DON'T Go in the water ! ! ! :confused:

[Grumpyolddiver]

I haven't been on since Friday.Working 16hr shifts. But I can also say that Ray-Mo is right this machine will find gold and silver like you wouldn't believe.Having said this before I still am very nervous about going in the water again.Won't have a chance till mid week because of work but will probably take that long to work up the courage. Brian at Minelab over night aired a new head and battery to me which was very nice of him but work comes first...... (At least that's what the wife say's) Grumpy

 

[Sand Scoop]

yesterday.At times completely under water and the waves were still pounding pretty good through the hunt.Checked it when I got home and it was bone dry on the inside...

 

[nero_design]

I work with underwater cameras occasionally and they use a very similar rubber or silicone gasket for sealing the clamshell design of the submersible camera cases. Something that needs to be done when you return to shore is to wash the camera in fresh water, especially if you were diving in salt environments. Then dry the camera case off well before opening it. When the underwater case is NOT in actual use, the owner should leave the two halves OPEN to prevent ongoing compression of the seals. I can't help but wonder if this applies to the CTX-3030.

I would suggest to Minelab that that's really something that should have been in the operator's manual for the CTX-3030 so owners know to leave the battery OFF the detector when not in use in order to keep the seals/gaskets in perfect order. The seal feels loose to me in away. I mean, the battery obviously slots into the gap that the gasket is seated in, but there's not a lot of pressure required to lock the battery down... and that makes me wonder if the seal is a little loose? A thicker gasket would solve the problem of leaks I think. Also, the use of silicone grease in small amounts (as suggested above) is a great idea and should properly seal the unit for the average user.

I know three people using the CTX-3030 on salt water environments and none have reported any problems. They've all been very successful with one chap finding no less than three diamond rings on a beach on the first day.

 

[terrywl]

I have not submerged my 3030 yet, but it has been subjected to salt water drops and spray, and I rinse it under the showers at the beach (fresh water), but this still makes me nervous! As a long time SCUBA diver I know how important keeping the O-ring clean and lightly greased is. With SCUBA we say it is not if, only when, equipment floods. So far attention to detail has kept my camera and dive computer dry, but I have a light or two that no longer work. I am going to start being a lot more picky when recharging as I do not want to have a flooded detector! Terry in San Diego

 

[Sand Scoop]

can initially give it a fresh water hosing but when when I get home I take it in the shower with me and give it a good hosing off.Wife doesn't seem to mind "yet"..? I pull the battery when dry and it doesn't go back on until I'm ready to go out again.

 

[Guvner]

I hunted with Ray MO yesterday and he didn't have any problems after two hunts either. Hopefully you get yours resolved...

Guvner..

 

[GoVidGo]

I was just going thru the forums and checking out the CTX ones... as this will be my next detector... and saw this.

I have an ETrac as my main machine, and an AT Pro as my back up for those rainy days or at the beach/shore. I have had my AT Pro, under water, in the lake, on the beach, in the rain, etc. and also found it helps cleaning the O-rings (AT Pro: headphone O-ring, coil O-ring, and battery compartment O-ring) and checking them.

...BUT!...

I have noticed a nice difference when using some silicon diving lube on the O-rings.

Difference?

I have messed around and found that it let's the parts slide into eachother easier and probably seal better. It also seals it better if any slight abnormalities are in the plastic or O-ring. It also helps protect the O-rings better if any sand particles, dirt, etc get in because it doesn't let them dig into the O-ring or plastic ruining the seal.

Maybe this would make a difference as all it takes is the slightest blemish for water to get in, you know?

$3.00 at the local dive store and it goes a long long way....

Anyone else use this stuff?

 

[grouser]

no but I'm gonna,,,, thanks !!!!

 

[Gso125]

Thanks for the info just ordered some myself

 

[yankeeinarkansas]

I was in the water in Lake Michigan for around 10 hours this past weekend and didn't have any issues. no leaks or falsing

 

[Buried Crap NJ]

So far I have been in the water and no issues either. I got knocked around by some decent waves too!
BCNJ

 

[scubadetector]

I$3.00 at the local dive store and it goes a long long way....

Anyone else use this stuff?

Yep, on the seals of my detectors and never have had a problem EXCEPT when a certain dummy didn't notice the seal was not in the right place! We all know this is the first model. They might have to do a bit of re-designing but its still a great machine.

 

[Sand Scoop]

n/t

 

[Big Boys Hobbies]

No problems here yet.

 

[ZOFCHAK]

Anybody tried to order extra seals ?

I'd like to know the answer to that as well. Minelab is very difficult to work with when it comes to ordering spare parts (Try ordering parts for the Excalibur series and you'll see what I mean ).

 

[Jason in TN]

If they will not sell extra seals there is going to be a real problem with that.

Jason

 

[bigboar]

I was in the ocean for two hours today. The first water hunt with mine. just got done checking everything out and I have no issues.

 

[jimzilla]

I am not a water hunter, but what about using silicone tape on the outside of the detector, around the edge of the battery compartment. Would this help? Of course you would have to add this every water hunt but I think its a cheap alternative.