What are explorers?

Explorers carry a fine, sharp tine used to detect caries, check margins, locate canal orifices and trace subgingival deposit by tactile feedback. Different tine geometries reach different places, which is the only reason a practice needs more than one: a shepherd's hook cannot follow a distal furcation and an ODU cannot check an occlusal pit the way a #23 does.

How the explorers range is organised

General caries detection:

#23 shepherd's hook single-ended, #23 SE hollow handle, #5 double-ended in solid, hollow and firm-grip handles.

Margins and restorations:

#2 double-ended in solid and firm-grip hollow handles, #6 single-ended 8mm, #3A single-ended.

Subgingival and furcation:

ODU #11/12 hollow handle, pigtail #3 in solid, hollow and firm-grip handles, cow horn #3CH double-ended.

Endodontic:

DG16 endo explorer and the Elite DG16 hollow handle, for locating and negotiating canal orifices.

Right angle:

#17 single-ended.

Choosing the right explorer

A #23 and a #5 cover most general practice between them. Add an ODU #11/12 if you are assessing periodontal patients — the extended, angled tine follows root surface subgingivally where a shepherd's hook binds at the gingival margin. The DG16 is not interchangeable with a general explorer: it is stiffer and finer specifically for feeling a canal orifice. Handle choice is comfort, not function — hollow handles are lighter and transmit tactile feedback that some clinicians prefer, solid handles are heavier and more durable.