Scoop... buy one or make your own?

[ArmyDiver]

Hello there!
My Excal II has finally shipped. (I never thought the day would come!) Upon realization that I was indeed about to start this little hobby, I noticed that I was lacking some rather important equipment. I spent a lot of time reading on here and doing research on the detector. Suffice it to say, I have done almost zero on a scoop.

I could justify spending the obscene amount of money on quality detector because it was the most important part. I'm having an issue wrapping my head around the costs of a scoop. 120-160 dollars for a glorified shovel seems a bit extreme. Is it worth the money or would I be fine attempting to make something myself? If it is not worth the trade off in time and energy or it simply won't last long, then so be it. I'm just curious if anyone has plans for a cheap and effective DIY scoop.

I'm open to any and all suggestions from the experienced members of the forum. My search only returned one thread that turned into a pissing contest between a hot head and some other members. His ignorance bored me rather quickly and I stopped reading. I plan to use the detector in the water/surf/wet sand. Thanks in advance for your input!

 

[BareBones]

I love innovation, so I'll be looking forward to some pics.

I saw a guy in the Bahamas that cut his wood handle in half, sleeved it with a piece of aluminum pipe and through bolted it to make it more travel friendly. I thought about trying that on my next long distance trip if I need to fit it in a suitcase.

Otherwise the duffel bag works great, but you do get some looks with the wood handle peaking out of the top.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

I love innovation, so I'll be looking forward to some pics.

I saw a guy in the Bahamas that cut his wood handle in half, sleeved it with a piece of aluminum pipe and through bolted it to make it more travel friendly. I thought about trying that on my next long distance trip if I need to fit it in a suitcase.

Otherwise the duffel bag works great, but you do get some looks with the wood handle peaking out of the top.

Beach Brute II handle breaks down for travel..........

 

[BareBones]

Yes there are a couple of travel scoops out there with aluminum handles that break down for travel. But I've also heard that unless you take good care of them, they will corrode and stick together over time.

That is going to be a problem anywhere you have two dissimilar metals and contact with water. IE the aluminum handle and stainless steel hardware, electrolysis is going to occur creating corrosion.

 

[Montauk3]

One of the best threads I've read in a long time.

Thanks folks.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Yes there are a couple of travel scoops out there with aluminum handles that break down for travel. But I've also heard that unless you take good care of them, they will corrode and stick together over time.

That is going to be a problem anywhere you have two dissimilar metals and contact with water. IE the aluminum handle and stainless steel hardware, electrolysis is going to occur creating corrosion.

Had mine for over two years with no problem, you just need to clean the screw couple times a year durring use........