Some Things To Take Note Of With The Algoforce

[phrunt]

So, we've had a lot of positives so far, and well deserved too however, now's the time to point out some other things that need to be known.

As I've talked about in previous posts with it being such a sensitive PI machine it picks up the coil cable, especially with smaller spiral coils, not so much the bundle wound coils like the Sadie.  Generally, this isn't too much of a problem and you only notice it putting down or picking up the detector when it sounds off on the cord moving, however if in bushy or rocky areas that coil cable can get moved around a bit causing false signals.  The supplied Velcro straps will hold the cable in place however not in position, if you want it in a certain spot so it doesn't move plastic clips are a far better option.  

I've managed to find my plastic clips, and fitted one, now my cable is in a much better position than with a strap that allowed it to slip around the shaft, this will help a lot with the coil cable being detected.

I don't know much about the clips, they maybe something designed for another purpose and someone discovered them and packaged them up as a detecting product and sells them off for a good markup, either way this place is where I got mine.  They fit the Algoforce shaft perfectly and come in a pack of 8 clips.

Next, the USB power bank shape can be beneficial too.  The design is quite well thought out with 2 straps that hold it in place, and a rail sliding bar with a hump at the end to hold it there, along with rubber pads on the rail to give some grip.  

You can adjust the length of the rail by loosening a couple of thumb screws with your fingers, expanding it out to fit your battery and locking it in place again, then the little lump at the end helps the battery hold in place.  This lump could probably do with being a little bit bigger, but it can't be too big as the USB ports on the battery bank and right there too so if it were bigger, it may cause some problems with some battery banks.  I found with mine the lump is too small as I've purchased a Belkin 20000 mAH which seems an awesome product, I've always liked Belkin gear, they've been around for decades but its a very rounded battery bank so the lump doesn't do the job as well as it could and my battery bank does tend to move a bit, I'll sort out a solution here, perhaps some sticky Velcro on one of the rubber pads, and on the battery bank to line up and give that little bit more stick, it really wouldn't take much to lock it in tight.

This is the Belkin, if only it had square edges 🙂  I have another battery bank laying around which appears a much better design for a detector.

The one below is another one with more Sqaure edges that holds in a lot easier, with minimal effort.

Solar panel on top.

On the bottom a torch and a little clip, it has very square edges so mounts into the Algoforce more solidly, that clip could potentially be used to lock it in even better, I've not looked into that yet although I doubt it would be needed.    This one also has a rubber housing giving even more grip.  Really with one like this there is absolutely no problem, so something to keep in mind when buying a power bank.

Next up, wireless audio, I've got an MPow atpX LL transmitter, it fits perfectly onto the back of the control pod with some adhesive Velcro on the transmitter and on the detector, I had no problems with this, even in my wild bushy hilly terrain, it held on no problems at all.  The thing I am going to change is the audio cable, I'll get one with right angle connectors on it, that way they don't stick out and I'll be able to use a Velcro strap to hold the cord in place nicely, if I can't find one the right length, I'll just make one, the right angle 3.5mm plugs can be bought at Jaycar and I'd imagine any good electronics parts retailer, or online of course.  

I noticed no extra EMI induced by having the transmitter on the control pod, it appeared to cause no issues at all.

You'll note it has a little rubber cover to put into the socket if you're not using headphones, a great thing to have and can be removed and stored away if you're having headphones or a transmitter in there permanently. 

Next up, the battery holder straps.  Positioning of these is vital to ensuring a good tight fit of your battery, having them tight means the little rail and rubber lump are not near as necessary, and to tighten them I've found this is the best positioning as then the clip is out of the way, if it's in the wrong position it will prevent a tight fit.

Now, the cable from the power bank to the detector itself, it goes up into the handle up plugs into the detector inside the handle using a USB C connector, wise as this is now the standard and remaining that way.  The other end of the supplied cable is USB A, I'd imagine they've done this for compatibility as older power banks won't have USB C but on mine at least it means the cable is offset on the side of the battery bank, making it more exposed to being hit by branches or rocks.  By using the centre USB C port on my power bank I'll be able to route the cable up onto the shaft to keep it out of the way.

This is the USB A plug end on the supplied cable for those unsure what USB A is.

Now, even better there are USB C to USB C cables with a right angle at one end, you only want it at one end as inside the detector pod you need a straight plug, but on the power bank if you plug in a right angle one to the centre USB C port such as on my power bank the cable can be secured so it's well hidden from obstacles hitting it, the right angle cables come in various lengths, I'll work out the exactly length I need and order it today, 25cm should be the right size I think. 

Last but not least, the exposed USB ports on the power bank are going to get dirty, dusty and all sorts of things stuck in them, potentially damaging them or the battery bank, even water from sitting the detector down on wet grass seeing they're right near ground level.  An easy solution to this is little silicone USB port covers you can buy.  I've bought ones for USB A as I'm not going to use those ports and be USB C to USB C. 

 

Amazingly this Belkin battery is going to give me over 20 hours detecting on a charge, probably a few more hours than that.   Makes some other detectors battery sources seem a bit problematic running out so quickly.

On another note, my Sadie just arrived.

These are a few little niggly annoyances or just things it is wise to know about the Algoforce so if you're buying one you can be better prepared.   They're not necessarily faults with the detector but more advice on suitable products to improve it even further.

 

[dig4gold]

Nice. Thanks

D4G

[jasong]

This may be a suitable thread to mention something which may trip up some US users especially new guys - the cheap $10-$20 battery banks you can get at Walmart, Amazon, etc are often vastly overrated. Like they just write whatever rating number they think will sell best. Some are ok, some are absolute garbage. 

The ones at the checkout aisles that are rated 10000mAH from Walmart, I disassembled one because I was using it for a different application and it would run out very quickly. The actual batteries inside were only 2500mAH. Later I bought one that was 20000mAH and took it apart and surprise surprise - 5000mAH battery in it. Bought one off Amazon that was 20000mAH to recharge phones with remotely, and it lasted about exactly as long as the Walmart one but I didn't take it apart.

I can see people going to Walmart for a battery and wondering why their detector is only running 90 minutes off a "20000mAH" pack. 🙂 In this case it probably pays to go with the more trusted, name brand ones for an extra $10 or so like the Belkin Simon posted. 

[phrunt]

Yes, that's true, a lot of the ones coming out of the Chinese marketplaces like Aliexpress say they're 500,000 mAH so would last a week to a month on your Algoforce yet they'll go flat in less than a day 🙂  It's best to stick to the reputable brand names, that's why I went Belkin, I trust their products.  Most computer retailers or mobile phone type stores should sell good quality brand name ones.   

An example of a fake rated one from Aliexpress

14 USD for one that claims 100000mAH 😛 That'd run the detector for months..... or about 3 hours.

[dig4gold]

9 minutes ago, jasong said:

This may be a suitable thread to mention something which may trip up some US users especially new guys - the cheap $10-$20 battery banks you can get at Walmart, Amazon, etc are often vastly overrated. Like they just write whatever rating number they think will sell best. Some are ok, some are absolute garbage. 

The ones at the checkout aisles that are rated 10000mAH from Walmart, I disassembled one because I was using it for a different application and it would run out very quickly. The actual batteries inside were only 2500mAH. Later I bought one that was 20000mAH and took it apart and surprise surprise - 5000mAH battery in it. Bought one off Amazon that was 20000mAH to recharge phones with remotely, and it lasted about exactly as long as the Walmart one but I didn't take it apart.

I can see people going to Walmart for a battery and wondering why their detector is only running 90 minutes off a "20000mAH" pack. 🙂 In this case it probably pays to go with the more trusted, name brand ones for an extra $10 or so like the Belkin Simon posted. 

Why are companies allowed to get away with that?

D4G

 

[Lead Detector]

18 minutes ago, dig4gold said:

Why are companies allowed to get away with that?

D4G

 

Probably because they come from countries without regulations to prevent it

[jasong]

26 minutes ago, phrunt said:

14 USD for one that claims 100000mAH 😛 That'd run the detector for months..... or about 3 hours.

 Haha man, 100,000 is a new record I think...that's hilarious. 😅  I love how it's tiny, like half the size of a phone too, they aren't even trying to convince anyone anymore haha.

21 minutes ago, dig4gold said:

Why are companies allowed to get away with that?

Technically we have laws against it. My guess is that the problem is as soon as the FTC pursues one of them for false advertising they simply change their name like from "Unvqint" to "Exoslarp" and then sell the same thing again with a slightly different case to make it seem different.

Problem is I am sure Walmart, and probably Best Buy too, are buying this stuff and repackaging it into more American looking non descript packages to sell in store. They should know better.

Certainly anyone buying from Amazon should just avoid those brands with clearly nonsensical names anyways. Which unfortunately is getting harder and harder every year since Amazon's algorithm gets paid to push them. I tried finding a Rugged Country winch last year I had bought 5 years ago to buy another one, and even putting the exact term in quotes it still gave me nothing but knockoff products 5 or 6 pages deep. I was only able to find the winch by searching my old orders and going to the product page from there. 

[Aureous]

25 minutes ago, dig4gold said:

Why are companies allowed to get away with that?

D4G

Coz.....China. 'nuff said 😉 

[Nedkelly]

1 hour ago, phrunt said:

So, we've had a lot of positives so far, and well deserved too however, now's the time to point out some other things that need to be known.

As I've talked about in previous posts with it being such a sensitive PI machine it picks up the coil cable, especially with smaller spiral coils, not so much the bundle wound coils like the Sadie.  Generally, this isn't too much of a problem and you only notice it putting down or picking up the detector when it sounds off on the cord moving, however if in bushy or rocky areas that coil cable can get moved around a bit causing false signals.  The supplied Velcro straps will hold the cable in place however not in position, if you want it in a certain spot so it doesn't move plastic clips are a far better option.  

I've managed to find my plastic clips, and fitted one, now my cable is in a much better position than with a strap that allowed it to slip around the shaft, this will help a lot with the coil cable being detected.

I don't know much about the clips, they maybe something designed for another purpose and someone discovered them and packaged them up as a detecting product and sells them off for a good markup, either way this place is where I got mine.  They fit the Algoforce shaft perfectly and come in a pack of 8 clips.

Next, the USB power bank shape can be beneficial too.  The design is quite well thought out with 2 straps that hold it in place, and a rail sliding bar with a hump at the end to hold it there, along with rubber pads on the rail to give some grip.  

You can adjust the length of the rail by loosening a couple of thumb screws with your fingers, expanding it out to fit your battery and locking it in place again, then the little lump at the end helps the battery hold in place.  This lump could probably do with being a little bit bigger, but it can't be too big as the USB ports on the battery bank and right there too so if it were bigger, it may cause some problems with some battery banks.  I found with mine the lump is too small as I've purchased a Belkin 20000 mAH which seems an awesome product, I've always liked Belkin gear, they've been around for decades but its a very rounded battery bank so the lump doesn't do the job as well as it could and my battery bank does tend to move a bit, I'll sort out a solution here, perhaps some sticky Velcro on one of the rubber pads, and on the battery bank to line up and give that little bit more stick, it really wouldn't take much to lock it in tight.

This is the Belkin, if only it had square edges 🙂  I have another battery bank laying around which appears a much better design for a detector.

The one below is another one with more Sqaure edges that holds in a lot easier, with minimal effort.

Solar panel on top.

On the bottom a torch and a little clip, it has very square edges so mounts into the Algoforce more solidly, that clip could potentially be used to lock it in even better, I've not looked into that yet although I doubt it would be needed.    This one also has a rubber housing giving even more grip.  Really with one like this there is absolutely no problem, so something to keep in mind when buying a power bank.

Next up, wireless audio, I've got an MPow atpX LL transmitter, it fits perfectly onto the back of the control pod with some adhesive Velcro on the transmitter and on the detector, I had no problems with this, even in my wild bushy hilly terrain, it held on no problems at all.  The thing I am going to change is the audio cable, I'll get one with right angle connectors on it, that way they don't stick out and I'll be able to use a Velcro strap to hold the cord in place nicely, if I can't find one the right length, I'll just make one, the right angle 3.5mm plugs can be bought at Jaycar and I'd imagine any good electronics parts retailer, or online of course.  

I noticed no extra EMI induced by having the transmitter on the control pod, it appeared to cause no issues at all.

You'll note it has a little rubber cover to put into the socket if you're not using headphones, a great thing to have and can be removed and stored away if you're having headphones or a transmitter in there permanently. 

Next up, the battery holder straps.  Positioning of these is vital to ensuring a good tight fit of your battery, having them tight means the little rail and rubber lump are not near as necessary, and to tighten them I've found this is the best positioning as then the clip is out of the way, if it's in the wrong position it will prevent a tight fit.

Now, the cable from the power bank to the detector itself, it goes up into the handle up plugs into the detector inside the handle using a USB C connector, wise as this is now the standard and remaining that way.  The other end of the supplied cable is USB A, I'd imagine they've done this for compatibility as older power banks won't have USB C but on mine at least it means the cable is offset on the side of the battery bank, making it more exposed to being hit by branches or rocks.  By using the centre USB C port on my power bank I'll be able to route the cable up onto the shaft to keep it out of the way.

This is the USB A plug end on the supplied cable for those unsure what USB A is.

Now, even better there are USB C to USB C cables with a right angle at one end, you only want it at one end as inside the detector pod you need a straight plug, but on the power bank if you plug in a right angle one to the centre USB C port such as on my power bank the cable can be secured so it's well hidden from obstacles hitting it, the right angle cables come in various lengths, I'll work out the exactly length I need and order it today, 25cm should be the right size I think. 

Last but not least, the exposed USB ports on the power bank are going to get dirty, dusty and all sorts of things stuck in them, potentially damaging them or the battery bank, even water from sitting the detector down on wet grass seeing they're right near ground level.  An easy solution to this is little silicone USB port covers you can buy.  I've bought ones for USB A as I'm not going to use those ports and be USB C to USB C. 

 

Amazingly this Belkin battery is going to give me over 20 hours detecting on a charge, probably a few more hours than that.   Makes some other detectors battery sources seem a bit problematic running out so quickly.

On another note, my Sadie just arrived.

These are a few little niggly annoyances or just things it is wise to know about the Algoforce so if you're buying one you can be better prepared.   They're not necessarily faults with the detector but more advice on suitable products to improve it even further.

 

Thanks Simon,  all very good points.  With the coil cable , I've tried the clips, the Velcro fasteners ,and keep going back to good old fashioned electrical tape.

I've also added a neoprene drink cooler to cover the power bank.  Works a treat,  helps protect the USB connection,  is a nice tight fit keeping the power bank very secure and clean.

[phrunt]

What an awesome idea for a cheap cover for it, looks great, I'll keep an eye out for a similar thing when I go to the shops.   The one in my cupboard might be a bit embarassing.