Minelab 600 and 800 Ergonomic fix

[smokeythecat]

There is a fix for the bad ergonomics of both units. Remove the upper handle. Remove the control unit at the base. Acquire a Tesoro "S" handle and replace the Minelab handle with that. Attach the control unit to the Tesoro handle. I've seen those handles for $20-40 each. It's an easy fix. Not perfect, but not bad. Vferrari and I played around with the two brands on Saturday. Fit is ALMOST perfect. Since you are NOT drilling holes (one) n anything but the Tesoro handle for the control unit, warranty should be good to go.

For a lot of you it won't make a difference, but if you are older or have shoulder, arm, breathing or wrist issues, this should work very, very well.

 

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[Terry Soloman]

Smoke, if this works for you and others

For me there is no ergonomic issue.

 

[Rick K]

The ergonomic flaw of straight shafts is that the axis of support - from the arm cuff through the center of the handle - is above the axis of the shaft - the first axis meets the ground well in front of the coil to shaft connection.

Shortening the lower shaft helps with the imbalance of the coil’s eeight, but makes the above problem worse.

The result of this misalignment is that when the coil is swung, the inertia torques the shaft. You have to resist this through the handle. It also might be part of the problem with wobbly shafts. If that’s the case, the problem will likely get worse with use.

This was pointed out to me by a very expeienced designer of ergonomic tool shafts when I showed him my Nox 800. He pointed it out before he ever touched the machine.

 

[smokeythecat]

Thanks Rick K. Yes, we know it has ergonic issues. They can be overcome. I'm kinda short, so shortening the lower shaft is no problem. I really wanted one for salt water beach use only, this might just do it. The control unit could be mounted higher with just 1 drill hole in the Tesoro S handle. No slop with those babies! I've been using them for years. We old toads just can't do what we used to be able to in the past, and any quick fix like this should help.

Sent out as a public service announcement!

 

[NIBBLER]

I added a 8 ounce fishing weight under the arm rest.Helps balance.Drilled a hole in one end and there was already a hole in the other.Broke two drill bits but got it drilled.A couple of small zip ties and its all good.I prefer straight shaft units but the battery pack needs to be under the forearm.Makes it alot better.