DetectingWales.com

Hi Guys,
Having to sell up my detecting gear LAST YEAR (with regret after 38 years detecting) ....
due to shoulder / arm ligament problems.
(Other arm is knackered too - by the way).
Has anybody got a ''BIONIC ARM'' to  exchange for my  ''DUFF ARM. ??
I love detecting - but can't.   :P :P :P  

But, still getting out and about in the fields using ......''Eyes Only'' on
field walking sessions.
So far, have found various Neolithic Flint types and various pieces of grey- black roman
pottery sherds in various sizes .............. at least i am finding something - Guys.  ;D ;D

My best - latest find(s) are 2x pieces of Red Roman Samiam Ware Pottery Sherds found
20' apart in a ploughed field, with moulded figurines on the side. When i tried putting them together
they fitted perfect - - just shows.  Could not find any further pieces  -  but will be back
again when the field is ploughed to see if any further pieces appear in same area.

Happy New Year  -----  Guys.
Cheers .............. Yorkshireowl

'' NEVER surrender  - NEVER give in ...... TO pain.''     :'( :'( :'(

I can sympathise with you Yorkshireowl, only been detecting about 5 months
now i've got tennis elbow and arthritis in my shoulder lol, It's absolute agony everytime
I go out but I'm hooked. Well done with the field walking, keep looking you never know
when you might find those Roman coins sitting on the surface.

You didn't use a Minelab by any chance did you? I have used the Explorer for 13 years and had to stop for 9 months a few years ago when I got first problems with my shoulder then tennis elbow. It is ok now but I still struggle with the weight at times. Bought a lighter machine but inevitably get drawn back to my trusty Explorer. Recently bought a Deus but haven't used it yet. Good luck with the field walking Yorkeshireowl.

Hi yorkshire owl, how frustrated you must be. Have you thought about taking a newbie under your wing and passing on your 38 years of experience to an enthusiastic individual, we all know how hard it is to get permissions which Im sure you Wouldnt be short of. You probably still have areas where you would have loved to of carried on. Whilst also mentoring you can field walk and pick hot  spots where you think would be of interest.  Its a lonely hobbies by yourself and i for one enjoy having company when on it like sonic!

Just a thought
take care
Nick

Many thanks to all you Guys - above - for your kind replies.
I have had 38 years of good metal detecting and finds. In my early years you could go to nearly any farm
in my area and get (FREE) land permission to search on farms. Today - it is all about money to get
farm land or estate land, i still have both. Now i can't detect, so i field walk - sometimes walking miles in a single day.
I have used many metal detectors over the past 38 years, some light, some heavy - with the last 2x i
purchased being ''YES'' one a Minelab Etrac (heavy) and a XP Deus (Light) to use, both great machines.
The Minelab being the deepest finding hammered silver coins well into the soil through deep grass roots
well into the soil. The Deus being not as deep, but very sensitive to hammered silver coins, etc. and very
light and quick to use. If this machine had evolved years ago, i think i would still be detecting today.
Heavy detectors will knacker your arm in time - and have - unless you have muscles like Tarzan - which i don't.
Today, anybody joining this great hobby - i would strongly advise them to buy a top machine which is also very light to swing (all day) - not some heavy wand which eventually will 'damage your arm' and spoil your hobby eventually. It also depends if you can afford a top range machine, but if not you can also look out for good quality second hand machines.  Hope this will help other people decide. ??
If anybody can add anything further to this - please continue - thank you.
Cheers - you Guys.
.......... Yorkshireowl  

After the rally last sunday my neck was as stiff as a badgers rear!! so i thought id do some adjustments to my machine, (Garrett Euro Ace) since having it ive always had the stem extended fully when using it to get a bigger sweep in my apple orchards !! in my mind covering more ground !! but now ive settled into the hobbie and slowed down, im still on it like sonic but keep low and slow.so i  shortened my stem considerably. For nearly a year ive had my arm bent in a more unatural postion then it should be which has tweeked my neck.

Id say set your machine so that when holding it the arm is extended in as low and natural postion as possible and the arm cup is set as close to the elbow as possible but not intruding on the elbow joint, i use an extension i had made as the rear most standard setting on the garrett is not sufficient for people with long forearms!! i have my machine in comfy postion now that i can literally hold the grip with my forefinger and thumb, as the weight and postion is evenley balanced, i also have the Detech 13'' ultimate coil which is considerably lighter, more sensitive and deeper than the stock coil.

Regards
Nick

Best machine (at the time when these first came out)
years ago was the Arado 120B metal detector, found
me a good collection of nice roman coins in a field in
Nottinghamshire where I was finding on average a
good 20 - 30 roman coins per day - from a large field  
that I had aquired permission to search.
The drawback was that the Arado 120B had no arm
rest, so your elbow just rested on the control box
and wobbled about uncontrollably. This must go
down as one of the worst designs that came out -
but, on the plus side it delivered the "goods" at
the time - what it was designed to do - and it
did not disappoint with the number of roman
coins and brooches I was able to pick up from
that huge field.
Find a good machine and stick with it - I say. !!!
Stop all this "changing craze" for new machines -
rubbish. It is finds - that is what counts - not the
look of a new model. !!!!
Some will have benefits - some won't - but, at
the end of the day - you take your choice
( or take advice and save on buying new toys).
Save your money, you may need it sometime
when you need it most.!!!
........  Yorkshireowl

True, true i was toying with the idea of changing but really have no need, the only thing i may do is buy a second hand explorer at some point to play with, so i can satisfy my curiosity!!

I have had to contend with similar problems, apart from looking for a more lightweight detector (my fisher f75 is pretty light) hows about trying to attach a harness like those used on grass strimmers.  all the weight is on the shoulders and back

harness everytime peeps,much easier :)

Tried a harness, but it's the swinging action that causes pain.

Great commitment Yorkshireowl, and if you do take a newbie under your wing (or bionic arm) you will have fun just watching him learning your ways, lucky bugger!
I use a explorer 2 and also a whites dfx300 as back up, both are heavy after a few hours especially as stated the swing grips your shoulder after a while. Wish i had an answer but Bionics box is all empty at present

Using a ........  '' Bungy Harness. ''  !!!
I used one of these on my Minelab Etrac and later my XP Deus .....
I found that they ''helped with the weight'' of the machine, - but,
did not help much with reducing shoulder problems with swinging
the detector - Your arm will still ache due to
''some restricted movement'' - which pulls'' !!
(but, this is just my view - yours may be different) no-body is the same.
......... Yorkshireowl


          '' NEVER surrender  - NEVER give in ...... TO pain. ''

What you need is a detector with a strait, flat, bar type coil that you don't have to swing. Something about 3ft across and poss. with little wheels on each end
.
How about a new project. Wonder if such a thing is possible.

Val

Great Idea Val. CHEF GEOFF are you listening ? new project for you

Isn't that going down the magnatometer route ! Or whatever they are called