Latest On Fisher Impulse AQ - Production Delay

[Mark Gillespie]

4 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

From my perspective and others it’s been more like a ten year wait. Nobody feels like it’s been two years. That’s internal information that really does not matter. And after people have waited all this time for a new flagship this still is not it. This is a niche product in a niche market. I did not hear everyone wanting a new beach detector. People want an answer to the Equinox from First Texas. So while this is an interesting product for a few people I don’t think it changes anything in the big picture really. Most First Texas fans won’t care about this detector and are still going to be waiting.

It’s too bad Alexandre won’t post anywhere but Dankowski. The forum has its fans but it barely gets enough traffic anymore to even generate an Alexa ranking. That’s what happens to all forums that let the trolls run loose. People leave. I watch but I will never participate again while trolls like shoveler are allowed to abuse other forum members with impunity.

I usually get to the coast once a year.  Last year I took the Equinox and had a great time.  Found 4 ear ring post, no rings or silver coins but that was not the detectors fault (the beach had been built up from the storm the prior year.  Year before, I took the TDI SL wrapped in a large zip lock bag and found more stuff, silver and rings to boot.  I truly love a PI at the saltwater beach, but I could never afford such a costly machine to hunt 4-5 days out of a year.

 

[Rick K - First Member]

What you posted Mark is a key factor in the whole “equation ” that FT has to solve to make  the AQ a commercial reality.  As Steve rightly pointed out - water hunting is a niche - salt water is a “sub-niche” and beach as opposed to diving is another splinter. 

For a company who is used to shipping out their products in container loads, it’s a heck of a challenge, especially given that it will probably have to have a price that makes your analysis about whether it would be realistic for you quite correct.

I believe that they are committed to doing it - but I also expect that they are being extra careful in order to maximize the chances that it can actually earn back it’s development costs and yield a profit.

[Rick K - First Member]

P.S. Alexandre just posted that it will be this year.  Now, having said that, I doubt that the Chief designer gets to decide when a product will be released - having said that, I suspect he knows - something.

[Steve Herschbach]

I was not too worried about this year.... but that could mean just in time for Christmas. Can you believe it is already May? The year is just blowing by for me so no matter when it is it won't be long!! 

For me if it came out real soon I would have to just jump on one with fingers crossed. If it is a winter introduction I can afford to wait and watch until spring.

[Mark Gillespie]

Just saying.

Imagine where 1st Texas would be, if they'd not latched on to the Manta and the developer in France.  They were in bad need of something new.  Rather, still desperate for something to set them on top again. 

Just saying.

[EL NINO77]

It's just a plus for Fisher ... that he has proven to evaluate this possibility as a forward-looking technology and pushed it into a real product.
  It's a step in before in the Detection Options ...
  And that is important....

[Rick K - First Member]

They are busy with other new stuff - I have no clue what it is, but they have clearly indicated that it is coming.

There is nothing “lucky” however about their “aquihire” of the Manta program and team.  Carl Moreland’s long running geotech forum is where Alexandre elected to “surface” his long program of studying, then further developing multi channel PI detector technology.  Carl saw this and using his “put up or shut up” approach - contacted Alexandre and got a prototype to try.

That part was pretty straightforward - mind you - I have no actual information, but imagine pitching the idea of buying in and hiring these French guys to First Texas Management.  This is a closely held company, Tom Walsh runs the place.  Tom had to make the decision to literally “buy in”.

Lucky, maybe, but also daring.

[Mark Gillespie]

I remember back in the day when I received a phone call from Gene Scullion (owner of Badger Metal Detectors) before he went to work for 1st Texas.  He was so excited to inform me that Fisher had released a detector (F75) that was a total game changer.  Mark, you must have one, it will change everything, it will open up your old sites to new finds.  I trusted him completely and ordered a new Fisher F75 and he was 100% correct in his statement.  Prior to this purchase I had either owned or borrowed the very best VLF machines on Earth.  I immediately took the machine to these hunted sites and revealed a huge amount of good targets that the other machine could not respond to.  I know there are many loyal hunters that will stick to 1st Texas no matter what, but I change to the machine that will outperform in the real world.  Since the F75 LTD I have found 2 machines that have excelled in my area, but I still have the Fisher F75 LTD for a backup.?

 

[Daniel Tn]

I am very interested in this detector.  I live 8 hours from the nearest saltwater beach and may only get to the beach once a year for a few days.  My thought process is a bit different than others though; I want to try to make the best of my time while detecting at the beach for the time that I am there.  I don't want a machine that I can just make do with.  

I sound like a broken record by now, but before the GPX got popular at the Culpeper, VA hunts, most of the people were using the Whites MXT, Fisher T2/F75, and the Whites 5900.  Those people would often heckle the few pulse users by saying they were crazy for spending that kind of money to hunt relics a couple times a year, when their machines could do just as good in the right hands. They were playing this up to be an experience thing...that in the hands of a skilled user, the VLFs could do just as good. This was proven to be incorrect, and it didn't take long for it to catch on. Now I dare say 95% of the people use a pulse machine of some sort, with most having a GPX.  I never doubted nor heckled...I was one of the first to get one to be honest.  And thus I will be when the new Fisher hits the market.  

Since I don't live close to the beaches, I don't have the luxury of waiting for the perfect tide sequence, or for the big storms to erode the beaches.  I have to make due with the conditions while I am there. They may not be the most favorable but I hopefully will have the machine in hand to give me the best chances at finding gold while I'm there.  

[Mark Gillespie]

Well said Daniel.

I'm in the same position.  Many hours from the coast and I try to vacate the beach one week out of the year and I try to make the best of my hunting time while there.