PhaseTech

Steve, you hit the nail on the head re shafts. For me, the original Racer was perfect. Balance and handle angle. Racer 2 they went to the more forward leaning handle which twists the wrist forward. It is fine with very small coils, like 5" or 7x4 on the Gold Kruzer, as there is very little downwards pressure. For the 9x5" coils, I found the Anfibio or Impact shaft to be the best. Impact although heavier, is better balanced with the batteries right up the back. Anfibio is the same with the optional battery pod, but that obviously increases overall weight. The Fors series design is also excellent, especially for running larger coils, as there's more weight up the back and less on top of the pod. This is almost a perfect design for me. If this platform ever got relaunched, (imho it would be very suitable for a gold machine), I'd change the middle and lower shafts to carbon, and it would be awesome. My main interest in this new machine is 2-fold. 1. How well it does on the beach 2. How well it does on gold (lots of new customers still want a good all-rounder) Also, it will be interesting to see if ID's on fringe targets and large ferrous is improved.

The 6000 being able to use mono coils opens up a world of possibilities for coil options. Round, elliptical, semi-elliptical, spiral wound, bundle wound, stacked-spiral..... the options are endless. What I want in the arsenal is a bundle wound mono in between the 11" round and 17x13". Reason is they are both too sensitive in some areas, and I want something that's deeper than the 11", but also smoother running. I think a bundle wound coil would achieve this, and I wouldn't be fussed losing sensitivity to the stuff smaller than 0.1 of a gram. Detech have a 12.5" round size which is an excellent compromise size, and loved that on my 4500. A less sensitive coil also means I'd be able to use Normal in more places, especially when the ground dries out. Mineralised clay and charcoal don't like being wet!

The Gold Kruzer still retails at $1125 here.

The old XT18000 in 20 kHz with the optional 11" round coil went pretty deep on .22 lead size targets. The 19 kHz Fors Gold+ had good punch as well. I always wished there was a slightly bigger round coil for it, but probably a very limited market these days.

Hi Vic, myself and two other customers set up that test bed initially to test a range of coils. It was just supposed to be for a quick comparison, so we did some crude measurements and target size estimations, most of which have since been forgotten. But the targets have surprisingly remained buried for many years, and I have used the test bed so many times now that I know how different machines respond, so I have avoided the temptation to dig them up and record the weights and depths accurately. I still may do that some day. There is a hackly bit of lead, about 2.5g that is also buried quite deep, and this is a great "challenge" to newbies with any machine, as coil control and positioning is critical. From the best of my memory the largest target is a 7g lump of lead, and depth was initially at about 45 cm. The ground to the side of the hole is quite mineralised clay, so mono coils in Normal timings often perform poorly. The best combos I've found on this target are: Any GP series machine with Detech 15" DD coil GPZ7000 in General/Difficult GPX4500 in Enhance with 12" Evo GPX5000 with 17x13" Evo (Enhance or Fine Gold). The Commander 15x12" also responds well The 15" Evo & Detech 15" super deep also gets it easily, but the signal response is broader, not as crisp as the 17x13". The 6000 with 11" mono really struggles. The 14" DD in Normal and Salt is the best combo. Ground moisture and EMI levels vary the results slightly, which can be quite interesting.

In my experience, and I detect in high EMI locations, the 6000 is slightly more susceptible than the 2300. It is more powerful and has a bigger coil, so that is totally expected. Thankfully the Auto tune is super quick, and also, reducing the sensitivity to 2 or 3 if required usually gives me a stable threshold, and targets are still easily recognized. In extreme cases like close to electric fences, I can just strap on the 14". Can't do that on the 2300 or 7000.

Rob, yes me too on using my own headphones. The Equinox headphone adaptor is compatible.

Yep, as soon as Ebay was trying to force me to go to managed payments, I'm out. Ebay was becoming a big time hogger for several other reasons too. It's a shame as it was an easy place to move second hand gear and little odd bits you get in detector trades. So yes, Facebook will be seeing a lot of gear from me in the coming weeks. As for a great time to sell a gold detector? The market is a little flooded here in Oz at the moment with second hand detectors, but there are also lots of buyers out there.....if the price is right! Condition and the right accessories also helps.

Great stuff! I'm sure there'll be plenty more to come

You all forgot about the part where Minelab said UP TO 40 % deeper 😉

Same thing applies to bigger bits! This one looked like a dirty ball sinker. But a tap with the pick revealed an 0.64g nugget.

Okay here's a little tip. Twice now I have found "lead shot" only to realise it was a perfectly spherical ball of ironstone, with you guessed it, gold inside. Only when rubbed/scratched hard and not revealing that dull lustre of lead did I realise there may be gold inside. If you're not sure, put it on a flat bit of quartz and tap it with your pick.

Thanks Steve

Would love to see that piece after an acid bath.

Wow, they are both super clean. I have the same two in the collection, but mines a 2100e. Nice carbon shafts!

If it wasn't for the guy in the video, the 6000 wouldn't be released, and would probably be someone's imagination only. If it was Russell Coight, the coil would be backwards, the display would be smashed, and he would have driven over the control box 🤣

All packed, ready to drop off in the morning mate. A couple lucky locals already got there's.

Some shipping this week, possibly in stores early next week, with regular batches (maybe) in the following weeks. But at least that means the wheels are in motion and users will start to get their hands on them soon.

Is that a metal shaft about 4 inches away from the coil??

GPZ with 14, I do use a bungy. I can detect without one, but I can feel things after a while GPZ with 12" NF coil, I haven't used a bungy yet, but haven't done longer than a 3hr stint GPX4500/5000 with 12" Evo or smaller - no bungy. I will use one with 15" coils or bigger 6000 with 11" Coil - no bungy. Balance is indeed excellent.

The 12x8" Nugget Finder Evo coil running in Fine Gold will get you closest to the sensitivity of the Gold Monster, but will punch deeper and handle the ground a lot better.

They definitely can, but I find nothing compared to what some are pulling out.

I still love my 4500, but I'll be the first to admit that the GPZ7000 gets the most swing time these days. However, nearly every time I pull out the 4500, it rewards me.