Goldpick
Chris Johnson
As you may know, there is nothing worst than dropping your detector in the mud, or getting it unnecessarily scratched up. Although there are detector stands available on the retail market, most are only available from abroad, along with ridiculous shipping fees of $40 or more - hence why I thought I would have a go at making my own.
The main clamp base for the stand is one of those universal units being advertised for pinpointer and torch holders, often being sold for over $20us each. You can buy these direct from China for less than $2, and in bulk amounts for less.
The rest is standard Bunnings fare, 20mm electrical conduit (4m for $3), 2 x 90 degree conduit fittings (@ $1 ea), 19mm black rubber chair tips ($2.30 for 4), PVC adhesive or superglue (~ $1-$6), and a 6x40mm bolt/washer and nut (already had those).
The weakest points on the whole setup is the central rivet holding the clamp together, and the top plastic bolt - they can always be replaced with a more sturdy bolt at a later date.
If going near salt, either use a galv or SS for the bolt and fittings that fixes the grey conduit to the clamp. The lengths of the conduit used for the legs are about 85mm in length, although you may prefer it shorter or longer for your particular application. Also note that detectors like the Ace 250 have a 21mm top stem vs 23mm on the Tesoro and G2, so the black clamp is more suited to the latter for a tight fit.
So all that really needed to be done was to cut up two sections of conduit for the legs, file off any dags, test fit into the 90 degree elbow, then permanently glue. Then the rubber feet can be fitted (no glue used, pretty tight fit), followed by centrally mounting the elbow in the black clamp and drilling a hole through everything for the 40mm bolt. I also used double sided tape inside the clamp for a firmer fit before being bolted together. May also pay to use either a spring washer or some loctite on the thread to prevent the bolt from working its way loose.
If you are wondering whether the plastic bolt for clamp fouls against my arm when the detector is in use, it just manages to clear it with no real issues, or you can just move the stand up or down the stem to for more clearance.
So there you have it, a half decent removeable stand for roughly $6-10 or less, depending on what gear you already have on hand, and where they are bought from..
What I usually use these clamps for.
The main clamp base for the stand is one of those universal units being advertised for pinpointer and torch holders, often being sold for over $20us each. You can buy these direct from China for less than $2, and in bulk amounts for less.
The rest is standard Bunnings fare, 20mm electrical conduit (4m for $3), 2 x 90 degree conduit fittings (@ $1 ea), 19mm black rubber chair tips ($2.30 for 4), PVC adhesive or superglue (~ $1-$6), and a 6x40mm bolt/washer and nut (already had those).
The weakest points on the whole setup is the central rivet holding the clamp together, and the top plastic bolt - they can always be replaced with a more sturdy bolt at a later date.
If going near salt, either use a galv or SS for the bolt and fittings that fixes the grey conduit to the clamp. The lengths of the conduit used for the legs are about 85mm in length, although you may prefer it shorter or longer for your particular application. Also note that detectors like the Ace 250 have a 21mm top stem vs 23mm on the Tesoro and G2, so the black clamp is more suited to the latter for a tight fit.
So all that really needed to be done was to cut up two sections of conduit for the legs, file off any dags, test fit into the 90 degree elbow, then permanently glue. Then the rubber feet can be fitted (no glue used, pretty tight fit), followed by centrally mounting the elbow in the black clamp and drilling a hole through everything for the 40mm bolt. I also used double sided tape inside the clamp for a firmer fit before being bolted together. May also pay to use either a spring washer or some loctite on the thread to prevent the bolt from working its way loose.
If you are wondering whether the plastic bolt for clamp fouls against my arm when the detector is in use, it just manages to clear it with no real issues, or you can just move the stand up or down the stem to for more clearance.
So there you have it, a half decent removeable stand for roughly $6-10 or less, depending on what gear you already have on hand, and where they are bought from..
What I usually use these clamps for.
