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converting detectors
- Thread starter soplanter
- Start date
grumpyolman
New member
First you have to make or buy a prebuilt waterproof housing. Takes some skill to build one. Acrylic is good but it takes some practice and special tools to work with it. You can use a round tube of acrylic and then you only have to cement one end cap and make an O-ring seal for the other end. Have to figure a way to snug the O-ring down agains the seal point with closers of some kind.
The next problem is to find and purchase through the hull waterproof, not water resistant, conncectors in at least two places. The headphone connection wires have to come out of the enclosure somewhere. There are a lot of choices there. Ikelite is a common choice. In some places that connector is called a penetrator and you can read about them where you buy parts for ROVs. That fittin is pretty straight forward and as long as you have a smooth flat surface to push the O-ring against, like acrylic, problem solved.
The more difficult issue for me is get a permanent type wire to go through the hull of your device, usually the coil wire, and make it waterproof. First you have to have a waterproof coil and unless you are using a waterproof coil designed to be waterproof, not water resistant like wading in the water, the water tight intergity of the coil will be suspect. Where the wire connects into the coil might withstand some diving pressures. However, you have to take the coil connector off the end of that coil and pass it through the hull and connect it to the circuit board someway. Getting that wire through the hull and making sure ware won't leak up into the detector cicuit or go down the inside of the coil wire and dammage the wire somewhere between that connector and the coil connection, is primary issue. It can be done.
I read about a guy in England who just uses the common brass compression fittings for plumbing and puts a rubber O-ring in where the brass compression piece goes. He makes custom waterproof lights. He states that adpted fitting has been tested at over 80 meters. I haven't tried that.
PM me and I'll try to forward all the sites I have found and what I have learned collecting research for a potential waterproof housing for an E-Trac. If you are building something to wade with in the surf it becomes exponentially less hassle. If you want to dive with it, it becomes almost a nightmare. I have built my own underwater camera housings for a SLR. They never leaked. THe commercially purchased strobe housing leaked. Good luck...Jim
The next problem is to find and purchase through the hull waterproof, not water resistant, conncectors in at least two places. The headphone connection wires have to come out of the enclosure somewhere. There are a lot of choices there. Ikelite is a common choice. In some places that connector is called a penetrator and you can read about them where you buy parts for ROVs. That fittin is pretty straight forward and as long as you have a smooth flat surface to push the O-ring against, like acrylic, problem solved.
The more difficult issue for me is get a permanent type wire to go through the hull of your device, usually the coil wire, and make it waterproof. First you have to have a waterproof coil and unless you are using a waterproof coil designed to be waterproof, not water resistant like wading in the water, the water tight intergity of the coil will be suspect. Where the wire connects into the coil might withstand some diving pressures. However, you have to take the coil connector off the end of that coil and pass it through the hull and connect it to the circuit board someway. Getting that wire through the hull and making sure ware won't leak up into the detector cicuit or go down the inside of the coil wire and dammage the wire somewhere between that connector and the coil connection, is primary issue. It can be done.
I read about a guy in England who just uses the common brass compression fittings for plumbing and puts a rubber O-ring in where the brass compression piece goes. He makes custom waterproof lights. He states that adpted fitting has been tested at over 80 meters. I haven't tried that.
PM me and I'll try to forward all the sites I have found and what I have learned collecting research for a potential waterproof housing for an E-Trac. If you are building something to wade with in the surf it becomes exponentially less hassle. If you want to dive with it, it becomes almost a nightmare. I have built my own underwater camera housings for a SLR. They never leaked. THe commercially purchased strobe housing leaked. Good luck...Jim
Pyledriver
Active member
I'm interested in this as well! Is it possible to have a unit be switchable back and forth or will it have to stay that way? I have a 705 btw..
GraveDiggerMax-VaBch-Va
New member
http://www.findmall.com/read.php?21,987041,987655#msg-987655
grumpyolman
New member
Max...I respectfully disagree that it's a piece of cake for most. Making a 'splash proof' housing for a detector that somebody is using for wading and may be subjected to an occasional dunk is a whole lot different than getting one that is rated to 100' or more. The White's are rated for 25'. They don't tell you for how long though. Their is one of theirs that is rated for 100'. All the rest of the top of the line are rated for 200' or so. No! You never go that deep but when you have $1200 worth of detector in a housing you want to make pretty sure there is a little fudge factor in the construction of what you make.
Thanks for the info on the cable clamps you use. I will check them out. I am worried that cutting that slit in the fat O-ring wouldn't seal well enough to use that fitting for diving.
Here's where I have found the best stuff for DIY folks. There's lots better stuff made for submersibles but they are prohibitively expensive.
http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/parts_index.html
Go to that site and look at the camera controls, the electronic connectors, and the housings. The electrical connectors are $20 ea and the camera controls are $30 each. If I remember correctly the large clear case is $230. The Ikelite connectors are and have been used on the Garrett units. It's also the same connector that is on the battery pod of the Excalibur and the Grey Ghost phones.
An idea for you....Look at the camera controls. Get your detector mounted solidly in your housing. Take off the control knob on your Sovereign and put a gear on that knob. Put a matching gear on the shaft of one of the camera controls and drill a hole in your casing and mount the camera control so the gear will line up with the internal pot and will be able to turn the gear inside...from the outside of the case. Those are good as I had my Nikon SLR down a 100' with a housing I made that had those controls in it to change aperture, focus, and trip the shutter. You would have to calculate how many of the knobs you really wanted to adjust and then fit each one with a camera control fitting.
You could make it so you could pass a fitting through the hull them replace the mechanical fitting (coil connector or headphone plug) back onto the wire that went through the hull. That would allow you to anchor your detector inside the housing and plug in or unplug the detector and take it out of the housing. The only thing is the coil and wire would have to stay with the housing unless you are willing to risk an in water connector. Ikelite makes those for their strobes and if they'll work for that they would work for a coil. That way you could remove the detector from the housing and use it on both land and underwater.
There's three connectors or connection points one has to consider. You have to get the coil wire through. You have to get the headphone connected someway. and, you have to make sure the power (battery supply) can somehow be connected to the detector. That cold be from the outside the housing like an Excalibur, or it can all be done inside the housing...like in your picture.
Nice work on that Max. Looks like it'll work fine. For my application I need one that is guaranteed waterproof to 100" for 30'. That's all fudge factor. You divers I do not plan on a Deco dive working in a 100' of water. Mostly, I rarely get deeper than 15'. Being 15' deep for 2-3 hours puts a fair amount of pressure pushing against those seals for a significant period of time. If you screw up and you flood your E-Trac, that's gonna cost a bunch especially if its in salt water.
Regards...Jim.
Thanks for the info on the cable clamps you use. I will check them out. I am worried that cutting that slit in the fat O-ring wouldn't seal well enough to use that fitting for diving.
Here's where I have found the best stuff for DIY folks. There's lots better stuff made for submersibles but they are prohibitively expensive.
http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/parts_index.html
Go to that site and look at the camera controls, the electronic connectors, and the housings. The electrical connectors are $20 ea and the camera controls are $30 each. If I remember correctly the large clear case is $230. The Ikelite connectors are and have been used on the Garrett units. It's also the same connector that is on the battery pod of the Excalibur and the Grey Ghost phones.
An idea for you....Look at the camera controls. Get your detector mounted solidly in your housing. Take off the control knob on your Sovereign and put a gear on that knob. Put a matching gear on the shaft of one of the camera controls and drill a hole in your casing and mount the camera control so the gear will line up with the internal pot and will be able to turn the gear inside...from the outside of the case. Those are good as I had my Nikon SLR down a 100' with a housing I made that had those controls in it to change aperture, focus, and trip the shutter. You would have to calculate how many of the knobs you really wanted to adjust and then fit each one with a camera control fitting.
You could make it so you could pass a fitting through the hull them replace the mechanical fitting (coil connector or headphone plug) back onto the wire that went through the hull. That would allow you to anchor your detector inside the housing and plug in or unplug the detector and take it out of the housing. The only thing is the coil and wire would have to stay with the housing unless you are willing to risk an in water connector. Ikelite makes those for their strobes and if they'll work for that they would work for a coil. That way you could remove the detector from the housing and use it on both land and underwater.
There's three connectors or connection points one has to consider. You have to get the coil wire through. You have to get the headphone connected someway. and, you have to make sure the power (battery supply) can somehow be connected to the detector. That cold be from the outside the housing like an Excalibur, or it can all be done inside the housing...like in your picture.
Nice work on that Max. Looks like it'll work fine. For my application I need one that is guaranteed waterproof to 100" for 30'. That's all fudge factor. You divers I do not plan on a Deco dive working in a 100' of water. Mostly, I rarely get deeper than 15'. Being 15' deep for 2-3 hours puts a fair amount of pressure pushing against those seals for a significant period of time. If you screw up and you flood your E-Trac, that's gonna cost a bunch especially if its in salt water.
Regards...Jim.
GraveDiggerMax-VaBch-Va
New member
my box rigs are waterproof, waveproof and rainproof
NOT FOR DIVING
they are a pain in the asssss when u go to deep, they want to act like a big bouy on your back and float u
easy, cheap and work great..............no diving allowed......................Ikelite.......................tooooooo many $$$$ for me. they do make the best stuff for sure.
NOT FOR DIVING
they are a pain in the asssss when u go to deep, they want to act like a big bouy on your back and float u
easy, cheap and work great..............no diving allowed......................Ikelite.......................tooooooo many $$$$ for me. they do make the best stuff for sure.
grumpyolman
New member
Sad for me to hear yours are not for diving as those fittings looked really nice. Waterproof means different things to different people. There are standards adopted that have a number and if you know what the numbers mean it will tell you at what depth for what period of time the unit will function without a water leak failure.
Waterproof and diving are not mutually exclusive. So to a person who detects and dives, as well as wades and detects, waterproof means nothing unless the degree or extent of the waterproofness is known. I have eliminated two White's machines as potential 'next' one to try because they state the units are only waterproof to 25'. It has nothing to do with the relative merits of the manufacurer's electronics. They are jus barely waterproof.
So...at least when someone asks me about something that's waterproof, I have a different measuring stick. Your Timex says waterproof on it. Don't take it 30' for a quick dip unless it's truly one of their waterproof units made for diving. Jim
Blue sea waterproof cable cam. Allows the waterproof through deck installation of Loran, GPS and other cables without the expense, time and risk of cutting factory installed connectors. For connectors .675" -GPS, Loran, Stanav. Outside diameter 1 3/4". Height 7/8".
There's the manufacturer's statement of what their cable clam was designed for. It's primary advantage is you drill a hole big enough that you don't have to disassemble the electronic connector on you GPS, Radar,(detector) etc, and pass it through a tiny hole and re-solder it.. You just cut a big hole and use the larger diameter O-ring type fitting to keep the water out. Unfortunately the manufacturer used the term 'waterproof' to describe this connector. Understand that it was made to use on a boat, 'through deck" installation. That's an above waterline installation and is meant to keep rain and splashing water from seeping inside the deck area.. It ought to do the same for you detector. Jim
Waterproof and diving are not mutually exclusive. So to a person who detects and dives, as well as wades and detects, waterproof means nothing unless the degree or extent of the waterproofness is known. I have eliminated two White's machines as potential 'next' one to try because they state the units are only waterproof to 25'. It has nothing to do with the relative merits of the manufacurer's electronics. They are jus barely waterproof.
So...at least when someone asks me about something that's waterproof, I have a different measuring stick. Your Timex says waterproof on it. Don't take it 30' for a quick dip unless it's truly one of their waterproof units made for diving. Jim
Blue sea waterproof cable cam. Allows the waterproof through deck installation of Loran, GPS and other cables without the expense, time and risk of cutting factory installed connectors. For connectors .675" -GPS, Loran, Stanav. Outside diameter 1 3/4". Height 7/8".
There's the manufacturer's statement of what their cable clam was designed for. It's primary advantage is you drill a hole big enough that you don't have to disassemble the electronic connector on you GPS, Radar,(detector) etc, and pass it through a tiny hole and re-solder it.. You just cut a big hole and use the larger diameter O-ring type fitting to keep the water out. Unfortunately the manufacturer used the term 'waterproof' to describe this connector. Understand that it was made to use on a boat, 'through deck" installation. That's an above waterline installation and is meant to keep rain and splashing water from seeping inside the deck area.. It ought to do the same for you detector. Jim