Fisher's New Gold Bug Tracker Metal Detector

[Reno Chris]

27 minutes ago, Chase Goldman said:

do you or @Geotech see FT updating the GBP with these GBT improvements? 

They could update and change out the Ground phase display to read only the target ID in all metal, but beyond that the other changes would alter the design intentions of what the detector was made to do. So no I dont see it.

[Geotech]

Yes, the Gold Bug Tracker is the same as the Gold Bug Africa. It is the first FTP detector with automatic ground tracking. Until now, other models had ground grab which requires continuously monitoring and recording the ground response but none of them had true AGT.

Personally, I was not involved in the development other than some field testing. First time I took it out I found the tracking to be woefully slow so I told them how it needed to work. It went from a 20-bob AGT to a 3-bob AGT. My "gold standard" is the White's GMT, which has a 2-bob AGT so the GBT is quite good. I also found that the target inhibit works really well so it doesn't track out targets. Once they got it dialed in I was very pleased with it and pushed them to release a domestic version, which they've finally done.

Yes, I agree, there is massive confusion, both with the overuse of the "Gold Bug" name and with all the similar models. A lot of this was due to FTP having different sales channels that required some uniqueness, ergo different model names with almost the exact same features.

[GB_Amateur]

11 hours ago, phrunt said:

No longer is there a ground grab button on it.

On the GB-Pro and siblings, that button also served as the pinpoint function in discriminate mode:

The red printing under the 'GG' on the central button reads "PIN POINT".  I surmise that the pinpoint function isn't considered necessary when searching for natural gold.  And with the small coil (5" diameter), other methods of pinpointing are pretty easy.

Nice to see that some of the FT engineers' efforts are making their way into the hobby/artisan market.  Seems like it's been awhile....

 

[GB_Amateur]

8 hours ago, Geotech said:

I agree, there is massive confusion, both with the overuse of the "Gold Bug" name and with all the similar models. A lot of this was due to FTP having different sales channels that required some uniqueness, ergo different model names with almost the exact same features.

At the risk of getting too far off topic (well, I think this is still on topic), here are the current Amazon prices for various (modern) Gold Bug family members, ordered by price:

$399 -- Gold Bug Pro with both 5" and 5"x10" coils.

$359 -- Gold Bug 'DP' with 7"x11" coil.

$339 -- Gold Bug Pro with 5" coil.

$329 -- F19 with 7"x11" coil.

$299 -- F19 with 5"x10" coil.

$299 -- Gold Bug Tracker (not currently on Amazon but the price Chris mentions from High Plains Prospecting).

$219 -- Bounty Hunter Time Ranger Pro (TRP) with 7"x11" coil.

$149 -- 7"x11" coil (only -- at both High Plains and Serious Detecting; didn't see it on Amazon).

$147.50 -- 5"x10" coil (only).

$129 -- 5" coil (only -- this price is from High Plains and a few other sellers; I didn't see it on Amazon).

To reiterate the pricing 'confusion' discussed on this forum many times, not only do the F19 and its paternal twin TRP have all the functions and capabilities as the Gold Bug Pro (not counting the stock coils they come with), but they have even more features as Chase and others mention.  The glaring example of price contradiction:  Gold Bug DP, with fewer features, costs $70 more than a similarly outfitted F19 and $140 more than the similarly outfitted TRP!

 

[EL NINO77]

 Gold Bug  Tracker....It can definitely be a great gold and coin detector...also because you already have the target ID in the middle of the display...and the 15khz frequency will provide higher resistance to minerals and greater depth on highly conductive coins... ground tracking is a good bonus here...

Remember one thing.. at reduced sensitivity it is capable even in super extreme mineralization...

[phrunt]

19 minutes ago, EL NINO77 said:

 Gold Bug  Tracker....It can definitely be a great gold and coin detector...also because you already have the target ID in the middle of the display...and the 15khz frequency will provide higher resistance to minerals and greater depth on highly conductive coins... ground tracking is a good bonus here...

Remember one thing.. at reduced sensitivity it is capable even in super extreme mineralization...

It was an error in the only dealer selling its advertisement that it's 15kHz, that would make it a bit more of a new model, it's the same 19kHz guts with some modified software as the other 19kHz machines.

As far as paint jobs go though it's a little different as it truly has something new for First Texas, tracking. 

I'd still rather use a F19 for gold, the 10x5" has a hot little nose on it too and covers ground better, neither of the 5 and 10x5" are exceptional on small gold being 19kHz anyway but as the gold gets a little bigger then they come into their own and the 10x5" ends up being more beneficial.  It's little nose is handy for getting into places too.

With it being the same price as an F19, I'd buy the F19.  Someone in ground that tracking may be more desirable in would probably prefer the Africa model and it sounds like the tracking is working very well, and not tracking out targets.  I just don't need it in my mild soil conditions and I'd rather the manual ground balance and where I can ground grab then adjust the balance a smidge over manually.

If we put this into context, they'll now be able to add tracking to other models like a new T2/F75 in the future but they're still missing a lot that would make them detectors anyone is going to be buying in the modern world.

[RONS DETECTORS MINELAB]

On 3/8/2025 at 10:10 AM, Reno Chris said:

 

I'm helping Fisher introduce a new, low cost detector designed for new prospectors on a budget. Its called the Gold Bug Tracker, its built off the design of the Gold Bug Pro and runs at 19kHz

 

Wow! 
This is an interesting release from First Texas as it has the two features that make the Goldmonster a top seller, fully automatic ground balance and no threshold for the many beginners who want a quite and basic turn on and go detector. I wish it had the 45klz  but after thinking about it the 19klz will make it handle the ground noise better than a higher frequency detector, better for the beginner. And this is at a price point that is going to make the competition have to reconsider their current higher pricing   levels.

2025 is sure a year of market volatility in gold detectors, originally thought it was the PI market but now even the VLF markets.

[Aureous]

I still find it quite astounding that with such an iconic brand name like Fisher, this is all that FTP can come up with. Attaching 30 year old tech to a 20 year old detector. SMH

[Reno Chris]

Minelab have never even touched the low cost segment of the market, and so has invited others to step in and take over. Fisher had obliged and has sold many of these detectors in Africa and will sell many in the US and elsewhere. I have seen some other stuff they have under development that is more advanced.