Bosch Professional 120mm GMS Wall Detector

Toolstop were excellent, bought and delivered in a little over 24hrs. The Bosch GMS 120 however does not live up to expectation. I bought it to replace my older Stanley multi detector and for specific use in a newly dry lined and metal stud partitioned house. I think it may be too sensitive for example picking up a whole radiator in the next room it fails to identify studs. Better on electric but similar misreadings still occur. I specifically paid for this thinking that price would indicate greater accuracy/reliability but I’m not sure that it is worth the extra money.

Read a lot of negative things about this Stud Finder, but feel that maybe people aren't reading the manual or using it properly. It's not like X-Ray vision, so you do need to have diligence and a bit of common sense when using it. It's not just a case of throwing it against a wall and it telling you everything you need to know. That's just lazy.The manual goes into detail about all the settings and the signals the finder will give you so you can understand what it's telling you, like how to calibrate the device, when it's ready to start searching, how to move over areas multiple times to get more accurate readings, placing your hand on the wall to earth any current for a better reading.An item like this is only a drone and works as well as the person is using ... MoreRead a lot of negative things about this Stud Finder, but feel that maybe people aren't reading the manual or using it properly. It's not like X-Ray vision, so you do need to have diligence and a bit of common sense when using it. It's not just a case of throwing it against a wall and it telling you everything you need to know. That's just lazy.The manual goes into detail about all the settings and the signals the finder will give you so you can understand what it's telling you, like how to calibrate the device, when it's ready to start searching, how to move over areas multiple times to get more accurate readings, placing your hand on the wall to earth any current for a better reading.An item like this is only a drone and works as well as the person is using it.As someone who works in the trade I often see reviews from people clearly not understanding what they're doing when buying professional equipment, they don't understand that the tool doesn't do all the work and you have to put in some effort, whether that's physical or mental.This tool works perfectly well when used properly!!The only thing I would say is that it's a tad expensive for what it is, but as someone who is 'married in' to the Bosch product line, then as with all their tools the build quality is great. I don't have to worry about slinging this in my tool bag or getting knocked about. Unlike a £20 one which might not last 10 mins on a job or on site, purely from the abuse it receives.Overall a great item if you don't mind spending the extra pennies.

A wall detector that beat the others hands down

I had a few of these over the years - last one I had was made in the USA.They all left you guessing where the timber studs are and not sure where to drill.This Bosch detector is superior - it gave you a reasonable idea where the stud started & ended. You then drill very fine holes to confirm - and bingo - you have an accurate stud centre to drill into with confidence.Highly recommended. German excellence again..

Exceeded my expectations.

I was dubious about purchasing this after reading the very mixed reviews. I bought it and tried it on a lathe and plaster ceiling, with insulation and boards above not expecting much. It identified the joists quite clearly and made the job of installing downlights so muchg easier and in a fraction of the time. Overall very impressed so far. You do need to test in different modes if you want to identify joists, cables etc as well.

Hopeful optimism proved to be pointless

As others have found, this tool performs terribly. I tried to use it to determine the route of a cable within a plaster ‘dot and dab’ wall. It could have been anywhere within a 1/2 m span. I gave up and carefully poked a hole where I wanted to attach a fixing and ensured the cable wasn’t directly behind. Needless to say I returned which was done in store without fuss.

Internal walls okay.

Purchased recently and found very good for internal walls. Absolutely useless on external walls which have sisalation fitted. Readings on external walls were unreliable. If the product could be adjusted to accommodate sisalation, then may be okay. Returned and exchanged for Franklin T13…perfect.

It works, but...

I bought this being sceptical, there are mixed reviews around the internet, everything from “it’s magical” to “complete junk”. So I bought it and when it arrived I ran a test. I’d built a stud wall but only dry walled one side so I knew exactly where everything was. I was astonished as to how accurate it was. Here’s the but... ceilings and existing walls aren’t new stud walls, they’re full of insulation and random debris and services and repair patches. So when I tried to use it on a 50 year old flat roof ceiling to find joists it was pretty useless. So, it’s going to have its uses. I’ll keep it but don’t expect miracles.

Outstanding detection but requires practice

The Bosch G M S 120 professional detector is a very sophisticated device and uses 3 seperate detection technologies.It does need some serious practice to get the best out of it, otherwise you may end up with some very confusing results which may be difficult to sort out until you get some more experience.The detector initially uses a traffic light system situated round the detection head which changes colour from green to amber to red when it detects an abnormality. There is also a highly accurate LCD bargraph display which gives an exact pinpoint location for Cables, pipes and studs.The GMS120 has three detection modes:(1)Live Wire - it detects the electrostatic field and magnetic field surrounding a wire When energy is Present.The wire radiates a strong ... MoreThe Bosch G M S 120 professional detector is a very sophisticated device and uses 3 seperate detection technologies.It does need some serious practice to get the best out of it, otherwise you may end up with some very confusing results which may be difficult to sort out until you get some more experience.The detector initially uses a traffic light system situated round the detection head which changes colour from green to amber to red when it detects an abnormality. There is also a highly accurate LCD bargraph display which gives an exact pinpoint location for Cables, pipes and studs.The GMS120 has three detection modes:(1)Live Wire - it detects the electrostatic field and magnetic field surrounding a wire When energy is Present.The wire radiates a strong electro-magnetic field that is easily detected:( 2 ) is a Metal Detector - The gms120 incorparates A very powerful metal detector that easily finds hidden pipes, old dead wiring, nails, screws, and most magnetic and non-magnetic metals including brass,copper, zinc etc.(3 )is a wooden stud detector - This uses dielectricDetection and “sees†the plasterboard wall as one plate of a giant capacitor. Anything wooden behind the plaster board other than air alters the dielectric and is detected.Metal is shown as a seperate entity.According to the instruction manual, for safety reasons, the live wire detector is always on.I have used this device for over 3 months and found it to be fantastic, BUT I have learned the hard way a couple of important do’s and dont’s.If you are looking for a live wire or pipe hidden in a stud wall, do NOT switch to stud wall mode. Switch to metal detector mode - it can “see†live wires and pipes etc behind the plasterboard. If you switch to stud wall mode, you may see a very confusing jumble, which will include vertical and horizontal wooden structures plus the usual pipes,wires, nails, screws that are also hidden.I would recommend that you do initially place a few items on a wooden table, cover them with a sheet of cardboard/hardboard/plasterboard or whatever and practice detecting. I now use some masking tape to map out what the detector sees in walls etc starting with the live wire mode, and switching to metal. This helps buildup a picture of what is where. Before I start drilling.The instructions state that water filled plastic pipes can also be detected, although I have never tried it. Should be good for new build houses with plastic plumbing.

Product is excellent

I purchased this product with the intention of checking for live wires. Its capabilities are fantastic and the display is incredibly useful, particularly for determining whether the metal is ferrous or non-ferrous. It allows for greater confidence when drilling.

The 80 tool that gives you X-Ray powers

For the 80 or so pounds it costs, it does the job perfectly well, unlike cheaper alternatives. It finds the center of studs, wires and metals burried in the wall with sub-milimeter accuracy. It is so accurate, that it can have huge, broad use. You could even use it when nailing furniture, because it's that accurate, it will show you the edge of any metal or wooden object (and tell you what it is, metal, wire, wood, cavity) with extreme accuracy. So if you're nailing or screwing shelves together blindly, this tool will work there too. It's a few grand short of a portable x-ray with screen visualisation, but it does just as good of a job. Heavily recommend.