I emailed a local fellow who sells md equipment out of his home, asking if he had the Vibra-Probe. He doesn't normally carry them and replied that he could sell me a pinpointer that goes "much deeper". Since I wanted something that could be used underwater I insisted on the Vibra-Probe, so he got one for me...
I was using a Wizard 2 -- a $15 dollar gizmo meant for finding nails in walls. It's far better than no pinpointer at all, but while it has only about a 1" range (about the same as a Vibra-Probe), it was difficult to tell where the target was relative to the Wizard's head end. With the Vibra-Probe I'm finding targets more quickly, since it only responds to metals at the tip, but I wish it had a slightly deeper range sometimes. (There are good arguments in favor of the shorter range though.) When using the Wizard I had to take my headphones off in order to hear it -- though it has LED's that light up, they are nearly impossible to see in full daylight. Naturally, with the Vibra-Probe I can leave the 'phones on.
The Vibra-Probe is a good tool, but whether or not it's the right tool for you is question only you can answer. I don't think you can go wrong by buying one, since -- even if it turns out not to be your preferred tool -- there will always be specific situations where it's the tool you'll want to use.
Shalom,
Mark
