Garrett Pro Pointer AT Issue

[Dr. Witty]

I'm wondering if anyone else has seen this issue.
I got my Pro-Pointer AT-Garrett Carrot as I've heard it's being called now, a few weeks ago. It came with a fresh Eveready battery installed and I would say it has been on no more than 20 minutes max mainly to test it's features. Yesterday when I turned it on and pointed it at a coin it started to emit a warbling sound much like what I've heard that the previous Garrett pointer makes when it has a low battery. Turning it on and off didn't help. I set it aside for a while and then upon turning it on again it went back to normal, then did the same low battery alarm thing about 1 minute later. I then removed the battery and did the tongue on the contacts test and found it still pretty shocking. Has anyone eles run into this? I have since installed a new Energizer battery, but I'll need to wait til the snow is gone to test it properly. So I'm looking at mid June here in central NY.
Still that Eveready battery has a good charge on it. Any thoughts?

-Dr. Witty

 

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[Backstrap80]

Ive found pinpointers need A lot of power, when I pull my 9 volts out of the old Garret, and minelab pro finds the batteries power on a power tester was THE FIRST "o" in GOOD. the meter reads bad-good a new one reads on the D. Did you replace the batterey?

 

[pescadore]

Sounds like your original battery was not to good. Replace it and hopefully you will be fine. You don't have to wait to go out side. Turn it on and use it on stuff around the house to see if it does the same thing as the original battery. If so, I would send it back to Garrett.

 

[Dr. Witty]

Yeah I bought some fresh Energizer batteries and installed one. If this 40 degree heat wave continues through till the weekend, I may just get a chance to test it out in the back yard in the mud. Thanks for the advice.

 

[Keppy]

Did the new batteries fix the problem ??

 

[Dr. Witty]

I wont know until I try it out for a while, I'll do that tonight when I get home from work.

 

[John-Edmonton]

The battery that came with it was a carbon 9 volt battery. Short battery life and not very forgiving in cold weather. It sounds as if you were on the fringe of acceptable battery voltage life when it started that low battery signal, stopped and did it again. The new alkaline battery should fix your issues.

 

[gleaner1]

Get a twelve dollar digital voltmeter from the shack. Ya gots to do it.

 

[Mr.T]

I get half the battery life in the very cold with an xpointer. I use the left over battery in a mini electrolysis set up

It doesn't run too hot and damage delicate stuff.
Safe way to get into the bigger set ups. Don't use stainless steel as the sacrificial metal.Start off cleaning the less important stuff. Interesting to watch coins clean up.

 

[Tnmountains]

Yeah mine did it yesterday as well. Every time it would touch the dirt in the hole it would sound off. I really go thru the batteries with it. It does not completely kill the battery before the pointer gets erratic. Seems I carry as much battery weight as I do water.

 

[John-Edmonton]

I get half the battery life in the very cold with an xpointer. I use the left over battery in a mini electrolysis set up
View attachment 1129337
It doesn't run too hot and damage delicate stuff.
Safe way to get into the bigger set ups. Don't use stainless steel as the sacrificial metal.Start off cleaning the less important stuff. Interesting to watch coins clean up.

That's a great idea with those used 9 volts. Lots of great talent on this forum!

 

[Dr. Witty]

The new battery did the trick. Thanks all for the advice and the cool tips.

 

[wecoyote]

The new battery did the trick. Thanks all for the advice and the cool tips.

Glad to hear that. Been thinking of getting a Garrett Carrot as my next pinpointer.

 

[Jason in Enid]

The new battery did the trick. Thanks all for the advice and the cool tips.

PS, your tongue is a terrible volt meter. Even a "bad" 9 volt will still hurt your tongue.

 

[Phantasman]

Ive found pinpointers need A lot of power, when I pull my 9 volts out of the old Garret, and minelab pro finds the batteries power on a power tester was THE FIRST "o" in GOOD. the meter reads bad-good a new one reads on the D. Did you replace the batterey?

That's interesting. My XPointer, after 8-10 hrs of use, would turn off a minute after I turned it on with the flashing LED/low battery signal. I assumed the battery was "used up" and removed it for the winter. I saw the battery the other day laying close to it and placed it on the tip of my tongue and it didn't feel weak, but still usable in anything else. I'm wondering if pinpointers need exclusive power and are considered low when a little less than half the charge is left.

 

[Phantasman]

PS, your tongue is a terrible volt meter. Even a "bad" 9 volt will still hurt your tongue.

Worked for me for over 50 years since my first transistor radio.

 

[G.I.B.]

Worked for me for over 50 years since my first transistor radio.

And a side benefit is it helps you see in the dark!

 

[gleaner1]

Worked for me for over 50 years since my first transistor radio.

Cheap Radio Shack or Sears Crappy Digital Multi meter = way better than fifty years ago. Nowadays you can tell the exact voltage of your batts, and you dont even have to taste the crappy things.

 

[rks1949]

Cheap Radio Shack or Sears Crappy Digital Multi meter = way better than fifty years ago. Nowadays you can tell the exact voltage of your batts, and you dont even have to taste the crappy things.

So are the new pro pointers power hungry? My original pro pointer will run forever on a battery!

 

[Dr. Witty]

I've had a decent multimeter for years since I lost my first Fluke, just didn't want to pull it out for a simple tongue battery test. Also that battery tested good at 9.43 volts, It's brand new! I haven't had a chance to use the Garrett Carrot with the new Energizer cell yet since the ground is still rock solid here in Syracuse, NY. Maybe that first low battery signal was, well...a fluke? I wont know till the weather warms up. It's supposed to get to a whopping 50 degrees here on Thursday.