Vallon VMH3CS Mine Detector

[Ferric Toes]

OK, I carved a o-ring into a worn tennis ball, the rubber of which happens to be the very same colour as the Vallon. No wobble any more, and way, way less noises. Thank you Mr Foster. You reign !
Still some noises though. When I replaced the armcuff, I saw the cord to the coil was covered in dust (Afghanistan ? Iraq ?). I'd clean the inside of the tube down to the soldering points of the plug, but with what ? I think pouring alcohol fuel and shake the tube...

The back of the connector with the female pins is sealed (cable too). In fact the top and bottom tubes are allowed to flood when searching in water. The drain holes however are usually blocked with dust. One in the shaft swivel at the coil end and the other at the base on the rear block under the knurled battery cap. The dust does not do any harm in these tubes but could be washed out if you wish. Water with a drop of washing up liquid would be enough if you have got the rear block off. The coil shaft is more difficult and I wouldn't bother.

Eric.

[Ferric Toes]

Thanks for your replies.

The three screws were lose (?) but yes, I guess I will not go further - This parts are not to be disassembled. I'll put the screws back on with a drop of silicon.

The O-ring between the telescopic shaft and the body is cracked, still in one part, but cracked. Can I replace it by another ring ? I guess any O-ring could do, right ?

And The housing of the female part of the plug definitely lacks its O-ring since I bought it :-(. Here again, plumbing O-ring would do or should I buy the genuine part from Vallon ?

Best regards,

MC

I think you are mistaken about the cracked O ring. This is a clamping ring and is meant to have a gap in it. Tapers in the back of the larger outer shell and the body threaded part causes the ring with the gap to close on the shaft and lock it in place. Internal wear due to dust and constant use cause the taper on the knurled part to wear sufficiently so that it will not clamp tight.
PM me your address and I will send you the correct O ring for the plug.

Eric.

[brinbrin]

OK, I carved a o-ring into a worn tennis ball, the rubber of which happens to be the very same colour as the Vallon. No wobble any more, and way, way less noises. Thank you Mr Foster. You reign !
Still some noises though. When I replaced the armcuff, I saw the cord to the coil was covered in dust (Afghanistan ? Iraq ?). I'd clean the inside of the tube down to the soldering points of the plug, but with what ? I think pouring alcohol fuel and shake the tube...

[brinbrin]

You were lucky to be able to remove the three screws as they are secured with a thread locking compound. However, that is as far as you will get as the body is also cemented to the telescopic shaft. Even if it wasn't the screws go into threaded metal inserts that are inserted from the inside of the shaft. You are dealing with a piece of military grade hardware which is over-engineered when viewed from the DIY and hobby viewpoint.

Does the telescopic shaft lock up solidly with the bigger locking collar at the body end? Sometimes this is worn, giving slack at that point. Check that the three screws holding the long body tube are tight and that the insert that locks into the groove adjacent to the hex screw on the underside of the locking collar is in place. Sometimes it has been broken and fallen out. Its purpose is to prevent the top tube rotating in the body box. Lastly, check that there is an O ring in place under the smaller collar and round the housing part of the seven female pins. If this is missing, it will cause some slack and also the connector when screwed to the coil shaft will not be water sealed.

Eric.

Thanks for your replies.

The three screws were lose (?) but yes, I guess I will not go further - This parts are not to be disassembled. I'll put the screws back on with a drop of silicon.

The O-ring between the telescopic shaft and the body is cracked, still in one part, but cracked. Can I replace it by another ring ? I guess any O-ring could do, right ?

And The housing of the female part of the plug definitely lacks its O-ring since I bought it :-(. Here again, plumbing O-ring would do or should I buy the genuine part from Vallon ?

Best regards,

MC

[brinbrin]

Great and deep machine. A little heavy, and you may not swing it for 4 hours, but it will detect a paper staple at two inches if you have good hearing. But no way it can be used on dry sand, where there is a lot of trash. Wet sans at low tide is better (and that's where rings are lost when swimming at high tide).

[JohnnyRox]

What kind of depth do you get?

[Rocketdemon]

"The Vallon is a Great machine on the beach. It picks up Everything. And this is also its weakness as a hobby detector.
I don't have an Equinox, but the Vallon goes way deeper than my XP GoldMaxxPower eg.
When you are looking for a beach detector with great depth, the VMH3CS is the machine for you.
However, it is a PI detector without discrimination. You will dig a Lot of trash ! It was designed to detect a small firing pin of an anti-personnel mine.
This, combined with great depth may lead to magnificent finds of long buried items, but also to pain in the back after having dug a hundred holes with rusty nails, cans, ... and other trash.
I would never use the Vallon on farmland, but on the wet beach, this is definitely a winner and for me personally, this is the only machine I use on the beach".

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Works for me to!

[BC547]

More testing needs to be done and it remains to be seen if the effect is the same on a beach.

Thanks for the tip, Eric ! I will try mineral mode the next time on the beach.

- Bernard

[Ferric Toes]

The Vallon is a Great machine on the beach. It picks up Everything. And this is also its weakness as a hobby detector.
I don't have an Equinox, but the Vallon goes way deeper than my XP GoldMaxxPower eg.
When you are looking for a beach detector with great depth, the VMH3CS is the machine for you.
However, it is a PI detector without discrimination. You will dig a Lot of trash ! It was designed to detect a small firing pin of an anti-personnel mine.
This, combined with great depth may lead to magnificent finds of long buried items, but also to pain in the back after having dug a hundred holes with rusty nails, cans, ... and other trash.
I would never use the Vallon on farmland, but on the wet beach, this is definitely a winner and for me personally, this is the only machine I use on the beach.

I have found that when searching in fields or farmland, it is better to use the mineral mode. As well as eliminating any ground signal it appears to detect considerably less iron without losing detection range on non-ferrous items. More testing needs to be done and it remains to be seen if the effect is the same on a beach.

Eric.

[Ferric Toes]

Thanks for your answer. Is there a way to disassemble the male and female plug ? I've removed the three screws, but nothing move. I've used electronics contact cleaning for both with no results. When I bend the shaft where upper and lower shafts are attached, I can hear noise, so I guess there's a problem with the plug : Either bad contact (sand/dust worn contacts) or soldering/corrosion issue.

You were lucky to be able to remove the three screws as they are secured with a thread locking compound. However, that is as far as you will get as the body is also cemented to the telescopic shaft. Even if it wasn't the screws go into threaded metal inserts that are inserted from the inside of the shaft. You are dealing with a piece of military grade hardware which is over-engineered when viewed from the DIY and hobby viewpoint.

Does the telescopic shaft lock up solidly with the bigger locking collar at the body end? Sometimes this is worn, giving slack at that point. Check that the three screws holding the long body tube are tight and that the insert that locks into the groove adjacent to the hex screw on the underside of the locking collar is in place. Sometimes it has been broken and fallen out. Its purpose is to prevent the top tube rotating in the body box. Lastly, check that there is an O ring in place under the smaller collar and round the housing part of the seven female pins. If this is missing, it will cause some slack and also the connector when screwed to the coil shaft will not be water sealed.

Eric.

[BC547]

The Vallon is a Great machine on the beach. It picks up Everything. And this is also its weakness as a hobby detector.
I don't have an Equinox, but the Vallon goes way deeper than my XP GoldMaxxPower eg.
When you are looking for a beach detector with great depth, the VMH3CS is the machine for you.
However, it is a PI detector without discrimination. You will dig a Lot of trash ! It was designed to detect a small firing pin of an anti-personnel mine.
This, combined with great depth may lead to magnificent finds of long buried items, but also to pain in the back after having dug a hundred holes with rusty nails, cans, ... and other trash.
I would never use the Vallon on farmland, but on the wet beach, this is definitely a winner and for me personally, this is the only machine I use on the beach.

[JohnnyRox]

Hello Gents, new guy here. I started detecting a year ago so I'm still quite new at this.

I've read through many pages and I'm fascinated. I currently own an Equinox 800 and I predominantly hunt the beaches of Long Island NY. I haven't read through the entire thread, so I don't know if my question has already been answered. How's the Vallon's depth on the beach compared to the Equinox. Reason I ask is because I'm interested in a buying a PI machine that can go deeper than my current detector but I'm on a budget and the Vallon would be great, if it can go deeper than my Equinox.

Thank you!

[tifred]

Great ! thanks for the info Myntmaster

[brinbrin]

Thanks for your answer. Is there a way to disassemble the male and female plug ? I've removed the three screws, but nothing move. I've used electronics contact cleaning for both with no results. When I bend the shaft where upper and lower shafts are attached, I can hear noise, so I guess there's a problem with the plug : Either bad contact (sand/dust worn contacts) or soldering/corrosion issue.

[brinbrin]

Crickey ! Armrest changed ! Yes !