PhaseTech

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! 

On 9/16/2021 at 5:04 AM, Steve Herschbach said:

Good to see, but it boggles my mind how much more expensive imports end up being in Oz. Here the machine is a real bargain price at US$679 discounted (MSRP $799) but in Oz it ends up at AU$1359? Yikes!

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. 

On 8/18/2021 at 9:29 AM, VicR said:

Hi FON,

I was told the target was a largish piece of lead (maybe an oz) at 400mm, it & other targets was buried many years ago by a very experience local detectorist 

 

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. 

2 hours ago, Rob Allison said:

Hey Guys,

   Great reports.  I managed to get just a bit of time on mine this weekend, but made sure I ran it across some ground I hit pretty good prior.  I managed to find 6 small gold nuggets I missed with prior detectors.  

I didn't even read the manual, just took the unit out of the box after the battery charged and winged it.  I might have been running it wrong ..... LOL, but still managed to find 6 dinks.  

First impression, super lightweight, extremely sensitive, like the fact you can use the external speaker, headphones (wired or bluetooth).  The unit does compact down very small, perfect for a quad, quad box and such.  My GPZ 7000 won't break down small enough, have to always take break it apart to travel in my quad box.  

A few things I have to get used to, the 3 piece shaft seems to be much more flimsy than I'm used to and hope there is a headphone jack conversion to 1/4" as I prefer other headphones (wired).  

I should have another batch soon, the first batch was pre-sold and gone the moment they arrived.  Wishing you all much success with your new GPX 6000's!

Rob

 

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

12 hours ago, mungass said:

everyone is using facebook marketplace.........no fees...........

 

 

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!

4 hours ago, VicR said:

Unfortunately the guy in the Minelab videos looks like Russell Coights All Aussie Adventures which puts me off the videos a bit. All Aussie Adventures is a comedy show about Russell who believes he is a real Aussie with an intimate knowledge of the bush but in reality knows bugger all and gets himself and the people he is trying to impress with his bush skills into all sorts of predicaments. I think I will stick to the manual.

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 🤣

2 hours ago, mungass said:

Bloody Ripper.....Nenad from Phase Technical said mine will be in the mail tomorrow   .

 

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. 

9 hours ago, Lunk said:

Ace! Proof that the older models can still hold their own.

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. 

They were the best super cheap hiking boots I ever bought, until they fell apart 😆