List of unhappy Garrett Propinpointer owners

[wisky18]

just to add my 2 cents worth,garrett pp works brilliantly when they work but frustrating when they act up,i also live in New Zealand and after mine started playing up i was advised that international warranty is only 12 months,mine started playing up after 6 months,hardly worth the cost to send back to the USA and then you have the wait to get it returned,i for one wont be suckered into buying a second pp at $127 USA or approx $240 NZ until the obvious flaws with the current model is rectified and you only have to search the net to find how many complaints there is with them,also if customer service is garrett"s priority then they should be acknowledging the flaws and get about designing a more reliable pinpointer

Exactly!

 

[wisky18]

I find this thread highly interesting. Will monitor.

The thing about my fisher pinpointer is that it isn’t nearly as sensitive as the Garrett, and it frustrates me sometimes with longer digs. But it works, every time, all the time.

Maybe there’s something to be said for that. Glad I ran into this discussion.

Glad we all can inform other fellow detectorists on a faulty product.

 

[~Alan~]

I can't really add anything to this debate, as I've never owned one of these pinpointers.
They have though, become very popular over here during the last couple of years.
I haven't seen too many problems reported, other than switches needing to be fixed.

I've asked over here, and people seem to be generally pretty happy with their pinpointers.
If they do go faulty it's usually the switch, which is an easy DIY fix.

 

[WVBowhunter]

Wow! For a bit there, I thought I was reading about the Bulls Eye II !

I use Sun Ray probes on all my detectors that can use them, and have used, broken, repaired, and had replaced several BE II's over the years. I have a Pro Pointer that just came in the mail today (I get home on Friday) that I bought to use with my TDI. Guess I'll have to wait and see if I got a good one or not...

 

[Nitelord]

I have two and both are going strong, even with the kids abusing them. Two years, lots of batteries and counting. GL & HH

 

[Cfmct]

Glad we all can inform other fellow detectorists on a faulty product, before the thread is removed, after all, it is a Garrett sponsored site.

I didn't realize Garrett was a sponsor here...

Would you point them out on our sponsor list please...

http://metaldetectingforum.com/sponsors.php

Even if Garrett was a sponsor we allow our members to talk about their issues within reason or when the sponsor in question responds.. once that takes place the thread is closed.

 

[AndrewGATPOhio]

The only problem I have is that it wastes 9volts like crazy. I put in a fairly new one, and in an hour or so I hear the warning beeping saying the battery is low.
And surely enough; it is.

 

[bigperm]

After reading everyone's posts, all I can say is hearing positive and negative remarks on the GARRETT PRO I'm still going to order me one soon enough, especially when I hear GARRETT stands behind there product, it's not everyday you hear of a company standing behind there product, actually I know of one other and that's KIRBY (vacume cleaner) I paid $2,500 for it but hey it's still up and running with a lifetime warranty 8 years later so I'm all over being a soon to be owner of a GARRETT Product!

 

[wisky18]

I didn't realize Garrett was a sponsor here...

Would you point them out on our sponsor list please...

http://metaldetectingforum.com/sponsors.php

Even if Garrett was a sponsor we allow our members to talk about their issues within reason or when the sponsor in question responds.. once that takes place the thread is closed.

My apologies to the forum admin for saying Garrett was a sponsor. I saw the name Garrett included in a sponsors banner at top of page, and took it as Garrett being a sponsor, my apologies again but i still stand by my original view.

 

[Buried]

After reading everyone's posts, all I can say is hearing positive and negative remarks on the GARRETT PRO I'm still going to order me one soon enough, especially when I hear GARRETT stands behind there product, it's not everyday you hear of a company standing behind there product, actually I know of one other and that's KIRBY (vacume cleaner) I paid $2,500 for it but hey it's still up and running with a lifetime warranty 8 years later so I'm all over being a soon to be owner of a GARRETT Product!

I have a kirby g4 (or g2) dont feel like looking right now, i'm lazy lol but I paid over 2k for mine.

The difference between Kirby and Garrett though, is my Kirby is still going and hasn't broke yet, and I've had it about 20 years. Yes, Kirby would fix it *IF* it breaks, Garrett will replace it *when* it breaks.

Standing behind your product is one thing, but standing behind your product and offering a quality product is another.

Garrett knows of the problem, and continues to sell them at the price they are because people keep buying them, and buy more than one at a time.

People that buy them are the ones that keep the price high and honestly, if people are buying stuff that breaks, why would they care about fixing the problem when they can ship a replacement and people still yell "Garrett is the best!" -- Doesn't make any sense to me.

 

[wisky18]

I have a kirby g4 (or g2) dont feel like looking right now, i'm lazy lol but I paid over 2k for mine.

The difference between Kirby and Garrett though, is my Kirby is still going and hasn't broke yet, and I've had it about 20 years. Yes, Kirby would fix it *IF* it breaks, Garrett will replace it *when* it breaks.

Standing behind your product is one thing, but standing behind your product and offering a quality product is another.

Garrett knows of the problem, and continues to sell them at the price they are because people keep buying them, and buy more than one at a time.

People that buy them are the ones that keep the price high and honestly, if people are buying stuff that breaks, why would they care about fixing the problem when they can ship a replacement and people still yell "Garrett is the best!" -- Doesn't make any sense to me.

I couldn't agree more, id rather buy more of them because of their quality, than because, its a good pinpointer and probably wont last, but need to have another.

 

[~Alan~]

So without having to trawl through every post, what seems to be the main
issues with the pinpointer ?
As I mentioned previously, for the very few people who have problems with
them in the UK, the switch is normally to blame.

 

[wisky18]

So without having to trawl through every post, what seems to be the main
issues with the pinpointer ?
As I mentioned previously, for the very few people who have problems with
them in the UK, the switch is normally to blame.

My experience so far with the Garrett pro pinpointer is that, its a fantastic pin pointer, untill it decides that it doesn't want to stop detetecting metal, even after you pull it away from the target it continues to sound off even if you point up in the air, it will only stop if you turn it off and on again only to have it do the same thing again, so if you put it into the hole, as soon as it detects a target it will go crazy telling you the tip must be touching the target even if you are still 2 inches away, pull it out of the hole and its still telling you the pinpointer tip is touching the target, ive had 3 with the same fault and so has my two hunting buddies, my last pinpointer started doing it after only 2 months.
You can understand my frustration, when something so good goes so bad, and at $240 a pinpointer.

 

[vargg]

not sure how they all break but my last 1 got dirt in it and it was never the same. dirt worked its way in from the switch. so after i got a new 1 back from garrett i completely sealed up the unit. i siliconed the hell out of it. so far so good.

 

[Skwerly]

Anyone know much about the Pro-find?

 

[dogpound]

Anyone know much about the Pro-find?

i've had mine for several months now(got mine shortly after the release), at first i wasn't overly impressed because the vibration feature wasn't as strong as on my garrett, but the more i used it the more it grew on me and now its my main pinpointer. i like the overall design of it and how the probe end is more slender then the garrett. so far i've had zero problems with my profind

 

[Skwerly]

thank you for that information. i'm leaning *heavily* toward this pinpointer because i haven't heard a single bad thing about them. i've been searching here on the forum and the only things i've heard are that folks wish it were louder and had a stronger vibrate.

i can live with that if the unit lasts longer than the garrett before giving up the ghost.

 

[Mntnclmbr]

9 Months

Put through the wringer. Mud and submerged several times. Keeps on ticking.
With their excellent warranty record, I've got no beef.

I understand frustrations with failures, especially international ones.
What does it cost to ship from NZ?

 

[HarveyH48]

I think it's kind of a sleazy business practice. They have to be aware there is a design flaw, even if the problem is just those of us here on this forum, it would be significant enough to fix. Leaving the flaw, is great for sales, since people are buying a backup, which doubles their sales. Not everyone will send a broken one in (still have gotten around too t myself), and simple buy another. The unit cost, from what I've seen of internals pictures, is likely in the $20 range, so it's really not a big deal to replace a few. Customers are happy and loyal, even through the slight inconvenience, each of who will continue to sell other on the product, and encourage purchasing a spare.

Really don't see a huge advantage to extending it's range, it simply helps locate the position of the target. You main detector will get you within inches, you have a pretty good idea how deep, and you are already planning on digging that hole. Really no need for more than a couple of inches. Beeps at 6", means any sort of metal within 6", not necessarily that target you were after. How does that really save time, if that first beep you chased, was trash you discriminated out?

 

[itsaring!]

i've had mine for several months now(got mine shortly after the release), at first i wasn't overly impressed because the vibration feature wasn't as strong as on my garrett, but the more i used it the more it grew on me and now its my main pinpointer. i like the overall design of it and how the probe end is more slender then the garrett. so far i've had zero problems with my profind

Thanks for posting Dogpound. I'll give one of these a spin when i get done pouring money into my trucks A.C. unit. Every part is like buying another pinpointer I use a pistolprobe. So the drastic change won't affect me like someone switching from a propointer to a profind.