very interesting convo with minelab technician ctx 3030

[mike90199]

ok so now im kinda leaning towards ctx 3030 cause where I am our parks are very trashy .I rang minelab to try get a honest opinion about the ctx 3030s and all its faults and he admitted it has had a lot of bad press but seemed to blame the customers and said we cant make it stupid proof for all the stupid people out there .

so let me get this straight they sink 6million into a machine but waterproof it using a square gasket with a space between almost a cm in diameter and not just that all o rings leak by nature in order for a 20k watch to be sealed correctly it must be dunked into a pressurized tank to verify no leaks yet minelab want the customer to play the guessing game everytime they replace the seal after cleaning it from sand that wouldn't be there in the first place if the cm diamatre wasn't there .ah man comments like this saying (we cant make it stupid proof and stupid people) are making me wonder weather the guy is telling the truth or weather this machine really is a faulty magnet.

well I guess ill get one but if im taking it back for service every 3 months im gonna be angry .not just that the tech said after it gets water in it the first time .they will not replace it the second time if it leaks again .yet it has a 3 yr warrenty lol.

 

[Ned]

If I was told this directly from the source then I would not buy one. I would have no one to blame but myself if I bought one after being told that.
I would assume it's not fit for purpose and ask for my money back if it had a known fault.
regards, Ned

 

[keen4gold]

Maybe the seal is questionable and needs to be in top shape and clean to seal 100%, but you have to ask yourself, how many times would you use it completely submerged. I think that the ability to ping a $2 (and be confident to recover it) in amonst heavy trash far out weighs the ability to be waterproof. The screen makes it so easy to pick and choose what to dig. I have heard of people doubling up the battery seal just be sure, I haven't tried it though.

 

[Goldpick]

I think what the tech is insinuating, is that some owners install the rear seal the wrong way round (has a flat side and rounded side), but stupid thing is that this is not very obvious to the naked eye, and easily gotten wrong. Nice of him to call customers stupid.

It's your money at the end of the day, maybe consider one dedicated detector for the water, and another for dry land if you are torn over one machine to do it all. Plenty of detectors out there to choose from.

 

[Goldtarget]

Sorry mate but they would have to fix it under consumer law if it wasa manufacturing failure and unfit for purpose, any company can Crow on about it but the law is the law. Waterproof means just that. Complete failure fault or component fault falls to the consumer laws, just ask Holden what happens when they supply a dud engine in an S's, , a couple of official type letters and they will be compelled to come to the party. They can choose to rectify or replace.

 

[Roscoe]

I have had my ctx3030 for 12 months now, although i haven't fully submerged it in salt water i have in fresh water. I haven't seen a drop of water inside the battery compartment. If i was planning to submerge it in salt water i would opt for the AA battery pack instead of the Lithium as a precaution. I always check and keep the seal clean in the battery area. Detecting in the surf area is hard on machines and sand can make its way into areas. I give my ctx a hose down every time after coming from the beach, give it a good blow out around the seal area before opening the battery pack and keep the battery compartment area covered over whilst charging.

 

[mike90199]

yeh I mean im still gonna get one as I fear with the etrac the parks in my area are way to trashy .but the thing is with the o ring you cant tell if something is completely sealed unless you place it in a pressurized tank which is used for watches and all sorts of diving equiptment.

this is why these leaks are happening .when you work on watches or certain diving equiptment the item gets cleaned ,seals replaced then placed in a pressurized tank to make sure the item is sealed properly and there is no air bubbles but what minelab is essentially saying to the customer is you have to take a chance and hope the seal is perfect in order to use your item in water .

well I spoke to a American guy and he said that the ctx 3030 is covered in America for water damage but in Australia it is not .even tho minelab will repair it as a once of apparently .they changed some writing in a new manual they brought out for the ctx and it states that the ctx is not fully waterproof in order to cover themselves .I cant remember where the link is but my mate posted it to me the other day .

don't get me wrong im not trying to bash minelab they are a great company and good on them for replacing damaged detectors but why sink 6million into a machine with a design flaw a average watch maker can see from a mile away .why couldn't their top engineers see this .

you cant take a o ring or seal out of anything and then place it back in a guarantee a full seal it just dosnt happen .any equiptment that is designed for water has to be pressure checked before it re-enters the water or it is not guaranteed waterproof.

anyway ill stop with the rant it just saddens me that such a incredible machine would have such a basic design flaw that could of been avoided so easily.

 

[Roscoe]

Mike, I think the main problem is salt water entering the battery compartment the salt water reacts with the Lithium battery. Its this reaction with the lithium battery that causes the big problem. This is why i say use the AA battery pack if submerging in salt water. Am i right about this? what reaction would Nimh or alkaline batteries have if salt water was to enter onto them? If water enters the battery compartment i don't believe it can go any further than there as the unit is sealed from then on as well?

 

[Guest]

My SDC has an oval O ring in the battery compartment. Only have to make sure the O ring is clean for resealing.

Lets face it how often will I ever go diving with this machine having it fully submersed in water for hours???????

Probably never.

Will it handle the rain, yes. Will it handle a wash, Yes.

Mike do you plan to go diving with your machine? If not, stress less.

Its only a detector and you have protections under Australian Consumer Law.

For every good review on any product in the world there is a bad one. You will go mad trying to find the perfect detector because there is no such thing.

Its your money, you have to be happy with your decision at the end of the day.

You have been offered plenty of experienced advice on the detectors you seek.

I cant wait to see what you end up getting!

Kind Regards

 

[mike90199]

Mike, I think the main problem is salt water entering the battery compartment the salt water reacts with the Lithium battery. Its this reaction with the lithium battery that causes the big problem. This is why i say use the AA battery pack if submerging in salt water. Am i right about this? what reaction would Nimh or alkaline batteries have if salt water was to enter onto them? If water enters the battery compartment i don't believe it can go any further than there as the unit is sealed from then on as well?

yeh I mean it might not go any further but then again it might if there is holes in the machine somewhere else but I don't have one yet so I couldn't say before hand but ive heard of screens just blanking out and all sorts of stuff .the problem is the o ring anything with a o ring or that type of seal needs to be pressurized everytime you remove it to guarantee a seal this is why minelab cant guarantee water proof of their machines unless it is sealed from factory and not re opened ever .man I can only imagine how much this design flaw has cost them already .

yeh the salt water will definatly react with the battery .I will definatly not be putting mine in water unless minelab is gonna send me out a free pressurizing tank to chuck the thing in and make sure everytime I replace the battery pack the unit is properly sealed .

 

[mike90199]

My SDC has an oval O ring in the battery compartment. Only have to make sure the O ring is clean for resealing.

Lets face it how often will I ever go diving with this machine having it fully submersed in water for hours???????

Probably never.

Will it handle the rain, yes. Will it handle a wash, Yes.

Mike do you plan to go diving with your machine? If not, stress less.

Its only a detector and you have protections under Australian Consumer Law.

For every good review on any product in the world there is a bad one. You will go mad trying to find the perfect detector because there is no such thing.

Its your money, you have to be happy with your decision at the end of the day.

You have been offered plenty of experienced advice on the detectors you seek.

I cant wait to see what you end up getting!

Kind Regards

hahaha thx mate yeh im just a bit of a worry wart .sorry for the rants.you are right about finding the perfect detector .if I do get the ctx 3030 ill go out with it a few times and see what I can find .if I find a lot ill post them up .what detector do you use retirement.

 

[Guest]

Hey mate, I ve got the Xterra 705 and just bought the SDC 2300 in the hope of finding my first nugget.

I was going to sell the 705 but its discrimination capabilities are awesome for parks, show grounds or old church yards. The SDC I have to dig everything to be sure.

I just dont like to seeing you getting stressed!

Trying to help mate, thats all!

Cheers

 

[Shelton]

Gary Drayton shoudl tell something about, he is most experienced CTX water hunter.

 

[Decado]

I would dearly love a CTX 3030 going into it with my eyes totally open.

My first trade years ago was as a technician specialising in prototype and hand construction. So I know better than most nothing is perfect.

The early runs had display problems which has all but been eliminated in the current production but the water ingress is a continual problem you hear about all around the place.

Yes you can do quite well in that regard but it requires constant vigilance and only one forgetful episode can lead to disaster where as other in some cases far cheaper detectors have a far better reputation for lack of water ingress. AT Pro by way of example anyone?

Of course nothing is perfect, I must say I do have a high opinion of the service department at Minelabs speaking from the heart and with truth.

I have ear issues now days which preclude me from ever taking a detector beyond wading depth but when I did remark to the tech at minelab that in my personal opinion I would class the 3030 as more weather proof than water proof I didn;t get a lot of argument.

Bottom line, it's vulnerability to water ingress is well known, if you're buying one with that in mind then be paranoid in preperation pre hunt and cleanup post hunt.

regards
Dec

 

[Ben78]

yeh I mean im still gonna get one as I fear with the etrac the parks in my area are way to trashy

Have you ever used an etrac in a trashy park?

 

[Heatho]

yeh I mean im still gonna get one as I fear with the etrac the parks in my area are way to trashy

Have you ever used an etrac in a trashy park?

Kingsolomon had his set to 99tone 1 night and it sounded like R2D2.