I have a pic request. :smile:

[Dirt slinger]

First, I've been away for quite a while, so...Hi Guys/Gals! Now, on to my request. Any site I go to, be it detecting, cars, what have you, I love to see stuff (tools & equip for the job) that folks thought up and made themselves. In our case here, scoops, sifters, shovels, etc, anything that YOU thought up to help with whatever type detecting you do, even if its just a low or no cost version of something on the shelf at a store that you made from stuff you had layin around. I've seen some good stuff here in the past and I'm asking folks to show your innovations and don't be afraid to show those "how I did it" pix, or even vids. I realize there might be those folks that want to keep their idea THEIRS, and that's fine, but to those who would, show'em off. I felt the "general" MD forum would be the best place to ask. I have a couple of pix I'd share but that blankity Photobucket is once again not working for me, and I don't know any other way to load pix.

BTW, who do you folks favor for a photo hosting site? Photobucket used to be so easy to use, but for over a year, since they changed things so much, I've not been able to do anything with it, it just freezes up on me. Thanks, now show us what you've made!

 

[Dirt slinger]

Oh, I think I remembered, lets try this. If this works you'll see a couple of pix of a sifter made completely of PVC, with a handle, followed by another sifter with a long handle so as to not have to stoop down (bad back) also made with no metal. wanted to be able to scan the sifter. The holes aren't in perfectly straight rows, but the sand hasn't complained yet.

 

[mudpuppy]

Great subject! Its good to attempt things like this if not only to respect the effort it takes to build one...When I was new to this sport, I thought, 'No way am I spending $150 bucks for what is essentially a shovel with holes in it'! Then, a guy soon learned after fiddling around with a bunch of prototypes only to have them destruct shortly after.....Ohhh, now I see! now that $150 doesnt seem so unreasonable! In fact, thats cheap!

Well, at the very last effort, I ordered two of these big aluminum ice scoops from a restaurant supply house, cost $16 each...I had some 1/4" aluminum flat stock laying around here, maybe its 3/16, anyway...took a jig saw, a drill and had a plan...I cut and keyholed everything together, the vertical handle support goes right through that lower base attached to the scoop, around the handle, and bolts to the bottom of both the scoop and shaft with one u bolt....I took some of that Alumaweld rod and a propane torch and tinned the leading edge of the scoop, (it is way tougher than the base metal) did a bit of fill in work around my dovetails etc...since every component is either dovetailed or keyholed, a guy really doesnt need to do any welding...everything locks itself in place...

I still have this scoop, its my daily user and has made me happy and dug up a lot of gold/silver/coins without no trouble...I may make another better one since this was intended to be a 'prototype' and was just a fast and dirty attempt that seems to work just fine! Took a couple hours is all...maybe 4 with thinking/drinking time.....I use it on the Great Lakes and inland waters...with the wood handle it floats upright, is relatively comfortable to carry and dig with..

I guess a guy could make up the two aluminum components, a raw ice scoop, couple of U bolts, and sell this in 'kit' form...? Then a fellow could drill his own holes and do a bit of hacksaw work, bolt it all together, maybe take it down to a local welding shop and have them hit the key areas for $10...and still save themselves a bit of money? I like the full open top, its easy to reach in to get your prize! And the 'Whale tail' motif adds a bit of flair..
Mud

 

[bootyhoundpa]

My 1st attempt at a scoop started out with 4 inch pvc just like yours but i bailed out on that idea before i could finish it... your pvc scoop looks real nice..my concerns were being only 4 inch it would be to easy to miss the target and dry sand digging would be fine but hard wet sand would be too difficult ..so i made my own scoops out of old soup pots...like mud mentioned for every one that you succeed in completing there is at least 1 prototype that failed... [attachment 306230 20150111_0809412.jpg][attachment 306231 20150111_0810072.jpg][attachment 306232 20150111_0811022.jpg] i put the noodle foam on them so the handle floats and boaters can see the bright colors from a distance... the right angle handle is from one of my Milwaukee drills.... i also made hipmounts for my sov gt out of an old gameboy pouch and made a hipmount for my excal out of a broom handle,thin sheet metal strips lined with electrical tape,1/4 - 20 nuts and bolts and finished it of with a fat boy belt so i can wear it no matter how many layers of clothing i have on...i also changed the knobs on the excal with radio shack knobs which i feel are better that original as they have an indicator knub on the knobs which allow you to know where your settings are even in the dark...[attachment 306233 20140309_1150551.jpg][attachment 306234 20140309_1134101.jpg]

 

[mudpuppy]

Alright! Well this is fun! I just remembered...

Hey, heres a 'Chest-Hip mount' rig I built for a CZ21...

I had this plastic trolling motor battery box sitting around here, One morning on a whim, tired of the weight, and also seeing what was 'commercially available', I got to thinking... I quickly whipped this up, quicker than you could say "Parker Schnabel". Pair of sidecutters, a razor knife and a drill... Pay careful attention to the 3rd photo...those slots are tapered, and those holes are 'offset' for a reason, I used the existing plastic off the CZ21 mount bracket as a template...thats the only real trick...and I amazingly got it 'right' the first time for once! The box would slide off and on with no trouble at all! I figured a guy could add all sorts of accessories to this big plastic footprint, just by drilling a few holes or something..a waterproof box for keys and smokes, etc....

It worked GREAT as a hip mount with a wide dive weight belt threaded through the slots, it conformed so well to the body, and didnt put any pressure on any area in particular...and very good as a chest mount with those carpenters nail pouch suspender things...I preferred the hip mount though, it was fast to put on and off and comfortable....the surface area of the contraption was comfortable and made a stable platform for the box...When I sold my CZ to another guy on this Forum a few years back, I tossed it in and sent it along to him..it was freaking great! If I ever get another CZ21, I will certainly do this again..that battery box plastic was just PERFECT!.
Mud.

 

[Dirt slinger]

Hey Mud, I've used that very scoop many times when I was a teen working at Six Flags! Scooped ice for drinks. That's a good idea, I like how you made the stiffening rib on the back to be "decorative".

Booty (geez I hope that's not TOO personal LOL.) I like yours as well, the handle off the drill is another real good idea! So far the 4" hasn't been an issue, but that's one reason for having no metal in it, a quick scan tells me if I've "got it", but I do have a plan for a 6". Thanks for sharing guys! I LOVE innovation.

 

[bootyhoundpa]

Thanks dirt, hey mud that is a real nice rig you made up there..real nice..

 

[mudpuppy]

Well Booty and Dirt,...

I'm loving this topic, excited by what you both have done! Thinking about your guys posts....sharing ideas and what has or has not worked...

Often thought about whipping up a 'water shaft' out of laminated spruce, epoxy...sort of in an elliptical cross section fashion, not round, something that a guy can 'feather' when water hunting..like a canoe paddle?....more hydrodynamic if you will....maybe imbed some glass marbles down in the shaft so its bouyancy neutral, light and fast in the water?

Hell, instead of marbles, maybe embed a magnifying glass right there on the lower shaft so a guy can quickly look for ring hallmarks even? Heck, even some sort of coil cover that is shaped with hydrodynamics in mind for the water hunters?

These existing round shafts/coils are hard to push through the water efficiently, and some or most coils, forget it, the cross section and design are just not right...a guy has to now settle down and hunt as fast as the shaft/coil hydrodynamic constraints allow, try to over do it, and a guy wears himself out....If a guy can get in a few more swings comfortably/day? Cover a bit more water in the allotted time? With a modified flat shaft or coil cover?... Think of the possibilities?
Mud

 

[Dirt slinger]

I've heard it said that "necessity is the father of invention". Mud, I think you're going to be a wealthy man one day! You have a lot of deep thought going on up there!
Anyone else?

 

[Dirt slinger]

Well Booty and Dirt,...

I'm loving this topic, excited by what you both have done! Thinking about your guys posts....sharing ideas and what has or has not worked...

This was my motivation for this post, just to see what others have thought up, from very well thought out and executed, to the very simple, cheap and quick to make tool that does the job for you. Its amazing how many different ideas folks can have to achieve the same basic thing. For my sifters, my goal was obviously to be effective, but cheap, light but sturdy, no metal and easily repeatable should one of my kids or a buddy want one. I bought a 10' length of 4" PVC that was damaged on one end for about $6, so with the other pieces I prolly have less than $5 in each one, with the only heavy wall piece being the long handle on the one, for rigidity. Your brain is always thinking of how you could do it better the next time though!

 

[ironsight]

Know what you mean about photobucket. Everytime i log in, its changed.

Anyway, i needed a compact relic shovel for farm fields, relic'n and also capable of being somewhat stealthy in some parks i search yet able to easily get at foot deep targets in some of these parks.
Bought a cheap trench shovel on sale for around 15 bucks at a local home improvement store mainly for the tempered steel blade which i heavily modified. Its got a collapsible handle which can be locked at any length. If i remember correctly (its been mothballed for the Winter somewhere in my barn), i fabricated the blade to around 8 inches long. The thing works great either at a park or out relic hunting.

I fabricated a second one also but somewhat smaller and a lot more stealthier mainly for parks with a 7 inch blade. Maybe i'll take some pics of it and post that one too if anyone is interested.

Original shovel. Sorry, forgot to take a pic of the shovel before i butchered it. The weld beads were for practice for the tempered blade metal.
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o273/moparado/7_zpsb865b24e.jpg

Collapsed and ready to dig relics or deep targets (not to scale).
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o273/moparado/6_zps5d43d25a.jpg

http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o273/moparado/3_zpsb3a963f9.jpg

Here's the locking mechanism i fabricated.
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o273/moparado/4_zps8a47d738.jpg

http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o273/moparado/2_zps0653cfff.jpg

http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o273/moparado/5_zps1ecb02f9.jpg

 

[Dirt slinger]

Now that's cool, very nice! That's on the other end of the scale from mine, the well thought out and executed end. Lol. By all means post more pix, would love to see anything you've spent time on. So, are you saying that you cut up the shovel in the pic to use the blade to make the new one?

 

[Steve O]

Interesting, How does the lock mechanism work, bolt pressure? When you heat the blade, does it loose its temper?

 

[ironsight]

Dirt slinger,
yep, the trench shovel i bought had an 18 inch long blade. I lopped off the bottom half to use as my shovel blade as seen in the 1st pic then used the top half for calibrating my welding machine, the reason for all the weld beads.

Steve O,
yes i was concerned about welding the blade to the 1" steel pipe and losing blade temper right at the critical blade to pipe connection.
If you take a careful look at that 1st pic, i first welded the blade to the cold rolled steel pipe then re-enforced the 1" pipe to the blade area with a pipe collar to blade formed piece of 12 ga. sheet metal and welded it all togather being careful not to over heat. That in combination with the curved blade gave more than adequate strength. I then welded the foot pads to the blade.
The pics show the shovel right after i painted it. Its now got a lot of tough digging miles on it with the accompanying scrapes and scratches.

Far as the locking mechanism, its a simple pressure deal with the lever bolt engaging with the piston ram at the end of the retractable shaft as seen in the 3rd pic. The piston ram in combination with the top collar also prevents any play or wobble when the handle is fully extended. A 3rd reason for the piston is that if the locking bolt were to engage with the pipe, it would sooner or later deform the pipe. The locking mechanism is comprised of a larger bolt for engaging with the piston and a smaller screw for custom positioning the lock lever.
I fab'd that piston out of a large bolt which i de-tempered and turned on my lathe at a dimension to allow minimum clearance with the inner wall of the pipe. The top collar is actually an ordinary pipe fitting i bored out also with minimum clearance to the pipe then turned down on the lathe mainly for looks.

The lock lever is actually a thin bicycle wrench which can be adusted to any start lock position by loosening the screw and rotating the wrench to any start lock position. It takes only a half lever swing from open to lock. With all the holes i've dug with this shovel and i've dug some hard and gravely soil with it, the fully extended handle has never slipped, wobbled or bent.
I borrowed the ball from my sheet metal bender. Fab'd an adaptor to accomodate the ball threads and welded the adapter into the top end of the 5/8" cold rolled steel extension pipe.

I kind of misled in my original post in that the shovel will only lock in the fully retracted and fully extended position.
I was thinking of my second stealth park shovel which has a more sophisticated split collar locking arrangement which can be locked at any extension.

Gonna have to take some pics of that 2nd shove i built. Its my goto shovel for parks. With this 2nd shovel when retracted and tucked under the arm, it can be taken as any ordinary garden spade. But with the handle extended, it along with foot assist or a 2ndary horizontal handle can easily get at some fairly deep park targets, that is when no park attendants are watching.

 

[Dirt slinger]

Well, I really thought there would be more than this as many folks as we have here, there must be a lot of "Patents Pending" out there! Lol. Anyone else, don't be shy!

 

[mudpuppy]

Thats a beauty shovel there, Ironsight! Really great concept and fab work!....

I know theres a lot of guys out there that build some pretty cool floating sifters, theres also some night hunters that have some cool light set ups on their rigs..I've seen some pretty sweet hole cutting pluggers built too..as well as clad tumblers made out of old stuff and whatnot...
Lots of talent here!
Mud

 

[Dodqe]

I was in a rush... Leaving for Atlantic City the next day, and had no scoop...
Went to Home Depot or Lowes... Don't remember which. I got some square
hole wire mesh and a hoe. Drilled some holes, bent some mesh, and chopped
the handle. I also split the grip and slid half to the bottom and half at the top.
Added some neo mags for the tiny junk.
Overall, it took me about an hour and a half.

It held up surprisingly well.. Only had to reshape it once, after trying it in the wet sand.
This is for dry sand only. I used my chopped up Ames mini shovel for the wet.

One note: When you have all your detectors in the back of a van, don't toss this in on top.
I gouged the display on one of my machines... Had to order a replacement. Only $8, but still...

 

[MarkCZ]

n/t

 

[Dodqe]

Now THAT is slick...

 

[MarkCZ]

Magnet Stick!
1/2" PVC pipe,
Two stacked rare earth magnets!