Why not just use GPX 5000

[Au79finger]

Excuse my ignorance but I am wondering why owners of the GPX 5000 would use any other detector.Seems like the 5000 is the Mac Daddy of detectors and would out perform all others.What will the TDI pro,GB ll or any other detectors do that the 5000 wont?The only detector I own is an excalibur ll and my detecting is limited to SC beaches and lakes.I am interested tho in starting to prospect.I have been considering getting a 5000, used 3000 or TDI pro to use locally on the beach but also to be able to take prospecting trips.So is the 5000 not an all purpose do it all machine?Thanks

 

[steve herschbach]

So is the 5000 not an all purpose do it all machine?Thanks

No, it is not. If that was the way it was Minelab could drop all those other models.

The Minelab GPX 5000 is an extremely expensive, extremely powerful gold nugget prospecting detector. Its power means people are finding it useful for other situations where high value targets are the goal.

The GPX has at best an unreliable ferrous discrimination system. It there is much trash to deal with a detector with a good discrimination system is likely to be preferable. You do not fire up a GPX 5000 in a groomed park!

The GPX 5000 lacks sensitivity to extremely small gold or wire gold. It does well on small stuff, but it does miss gold that a Fisher Gold Bug 2 or White's will find with ease.

The GPX 5000 is admittedly a more powerful detector than the main alternatives, the Garrett Infinium or White's TDI models. It also cost 4-5 times as much. A person can get a White's GMT plus a White's TDI for a third the cost of a GPX 5000 which puts some pretty good capability in their hands for substantially less money. For some people budgets do matter.

Finally, the stock coils on a GPX 5000 are not waterproof, let alone the detector itself. That alone makes the Garrett Infinium an attractive option for some on that basis alone.

I have a GPX 5000 and it is a major part of my detecting toolbox. But all the other detectors in my signature line fill in for purposes where it is less appropriate. Then again I could own just a 5000 and do pretty well, but I would have to focus on those things it does best and take a pass on other detecting scenarios where it would be problematic. I prefer having all my bases covered.

Steve Herschbach

 

[Au79finger]

Thank you Steve for the informative reply.I've just had some wrong assumptions about the 5000 that have been clarified.More homework is needed.Thanks again

 

[Jonathan Porter]

If mineralisation is the key hurdle in your attempts to find gold then the GPX 5000 is the 'go to' detector, however as Steve has said Minelab make more than one metal detector and for finding finely disseminated specimen gold or tiny nuggets they have other detectors such as the Eureka Gold or even Xterra 705 that will do the job, particularly in areas where the mineralisation is less extreme. Here in Australia you really only have one option and thats one of the Minelab MPS (PI) detectors because our ground (which Steve can attest to) is so extreme that only the Minelab detectors will get any real sort of performance. Having said that Steve myself and Chris Ralph had a ball extracting tiny little nuggets with Fisher Gold Bug 2s and Gold Bug PROs in an area noted for its mineralisation, the nuggets were shallow and tiny but leant themselves well to the performance of the VLFs in that situation, like Steve said he has a number of different units that he uses depending on the environment.

Lastly the Minelab PIs are also very good at getting huge depths even in mildly mineralised soils, this is due to to the powerful transmitters their detectors use and the vast array of different coil sizes and shapes available, as such it is possible to find gold missed by conventional VLF technology even in areas considered quiet from a mineralisation point of view.

Hope this helps,

JP