Introduction and a question (or two)

[mikee]

Hello Everyone

I am fairly new to metal detecting, and brand new to this forum and have a request or two. I have prospected for years with a gold pan and sluice box and finally purchased a metal detector, an MXT, a little less than a year ago. My wife and I are fortunate enough to live within 50 minutes of the coast and both of us like prospecting, coin and jewelry hunting on the beach and just being outdoors. Being the good husband I am I purchased her a brand new XTerra 70 from someone who bought it two months ago and never took it out of the package. I saved a few dollars on it but unfortunately, Minelab will not offer the warranty, which I would really like to have. Unfortunately, they are pretty adamat about it and I am not sure I understand their thinking there, but was told that if they did it for me they would have to do it for everyone. I am not sure why that would be so bad, two years is two years. Are all second owners bad people and going to abuse the unit more than the first owner? I really do not understand the philospphy, and I almost did not buy it because of that but we took a chance on it, hoping it would work well for us.

I chose the X Terra instead of another MXT because the XTerra's reviews praise it as a good "all-around detector" which is of primary importance in my decision making, but also because it is is one of the lightest detectors offering the same features with 2/3 the weight of the MXT (my wife is only 5' 2" tall, 115 pounds and is somewhat frail due to joint issues) She can not swing the MXT, even with the smallest oval coil made, for any period of time as it is too heavy for her.

Back to my request, I started to assemble the detector and while attempting to adjust it to fit her body we immediately came upon a problem of it being way too long, with no possible way to make it anywhere near short enough, as the coil was about six feet in front of her. I asked her if she thought it possible that she could learn to walk on stilts, or maybe she could somehow grow another 10" in height, add another couple of inches to her arms (and perhaps her chest while she was at it), because there is no way she is going to be able to work this stock detector until something changes. Anyway, words came from her mouth that said something to the effect that, "both of us are well past the point in our lives where we are going to see growth on any part of our body other than our stomach", and at that point I had no counter argument and put the detector away.

I'm just wondering here, did I miss a height requirement somewhere on the box? I know they have age requirements on games and toys. You've seen them, they are usually somewhere on the bottoms or the sides of the box. "For ages 8-12 years old". If somewhere I missed reading, " X-Terra 70," "For people 6' 10" and up", I'll apologize and shut up now.

But think about it for a minute. What a great money making product that would be for Minelab. They could offer a set of stilts as a useful accessory to go along with their detectors. Minelab Stilts, a $250 accessory which allows normal, and those less fortunate "height challenged" customers to swing the Minelab Xterra 70, all while offering an elevated field of vision. Forum posts could read, "Small woman on stilts, finds gold ring at local beach, but unable to pick it up." Then vendors selling sand scoops can market "Extended Sand Scoops", for those that bought Minelab detectors with Stilts..... and an entire cottage industry is born......

Seriously, where do I go to purchase a shorter tube without paying a fortune for it, or do they even make one? And, will a short tube be all that is needed to make it comfortable for her? (I'm hoping someone around 5'2" has already gone through this and can share their experience) Also, is there a really good store to purchase Minelab extras without paying full retail? (if we get it to fit her, where she is comfortable with it and we like it, I plan on buying a small gold prospecting coil and would need some advice there as well)

One further request..... If anyone reading this lives near the Burbank area of Southern California, and would like to spend a few hours going over the basic operation of the XTerra 70 with us, I would love the opportunity to learn from you experience and perhaps share some food and stories.
I am retired, and can make time pretty much as needed. If anyone is interested, I can be reached at mplesh@propmakers.com

Thanks in advance,

mikee

 

[Steve(MS)]

You either cut the lower rod off to accomadate her height or buy a shorter lower rod. You will have to drill a hole for the ball spring after you cut it to make a solid connection. On the warranty issue, you could either see how this holds one up or sell it and buy a new one. I don't know why the warranty is not transferable but that is the way it is, some brands allow while others don't. Check out the FAQFAQ at the top of the page for valuable info on the X-terras but also both of you just get out and play around with it, go thru some of the modes, that should help with the learning curve.
HH

 

[Tom G]

I know this mod has been covered a number of times in general terms but since this issue comes up so frequently I thought maybe a simplified step by step guide for those that are less experienced with hand tools may be helpful to some.

Time needed : about 10 minutes for person with average skills

Tools needed:
Drill
1/4" drill bit
hacksaw or fancier equivalent
needle nosed pliers
small file or sandpaper

1. With detector assembled, adjust lower rod to it's shortest position, i.e. the chrome pin should be in the hole closest to the control box. Note - The pin must be in the hole because this is what assures you of maintaining proper alignment when you drill the new hole.

2. Determine what height range you want the detector to fit. I modified my detector so that my wife and I could both use it. You have to cut the rod for the height of the shortest user. As an example, my wife is 5'5" and the "new" shortest position fits her just right. I drilled three holes down. (see next step)

3. With the detector still assembled, look at the pin and count down the number of holes that you have decided will produce the correct length for your situation. Place your drill bit in that hole and drill a 1/4" hole through the exposed side of the lower rod. ** Do not proceed on and drill through the opposite side of the lower rod. I left my detector completely assembled while drilling the hole. If you are not experienced with work of this kind you may want to remove your control box and coil.

4. Remove the lower rod and then remove the spring clip from the rod. Use the shank end of your drill bit or a similar sized object and depress the chrome pin all the way down into the hole. At the same time, use your needle nosed pliers and reach in the end of the rod, grab the spring clip and slide it out. Note - If the spring clip will not come out easily you are not pushing the pin down far enough. This is easier to do if you have a vise or a helper, but you should be able to do it without help.

5. Cut the excess length off of the lower rod. From the hole you just drilled measure 1 1/4" toward the upper end of the lower rod (just to make sure that you are cutting in the proper direction, the cut you are going to make will be between the new hole you just drilled and the hole that had the spring clip in it). After cutting remove any burrs from the inside and outside of the rod.

6. Slide the spring clip in the lower rod and align the pin with the hole you just drilled. The spring clip goes in positioned in the rod the same way that it was originally. Insert the horizontal arms of the spring clip into the rod first so that the pin is closest to the upper end of the rod. The pin should pop up and go in and out smoothly.

7. Reassemble detector.

If you try this mod and mess it up you're about in the same place you were before. You will need to order the shorter rod. So you don't have too much to lose by giving it a try. Don't know what warranty ramifications might result from this mod.

 

[I a thr]

If you still have the name of the person you purchased the detector from, give them a call and see if they would be willing to have the detector sent in in their name if the warranty is needed. Just a thought.
Bill

 

[nero_design]

You should follow the advice of Bill (above) and ask the original owner if they would allow you to use them to get Minelab to honor their Warranty that way. Most Warranties are non-transferable so I'll assume there's a really good reason for this. I just don't know why that is.

I saw that the lower shafts are available as an accessory so you might want to consider modifying one of those. It is not the least expensive option though and even though I reside in Australia, I saw one on the shelf today for $65. It's still cheaper than stilts. The X-Terras are considerably lighter than the MXT, which weighs almost twice as much so you have chosen the lighter of the two for her. The X-Terra is pretty reliable too so overall, I'll be interested to see how you find the two different brands compete against one another. In fact, there's probably quite a few of us who are curious to see how the two compare when used by the same operator side by side.

If I'm working low in the creeks, I sometimes remove the lower rod of my X-Terra to allow me to operate low down on the ground easier. You could easily get a light piece of timber (rounded, like a broom handle from the hardware store) and cut it to size. Or a piece of PVC pipe which can be heated, clamped and drilled at one end to fit the coil.

[attachment 102688 2XTerra70s.jpg]
[size=small]My own X-Terra 70 (dual exposure to show the difference) with and without the lower rod, which allows me to work shallow in the creeks.[/size]

I seem to remember reading that the earlier model X-Terra 70's (late 2006 & early 2007) had longer lower shafts than were generally desired. Some owners were quite happy, others found those early models too long to be practical. For this reason, it may very well be that you have one of those earlier models. One complaint was dated November 25, 2006 (on a detector review site) and stated that "The only real shortcoming is the stock lower rod which is too long for some but, there is an available shorter lower rod to solve that."

Here's a quote from "Digger" which he made on these forums on December 21, 2007 which relates to the same:
"From what I remember, when the X-Terras were first released, one of the biggest complaints was that the lower rod was too long. Minelab responded by introducing a shorter rod."

- So there you have it! There should be a shorter rod available. If not, or if it is too long, you'll need to modify it. At least you don't have to worry about voiding the Warranty!

Regards,

Marco

 

[John LA]

If that's the only problem, cut it off. You may never have another problem or if so it may be after the 2 year warranty would have expired anyway.

 

[Tom G]

Here you go.

I know this mod has been covered a number of times in general terms but since this issue comes up so frequently I thought maybe a simplified step by step guide for those that are less experienced with hand tools may be helpful to some.

Time needed : about 10 minutes for person with average skills

Tools needed:
Drill
1/4" drill bit
hacksaw or fancier equivalent
needle nosed pliers
small file or sandpaper

1. With detector assembled, adjust lower rod to it's shortest position, i.e. the chrome pin should be in the hole closest to the control box. Note - The pin must be in the hole because this is what assures you of maintaining proper alignment when you drill the new hole.

2. Determine what height range you want the detector to fit. I modified my detector so that my wife and I could both use it. You have to cut the rod for the height of the shortest user. As an example, my wife is 5'5" and the "new" shortest position fits her just right. I drilled three holes down. (see next step)

3. With the detector still assembled, look at the pin and count down the number of holes that you have decided will produce the correct length for your situation. Place your drill bit in that hole and drill a 1/4" hole through the exposed side of the lower rod. ** Do not proceed on and drill through the opposite side of the lower rod. I left my detector completely assembled while drilling the hole. If you are not experienced with work of this kind you may want to remove your control box and coil.

4. Remove the lower rod and then remove the spring clip from the rod. Use the shank end of your drill bit or a similar sized object and depress the chrome pin all the way down into the hole. At the same time, use your needle nosed pliers and reach in the end of the rod, grab the spring clip and slide it out. Note - If the spring clip will not come out easily you are not pushing the pin down far enough. This is easier to do if you have a vise or a helper, but you should be able to do it without help.

5. Cut the excess length off of the lower rod. From the hole you just drilled measure 1 1/4" toward the upper end of the lower rod (just to make sure that you are cutting in the proper direction, the cut you are going to make will be between the new hole you just drilled and the hole that had the spring clip in it). After cutting remove any burrs from the inside and outside of the rod.

6. Slide the spring clip in the lower rod and align the pin with the hole you just drilled. The spring clip goes in positioned in the rod the same way that it was originally. Insert the horizontal arms of the spring clip into the rod first so that the pin is closest to the upper end of the rod. The pin should pop up and go in and out smoothly.

7. Reassemble detector.

If you try this mod and mess it up you're about in the same place you were before. You will need to order the shorter rod. So you don't have too much to lose by giving it a try. Don't know what warranty ramifications might result from this mod.