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Does Your Scoop Affect Your Pinpointing?


mn90403

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Today I went out for a beach hunt in the morning. (Just one silver band.)  I switched back to my little scoop that I pull to me.  It is an all stainless steel scoop with a 6" basket.  It is a delight to use on a shallow target beach because I can dig the targets faster that my big scoop.

My big scoop is of European make that I'll fondly call Godzilla.  It is a heavy sucker with 8" basket and a step on back.  It is twice the weight of my pull scoop but I can get the deep targets that are 10" or more.  A couple of days earlier this week it came in handy.  It does not bend or give.  It will overpower ALL sand.

Other than it being so heavy it also seems to make pinpointing harder.  I think the presence of additional metal mass throws off my ability to use the tip of the 15" inch coil on my Equinox.  I thought about that today as I was using the smaller scoop.

Does anyone else note a difference in pinpointing with your different scoops?

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As long as you keep the scoop behind you it will work fine. I had a similar problem when working a bank at a creek that I was checking out once.

Hope this helps.

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Well, I sense that just holding a much larger piece of metal to the side of or above my pinpointing motion with the coil actually broadens the target in a way that makes the task of pinpointing more difficult.

I guess it is really akin to having a more mineralized ground.  It just seemed to dumb down the coil pointing.  The target becomes broader and more erratic.  

I know that nugget hunting picks can affect gold recovery so it follows that a larger scoop would have a similar effect on the beach.

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I have an issue with the surf eating my hole, so i'm itching for a new bigger scoop so i can get to the targets within 2-3 scoops before i get blasted. I have the strength to carry that thing for many hours so weight isn't an issue. 

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  • 1 month later...

   Much depends on how and where you carry/place you scoop! I have a wood handle on my TRex, so I low carry with the scoop to the rear! Some like to shoulder carry, but my arm goes numb like that! The bigger coils, and PI's can be more prone to interference, as they have a bigger field of view!

   As far as when pinpointing, I'm not fond of using big coils to pinpoint, not that it can't be done! I prefer a small coil, or my actual pinpointer! I've found i am much more efficient with a pinpointer, In rapidly finding a target, and moving on! just keep the coil away, as it can cause the same issues!🍀👍👍

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On 2/26/2023 at 1:55 AM, mn90403 said:

Well, I sense that just holding a much larger piece of metal to the side of or above my pinpointing motion with the coil actually broadens the target in a way that makes the task of pinpointing more difficult.

 

Sure it does, but why would you want to put a very large piece of metal near your coil?

I put a shovel handle on my scoop and drag it behind me. No problem.

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Same here , shovel handle D style from a plastic.grain shovel . (on the small SS T-Rex)

I drag it and carry it , it loads up with sand sometimes while dragging...so I carry it for a while.  I drag the small spade that I sometimes use too. The scoop also has it's own backpack for long hikes in.. 

It does tone/ID when the coil swing gets too close but never felt it was interfering with pinpointing . 

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12 hours ago, Digalicious said:

Sure it does, but why would you want to put a very large piece of metal near your coil?

I put a shovel handle on my scoop and drag it behind me. No problem.

You don't have the scoop I have.  I don't use it that often but it is a beast.

IMG_20230421_195128_0371.thumb.jpg.8c2ba0788bed132214ec0c57aad1e14c.jpgIMG_20230421_195342_1761.thumb.jpg.d59ea5d2f2f558d46c1cde02ce6d97c9.jpgIMG_20230421_195448_7031.thumb.jpg.7d0eb71ab5918fd611ef8514370a023d.jpg

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 I have issue scooping when my boots change, going from winter to summer gear will throw my target recovery time off, causing me a couple extra scoops/tries at digging the target. After a few hunts I do adjust to the change..

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