Fake Fisher Gold Bug Pro detectors - be aware!

[Adrian ss]

Hot glue is fairly common in tectas today.
S/N of mine is more than 3 mill after yours. So that is a bit sus if they both have the same manufacture date aye.

 

[grubstake]

Circuit boards are typically batch-produced by the thousand or more at a time, so dates etched into the visible copper layer are never the actual build/manufacture date for a particular finished electrical item. In this case it's very likely that all Rev 4 boards would have the same date, whenever the actual detector was assembled.

The detector's individual serial number may incorporate a year or year/month code that reflects its approximate build date (from memory Whites machines do so), or it may just be a sequential number series. Three million sounds like a heckuva lot of detectors to me, but maybe that's across First Texas' total production of Fisher, Teknetics, Bounty Hunter, etc.

 

[ronniecruisin]

Very SUS I'd say.!!! I have a feeling we've both been had.!! One thing I didn't realize until I had a better look around is that the fakes go back a long way. Fisher destroyed a heap of em in 2013. Sooo when did they start one wonders. Also read on a forum coils vary a lot. Some excellent. Some poor. So I'm thinking my 5" is crap. The 11" is quite usable. They also said a genuine coil can make a big difference. As I said without a coil connected mine is smooth as silk. Might just get the proper 10" ellip.. Not a big fan of the 5" anyway. It works. I'll just pull It out when I'm looking in tight spots. Prefer a bigger coil anyway.

 

[Adrian ss]

One of the Ic's, comp chip or whatever it is has an adhesive label on it dated 04/04/11.

The date and serial number at the top left of the cct board is not etched, it appears to be stamped with a white enamel type substance.

How do I post photo's on this forum?

 

[Adrian ss]

Very SUS I'd say.!!! I have a feeling we've both been had.!! One thing I didn't realize until I had a better look around is that the fakes go back a long way. Fisher destroyed a heap of em in 2013. Sooo when did they start one wonders. Also read on a forum coils vary a lot. Some excellent. Some poor. So I'm thinking my 5" is crap. The 11" is quite usable. They also said a genuine coil can make a big difference. As I said without a coil connected mine is smooth as silk. Might just get the proper 10" ellip.. Not a big fan of the 5" anyway. It works. I'll just pull It out when I'm looking in tight spots. Prefer a bigger coil anyway.

Mine came with the 5 inch only. I added the 11 x 7 inch DD elip because the 5 is way to small for beach work. It works very well but not enough ground coverage or depth for the beach. With the 11 inch i can call it the Pro DP.

 

[ronniecruisin]

That's a good sign if it came with one coil. At least the real ones were sold like that. Don't know if fakes were.

 

[ronniecruisin]

Just noticed another bug for private sale on Gumtree. $900. New in the box wth 11" and 5" coils. As I think we have established the fisher is not sold new with that coil combo. It's sold one of three ways. 5" only...or 5" plus 10"x5" white ellip.
..or DP model with 11" ellip only. Only the around $500 Ebay cheapies seem to be sold that way. Maybe a bit of checking before buying might be wise. :zzz:

 

[Adrian ss]

Just having a browse through the owners manual and on page 8 it states that a 3 segment battery indicator at the bottom of the display indicates the battery condition.
It also states to use 9 volt alkaline or rechargeable batteries and not to use heavy duty batteries or zinc carbon type.

 

[ronniecruisin]

Mine says the same. Misprint or..........Be interesting to see a really early manual. Anyone got one?????????. Also have you seen the really obvious clone FS Goldfinder. Seen a few vids of others using em. Start up with the exact bug software and run the same as a genuine machine. Around $200 US. AND you can buy them in the US. Amazing!!!!! The T2 is also available as a clone.G2 I think! layful: Ohh. Just noticed right down the bottom fine print back page in the middle of my manual......REV 5. As with yours the board says REV 4. Strange??????????? Also has the Batt warning on the front page too I notice right Down the bottom.

 

[mbasko]

The revision number on the board & the revision number of the manual not matching isn't unusual. A lot of detectors/brands have manuals out of sync with the models due to revising wording, adding forgotten or new info etc.
The Teknetics (Fisher) G2 is a genuine detector. I think the clone of the T2/G2 is a GF2? There are also fake T2/G2 detectors out there. Not many popular detectors haven't been counterfeited & it's getting harder all the time to pick them out.
Changing the name of the counterfeits to things like Goldfinder or GF2 is their way of trying to circumvent patents, trademarks etc. when challenged - they simply rebadge & go back at it.
There's a few articles around on these fakes/clones & the Gold Bugs are probably (unfortunately) the closest the Chinese have come to getting it right. Apart from looks etc. the performance is apparently very close too.
The giveaways are obviously the cheap pricing then things like poor coils, possible poor overall build quality on some - no quality control, no warranty if it faults/fails & being sold by people not authorised to sell Fisher products.
Fisher Manuals:
http://www.fisherlab.com/hobby/manuals.htm

In the manual it states the battery indicator is on the bottom of the screen but the display photo used in the manual shows it on the top left of the screen. I'd assume this is an old photo & Fisher have since updated the detector but not the photos used in the manual? A possible reason to change the display may have been an effort to stay in front of the counterfeiters?
The website http://www.fisherlab.com/hobby/fisher-goldbug-metal-detector.htm clearly shows the battery indicator at the bottom centre of the screen.
I believe there have also been faceplate, Fisher decal changes etc. over the years to so looking at older models may confuse the issue more.
Bottom line is the only way to tell (given Fishers reluctance to reply to people or verify serial numbers) is to only buy used if a verifiable proof of purchase is available i.e. you can contact the dealer on the proof of purchase document & verify with them the details, serial number etc.
Unfortunately the counterfeit industry has made purchasing used detectors a real minefield.

 

[ronniecruisin]

Trouble is unless we know the machine has been bought from an actual Fisher dealer we will never be sure of what we've bought. Mine seems to have settled down nicely except for the small coil which is ratty anything over around 50% gain. Some areas I can run the 11" flat out and generally that coil is working well. The discrimination on these machines is the best I've ever used. So far real target tests have proven it to be very close to 100% accurate. So good in fact I'd trust it to use for prospecting in high rubbish areas. And I don't say that lightly. The more I play with this machine the more I'm liking it. Whether its a clone or not I don't care anymore. It's a keeper as far as I'm concerned. The loose fitting shaft was an easy fix. Simple shim of modeling plastic sheet. Tight as now. And as for the 5" coil. It works. Just don't overdo the gain and it picks up targets just fine. Might get a proper 10"x5" coil for it sometime. I'd only use the 5" rarely anyway. Yes your right about the T2 clone. I got the number wrong. :argh:

 

[mbasko]

Trouble is unless we know the machine has been bought from an actual Fisher dealer we will never be sure of what we've bought. Mine seems to have settled down nicely except for the small coil which is ratty anything over around 50% gain

Yes as said buying used is a real minefield nowadays but not impossible to get what you're paying for with due diligence.
To me it's only really a legal or moral issue if your 100% sure it's counterfeit or you knowingly buy a counterfeit product. If your happy with how it's performing but not sure if it's genuine I'd just treat it as genuine & enjoy using it

Depending on the ground your using that 5" coil on it may be more an issue with the ground mineralisation & not so much the coil? Especially if it's settling down ok with lower gain.
Small coils can become swamped with ground signal due to the small surface area whereas a larger coil can handle the ground mineralisation better but is more susceptible to outside interference i.e. EMI.

 

[ronniecruisin]

Oh. Ok. I expected the opposite to be the case. Smaller coil. Less area to be affected. Interesting.

 

[mbasko]

I think the best way to explain it is:-
Ground Mineralisation
A small coil puts out a strong field close to the coil so is sensitive. They are better at picking up small shallow gold.
This can also mean that a small coil can be more sensitive to the ground mineralisation that causes problems so sometimes you need to reduce gain etc. to compensate for the sensitivity.
As coils get larger they lose some of this close to coil sensitivity (but get better for deep gold) so can be better in troublesome ground. So a bigger coil, with a larger surface area can be better in mineralised areas as they aren't as sensitive to the mineralisation that is close to the coil - hot rocks, hot pockets etc.

Outside Interference/EMI
Where EMI or other outside interference is affecting things going to a smaller coil can help. Think of your coil like an antenna. Small coil - less area to pick up interference. Large coil - more area to pick up interference.

The above might explain why your 11" coil seems to run better than the 5" coil (until you reduce the gain then the 5" is ok) in the same area? Could be the ground not the coil.

 

[ronniecruisin]

Very well explained and all makes perfect sense. We might have to change your profile to Professor m basco. Thanks for that. Just shows there's always something else to learn. All part of the adventure. Another thing that is impressing me about the Bug is the lack of false signals. Compared to some other machines I've owned I'm finding if it indicates a target there's always one there. Haven't dug a single empty hole with the Bug. Also very good re hot rocks.

 

[Adrian ss]

I tried a GF2 last year and it was total garbage. Would not ground balance on very quiet ground. Interestingly the cct board looked all the world to be a genuine Teknetics board. If it was a copy it was a good one in appearance. Trouble is it did not work.

 

[ronniecruisin]

That's interesting. From a couple of reports re the goldfinder bug that one seems to be ok. On one video you can see the start up screen and it loads exactly as the bug does. Makes me wonder if perhaps they got that board right. I'm assuming its the same board used in the regular gold bug fakes which by most accounts work very well. Maybe the GF2 board did not work so well for them. Maybe they couldn't replicate it properly. Having had a genuine T2 it does have more going on than the bug from the software point of view.

 

[EVIE/BEE]

Easy fix.
Stay away from ebay & gumtree & cash converters.
Only buy new and only buy from reputable dealers.
Send these parasites broke. :sunny:

 

[ronniecruisin]

Yeah. Trouble is...The world buys from China cause they're cheap. Now look at the mess we are in. The Western world doesn't make anything any more. And now were paying for it. We all allowed it to happen. Every body loves a bargain and as long as stuff we want is half the price unfortunately enough people will buy to keep the Fakes coming. You've got to hand it to em. They're smarter than us. They see an opportunity and they go for it! Don't understand why its so hard to legally stop them filching patented produce though?? They seem to be able to do what they want! If you or I tried it we'd be stepped on from a great height!!!!! :8

 

[Redfin]

The world doesn't buy from China.
The world orders from China - big difference.

China manufacturers anything you want to a price point.
It usually starts by a Chinese manufacturer being approached by a foreign company and being asked if
they could make X for $Y. they are given the product to copy.

Take 4WD awnings for example.

You can order a thousand @ $15 each, or $50 each or $100 each.
They will all look the same, are of varying qualities, and are very very similar.

It is our own shops that order from China.
We are our own worst enemy.