Kellyco Vulcan 360 Pinpointer first look

[bowwinkles]

Kellyco’s entry into the world of GPP, Pro 25, RS, and others is now available at a whopping sale price of $179.95. Snow days and boredom and a high degree of curiosity contributed to the call that caused Fed X to bring me yet another box. When it arrived and finally made it on to my bench for the initial inspection I was somewhat impressed. There are a few things that I felt are on the down side of this product. First off was the price which seems to be well above market. Then came the initial inspection and the need for a mini screwdriver to change out the battery. A person could have a sack full of batteries in the field and without the little screw driver you could not change out the cell. The supplied carrying holster does however have small areas on the side of the main loop that would allow for the little supplied driver to go along with you. There is no light for those evening tips and dark deep holes. The over all length is about two inches longer than my Pro 25 and GPP. The speaker is just behind the main switch so I found that very little use caused some debris to begin to collect so I went to my truck and got me one of those spot band aids and put it over that area. The sound is lower in frequency that the GPP and Pro 25 but was louder than my Pro 25 which was a plus. It does have the proximity alert like the GPP and Pro 25. The overall length and contoured grip was also a plus for my old bones. I slipped on one of my Home Depot protective caps and took it along with the GPP and Pro 25 to a local lot for a two hour run. My sensitivity setting was a 5 which is max. I used one of my small detectors (ATP) to locate all targets then I took each of the three pointers and went back over the located area and tried to locate the target. In many cases the Vulcan 360 was able to see targets that the other two did not respond to. The Minelab Pro 25 came in second. This means that the GPP just got delegated to stay in escrow while the Pro 25 and Vulcan go to the field with me. Then comes week after next when the Whites arrives.

 

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[Msbeepbeep]

Keep us updated!

 

[RotZorn]

Does anyone know if FT, Fisher, BH, Teknetics has a new pinpointer on the way?!?!

 

[pkb]

Think the quality is better than the GPP ? Think it will be durable ?

 

[firemac]

Last summer I had taken my gpp over to Garrett for repair, the one I received to replace it is much more sensitive than the first two I've used. Keep us informed!!

 

[bowwinkles]

An overnight thought that maybe my first evaluation was a bit skewed due to the Garrett and Minlab having batteries that were not fresh. I started out this test with three of the same brand cells fresh out of the package. This did not change the previous results and the Vulcan still has deeper sensing. I also found no main detector interference during my hunts. The Vulcan is very sturdy unlike the Garrett which will go nuts if you push it a little too hard into the soil. The Vulcan battery compartment is nice and tight and there should be no need to shim this area in order to have proper battery contact like is needed with the Garrett. The sensing is also more oriented toward the tip of the probe like the Minelab and not up near the handle and down the probe side like the Garrett. There is a small plastic bag in the box with extra screws for the battery cap so the manufacture (China) probably figured on a few screws getting lost during the battery change. So far the use after my second day of dirt pounding I feel better but still do not think the suggested retail is in line with the market. My Garrett cost $127 and has needed to be returned twice which each trip was about $15 so that puts its cost up around the price of the Minelab which is still holding strong. The Minelab was $160 which I also thought was a bit high. Lets hope that Kellyco will adjust the retail down to somewhere between the Garret’s and Minelabs price. As far as refinement, I would have to say that the Minelab has the edge on construction and design but a big plus for the Garrett is the volume of its speaker which allows for old ears to hear even when next to high traffic areas. Garrett also has the most aggressive vibration if that is important.

 

[ingram4868]

Thank you for such a thoughtful comparison.

What is your "Home Depot Protective Cover" ?

 

[bowwinkles]

Thank you for such a thoughtful comparison.

What is your "Home Depot Protective Cover" ?

Those white leg tips they sell on the hardware isle (made by sheperd hardware products #8908)

 

[bayhawk2]

Those white leg tips they sell on the hardware isle (made by sheperd hardware products #8908)

White leg tips...As in?

 

[bowwinkles]

White leg tips...As in?

Shepherd 5/8 in. White Plastic Leg Tips (4-Pack)-89106 at The Home Depot

 

[ingram4868]

That looks like a good way to prolong the life of the pinpointed. Does it degrade the effectiveness of the of the device any?

 

[bowwinkles]

That looks like a good way to prolong the life of the pinpointed. Does it degrade the effectiveness of the of the device any?

Not at all, I have them on the GPP (with a little cut out for the rib) , Minelab, RS, and now the Vulcan (also with a little cutout for the rib) Those tips are available in a number of sizes, just buy the one that fits your pointer.

 

[TampaTroy]

I was thinking about using Tool Dip on the end of my pinpointer because it's a cheapie and I can see it getting worn through quickly.
The same rubbery stuff that you might use to cover the handles of a pair of pliers.
Has anyone tried it?

 

[bowwinkles]

I was thinking about using Tool Dip on the end of my pinpointer because it's a cheapie and I can see it getting worn through quickly.
The same rubbery stuff that you might use to cover the handles of a pair of pliers.
Has anyone tried it?

I tried that stuff and it looked good but wore off very quickly. I have heard that some have used truck bed liner liquid with positive results. The home depot caps will last all year long without failure.

 

[RobRieman]

I can't imagine wearing through a pinpointer case. I use mine constantly and I actually have to wash the build up of caked on dirt off the end of it. Are you guys using it to dig in a gravel road or something?

 

[bowwinkles]

I can't imagine wearing through a pinpointer case. I use mine constantly and I actually have to wash the build up of caked on dirt off the end of it. Are you guys using it to dig in a gravel road or something?

With a great useful tool, a dollar cap seems like a bargain to keep it in first class shape. Some areas with the silicon based sand will cause a high degree of wear even with normal use. Many use knee pads when they detect and I have not heard them wearing through their knee caps, but that little protection sure helps.

 

[RobRieman]

Yeah I'm not saying you shouldn't do it or anything like that, of coarse that's totally up to you! But it was kinda my point too, I don't wear knee pads and my knees don't wear through just like my pin pointer.

 

[Jason in Enid]

After seeing what KC claims their BOGO junk is "valued" at, I have no doubt they would claim their own PP is worth that much. That way when they give you the $5 PP in a bundle they can claim you're getting such a great deal.

 

[McClod]

Last summer I had taken my gpp over to Garrett for repair, the one I received to replace it is much more sensitive than the first two I've used. Keep us informed!!

Since I started metal detecting in May of 2013 I have purchased 2 of Garrett's Pro-pointers and both have acted up. I bought my 2nd a few months ago with the intention of sending my first in for repairs or whatever is needed to keep it working correctly, didn't do it right away and so now both have similar issues of falsing and just acting odd. It's frustrating to say the least, but I know Garrett is fantastic with it comes to customer support. It would seem a shame to have to pay any more than what Garret charges for their pin pointers. The $199 price tag is a bit much for a pin pointer in my bank account, but thanks for posting a good review of this new pin pointer!

 

[bowwinkles]

I just noticed that they have a promotion with $60 off which would make it around $ 120. Mine is still going strong and I am using it as my main go to pointer.