Peteren

This is interesting JP as I have been scratching my head on ways to build a fully non metallic pick. Some ways to do this but they all cost lots in time, effort and cash

Microsoft and Apple seem to do OK with this

As long as the discrimination function comes as a firmware update and not another $10k machine

Not comparing so much the Landrover, rather the level of service. If you pay top dollar for a product, which you do with a GPZ, you expect exceptional service. ps, I thought Toyota was a "bit on the nose" in the US of A currently :-)

I hope Minelab are listening here. They need to engage someone to trawl their customers for their views, likes, dislikes and issues with products. Case in point, I purchased a new Landrover Discovery in 2015 and receive constant surveys on my views on the car. General ones about the product and specific ones on servicing. The two times it has gone in for scheduled servicing I get an emailed survey asking specific questions on the experience and how it can be improved. Not that it can get much better when a suit meets you at the door and asks "sir" what his needs are today, escorts you to his office to sign the service sheet then onto the leather appointed waiting room complete with free refreshments and a glass wall to view the service area so you can watch them service your car. Minelab need to take a leaf out of Landrovers book and implement something similar. Rant over

Gnarly veg man! Love the pics, try B/W HDR?

That's great news Steve I just hope it's at a normal coil price and not the Minelab "special" price!

Can I throw a curveball into this discussion? I get the black sand (magnetite) issues but my closest goldfield is covered in volcanic material which includes a mineral called specular hematite. This stuff drove my local geologist's crazy trying to work out what it was and it took a full spectrum analysis to nail it down. It is 96% FeO2 with the remaining 4% made up of rare earth minerals, the "unobtainium's" It drives PI machines nut's, mono coils cannot be used and DD's need to be dumbed down to near useless levels to be usable. The last thing that makes detecting very difficult is that this stuff does not stick to a magnet which means every targets needs to dug and sifted to find the target. Pieces the size of match heads sound off like nails so they need to be dug Photo below of some bits that I have dug

I voted straight shaft and post grip so you might think I'm biased towards Minelab machines, sorry but you are............correct :-))

The sand seal is interesting With my pessimistic hat on is this an "update" that by chance fixes some of the water sealing issues?

Can agree with Goldhound on this. I have a patch that produced lumps up to 15gms at 18" with a 24" UFO on a 2200 in its day that have not produced anything with a 5000. This ground is currently locked up but a large coil on the 7 should see some nice results

Thanks Steve, its clear I need to spend more time sorting the CTX. It aligns with the non gold detecting I do so it should be the goods once I can get my head around it

Cheers Mitchel, will give that a go

Steve I note you have sold your CTX and I'm presuming in preference to the XP Deus? If this is the case can you list your views on the pro's and con's of each machine. I have a CTX and cant seem to get to grips with it as yet and am in two minds as to persevere or go the XP direction. I think the main problem is that I have an ear tuned to more than ten models of XT, SD, GP, GPX and GPZ Minelab machines and cannot seem to retune it to the CTX Your views, as always, are appreciated Cheers Peter

Some work colleagues hamming it up on Australia Day