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Pinpointer recommendations
- Thread starter Mike T
- Start date
Larry (IL)
Well-known member
If you keep your eyes open on the classifieds, you can pick up a nice used Garrett's for $80 to $100.
REVIER
Well-known member
I got a Fisher F-Point free in my F2 package...wasn't worth the price.
The Bounty Hunter is the same unit.
My $15 Harbor Freight worked better.
I got a Propointer, my find volume tripled and I never looked back, and I now have a second one just in case and because I won't hunt without it.
There is a reason most call this "The other half of my detector".
The Bounty Hunter is the same unit.
My $15 Harbor Freight worked better.
I got a Propointer, my find volume tripled and I never looked back, and I now have a second one just in case and because I won't hunt without it.
There is a reason most call this "The other half of my detector".
I'm pretty new to MDing. Got my White's Goldmaster II as a trade for helping a friend move a projection TV. Been making do with it for a while now, but I know it's not the type of machine I need. I then bought a Harbor Freight POS pointer and did the basic mods (changed the switch and swapped a cellphone vibrator for the piezo). It has worked as well as a $15, made in China doodad could be expected to. Finicky, unreliable, and frustrating.
Next week I am upgrading everything. I'm getting a Garrett Ace 250, a DD, and a Pro Pointer. I figure, on my 1700's site, if I want to do it right (within my $500 budget), I need decent equipment. I was going to get a less expensive pointer and an Ace 350, but after reading this, I think I will do better this way. Going from a nugget machine and a Cen-Tech to a proper coin machine and a Pro Pointer is going to be like night and day... I can't wait!
Next week I am upgrading everything. I'm getting a Garrett Ace 250, a DD, and a Pro Pointer. I figure, on my 1700's site, if I want to do it right (within my $500 budget), I need decent equipment. I was going to get a less expensive pointer and an Ace 350, but after reading this, I think I will do better this way. Going from a nugget machine and a Cen-Tech to a proper coin machine and a Pro Pointer is going to be like night and day... I can't wait!
Gonehunting
New member
For the price the propointer is well worth saving for... Contact a forum sponsor for pricing... Might save you some money.
Critterhunter
New member
Put it this way. Hunted for years without a pin pointer, then used a few others like the Whites and Centech and all of them were more hassle adjusting then just digging the coin without one. Then a friend shows up one day with the Pro Pointer that his wife got him as a gift. When I heard she paid north of $100 for it I thought "yea, she got took...no pin pointer is worth that much..." Needless to say after I "borrowed" it here and there that day it wasn't soon after that I bought one myself. Just over $100 and worth EVERY penny! Now I'm so spoiled that if I had to give up my Pro Pointer I would give up metal detecting. I mean that. A few times the battery died and I didn't have a spare 9V in the truck. I just left rather than hunt without it. Gone are the days of fussing with the sensitivity setting on other pin pointers and still not getting them to not false, and even when tuned just right they just didn't get any worthwhile depth. Gone are the days of having to get back up to use the machine to re-pinpoint the target. Gone are the days of waving the plug in my hand over the top of the coil. Gone are the days of giving up on a coin because it's under a bunch of roots and you can't figure out exactly where to poke your digger to pop it out of there.
Check this forum for a recent thread with videos and comparisons in depths of the Pro Pointer to the new Minelab. My Pro Pointer is only a tad shallower in air tests when the Minelab is turned all the way up, and when I super tuned my Pro Pointer (easy to do) it matched the 3" in depth the Minelab got super tuned. And, I was using a clad dime as my target while he was using a big token about the size of a large cent as his target. For that reason I bet my Pro Pointer might have got even more than the matched 3" in depth because a bigger target will sound off at further distances. I might test that today with a large cent and post the results in that thread.
The Minelab has some extra features that some might want to opt for. The ability to turn off the audio and still have it vibrate is attractive to some, but some Pro Pointer guys just tape foam or something over the speaker or use their thumb to cover it if they don't want it sounding off near people or something. Being able to lower the sensitivity on the Minelab is a big plus to some, but I can also detune my Pro Pointer by putting the tip near metal when it's turned on too. Useful for isolating multiple metal targets in one hole, or to trace out the shape of something to see what it might be.
The biggest issue for me is stability when it comes to pin pointers. The Pro Pointer auto tunes at power up so it's way less hassle than all my prior pinpointers were. On a rare occasion it will false due to the ground, but that's an easy fix by turning it on with the tip touching the ground.
If you want the extra features and a tad more depth without supertuning then get the Minelab. But if you don't need the extra features and possible will get even more depth than the Minelab (remains to be seen...going to test that) when supertuned then get the Pro Pointer. Both are excellent units from the looks of it. Way better than anything else on the market, but we'll have to see if the Minelab keeps it's performance over time with use and abuse as well as if it suffers from any reliability issues.
Check this forum for a recent thread with videos and comparisons in depths of the Pro Pointer to the new Minelab. My Pro Pointer is only a tad shallower in air tests when the Minelab is turned all the way up, and when I super tuned my Pro Pointer (easy to do) it matched the 3" in depth the Minelab got super tuned. And, I was using a clad dime as my target while he was using a big token about the size of a large cent as his target. For that reason I bet my Pro Pointer might have got even more than the matched 3" in depth because a bigger target will sound off at further distances. I might test that today with a large cent and post the results in that thread.
The Minelab has some extra features that some might want to opt for. The ability to turn off the audio and still have it vibrate is attractive to some, but some Pro Pointer guys just tape foam or something over the speaker or use their thumb to cover it if they don't want it sounding off near people or something. Being able to lower the sensitivity on the Minelab is a big plus to some, but I can also detune my Pro Pointer by putting the tip near metal when it's turned on too. Useful for isolating multiple metal targets in one hole, or to trace out the shape of something to see what it might be.
The biggest issue for me is stability when it comes to pin pointers. The Pro Pointer auto tunes at power up so it's way less hassle than all my prior pinpointers were. On a rare occasion it will false due to the ground, but that's an easy fix by turning it on with the tip touching the ground.
If you want the extra features and a tad more depth without supertuning then get the Minelab. But if you don't need the extra features and possible will get even more depth than the Minelab (remains to be seen...going to test that) when supertuned then get the Pro Pointer. Both are excellent units from the looks of it. Way better than anything else on the market, but we'll have to see if the Minelab keeps it's performance over time with use and abuse as well as if it suffers from any reliability issues.
Gonehunting
New member
The profind will false in the red clay if you put alot of pressure on it.. I got rid of the false by reducing the sensitivity by one click.. hope that helps...
If you are used to a machete, you'll hate a scalpel. I get it. $100+ PPs are better than $50 PPs. No kidding! Chisels make poor screwdrivers. When you compare a 2-3 inch range PP to a 1/2 inch range PP it is not much of a contest. If you want to find a targets exact location a half inch range PP may actually be a better tool for the job (just not a better tool). If you need to zero in from a greater distance, forget it the $100 PP wins every time.
I carry one of each and try to use them as they function best. I usually grab the Garrett, but I don't like it for fine or close work. My experience is that the Cen-techs and F-probes are no less dependable than the Garrett, they are just not $100 2-3 inch range tools. They do what they were made to do just fine.
Tom (spitting into the wind isn't so bad on a hot day)
I carry one of each and try to use them as they function best. I usually grab the Garrett, but I don't like it for fine or close work. My experience is that the Cen-techs and F-probes are no less dependable than the Garrett, they are just not $100 2-3 inch range tools. They do what they were made to do just fine.
Tom (spitting into the wind isn't so bad on a hot day)
Mike,yea we all hate spending money,but a good pin pointer makes a big difference.A cheap pinpointer is better than no pinpointer.Good example,the Harbor Freight Cen-Tech,cheap but in hot weather the threshold can not be lowered enough and requires the internal pot to be adjusted all the way down to be able to use.With this pinpointer it can be adjusted to air test a dime around an inch,but in the field it will have to be detuned for the ground,so maybe a half inch to a quarter of an inch. Again,better than no pinpointer,but performance issues.Your investment in a good pinpointer will far exceed your expectations of how much easier life will be in the field.The Garrett Pro Pointer or Minelab Pro-Find are great tools precise and quick target recovery.Good Luck Ron
I have both the Garretts and Minelab pinpointers and truthfully see little to no difference in the depth. They basically operate the same. The closer you get to the target the more intense the response from the pinpointer. The Minelab has a few more adjustments that can be made with it. I currently like my Minelab better, because my Garretts is acting up. Making noise for No reason, even when held straight into the air. When my Garretts was working correctly, it was an excellent tool. I'll be sending mine in shortly for repair. Nothing is perfect, and nothing lasts forever, that's just the way it goes. So I would suggest get what you can afford. ANY PINPOINTER IS BETTER THAN NO PINPOINTER. I would say all, if not most people on the forum would agree with that.
Critterhunter
New member
I'd advice anybody using any pin pointer not to lean on the thing like you're going to get more depth by pushing hard with it. You're not going to, and that constant flexing of the shaft could cause the coil windings to flex out of alignment. Thats why they will false when pressed hard into the dirt, and sooner or later I bet the windings get further and further out of alignment until the unit is unstable all the time and won't auto tune, or only will for a few split seconds. Unless the shaft is filled with epoxy to lock the windings in place for good there is that potential. There is a thread in the V3 forum about this potential problem with the Minelab or Pro Pointer (somebody asked if the Minelab will sound off under pressure like the Pro Pointer) where this is delved into more by people. Unless the Minelab shaft is filled with epoxy then I bet it will false too under pressure, as not only would epoxy make it heavier, but it would also probably prevent some repairs to the unit. More info in that thread in that forum, and I added a few things about coils being filled or not filled with epoxy and the risks/perks to either of those.