Time to Get Repairs :minelab:

[jas415]

Did you send it off? I sent mine in on Jan 31, and it was received - signed in - at Minelab via Fed Ex on Feb 4th. I got an email from Nadia saying it had arrived on the 11th. Havent heard anything since but hope it is soon.

I had the wobble issue at the connection of the handle to the upper shaft and it had worn a slight groove there causing it to be a tiny bit loose. They sent me some rubber or neoprene (??) grommets/bushings to insert and it took care of the wobble. I think the wobble issue was a direct result of me using it unconsciously as a stabilizer for me as I dug a hole. Sort of leaned on it a bit on the right side. I have made a real effort to relax my grip and not 'lean'.

Havent noticed any issue with the screen but I keep it covered with one of the cell phone type protectors so I my have just not noticed. Thanks for posting that as it could be the result of many different operator practices or manufacturer materials. I honestly dont 'clean' the screen that often. I tend to just wipe it down with a damp cloth when it gets scroungy and with the 'protector' on it I haven't noticed any issues except some dirt kind of gathering on the very edges. I do wipe the shaft regularly though. When I get it back I will do a 'screen' inspection to see if there is any issue also and let you know. I use 'spray-on' bug spray (In the Houston area you better use a lot), Deep Woods Off, and I dont think it has affected the material in any way.

Sorry for any misunderstanding regarding your post and please dont let it impact your future posts. One of the good things about this forum is the quality of experience and years of knowledge behind many of the responses. It is easy to read or misread a post or response to a post. .

 

[AngelicStorm]

Did you send it off? I sent mine in on Jan 31, and it was received - signed in - at Minelab via Fed Ex on Feb 4th. I got an email from Nadia saying it had arrived on the 11th. Havent heard anything since but hope it is soon.

I had the wobble issue at the connection of the handle to the upper shaft and it had worn a slight groove there causing it to be a tiny bit loose. They sent me some rubber or neoprene (??) grommets/bushings to insert and it took care of the wobble. I think the wobble issue was a direct result of me using it unconsciously as a stabilizer for me as I dug a hole. Sort of leaned on it a bit on the right side. I have made a real effort to relax my grip and not 'lean'.

Havent noticed any issue with the screen but I keep it covered with one of the cell phone type protectors so I my have just not noticed. Thanks for posting that as it could be the result of many different operator practices or manufacturer materials. I honestly dont 'clean' the screen that often. I tend to just wipe it down with a damp cloth when it gets scroungy and with the 'protector' on it I haven't noticed any issues except some dirt kind of gathering on the very edges. I do wipe the shaft regularly though. When I get it back I will do a 'screen' inspection to see if there is any issue also and let you know. I use 'spray-on' bug spray (In the Houston area you better use a lot), Deep Woods Off, and I dont think it has affected the material in any way.

Sorry for any misunderstanding regarding your post and please dont let it impact your future posts. One of the good things about this forum is the quality of experience and years of knowledge behind many of the responses. It is easy to read or misread a post or response to a post. .

Yes, I sent it off on Tuesday February 10th and it was received by Minelab today at 10:39 A.M. via UPS. The funny thing about the delivery of mine was who signed it. See I have been tracking it ever since it shipped and when it met its destination I saw this as the proof of delivery.....
"Service:UPS Ground Weight:10.60 lbs Shipped/Billed On:02/10/2015 Delivered On: 02/13/2015 10:39 A.M. Delivered To: LISLE, IL, US Signed By: PAT Left At: Dock". No I am not sure who PAT is but at first I was like NOOOO!! because I thought they had delivered it to a residential address because of it being signed for. After that I noticed it was delivered at a dock.

You're welcome. I have never used it as a prop, but that may have to do with how young and agile I am plus no need to really lean on anything. I usually gave my detector a good washing with the hose or shower once every few hunts depending on how dirty it got. The shaft was one of my main priorities to clean because of all the dirt and grit that can build up on it. The mosquitos can be a really big issue if you are digging in a prone area. They sometimes feel like needles and it is nice to be able to repel them. I usually welt pretty bad from those things. Glad it has not affected anything.

What exact name brand of cell phone protector do you use? I have done a little bit of looking ever since I noticed my screen issues and think I will use protection from here on out. There are some comments on the net about using ipad screen protectors. Here is a really detailed video from a guy named PalmettoDigger on youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vd9vCtmXTb0
He does a good job on this and chances are that is what I am going to do.

It is okay. I have been posting and mainly reading on this site for a while now. The people on here have seemed to be great and full of knowledge on anything dealing with detecting which I am very glad of. It helps a lot to see the views of the many experienced users. This is why on other sites I provide this forum's link as one of the best resources on detecting. This is a great site. Yes it is easy to misread text, part of the reason why I would almost rather talk to people in person, but I hate to see this site get tarnished because of negativity.

Good luck with your results. Nadia told me about a week ago that once they receive the detector there is about a 15 day turnaround. So I imagine if you go by when your package was signed off then the 19th is when they will have it ready to be returned to you. If you go by when she contacted you then it would be the 26th. Youtube and other resources are your best friends right now!

 

[nagov]

Keep following up on the progress. When mine was last in there (Jan 15), after it had been there ten days I sent an email to check up on the progress. All I sent them was the upper shaft/handle assembly and lower rod both needed replaced due to wear. IMO that would take under an hour IF parts were on hand. I got a return email stating that I would be updated WHEN work started on it and then when it was shipped back.... Within 8 hours of that email, I got one stating it was being shipped back.... I believe mine was somehow covered up with other ones to repair and since I was the latest "squeaky wheel" they got right on mine.
Both upper and lower rods were replaced as I stated to them as being the problem.....they also replaced the handle screws which I hadn't noted....in their paperwork telling what all was done, they stated those screws were corroded and replaced....

No complaints on their work, just wanting to ensure you are diligent on follow up to ensure a quick return. I believe this is a busy time for them with any repairs since for most it is winter in the US.

Good luck
Cliff

 

[AngelicStorm]

Keep following up on the progress. When mine was last in there (Jan 15), after it had been there ten days I sent an email to check up on the progress. All I sent them was the upper shaft/handle assembly and lower rod both needed replaced due to wear. IMO that would take under an hour IF parts were on hand. I got a return email stating that I would be updated WHEN work started on it and then when it was shipped back.... Within 8 hours of that email, I got one stating it was being shipped back.... I believe mine was somehow covered up with other ones to repair and since I was the latest "squeaky wheel" they got right on mine.
Both upper and lower rods were replaced as I stated to them as being the problem.....they also replaced the handle screws which I hadn't noted....in their paperwork telling what all was done, they stated those screws were corroded and replaced....

No complaints on their work, just wanting to ensure you are diligent on follow up to ensure a quick return. I believe this is a busy time for them with any repairs since for most it is winter in the US.

Good luck
Cliff

I sent them an email Friday evening right after I responded to this thread to make sure they received it as UPS said. I still have not gotten anything back yet. I imagine with what you mentioned about "squeaky wheels" and winter time, I may be waiting a little longer before I hear anything. As long as they do a good job I will be happy. I really expect no less of them since they are a reputable company known for what they do.

There certainly is not any frozen ground here in SC, but I sure do have the itch for detecting. So this southern guy has something in common with your northerners.
Maybe it will get back and in perfect shape before the northern thaw takes place!

 

[AngelicStorm]

Update: Just got an email from Nadia confirming my detector has indeed landed safely and they will be in contact with me if there is any update on the status of my repair.

 

[AngelicStorm]

I am very glad to say my CTX 3030 has just arrived at my house about three hours ago from FedEx.
So lets see...
I shipped it off on February 10th and it was received February 13th. I have no idea when they shipped it back because I never received any emails or phone calls ever since Minelab confirmed they got the detector. All I know is that it showed up at my house about three hours ago. So the 13th through the 28th which is about 3 weeks and 4 days. Not bad in my opinion considering how they are getting a lot of detectors in for repairs. I did not want to bother the people who were fixing my detector. Instead I just trusted they knew what they were doing and waited to see what would come of it.

Well after I got the detector inside and opened it to examine the areas that needed repairing. I discovered they had replaced the coil with a brand new one then I picked up the control box to see what they did. They replaced certain areas of the housing for the control box including where the O-Ring seal is. They replaced the stand that was broken. That is pretty much it for the control box from an eye's perspective. I have no idea what they did, if they did anything with the electronics inside the control box.

Next I looked over the whole upper shaft and the screen area. They replaced the LCD screen and whole front panel where the buttons are which I am glad of. So there are no cracks or problems with the LCD screen anymore. There is one thing that is different about the LCD. Now unlike before when I turn the backlight on there are like convexed areas of light that move according to your perspective when looking at the screen. I don't know how to describe it properly except that it resembles a 3D screen. Maybe the numbers will pop out on me now! [size=small]Just kidding[/size] Seriously though, Maybe it is some sort of UV protection that is incorporated into the screen?

There has been nothing else replaced on the detector to my knowledge. Everything seems to be like new and the areas replaced new. They did a really good job with that.

Next I decided to examine the depth issue to see if they fixed it. I went outside after assembling the detector and dug a hole a measured 10 inches deep where there was no interference from emi or metals. I took a quarter, nickel, and penny with me to see if it would pick them up at different depths. Now before my detector would hit only at 7 inches deep and sometimes 8 inches deep. I first placed the coins on the ground to do air tests. I was picking them up at 12-14 inches off the ground. Next I placed the quarter in the hole at 8 inches and covered it up. Scanned it with the default settings they had put it on with discrimination on at 25 manual sensitivity. I could barely make out a chirp. Took the disc off and still could barely hear it. Next I played with the settings and switched it to the same setup to what I had before I sent it off. The settings were 25-30 manual sensitivity, Pitch Hold, Deep On, Target Trace, No discrimination, Volume Gain 24, Threshold Level 24, Volume Limit anything 15+, Threshold Pitch 18-24. I swept the coil of over the quarter to hear very clear signals and see a clear TID on the quarter. Next with the same settings I placed the quarter 10" under. I could barely hear a tone then when sweeping at a medium-slow pace. I started swinging faster and the signal became barely more noticeable. The TID was weak too. This is a 2 1/2" improvement on quarters from before I sent off the detector. I then tested the quarter at 9 1/2 inches deep. The signal became much more clear and more repeatable especially when sweeping fast. The TID became more stable. I then tested it at 9 inches and it began jumping out at me and I know it would be something that would stop me in my tracks to dig. I repeated the same process for the nickel and penny. It picked the nickel up clearly at 8" just like the quarter at 9" with 8 1/2" being a bit more iffy but a digable sound. At 8 1/2 inches the TID went more towards the 12-18 through 12-21/22 lines while at 8 inches the TID was more stable. Ironically I could pick the penny up a little deeper than the nickel. I used a copper penny. Before I sent the detector off it would pick nickels up deeper than pennies. This time though, I was picking the penny up at 9 inches with pretty clear signals and a sort of stable TID. At 9 1/2 inches down the detector would pick it up, but barely with a TID that would not hardly show up unless I used target trace. Also even using discrimination on the quarter and penny depth test proved to have very little influence in how deep the detector could detect them. On the nickel, discrimination actually made it impossible to pick up at 8 1/2 inches deep. Using discrimination there was a weak signal at 8 inches deep with the nickel.
So to go over the improvement on the depth issue which was actually my biggest issue.....
2" through 2 1/2" improvement on quarters
1" through 1 1/2" improvement on nickels
2" through 2 1/2" improvement on pennies
This makes me think that either it was in the coil or they actually went in and did something to the electronics or maybe they just replaced them.
I am very happy with this result and everything else Minelab has done to fix my machine! Thanks Minelab!

Here are some after pictures of what the technicians at Minelab replaced.

 

[GKMan]

It looks like the factory screen protector is still on it.

 

[trojdor]

Now unlike before when I turn the backlight on there are like convexed areas of light that move according to your perspective when looking at the screen. I don't know how to describe it properly except that it resembles a 3D screen. Maybe the numbers will pop out on me now! [size=small]Just kidding[/size] Seriously though, Maybe it is some sort of UV protection that is incorporated into the screen?

GKMan spotted it. That factory protective film (that's over the screen) has a built in polarizing effect...so does the plastic screen itself. They conflict with each other, sometimes causing bizzarre patterns.

Just (carefully) peel it off, and replace it with something meant as a long term screen protector. Problem gone.

(They all have that 'problem' new out of the box, until you peel off that protective film.)


mike

 

[AngelicStorm]

Thanks, it seemed like a pretty cool effect. I will try to do that.

 

[Mike MD]

I'm happy to hear your everything was fixed. Now lets see some treasure.

Mike

 

[AngelicStorm]

I'm happy to hear your everything was fixed. Now lets see some treasure.

Mike

Oh you know it's coming.
Thanks.

 

[Mike MD]

I'm happy to hear your everything was fixed. Now lets see some treasure.

Mike

Oh you know it's coming.
Thanks.

Everthing is frozen or snow covered here. My CTX is is very lonely.

 

[AngelicStorm]

I'm happy to hear your everything was fixed. Now lets see some treasure.

Mike

Oh you know it's coming.
Thanks.

Everthing is frozen or snow covered here. My CTX is is very lonely.

80-81 degrees here tomorrow. Spring time should be right around the corner with those types of temperatures. The warmth will start spreading north too in time. Which part of the country do you live in?

 

[Wayfarer]

Glad to hear Minelab fixed you right up. I just bought a CTX 3030, and after having been spoiled rotten by White's customer service over the years, I was a bit worried what would happen should my CTX ever need warranty repairs. I feel a lot better now after having followed your experience. Thanks for sharing. Good luck with your "new" CTX!

 

[AngelicStorm]

Glad to hear Minelab fixed you right up. I just bought a CTX 3030, and after having been spoiled rotten by White's customer service over the years, I was a bit worried what would happen should my CTX ever need warranty repairs. I feel a lot better now after having followed your experience. Thanks for sharing. Good luck with your "new" CTX!

Thanks! It feels good to have a "new" machine.
One of my objectives in making this post was to share my experience and set an example of Minelab's customer service. It looks like it helped you and I am glad you feel better. It is good for both Minelab and the customers. Good luck. There are plenty of great things to be found and this detector can do it.

 

[Choc-Minelab]

Congratulations on getting your machine repaired and returned. I recently had my machine repaired and was very pleased with the Minelab service department. Great service and the technician was very knowledgeable of my issue and how to fix it.

Good luck hunting.