I just got an Inspector USB! It is amazing! The LND 7317 tube is built in, so you can only use one, but it also interfaces with a computer. It also uses wipe test plates. I don't have a Ludlum yet, but I do have an Eberline. If you want a pocket Geiger counter, the Inspector USB is a great choice! Ludlum meters would be an excellent choice too, depending on the model and the number of detectors it can use. I'd love to get a Ludlum, especially with a scalar! Inspector USB as a pocket Geiger counter? Yes! A Ludlum for use in the home/lab and for surveying/prospecting, etc? Yes! They are excellent instruments!
One of the detectors I was demonstrating is the Model 44-38 which is an energy compensated GM detector. It can be calibrated with the instrument and give accurate gamma exposure rate readings as long as the shield in the closed position.
@TheNuclide: The 44-9 (pancake) detector is designed for detection and measurement of contamination, which is normally measured in CPM and then often converted to DPM. Pancake GM detectors are not typically used for exposure rate measurements (mR/hr). A better choice for exposure rate measurements would be a side-window GM detector like the 44-38 probe or a scintillation detector like the Model 44-2 which is well suited for low level (less than 50 mR/hr) exposure rate measurements.
Nice! Great video! I do want to get a Ludlum, but I think the dial is for me. All of my spectrometers are either computer-based on digital and a scintillation counter (or GM) with a dial would be fun. Cheers!
Ludlum does have a filter that can be used with the 44-9 to make it an energy compensated GM so it can reasonably be calibrated both in CPM with filter off and mR/hr with the filter on
Very well done video. I have this instrument and appreciate you making this video. I was not sure about how the scaler function worked so I thank you for clarifying that point. Should my 44-9 probe be calibrated to cpm vs. mr/hr?
If you look at page 8 of the manual you will see a response chart. From this you can see that with the shield closed the energy response is fairly flat (within 30%)
