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nero_design
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Minelab X-Terra 70, Minelab GPX-4500
| Joined: | Tue Jul 8th, 2008 |
| Location: | Sydney, Australia |
| Posts: | 61 |
| Notable Finds: | | | Brand of detector you use : | MINELAB |
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| MyPOTD: |  |
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#1 Posted: Thu Jul 24th, 2008 12:43 pm |
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VIBRAPROBE 570 PINPOINTER
* First use with the Pulse Induction vibrating pinpointer.
A candid shot of me using the Vibraprobe 570 on the goldfields - My wife took this shot from a distance and she probably didn't realize that the camera would focus on the plant life in the foreground. You can still make out the pinpointer in my right hand.
The Minelab X-Terra 70 does a fantastic job pinpointing all by itself and most users don't bother to buy a pinpointer for this reason. The nature of the coils used certainly helps but in general, the X-Terra works effectively to precisely pinpoint small items in the ground and prevent the operator from the need to excavate large quantities of soil when hunting for an elusive target.
In recent trips out to the Goldfields, I have found the need for a pinpointer when not working on flat, open ground. Digging into a tight gap between a cluster of rocks or poking my detector into a crevice underneath a gushing creek is not always practical. Especially when I need to put down the detector and work in the ground.
Whilst the X-Terra 70 is an advanced VLF detector (using Minelab's "VFLEX" signal processing), the pinpointer operates on Pulse Induction used by many high end detectors. This means it will respond to pretty much any conductive metal. Of course it has no method to discriminate. The advantage in using a pinpointer is that the user can work closer to the targets when attempting to unearth them. Since only the tip of the Vibraprobe is reactive, it can be used to pinpoint small gold nuggets without a risk of scratching or damaging them. Many coils have problems with pinpointing when a crater or a hole is dug yet the pinpointer can be poked around in the walls of any cavity to tell the owner where they should be digging. The stronger pulses indicate the correct direction. Not all pinpointers can be pushed into the soil due to fragile construction but the Vibraprobe was recommended to me on this strength and, as long as the user does not use undue force, it can be pushed into loose or mildly packed soil in order to locate a target.
The Vibraprobe 570 with a US Quarter and an Australian $1 coin for scale. The belt pouch has a hole in one end to allow the end of the probe to pass through.
The Vibraprobe 570 runs on an included 9 Volt battery which is slid into the handle-end of the probe. This end contains an expandable rubber ring which expands when the end of the probe is rotated. This effectively seals the unit, making it completely waterproof.
I used my min 6" DD HF Coil when looking for small gold embedded in concealed cracks in a flowing creek bed recently and was awed when both my coil... and then the Vibraprobe... were able to detect a target that was composed of a sewing needle that had washed into a crack. It was so corroded, that it was a thin as two hairs, had broken in half and was beginning to curl at one end. With such a minute amount of metal setting off not just my coil, but the pinpointer as well, I've taken to bringing with me everywhere.
One of the things that makes the Vibraprobe interesting and convenient is that it has no On-OFF switch. The device is activated by turning it point-upwards for two seconds. The unit will then emit pulses via vibration to the hand of the operator. Stronger, more frequent, vibrations indicates target proximity or size. If the probe detects no targets in 60 seconds, it warns the user with three spaced vibrations and then shuts down. Reactivating simply requires inverting it again. A military weave Nylon Mesh Pouch comes with the Vibraprobe 570. It has a hole in the bottom of the pouch which allows the tip of the probe to exit. Along with any dirt affixed to the probe when it's holstered. The pinpointer emits no audible sound when it operates outdoors and will not interferre with other nearby Prospectors. Further to this, it does not require the user to remove their headphones. I imagine it would work just fine when on the beach if used by Coin & Relic hunters.
I couldn't obtain a pinpointer locally in Australia so I ordered mine online from Kellyco. International shipping was about 7 days or so.
My only complaint so far does not relate to the pinpointer itself but the misuse of it by my detecting partner. He came over to me whilst I was panning soil on a creek bed and asked to borrow my shiny new pinpointer on my first day out with it... and he then proceeded to use the pinpointer to physically dig out his elusive target. When he handed it back to me, it was completely covered in bright red iron clay. The label on the handle had been scratched away in a few places by him when he used it to lever up a rock from the ground. To say that I was angry and disappointed would be an understatement. But as you can see in the picture above (taken and uploaded whilst writing this thread), it polished up nicely afterwards. The reward was on me though as I found a number of small nuggets below the quarter gram scale in a crevice and later used the pinpointer to dig out a good sized half ounce nugget from beneath a died out creekbed. I've also recovered a number of metal relics from the mid 1850's using it and my cat seems to enjoy the sensation when I use it to pinpoint his electronic ID chip in the back of his neck. The handle has a neoprene type sheath and the pinpointer appears to be constructed from thick PVC plastic.
This pinpointer is a no-brainer to use. There are no doubt plenty of other fine pinpointers out there and since I haven't used them, it's hard for me to compare. I did research the available models before deciding on the Vibraprobe though and one of the benefits for me is being able to use it completely submerged and out of my line of sight to detect and retrieve my targets.
When walking about with both detector and pinpointer functioning, I was at first startled to hear a faint noise coming from my detector. It turns out that if the Vibraprobe is operating within 2 feet of the coils of my detector, then the Pulse Induction signal from the Vibraprobe 570 put out a steady and rhythmic "warbling" sound via the detector speakers. This gets louder as the detector coil is placed near the pinpointer. I usually holster the pinpointer and return to swinging the coil. It switches off in 60 seconds.
Regards,
Marco Nero
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Goes4ever
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| Joined: | Sun Jul 20th, 2008 |
| Location: | Northwest, Ohio USA |
| Posts: | 1719 |
| Notable Finds: | my wife | | Brand of detector you use : | Minelab X-70 |
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#2 Posted: Thu Jul 24th, 2008 05:02 pm |
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| good review, I have been thinking about getting one
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Neil in West Jersey
Member
White's DFX, Garrett ACE 250, Whites PRL1
| Joined: | Fri Jul 25th, 2008 |
| Location: | Todd's Mill, New Jersey USA |
| Posts: | 229 |
| Notable Finds: | Most Notable Recent Finds: 1773 Non Regal King George ... | | Brand of detector you use : | White's |
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#3 Posted: Fri Aug 1st, 2008 01:00 pm |
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Big Red wrote: The vibraprobe is a great probe, easy to use....durable. My only gripes are that i wish it would pick up a coin futher than an 1-1 1/2 inches. I also wish it was more sensitive on really small gold!
BR:
I am glad the probe does not detect more than an inch or so. I would rather know when I am close to the target. If I cannot detect it with the VP, I know I can dig a little more. If it had a bigger range I would not know if the target was diggable by hand.
IMHO, I think it is great the way it is.
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nero_design
Member
Minelab X-Terra 70, Minelab GPX-4500
| Joined: | Tue Jul 8th, 2008 |
| Location: | Sydney, Australia |
| Posts: | 61 |
| Notable Finds: | | | Brand of detector you use : | MINELAB |
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#4 Posted: Mon Aug 4th, 2008 03:21 pm |
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I too prefer to have a short distance between the probe and my target. With the Vibra-Probe 570, only the tip is sensitive to targets. This means it can be gently pushed into the soil to bring the tip closer to the target if desired. I use it to speed up recovery by placing it into a hole that I have dug and testing the sides to see where the target lies before taking another strike with my pick or shovel.
When scooping out soil from my mini-excavation, I'll then poke the probe tip into my gloved hand and move it until it responds to the chunk of soil that just happens to consist of my target. Gold (and even bullet casings) has a habit of taking on the appearance and soil of the surrounding dirt until it is cleaned. I hated spending too long trying to pinpoint with the detector and then having to sift through my soil trying to find out what it is. Faster recovery for me means more time detecting. If my pinpointer had a larger detection range, I would have to watch out for rings and watches etc that I might be wearing. This is why it's useful when in the dark or underwater too: you can just slide it through the sand until you get the maximum pulse feedback.
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I've just placed the batteries back in my Vibra-Probe 570 Pinpointer to see how it senses targets in soil based on size & distance. A tape measure was used to calculate depth accurately. Curiously the distances were in even jumps based on the scale of the target:
Target: Gold Nugget #1 - weight: 0.22 grams - Probe Reaction @ 1/2 inch
Target: Gold Nugget #2 - weight: 0.85 grams - Probe Reaction @ 3/4 inch
Target: Gold Nugget #3 - weight: 4.67 grams - Probe Reaction @ 1 inch
Target: Gold Nugget #4 - weight: 5.55 grams - Probe Reaction @ 1.25 inches
Target: Gold Nugget #4 - weight: 14.70 grams - Probe Reaction @ 1.50 inches
Target: US Quarter coin - weight: 5.58 grams - Probe Reaction @ 1.50 inches
Target: Canadian 1c coin - weight: 2.22 grams - Probe Reaction @ 1.75 inches
Target: Small Knife Blade - weight: 52+ grams - Probe Reaction @ 2.5 inches
I've detected objects further away that were larger whilst on the field. Usually the maximum sensing was at around 3-4 inches for much larger metal objects.
Cheers,
Marco
Last edited on Mon Aug 4th, 2008 03:38 pm by nero_design
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