproof ones. It's personal preference. I have used a pinpointer and don't use one now. So what? Its not an absolute need for myself and others. I don't need a small detector to help find what my big detector can. Don't drive one car to get to another car so I can drive to work either. lol. Tried digital readout machines also and don't need that either. Not just because they make them, I have to use them. Have found, as others do, the small advantage they give does not justify the cost and I usually don't buy stuff I don't need, just because others say I do. Have no problems with those who use them, should be no problems with us who don't.marcomo said:
Thanks for all the info and answers, I will hold off on the pinpointer for a while. I can see where they would and will come in handy. Monte, I am new to to this, I am getting my ducks in a row as to what I will buy and need. Looks like I need a Vaquero for starters. I hope to have one soon. Thanks
jld66 said:
I didn't mean to put you on the defensive with my post. And I certainly didn't mean to infer that I have a problem with anyone who doesn't use a pinpointer. I could care less.
I will say that you are the first person I've seen say they used a pinpointer and then decided they didn't want to use one. Instead of saying pinpointer I should have said quality pinpointer. I am curious to know what brand pinpointer you used that you didn't find helpful. When you talk about the cheapie types like the Cen-Tech and many of the older previous generation pinpointers, I do agree with you that they don't offer much advantage over not using one at all.
No problem. 3 years ago my friend went on a long vacation and let me use the black garrett propointer. Used it on about 6-8 hunts and seen no real need for one. Maybe if your trying to find a small fishing line weight or a BB in a plug. But for coins and such, as said, did not seem worth the cost or fussing with it to really convince me into buying one. I have a $10 digger that works just as well as a $40 lesche(?) does. Just when people ask what they need to do this hobby, most say they need all this pricey stuff. Its not that I can't afford it myself. But, they really don't need it and may turn people away. Done a few group hunts and see these guy's with all this gear hanging off them like a they are hitting the beach in France again or something. Yeah, they like all that stuff, fine. But, its really not needed, even though they will say it is. At the end of the day, they have not found anything more than I have. There are different opinions to threads like this one. It seems those opinions who differ from the popular ones are wrong for some reason. Another guy said he don't use one either and has one. Then all these reasons like it makes a neater hole, saves loads of time, etc. It's just not the case. My holes are just as neat and may lose maybe a few minutes on a 4-5 hour hunt. Like digital readout screens, people become so dependent on them after awhile, then claim they can't be without and you must have it also. Some may not have a lot to spend on this hobby, a decent detector and digger is really all that is needed to start out with. See if they will like it. Then they will realize what will suit them in time.marcomo said:
.[/quote]Done a few group hunts and see these guy's with all this gear hanging off them like a they are hitting the beach in France again or something. [/quote]
Seriously, the important thing for you is what works for you. I can tell you what works for me, but I would never dream of trying to tell you what works for you. You have used a quality pinpointer so that makes you the expert on how it works for you.
For me, I don't want to go back to the days of swinging handfuls of dirt in front of the coil or picking up the detector with one hand to rescan the hole.
I've had those $10-$15 diggers like the Planters Buddy which I used for several years and I agree with you, they work well. The most important thing to me is keeping the blade sharp. But one advantage you do get for the money is that the Predator and Lesche diggers have deep tangs compared to the cheaper ones as well as stronger steel. They hold up better. Then again, the Planters Buddy has a lifetime guarantee so if it breaks they send you a new one,
Personally, I use the Predator Raptor and it is too darn expensive but it cuts a flap and moves dirt in a snap which makes it worth the extra $ to me.
With or without a pinpointer, this is a fun hobby. But for me, it's more fun with one.
Seriously, the important thing for you is what works for you. I can tell you what works for me, but I would never dream of trying to tell you what works for you. You have used a quality pinpointer so that makes you the expert on how it works for you.
For me, I don't want to go back to the days of swinging handfuls of dirt in front of the coil or picking up the detector with one hand to rescan the hole.
I've had those $10-$15 diggers like the Planters Buddy which I used for several years and I agree with you, they work well. The most important thing to me is keeping the blade sharp. But one advantage you do get for the money is that the Predator and Lesche diggers have deep tangs compared to the cheaper ones as well as stronger steel. They hold up better. Then again, the Planters Buddy has a lifetime guarantee so if it breaks they send you a new one,
Personally, I use the Predator Raptor and it is too darn expensive but it cuts a flap and moves dirt in a snap which makes it worth the extra $ to me.
With or without a pinpointer, this is a fun hobby. But for me, it's more fun with one.
Yeah seriously, a harness on attached to detector to hold it, finds pouch, trash pouch, pinpointer holster, digger with holster, small shovel, large canteen of water, a small backpack full of something, waist pack. Looks like their hiking into the wilderness for a week and they won't be more than a hundred yards away from their car. It works for them and they must see the need for it. But is all that really needed? There are 4-5 guys in this group that hunt like that. All I am trying to say is you do not really need a pinpointer to actually find stuff. They are more of a convenience sometimes than a necessity. To be that dependent on them and won't detect without one, makes neater holes, saves a lot of time, etc, as some have said in the replies, is a bit much I think and kinda misleading to someone just starting out. Whatever, Good Luck to you all.