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A Lighter Weight GPZ 7000?


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Whether people can handle it or not is a side issue. Repetitive motion injury is real and anything that can be done to make detectors lighter and more ergonomic has to be a goal. If I can choose between two machines that are near identical in every way, but one is significantly lighter, I am going with lighter. In the end it is a competitive advantage for any brand that achieves it. The Equinox is a sign Minelab really has heard us on this however so there is hope.

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I was told a couple of yrs ago that in the 14" coil there is over 5000 ft of wire and if that`s the case that`s where the weight comes from.  No way did Minelab make the 14" and 19" heavier just for the sheer hell of it. I`m thinking that to reduce weights on the coils would be to reduce performance or maybe they would not work at all.

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Goldwright, with all due respect, you obviously  have youth on your side, and  can we take it that you  have also been successful in your prospecting  endevourers? For  those of us that have swung a coil for nearly forty years, we have  suffered from a number of physical problems that are not simply solved by going to a gym. Let's see how keen you are at 70.

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To go a bit further, maybe into the realms of science fiction, as Davsgold suggestion of optical fibre may sound a wee different to us now, back in the 70s-80s, finding gold with a metal detector was something deemed a wee eccentric, "impossible" one can wave around a massive squeaking box with massive stereo headphones on your head and pick up gold............... As was solar panels and portable fridges in RV vehicles. Hell RV vehicles were non-existent almost.

Perhaps tomorrows detector may have fibre optics employed, it may be operated by a mobile phone application linking via wireless. Me I`ve been on this trip awhile and I discount nothing even  HUD on our glasses, because our sight is perhaps a better sense to use then our hearing to get those elusive signals.

Reg, I know where your coming from I`m GWs old fella and he thinks he`s top hat cos he can run rings round his old fella with a Z, but like you I`ve the runs on the board, and here hopes we are batting at a century. Man the detectors and gear we`ll be using then, bring it on ML now........and not just ML come on all MD Manufacturers.

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You have to consider many of us hunt grounds that are not flat like Australia. Up here in the Sierras it's mostly steep slopes and ravines. Most of the ground is covered in manzanita, buckbrush, and many other varieties of bushes that make it difficult to swing a heavy detector. When I detect I am constantly on uneven footing either walking up or down.swinging the gpx .crawling on all fours   under bushes and trees...This is one reason I have not upgraded to the GPZ....so yeah, I lighter detector will come one day, when that day comes I will get it, but for now my gpx4500 works just fine. Just my 2 cents. 

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Rigidity of design is vital with the GPZ, near zero flex in the shaft is all important for good coil control with the DOD design coil so to that end the housing and shafts used on the GPZ is brilliant, going back to a 5000 the day before yesterday really highlighted that for me. But like Steve said 

15 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

Repetitive motion injury is real and anything that can be done to make detectors lighter and more ergonomic has to be a goal.

to that end I'm in full agreement. Not only does it have to be a goal is should be a main aim put right up there as being just as important as the detectors performance.

I know this sounds like I'm being ungrateful, if I had to choose I OBVIOUSLY would choose what we have, its not really that bad for a 6 foot bloke like me but I have friends who are in their 70's who really do struggle if they use the machine for more than a few hours at a time, that is a window into my future 20 years from now if things don't start to improve gravitationaly speaking (gravity is already taking some cheap shots at my 50 year old carcass as it is :laugh:). 

In my opinion there is an obvious need for a smaller coil for those of us who work in mountainous or tight terrain, an approx 11" coil coming in well under a kilo would help a lot of people right now especially if they used a smaller and lighter CTX battery to help with balance.

JP

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Yeah age is a concern and I get that but conditioning your body for what you do is going to help.  Norvic and I carried enough water and provisions in our back packs for 3 days detectors and all 30kg and he is 65.  Due to the fact I am only just 40 I cant imagine what its like to be 70 but I have been a fencer for nearly 20 years now and can tell you 8 hours of that every day here in North Queensland is harder on your body than prospecting but it keeps my condition ready for prospecting.  And yes I have prospected for gold since I was maybe 10 years old not sure.

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It does get frustrating. The GPZ and the design of the DOD coil forces some hard choices. But many examples exist. The SDC 2300 could be placed in a Eureka style housing that can be hip or chest mounted and accept accessory coils. The reason it is not is because Minelab chooses it to be so. I have been beating on Garrett since day one with the ATX to make a light dry land version with light coils instead of using a heavy military housing. I went so far to customize one to specifically poke them in the eye with a stick to show how it can be done. All to no avail. They simply choose not to do it. In the case of the SDC and ATX I am convinced they want to use off the shelf military designs in order to be able to help recoup the cost of designing them. It also allows them to justify higher retail prices due to the special waterproof housing - which not a single prospector demanded was a requirement.

Frankly, the Equinox has been a real eye-opener for me as I figured Minelab was just always going to stand for "heavy, slow, and expensive". The fact they have obviously been paying attention and listening AND RESPONDING gives me great hope that going forward we will see renewed emphasis on ergonomics.

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Can't say that I've had much of an issue with the GPZ but I'm also in the Godwright age bracket and 6' 3". 

I did have a short prospect with some older fella's a month or so ago near Bendigo. Approx 62 and 70 years old.  The 62 handles the Z ok but has just had a titanium knee put in and that may well end his Z experiment. The 70 uses a hip stick and says he has not a single issue with the Z's weight - but before the hip stick it was almost an unviable proposition. 

The 70 year old also said he knows an 80 year old lady who has no issues with the GPZ - only because she uses a hip stick. 

It's on my 'I need to buy one' list.  

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