Alum. vs Stainless sand scoops

petejc

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 15, 2019
Messages
332
Location
Harrisburg, Pa.
Newbie here...Want to get a long handled sand scoop so these old bones don't have to bend down so much. I know aluminum has to be lighter but SS has to be stronger......Do I need SS. I rely on you guys for accurate info so thats why I'm asking on here.
saw an RTG Pro alum. on for $116.95 on amazon but was hoping tospend a little less if I could. Any advice would be helpful.....Pete

BTW I like the ones that have that short little handle sticking straight out about the middle of the long handle. That would make it easier on my arm picking it up with wet sand in it......
 
Wet sand tends to stick to the Alum. more than the ss when you dig and dump.
If you are in the water and dig and sift in the water its personal preference.
More options on hole size and spacing with ss.
 
Just saw a Coob SS Pro for 91.94 on amazon Looks pretty good. I don't want to spend 150.00 bucks on that alum with SS tip thanks anyway.
My next question is this Coob don't have a long handle coming with it. What type of handle do you guys prefer......aluminum, or wood. Or is there a fiber one that would fit. I also want to take that short little handle that it shows and put it up about half way for easy grabbing.
 
The little handle is a raptor pull handle. I prefer stainless steel. I also prefer a large scoop. Makes it easier to get the target in the scoop when detecting in the water. When it comes to scoops you get what you pay for. Gol cheap and you will be getting another one far sooner than you will if you purchase quality. I bought a fiberglass handle, put a wooden dowel inside of it. It has worked very well for over 4 years of hard use.
 
Rtg

Aluminum , 10 bucks for them to add a ss lip, 10 bucks for a grab handle, they do make SS scoops also , the 11x6 with ss lip and grab handle you will get by, happy hunting.
 
Aluminum scoops eventually fail. I a top brand stainless steel will carry a 10 year or lifetime warranty due to a failure. For me who beach hunts 80 - 100 days a year, stainless is the only way to go.
 
I think I'm going to order the Free2buy SS scoop from Amazon....$84. 95
Seems like a nice on and from the reviews is pretty well liked and sturdy.
Just don't know what type of handle I'm gonna put on it til I get it in my hands. I know I want to attach a short handle perpendicular to the long handle about half way up, just know sure how to do it like I said til I get it in my hands.....Anyone have any pics of one you did. Thanks
 
I agree...... if you dig much wet sand aluminum scoops wear at the tip and get stress cracks much faster. I really dont think they are lighter either. Also a good many of the aluminum ones have that round mouth..... in the water on hard pan they tend to roll on you because they get dull and wont penetrate the hard pan. For those of you who have a SS and Aluminum...... which would you sell first.... and which is setting on your wall as a back up?
 
Main problem with the Coob scoops is they rust. Cheap stainless. I prefer the carbon fiber handle. Take a measurement on the inside diameter of the scoop tubing. Then you can order reasonable carbon fiber on feebay from China with 2mm thickness walls. I know a scoop maker on here thinks they are the only one who knows about carbon fiber. But it's not rocket science.
 
Just saw a Coob SS Pro for 91.94 on amazon Looks pretty good. I don't want to spend 150.00 bucks on that alum with SS tip thanks anyway.
My next question is this Coob don't have a long handle coming with it. What type of handle do you guys prefer......aluminum, or wood. Or is there a fiber one that would fit. I also want to take that short little handle that it shows and put it up about half way for easy grabbing.
I think you would be better off spending a little extra money and getting a good scoop, seen too many horror stories on cheap scoops. In the end, a more expensive scoop will save you money, time, and stress. :my2cents:
 
As mentioned before, wet sand sticks more to aluminum. Aluminum has to be thicker than SS to give you the same strength to weight ratio, thereby losing out. If you hunt the wet sand and water SS is the way to go. I have an aluminum scoop for the dry sand that has a much smaller bucket. If you're going to go out once or more a week pay up front for a good quality scoop - a Stealth or Stavr - it'll be worth it over the long run.
 
as mentioned before, wet sand sticks more to aluminum. Aluminum has to be thicker than ss to give you the same strength to weight ratio, thereby losing out. If you hunt the wet sand and water ss is the way to go. I have an aluminum scoop for the dry sand that has a much smaller bucket. If you're going to go out once or more a week pay up front for a good quality scoop - a stealth or stavr - it'll be worth it over the long run.
yup!!!
 
Newbie here...Want to get a long handled sand scoop so these old bones don't have to bend down so much. I know aluminum has to be lighter but SS has to be stronger......Do I need SS. I rely on you guys for accurate info so thats why I'm asking on here.
saw an RTG Pro alum. on for $116.95 on amazon but was hoping tospend a little less if I could. Any advice would be helpful.....Pete

BTW I like the ones that have that short little handle sticking straight out about the middle of the long handle. That would make it easier on my arm picking it up with wet sand in it......

Aluminum scoops, like the RTG style, don't have enough holes to quickly sift through the sand. Also, they have a small width so you have to scoop and scoop, and scoop and scoop and scoop to find your target. Maybe not a big deal on land, but in the water, you might bury your target, lose the target, or get knocked by a wave before you find it. Frustrating!

Only thing worse than a small and heavy aluminum scoop is a cheap stainless scoop. Of course it looks pretty when you open the box, but after a few stressful pulls with it in the wet sand, welds are prone to pop. I've even seen some scoops rip like a piece of plastic. Sure, you can take it to your local automotive exhaust shop and ask them to add a little extra bracing and re-weld but they don't do it for free. You'll probably spend $60-100.

Wait a few more weeks, save your pennies and buy a Stealth or Stavr
 
scoops

tools for fools
 

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Robotcop,
Where did you get the white curved handles that fit half way down the long part of the handle.....I like those....

I also want to thank everyone for giving me their advice on this issue but I forgot one important thing I should have told you.

I probably won't get to any beaches more than 5 or 6 times in a year, so I think that Free2buy SS one I ordered should last me.

Again Robotcop, please tell me how to get one of the curved handles you show in the photo on the right.......Thanks in advaNCE...
 
Take my bad advice that works for me.

I hunt beach and water alot. 100 days min a year and I say that is on the low side.
I have 5 scoops. My favorite beach and water scoop is big wide mouth scoop with a wood shovel handle. This is heavy and takes a beating. I broke a weld on the back side of the it and still use it. A few scoops and I have the target.

My second favorite scoop is smaller and beefy and lighter. If I could find a bigger scoop I that design that the does not make it would be my favorite set up. What I hate I the many scoops I have to take out to get to the target.
This seems to work for me. You got to find out what works for you.

I would buy a scoop from the sponsors of this site and review it here if I was you and if anybody knows of a heavy duty wide mouth ocean scoop let me know about it!

GLHH

Sent from my LGLS775 using Tapatalk
 
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