Fooling with the F-Point

[Mike Hillis]

I went detecting without an electronic pinpointer two weeks ago, and decided right there and then I didn't want to coin hunt anymore without a pinpointer. It is just too slow. Yes I can pinpoint with my detector, yes I am excellent at probing for coins, and yes I can eventually find my target in the hole or the plug but its just soooooo inefficient doing it without a pinpointer. I was really missing my Uniprobes.

I remember I still had my old Little Wizard II stashed somewhere that I used for several years, and I started hunting for it, when I remembered I had a new F-Point pinpointer laying around somewhere! I had got it with a detector purchase several years back. I don't even remember what detector it came with. I just remember putting a battery in it and turning it on, air testing it and putting it right back into the box as something to keep around for someone else.

So I found it, took it out of the box, re-installed the battery and air tested it with a dime. Got a hair less than a half inch in distance. I need at least 2". I'd read about people super-tuning Garrett ProPointers, so I tried it with the F-Point. That helped a little. but not much. Maybe another quarter inch.

Well, I figured there had to be a course adjustment pot in there somewhere that might help so I took the thing apart. Wasn't too difficult. You have to remove the battery rest by gently unseating the two tabs, pull the sensitivity dial off and un-screw the nut that holds it in place. Remove the buzzer first and let it hang out the end, and then push the pot stem down while tugging on the board. It all comes out in one piece. I was real cautious in taking it out so I wouldn't break the coil wires but guess what? There are no coil wires. It is just one pcb board. Neat layout.

Anyway, sure enough, there was a course adjustment pot. I re-connected the battery and fiddled with it trying different settings until I got something that seemed like an improvement. Got it up to a inch on dime and put it all back together. The only thing I had to be careful with when putting it back together was making sure I didn't pinch a wire when I was sliding the buzzer's collar back into it's slot.

After I got it put back together, I re-connected the battery and tried again. Better, but still not what I want. There is a little air gap inside. I dug through my treasure chest of rings looking for something that would work for super tuning and found a little silver, open ended, dolphin toe ring that was the right diameter and supertune with it and squeeze it into place. Was feeling pretty good then because I was getting 1-1/2 inches on a dime. But that shortly turned sour because it wouldn't hold the depth consistently. Air distance would fluctuate from test to test and require some ongoing adjustments. Still worth a try, though.

I'm going to take it with me next time out but I'm going to dig up my old Little Wizard II for a backup. Hope it still works. I haven't seen it in several years and it was full of dirt then.

I went looking for online reviews of pinpointers, but I'm not ready to spend $100+ bucks on one right now. The new F19 is on the horizon, the mythical Cazador is supposedly not a myth, and the Russians are capturing my attention with their Signum series. And I have that ongoing love affair with the V3i color display.

If you have any good suggestions for an inexpensive, reliable electronic pinpointer that can consistently give me 2" depth on a dime. I'm all ears.

HH
Mike

 

[mudpuppy]

Great write up Mike! I've had my F-point apart too, and like you said, they are easy to take apart and fiddle with...I carry one and deploy it maybe once per outing, maybe less than that, 3 times per week? I use it when I'm not sure what I'm dealing with on a target thats either a chain or thin ring in the grass roots, deep coin on edge, anything unusual and hard to stab with the screwdriver..I jam that thin probe down in the screwdriver hole and check to see if I'm "on the metal".....since my Fpoint will ONLY sound off if its touching the object...

I'm too cheap to buy a good pinpointer, .....100 bucks is a lot of clad, most all of it I hunt is shallow and easily stabbed...those fresh drop surface dimes in deep grass are a B though! So I rake my screwdriver through the grass at about a 60 degree angle to sort of uncover it or fling it out...I did watch those youtube vids REVIER made with great interest about how he hunts, and he is fast with his Garrett pinpointer, so I can see the need or proper use of one... the Fpoint is perfect for my area and what I use it for.....all this said, I have found the coil hop method of pinpointed clad extremely fast...I doubt theres a faster way out there to lock on a coin and stab it than coil hopping.....I can see why the Fpoint was dismissed by most of us as a decent tool....I can live without any pinpointer, but I for SURE cant live without a screwdriver..!
Mud

 

[rob]

n/t

 

[Fish_in_1]

Yes $100 is alot of money for a pin pointer and for mud they are not that deep and are rarely old silver, with the Fisher i can get a nice 3" hole and be spot on most of the time i just don't cut all the way down... my cousin got a new etrak a few months back and the package came with the new Vulcan 360 pin pointer, and sells for $119 on the web, it had 5 settings, each time you hold the button in it will increase the distance read, 1 beep- 1/2", 2 beeps- 1-11/2", so on up to the 5Th beep which pics up to many things most time but would put you at about 4" on a dime, i never go over the 3rd beep 2 to 2 1/2", i saw one last week go on e**y for $80, still a lot of money but the 1 time you dig a $1000 silver and scratch it and it becomes scrap then $80 isn't that bad...hope this helps..