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How to use a pinpointer

Updated: October 2026

How to use a pinpointer starts once the hole is already wider than the coin, the spoil is a messy pile, and the probe is still in the holster. You search the plug and the hole after the detector has marked the patch. You do not sweep the field again. UK recovery guides describe one sequence: switch on in clear air, scan the plug before you dig deeper, then the walls, then the spoil spread thin. The [pinpointer comparison](/hub/measuring-equipment/pinpointer) is where the eleven listings differ. This page is the procedure. It is not a ranking, and it is not the law.

How to use a pinpointer starts once the hole is already wider than the coin, the spoil is a messy pile, and the probe is still in the holster. You search the plug and the hole after the detector has marked the patch.

Our top picks

DR.ÖTEK DR.ÖTEK MT6 pinpointer

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DR.ÖTEK DR.ÖTEK MT6 pinpointer
9.4/10about £42.59
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Minelab Minelab PRO-FIND 40

Alternative

Minelab Minelab PRO-FIND 40
6.5/10about £139
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SUNPOW SUNPOW OT-MD12 pinpointer

Preis-Tipp

SUNPOW SUNPOW OT-MD12 pinpointer
8.7/10about £22.77
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On this page
  1. 1.Before the probe goes in the hole
  2. 2.Plug, walls, then spoil
  3. 3.When it will not be quiet, or will not speak
  4. 4.Put it away, and know the limit

Before the probe goes in the hole

Run pinpoint mode and cut a plug over the centre of the signal. The coil cannot follow the target down a narrow hole. Move the detector and the spade away before you switch the probe on. Metal beside the tip will chatter, or, if you power on against the target, tune that target out. Switch on in clear air, away from your boot, the heap, and the find. If your probe has no dedicated retune, switch it off and on in clear air. Garrett's press is not the menu on a DR.ÖTEK or a SUNPOW. What the listing claims is on the pinpointer buying guide.

Plug, walls, then spoil

Scan the plug before you make the hole deeper. Lay it grass-side down and move the tip across the soil face in slow lines. If the probe speaks there, the target came out with the plug. If the plug is quiet, search the walls and the floor, then spread the spoil a few centimetres thick. A constant beep on the whole wall is often mineralised soil, wet clay, or salt, not a find. Retune with the tip on that wall. If the probe stays silent and the detector still signals, recheck with the coil, and keep the coil off the probe.
DR.ÖTEK DR.ÖTEK MT6 pinpointer

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DR.ÖTEK DR.ÖTEK MT6 pinpointer
9.4/10about £42.59
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When it will not be quiet, or will not speak

Chatter in wet soil is a retune. A dead probe is often the cell. On the SUNPOW OT-MD12 a UK review says the 9 V must be clipped to the connector, not only laid in the slot. The Minelab PRO-FIND 40 stays silent until a battery is fitted, while the amazon table also says Corded Electric. Fit a cell before you decide the probe has failed. A quiet speaker is different. Notes on the CKG listing call the sound too faint in wind, so vibration matters if the LCD bar is still moving. If the bullet says the battery end must stay dry, do not rinse the whole wand.

Put it away, and know the limit

Holster the probe, or clip the wire, before the next signal. Most finds are lost when the wand is put down in the grass. A lost-alarm sentence appears only on the Minelab listing, and it says PRO-FIND 35 series on a title that says PRO-FIND 40. Stop if the object may be treasure, ordnance, or human remains. A scheduled monument is not a place to practise this sequence. Peter F. set this out on 16 October 2026 from UK recovery guides and these listing faults. We did not time a dig. A qualifying amazon.co.uk purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Common questions

Do I scan the plug or the hole first?
Scan the plug first. If the target is in the soil you have already lifted, deepening the hole only loses it in a larger pile. Search the walls and the floor next, then spread the spoil thin and scan that. Coil and Ground describe that order so the hole stays small. Recheck with the detector if both the plug and the hole are silent and you still have a signal.
Where do I switch it on?
Switch it on in clear air, away from the spade, the coil, your boots, and the target. Powering on with the tip against the find can tune the find out, so the probe goes quiet exactly where you need it. If the ground is noisy, retune with the tip on the soil, not on the coin. Other brands in this set use off and on rather than Garrett's dedicated press.
Why does it beep when there is no target?
The wall, wet sand, or salt can be enough, or the spade is still too close. Retune on that soil and move the metal tools away. A beep that tracks a specific lump in the plug is a target. A beep that covers the whole wall is ground. Do not stab the face of the plug to force a louder note. You will mark the coin.
What if it only responds when it touches the metal?
You may be past the depth that listing claims, which on several of these wands is only a few centimetres. Sweep closer and slower, and spread the spoil. If it is silent even on a coin you hold to the tip, check the battery clip before you call it dead. On the OT-MD12 the cell has to be clipped, not just dropped into the compartment.
How do I know the battery is actually connected?
A cell in the slot is not proof. The connector has to grip the studs. If the probe is silent on a known coin at the tip, refit the 9 V until the clip is on, or charge the built-in cell if that is the model you bought. The EXTSUD bullet says the 9 V is not included at all, so a new wand can be silent because the box never had a battery.
Should the probe stay on next to the coil?
No. Switch it off and holster it between holes. A live tip next to the coil beeps at the detector, masks faint signals, and runs the cell down. The only lost-alarm wording in this set is the Minelab line, and it names the PRO-FIND 35 series. The other probes will not call you back if you leave them switched on in the grass.
When do I stop and check I am allowed to dig here?
Before the first plug, if you do not already have the landowner's permission, and immediately if the object looks like ordnance, a burial, or possible treasure. A pinpointer does not change those rules. The 14-day clock in England and Wales, and Scotland's different report, are a separate question from this procedure. This how-to page cannot clear a scheduled monument.

Related pages

Waterproof or splashproof pinpointer

Metal detecting rules

Pinpointer

Best pinpointer for a wet UK field, with a skip list

Pinpointer buying guide: water claim before the stars

Sources

Public UK sources on treasure, scheduled monuments, the 2017 Code of Practice, Minelab's PRO-FIND 40 page and ingress protection, plus the amazon.co.uk listings for the eleven ASINs. Listings checked 16 October 2026. Prices move.

  1. Treasure Act 1996, section 8 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  2. GOV.UK, Report treasure (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  3. Portable Antiquities Scheme, treasure summary (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  4. Code of Practice for Responsible Metal Detecting in England and Wales (2017) (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  5. Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979, section 42 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  6. Historic England, section 42 consent (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  7. Minelab UK, PRO-FIND 40 tech specs (retrieved 16 October 2026)
  8. Nemko, ingress protection and IEC 60529 (retrieved 16 October 2026)