Swingy Thingy

[Great Republic]

Does anyone use Doc's Swingy Thingy. If so, how does it work for you. If not,why. I have an SE with an X1 probe mounted on the upper shaft. I'm wondering about things getting tangled.

 

[John LA]

When swinging the detector, it should be kept at the same distance from the ground. For me the help I get in the middle of the swing is off-set by having to push out on the detector on each end of the swing. Others just say it don't work for them. Maybe that's what I should have said.

 

[EddieB]

I have one and have used it only a few times, but I can tell you: for myself, it puts the weight upon you upper back and causes me back pain. The whole secret is to properly adjust the arm cuff and the lower shaft to where your swinging arm is straight. Also for me, I had to unhook the detector from the hook everytime I made a recovery. I hope this helps, but it is only my opinion. HH

 

[CAgem]

I love mine. I wouldn't be able to use the Minelab without it. I'm female and used my Minlab for 5 to 7 hours a day on a trip to England. The only problem I had was that my arms were a little short to swing handfulls of dirt over the coil.

 

[mattockman]

n/t

 

[mattockman]

My first experience with it was ok, but my shoulder felt the pain, going in the woods with upgrades and down grades wore my shoulder out. It pulled the rod to the left(I swing with right arm) so I had to muscle the swing to the right. Then it broke. At least I thought it did,and it has been hanging in the closet for over a year, now my body is feeling the pain with the bigger coils(even the smaller ones with probe attached), so I tried to figure out how it went together.....well I got it to work again and then decided there has got to be a better fit for this so my shoulder doesn't feel the pain of fighting the swing to the right.....so I readjusted the back strap so the "D" ring was lower than explained in instructions....just below mid breast bone(wish bone) but just above belly button, and loosened the smaller side strap to let the "D" ring be more to my right side and not mid chest....well this worked really good for me at the beach and no fatigue at all.....the bungy doesn't fight the swing to the right and I can relax much better now.....I do go thru the readjust now and then on length of bungy but hey its worth it to me....no more sore arm....or back or shoulder.....so if you get it just experiment where the "D" ring should be and work the best for you...I believe if you let it set to high on your chest then you will either have back stress or shoulder or both.....SWEET!

 

[Great Republic]

Thanks mattockman. I ordered one because I am searching more fields and swinging for longer times without a break. My neck, shoulder and arm are taking a real beating.I hope it works.GR

 

[Steve(MS)]

Yep, you are right. I made a homemade version from a nylon tool belt and have it just above my bellybutton with a strap to keep it from moving down going over my shoulder and attached to the belt on the back side. My bungee cord is attached to the tool belt, it works great like that and no upper back pressure. The lower down you can get it in the mid body, the less leverage on the back, good to see your post on this one.

 

[grumpyolman]

I used one since I got the SE. I also have the probe mounted on the shaft just forward of the SR switch box. Putting it on the battery pack cover put it in a place that wasn't easily accessible. I do not have to disconnect it when I get on the ground to dig. It does not get tangled in anything. I got the new 'magnum' unit and I think all that means is it has a larger diameter piece of bungee cord. I adjust the height of the coil to really small tolerances so it swings EXACTLY just above the surface. Sometimes I adjust it 4-5 times and hour (takes about 10 seconds to do it). I guess different temperatures, my body position, and the stretch of the cord changes during the course of the hunt. It has not hurt my low back, and it has already taken a beating. One change I will make as warmer weather arrives is to put some kind of padding around the strap where it goes across the top of the shoulder. When it's cold and one wears a coat, the coat works to pad the downward pressure of the strap. When just wearing a light shirt, I think I'll get a piece of wool polishing cloth and sew it and slide it over the strap. A smaller lighter coil might be wise to consider for many reasons explained elsewhere on these forums. Regards!

 

[Great Republic]

n/t