Jump to content

Gpx-6000 1 Year Anniversary. Is It The King?


Recommended Posts

27 minutes ago, Steve Herschbach said:

I admit I read this thread with a degree of satisfaction, and a feeling of being vindicated. As a prototype tester I put out a very early report on the GPX 6000 trying to tell U.S. operators only (not Australian users or X Coil users) exactly what is now becoming accepted as fact. And that is, for the average U.S. user, especially new buyers, the GPX 6000 is a better value than the GPZ 7000. Despite my clearly stated caveats, however, I got enough blowback from the very people I was exempting from my commentary, that I pulled all my reviews and information on the 6000. I did finally post them again about three months ago, once the heat died down.

I must say that the quality control, and therefore all the problems people have had with the GPX 6000, have been very disappointing. The fact is most people do not have issues, but so many do, including quite a few people that I know and respect, that it has taken some shine off what should have been a truly excellent release by Minelab. Were it not for the issues that plagued some people, a lot of the pushback would not have existed. We hear "yes, it does find gold, but the problems......" far too often.

Still, the Minelab GPX 6000 for me is a joy to swing, and literally paid for mine in two days last fall, on the kind of gold the GPZ 7000 is weak on, and that I had been over and missed with the 7000. Again, because of the grief I was given, I did not post about any of my GPX 6000 finds last year, but it has left me with a hole in my Steve's Mining Journal last year, that needs to be filled. So I will finally get around to writing that up and posting about it soon. Thanks Gerry, and everyone else posting on their GPX 6000 success, for making me feel more like saying something now, than I have this last year.

A few ounces of GPX 6000 finds from the Mother Lode country.....

00B128BC-1FAA-44AE-A793-3973B954FBE2.jpeg8058DB88-2007-4036-B4AF-C68BCCD86D41.jpeg

Steve, I know pictures don’t do justice when it comes to gold, but those look like some really spectacular specimens, WTG! Looking forward to your GPX 6000 journal entry.

  • Like 6
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites


1 hour ago, Steve Herschbach said:

I admit I read this thread with a degree of satisfaction……

A few ounces of GPX 6000 finds from the Mother Lode country.....

00B128BC-1FAA-44AE-A793-3973B954FBE2.jpeg8058DB88-2007-4036-B4AF-C68BCCD86D41.jpeg


Absolutely stunning pieces of gold! 👍😊

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

I admit I read this thread with a degree of satisfaction, and a feeling of being vindicated. As a prototype tester I put out a very early report on the GPX 6000 trying to tell U.S. operators only (not Australian users or X Coil users) exactly what is now becoming accepted as fact. And that is, for the average U.S. user, especially new buyers, the GPX 6000 is a better value than the GPZ 7000. Despite my clearly stated caveats, however, I got enough blowback from the very people I was exempting from my commentary, that I pulled all my reviews and information on the 6000. I did finally post them again about three months ago, once the heat died down.

I must say that the quality control, and therefore all the problems people have had with the GPX 6000, have been very disappointing. The fact is most people do not have issues, but so many do, including quite a few people that I know and respect, that it has taken some shine off what should have been a truly excellent release by Minelab. Were it not for the issues that plagued some people, a lot of the pushback would not have existed. We hear "yes, it does find gold, but the problems......" far too often.

Still, the Minelab GPX 6000 for me is a joy to swing, and literally paid for mine in two days last fall, on the kind of gold the GPZ 7000 is weak on, and that I had been over and missed with the 7000. Again, because of the grief I was given, I did not post about any of my GPX 6000 finds last year, but it has left me with a hole in my Steve's Mining Journal last year, that needs to be filled. So I will finally get around to writing that up and posting about it soon. Thanks Gerry, and everyone else posting on their GPX 6000 success, for making me feel more like saying something now, than I have this last year.

A few ounces of GPX 6000 finds from the Mother Lode country.....

00B128BC-1FAA-44AE-A793-3973B954FBE2.jpeg8058DB88-2007-4036-B4AF-C68BCCD86D41.jpeg

Absolutely incredible specimens you found Steve - well done!

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 hours ago, Rob Allison said:

Hey Gerry,

  I will bite .... 🙂

   Yes, we all know you have sold more detectors than anymore in the World, hehe..  Something you should be proud of.  :biggrin:  You probably put Kellyco out of business :blink:

I think for the "hardcore, depth guys" the GPZ 7000 is still KING for them.  However, this is probably only about 5% or less of the nuggetshooters/mining operations out there metal detecting for nuggets.  

I think the remainder, 95% or so would have the best of success with the new GPX 6000.  This unit is much easier to use, super lightweight, more sensitive to small gold (with new aftermarket coils) and $2500 cheaper.  

Since I locked up about 1,000 acres around Rye Patch, now our customer can toss rocks back in forth over the line at each other.  Just make sure you stay out of the Pizza joint when my crew is in town :ph34r:

For anymore that don't get our humor, Gerry and I have known each other forever, probably before these nuggets were even formed. 

God Bless and Happy Father's Day Weekend to all.

Rob

I figured a big "fish on" 🎣 would come on to DP and bite on this post, you did.🙂

I had to look up Kellyco to see who/what they sell.  Seems silly anyone wanting a gold detector would purchase from a warehouse in Florida.  Now a beach detector sure.  I think their customer and our customers are a little different, so we'll let them live a little longer.  Now that I think about it, they also earned the same award I did.  Purchased $1,000,000 in Minelab detectors in 1 fiscal year.  Boy those were the good days and we all made a little money💰.  On a side note, this is what you earn when purchasing $1,000,000 of detectors in a year. This little trophy.  Heck I'd thought a trip to Australia or at least a free detector.  Guess I have bragging rights.20220619_093201.thumb.jpg.f525b45c15d8e8630cf91c9a57ca5bcd.jpg

Yeah, Rye Patch and the ground holding gold could be in for a small seismic quake of change.  Funny how you heard about a Rye Patch 👮‍♂️ing the area.  It's all good, I hope🙊.

Happy Fathers Day to you and Dawn.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

As a Minelab dealer I’m always looking for a new and better King, so I am hoping the GPZ 8000 makes the 6000/7000 a dead king soon.😬

The GPX 6000 is more of a Queen, as it can multitask with all its timings and its ergonomics are very pleasant to handle. I think the 6000 is the lightest pulse induction out there with excellent performance. For the most part, the 6000 is the best detector for me due to the performance, weight, and the price.

The Prince is still the waterproof version of pulse induction detectors that lack the performance of the latter two detectors, but can be used in water flowing areas.

 

Happy Fathers Day, hope you’re out swinging soon.

Take a kid detecting with the GPX6000

 

 

 

 

6E633D0C-EF86-4A1A-999A-A2302C2E0F80.jpeg

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Aureous - Yes it's KING of small bird shot as well as the Au.  In fact it can pick them up deeper than most VLF gold detectors.  Sooner or later experienced guys like you/I will be selling our VLF's for just that reason.  On a side note and for those who are not seasoned.  It's an odds gain for me.  When nugget hunting a site and if getting constant bird shot, I start to scuff the top surface and if it moves, I walk.  This can save you quite a bit of time in the long run.  Will you miss a couple surface specs of Au, possibly.  But the odds are surface targets are trash targets in most of the areas I hunt in the US.  Always an exception though and if in a new site, you need to check a few of the top surface targets out before you make that decision. 

I do the same thing when I detect for older coins in yards.  I get many coil signals and leave them for my buddy to dig.  He gets more coins than I do and I end up with more older coins/silver than he does.

IdahoPeg - Glad to know the hip surgery went well and you are back at the swing again.  Lady, you are one impressive gal who can certainly hold your own when it comes to nugget hunting.  Your pics of Success and to know your biggest Nevada nugget ever was found, was with the GPX-6000.  Heck that's a lot of detector purchases from me and I know they all found you gold in NV, but the 6 is just something special.  Well done Lady Digger and I look forward to seeing more of your Au success with a 6000 this year.

Phrunt - I knew you were capable of a cartoon, but BK🤣 "Burger King"... Well you certainly didn't get it your way.

Of all guys, well deserved.  You my friend, had some very bad luck from the beginning with the 6 and so I feel your pain.  Time will heel your wounds and I promise you'll come around, especially when you put one of those new smaller CoilTek GOLDHAWK coils on the end.  Thanks for giving a little laugh on this special day.  All good buddy all good.

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm sure with time I'll come around a bit,  I do like it, it's just not going to take the crown as easily for me as it has for some others, and I doubt it ever will as I've pointed out I hunt in quite bad EMI areas, why use a DD on the 6000 when I can use my normal coils on my 7000 and not be troubled by the EMI and retain my full performance, there are plenty of reasons I prefer the 7000.  Really looking forward to some more coils for it though, one less thing to worry about failing too with the number of faulty stock coils a little aftermarket will give a bit more assurance there plus I like a few of the sizes available from the aftermarket guys over the 11" round.

What it does do is point out people have different needs in different places and as we always say, no one detector does it all.

if I lived in the USA I'd likely think it's the right choice for me though, just look at Steve's gold and the gold some others have posted, beautiful stuff and obviously some of that stuff is the GPZ's weak spot.  Our water worn little lumps are no trouble for the GPZ, although it appears quite a few are trouble for the previous GPX 5000/4500.

I think everyone should just be happy with their own choices, and they likely have reasons for them and enjoy whatever detector they're using.   Steve was a straight shooter on the 6000 from the start and for that I'm very appreciative, I just didn't like missing out but I'll give my 6000 plenty of use, it's so light it can tag along in my backpack especially with a smaller coil on it.

We all like certain detectors for certain reasons, not all of our reasons are the same. 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Norivc - It's hard to deny ounces of Success and to gather it with a much lighter and easier detectors is even more advantageous.  Nice coil cover life extender.

Lunk - Your skill & success from the exact same patches just goes to prove it's really not even close for most folks in the US.  Well said King Lunk..

Steve H - You have nothing to be ashamed of and in fact many of us listened to what you were saying early on.  You have been a straight shooter for the 25 yrs I've known you and that's probably part of the reason you were selected to be the US Tester.

Exactly as you stated buddy (a pleasure to swing) and more success on a variety of gold.  You/I and the rest of us can't fix the Minelab reliability but we sure can tell the world this detector (at this time) is the best of the 2 for most US users.  

Your success is GOLDEN in more ways than 1 and I thank you for finally sharing some of it with the world.  Heck Steve, if it was not for guys like you, look how many others would be at a loss.  Your #1 DP forum is the best of the best and just like a GPX-6000, it may not always be running the way we had hoped but in the long run...it takes home the GOLD.  Thanks again for opening back up.

Lundy/Rick - I wish you were there to witness the whole thing.  Very entertaining.  We need to get back and find some more Au, toss some rocks and make memories.

  • Like 3
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I still love my GPZ 7000 to me it is king but as a dealer guess what I would rather do training on? The areas I do instruction are near town and have been well and truly pounded over the 6 years we’ve been trading as such it is getting very hard to find a piece of gold using the 7000 in the given time frames (it is also a very hard thing to do to walk around with another person and focus on edge of detection signals whilst instructing).

In the past few weeks (since I recovered from the dreaded) I’ve done 3 or 4 x GPX 6000 sessions  and 2 or 3 x GPZ7000 training sessions, in every case I have found 3 pieces each time in the 6000 sessions and nil with the 7000, because the gold is just not plentiful enough there now without spending considerable time and focusing hard.

The GPZ7000 requires about 1 1/2 to 2 hours of assembly/fit out and instruction in the shop then 1 1/2 to 2 hours one on one in the field with another session a few days later to cover off on any questions ect (ongoing phone support or further refresher instruction), this is bare minimum to get someone up to speed and using that machine correctly. This is my commitment to our GPZ customers to make sure they have the best opportunity of finding gold and using the machine at its full potential. 

The GPX 6000 also gets similar treatment with assembly and instruction in the shop and then field training but it is so much easier to do even with total newbies, the weight is one factor but also the simplicity of the controls. Controlling the coil is paramount to effective detecting, even though we go to great pains to set people up with the 7K it is still a heavy machine and requires time spent learning how to control the coil properly.

Going over my well worked training areas with the 6000 makes me look like superman, there is nothing more gratifying than scoring a nugget with a customer listening in, showing something is possible for real is very empowering. The GPX 6000 makes me look very good. 😊 

JP

Speci piece I found last training session in someone refilled hole. (Approx 2 grams enclosed)

6873ABDA-0206-443E-AE96-A29F42BFC13E.thumb.jpeg.9ba7ff5c0be6874541f1e18867295abf.jpeg

49638E6A-294E-45CD-97F7-6DB1823F0BC9.thumb.jpeg.d9853399932ded99d6946277a194c54d.jpeg

 

  • Like 7
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

NV-OR-ID-CA-Au - GPZ-8000?  Why not a GPX-6500 with Updated Software and Iron Disc.  Or better yet, why not another manufacture give us users another high end PI?  Yes, getting the kids out to enjoy what we did as young ones, is priceless.  Thanks for adding content.

Phrunt - You said "I think everyone should just be happy with their own choices, and they likely have reasons for them and enjoy whatever detector they're using.   Steve was a straight shooter on the 6000 from the start and for that I'm very appreciative, I just didn't like missing out but I'll give my 6000 plenty of use, it's so light it can tag along in my backpack especially with a smaller coil on it.

We all like certain detectors for certain reasons, not all of our reasons are the same."

Well said my friend and soon we'll get more coil options.

JP- You said "In the past few weeks (since I recovered from the dreaded) I’ve done 3 or 4 x GPX 6000 sessions  and 2 or 3 x GPZ7000 training sessions, in every case I have found 3 pieces each time in the 6000 sessions and nil with the 7000, because the gold is just not plentiful enough there now without spending considerable time and focusing hard.

Going over my well worked training areas with the 6000 makes me look like superman, there is nothing more gratifying than scoring a nugget with a customer listening in, showing something is possible for real is very empowering. The GPX 6000 makes me look very good. 😊"

Spot on my friend.  The 6000 makes my Staff/I look like Kings at finding gold during the Field Training and that's the exact same area we've been training since late 90's.  Beautiful gold btw and thanks for contributing.

 

 

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...