New Manticore Defective Out Of Box

[Steve Herschbach]

Actually having worked with thousands of warranty claims through my old business with many very large companies, I can assure people that getting the item in question to a service center is almost always on the customer. Very few companies will pay for getting it to them. So don’t look on this as something Minelab is doing that is abnormal because it is not. I do expect they will ship me the new coil for free, but even that a lot of companies will not do. I could tell you horrendous tales of people in Alaska having to ship new snowmobiles, outboards, ATVs etc from remote locations into one of the few service centers in the state like ours. Many hundreds or even thousands of dollars in shipping and in general that is on the buyer. Like I always told people up there, read the fine print if you live in remote locations. If you live on an island in the Pacific and that detector dies, you most likely will pay a hefty shipping bill both ways for warranty work.

[midalake]

Just now, Steve Herschbach said:

If you live on an island in the Pacific and that detector dies, you most likely will pay a hefty shipping bill both ways for warranty work.

Or in Mexico.......

[UKD2User]

I'm sure it's no coincidence that people who live in remote places often tend to be more self-sufficient and better at make-do-and-mend (a bit like our grandparents and the generations before them).

[dsb]

 Brake caliper rebuild kits,  filing ignition points, rebuilding Coleman lanterns, canning anything edible, I'd still die in Alaska🙂

[TampaBayBrad]

On 4/26/2024 at 10:41 AM, Steve Herschbach said:

I also pointed out the detectors have only been made for a year and the warranty is three years.

😆Pretty bad when you still have to prove your machine is under warranty at this point!

[LawrencetheMDer]

Just a fun note:  I didn't get a Manticore until they had the 15" coil in stock!  We're both sides of the coin.

[phrunt]

I hate that big thump in your stomach when you buy a new Minelab product and it's a dud when you first fire it up.  Happened with my 6000.  In fact, I've never bought a product from them EXCEPT the Manticore I've not had a warranty claim on for some reason over its life, I guess it's early days for the Manticore.  The funniest one was my Pro Sonic with the upside-down decal so you wouldn't even see the lights and the buttons were in the wrong place to use them because of it 🙂

I'd like to know what their failure rates are, I'm sure they have to be well above industry norm.

I don't think Minelab products are even remotely tested prior to being packaged, rolled off the production line and out the door, not like the old videos I see from the Garrett and Whites factories where they're testing with objects to ensure detectors are meeting specifications, I'm not even sure they work that way anymore at Garrett and Whites died, they're old videos, I think those days are gone with these mass produced detectors, not that it is unusual, most electronic products would never be tested before being packaged up and sold, they just rely on the product quality meaning the DOA levels would be very low.

[Steve Herschbach]

The coil was received at Minelab Americas and they could not duplicate the issue. I was afraid of that. To their credit they are sending me a replacement coil. If it works then I will be happy and baffled at the same time. If it does not, the entire detector has to go back. I'm hoping the coil works because if I have to send that detector back my Manticore journey will be off to a very rough start. Fingers crossed.