Equinox S Stem Using The Mars Universal / Deus Shaft & Some Curtain Pole

[Stu]

Hi, just though this was worth sharing as it turned out so well. A number of things happened to bring this together - the biggest one being having just bought an Equinox my neighbours changing their curtains for blinds. I ended up with 3x6ft lengths of wood curtain pole.

I also (long story) smashed my right hand up some years ago in a bike crash - straight stem won't work for me. I had read the threads (various threads on straight vs S) and puzzled over the alloy pipe bending method. But then I already have a Mars universal shaft and took a closer look at this. After reading the thread on the  Garrett gizmo that screws into the end of the stem so the arm cup can be moved along I got to thinking some more - I don't own a Garrett but am always intrigued to read what others are up to.

So the Mars universal shaft will come apart. Held by a holding screw and with some hard pushing and pulling the arm cup pole (I'll call it that) will release. I measured the length I needed, then by hand whittled the shape to Mars flat sided (not round). A tight fit and the holding screw back in place to hold. The strength of this part of the Mars hand grip (the bit under the hand grip) left me confident that it could cope with some pretty minimal stresses - like it would have to do anyway.

The curtain pole hand whittled at the arm cup end, then drilled through with a slightly under size drill bit. I didn't note the size, but it waggled freely in the Equinox upper stem hole for the arm cup. As I drilled it I waggled the drill to make it a little splayed out (as is the shape of the plastic fitting in the arm cup bits).

For the Equinox itself a similar blind hole, but on an angle (judged by eye) as per the angled shape of the Minelab underneath grip bit - and also drill waggled around to get the splayed out shape. Two lines of wood were whittled away to the correct diameter for the equinox and it lower grip to meet perfectly. It could be neatened up. I may spray it black.

Some things considered were the Equinox grip needed to be far enough away from the Mars grip to allow fingers of winter (thick) gloved hands - and also the coil cable and head phone cable. The Mars shaft can be made to shorten - and in effect smash into the back of the Equinox unit. I would just put a wrap of tape around the release lever. I won't ever release it - I don't need to I have a long detector bag - but I guess somebody could.

Weight for weight the wood pole is pretty light. I weighted the Minelab top piece of shaft, and my piece of wood was 14 grams heavier. 

The next step (which I am waiting to arrive) is a proper Minelab Equinox lower stem end piece for the coil to go on, The Mars universal one is a bit narrow and this looks it will swap over fairly easily.  

[relicmeister]

Interesting. If you were to get one of those folding handle fixtures you could fold the handle And pod down Into the arm rest. Then you could slide up the middle shaft and coil for compact storage or backpacking. Be sure to post pictures of the completed mod. 

[Stu]

Project now finished with pictures below. Black pvc covering on all the exposed pine so visually it looks a whole lot better.

Originally I was going to to use the Mars main stem, but could not find a correct Minelab size coil yoke (the little solid plastic bit with the hole that takes the bolt from the coli) to fit onto a Mars lower section. I didn't want to use a 3D print. I could have destroyed a spare Mars lower shaft (removed the yoke to leave the shaft), and destroyed a spare Minelab lower shaft to get the yoke - but I didn't want to do anything irreversible, or costly. In the end the Mars S section was drilled to accommodate the Minelab mid shaft section (6mm hole for the sprung pin). The insides of the Mars S were layered with a single sheet of plastic drink bottle plastic to take up the space and keep it all tight.

All in all Equinox unit and shaft (no coil) 1.1kg in weight. The ergonomics just how I wanted