Fisher Make over

[chub]

Perusing the Fisher website....Shows the F70 at $849 with 11"DD... pics of the F2, F4 , F5 etc..anyway, point is it all looks very outdated with products, high prices and tiny font / format etc. Given that the equinox is now 12 months on I had a look at the Minelab website. Its modern , fast, slick, informative, engaging,up to date.
I really like Fisher but I must admit I feel a little disappointed that very little (nothing?) has really changed there in the last 4 or 5 years. It seems the brand overall is a little neglected and a bit dismal and that some kind of freshen up is long over due.
The Manta thing appears to have lost momentum -if there ever was any? The F19 never really took off. The F11/22/44 entry level nothing too innovative.No real news from FT in general for a long time.

Is it all turning a bit Tesoro?

Any guesses as to the future of this once great brand?

Chub

 

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[mudkicker]

Gosh I hope not. My very first detector was a Teknetics T2 SE and I just bought a new Tek-Point. All First Texas stuff. Sure the T2 was chatty as heck but it was fast and worked well when I had it. I have an Equinox 600 now but I very seriously gave consideration to the T2 and F70/F75. But you're right...for the price of the Equinox, I just couldnt see a good reason to choose flagship FT machines over it.

 

[eman1000]

I noticed this last year as well. The funny thing is even though the Fisher site is horrible there are links to Teknetics home page and theirs looks pretty good.
I was also on Whites website page today and theirs looks pretty nice in comparison.

 

[JoeInMO]

None of my comments have anything to do with how good or bad Fisher detectors are... I have no experience either way with them. But I can say as a consumer I've checked out their web site a few times... and yes it's very dated. Doesn't look like it's been updated in years. Even if a person did want to buy one of their products they would never get the proper information off their web site unless they already knew what they were looking for.

From a business perspective... I've heard the same rumors as everyone else about a new machine from Fisher. The rumors is that it's going to be a niche detector aimed at a small segment of the hobby. Like it or not the ML NOX products have really changed the game, and a niche product is not the proper business response. Perhaps Fisher has a surprise up their sleeve, but we're coming into prime hunting season for most of the USA and this is no time to be keeping secrets. Consumers are spending their money right now.

I hope they make it as a company, but looking at their web presence and marketing (nil) they look more like a company going away. For the record I believe competition is a good thing and I'm hoping Fisher can compete.

-Joe

 

[smokeythecat]

Ready for THIS? I just bought a new Tesoro Vaquero from a reputable dealer. Not afraid of warranty issues at all. I have had several and they basically don't break. If it works out of the box, it will be good for 20 years. I was digging with a guy who had a 30+ year old NAUTILUS detector this weekend and he did good with it! Sometimes "modern" technology just confuses things.

I have one place that needs that bigger coil for deep lead, and don't want to get a PI machine. It's not quite as deep as a PI machine, but that thing will go very deep on lead, and the one spot I have has some lead hiding very very deep. I had a Vaquero awhile back and sold it and shouldn't have. It found some really great stuff for me so will be my machine for wide open bad dirt places.

I don't even look at those websites. And I don't believe any of them anyway.

 

[Rick K]

First Texas manufacturers the Fisher, Teknetics and Bounty Hunter brands of metal detectors. They probably sell more metal detectors worldwide than any other manufacturer.

The Teknetics website has been overhauled recently and you can purchase some of the models under the Ameritech label at very attractive prices direct from the website.

The F19 is currently available at an MAP of $449, along with its “sister” machine the G2+ at the same price.

 

[Snap on Man]

I have a T2 Classic and just a few weeks ago bought a new Fisher F5. I say this because I know they are both very reliable metal detectors. Even though there website maybe old and out dated.
I was a Snap On Dealer when Snap On came out with the Flank Drive Plus wrench. The only difference was they added griping teeth to the open end. They loaded us down with these wrenches to go out and sale. It is pretty hard to convenience a mechanic that has been repairing cars for 10, 20, 30, maybe even 40 years that his wrenches are obsolete and there is no way he will be able to use them in the future.
My point is if you know how to use the tool, it STILL works. Tools in the hands of some people make them more dangerous.
I did not buy either detector because of the website. I bought them because of reviews from people who posted reviews like yourself!
I can tell you from experience that a salesman will not always sell you what you want, but they will sell you what they have in stock!

 

[Opie]

Chub, interesting take on things, I'm sure not only First Texas Products but Garrett and White's as well would like to hear this kind of information. At issue all the way around is cost. The cost of a completely new design is very expensive. So it really should not surprise anyone that many models from the same manufacture share not just the basic DNA of a machine but everything else right down to the nuts and bolts as well. I do have a personal worry with the sport and that is keeping the American companies going and having them stay competitive. I like the fact if I have a question I can call locally (in the U.S.) or if I need to ship it ships locally. This is such a brand loyal hobby but it is also a "latest and greatest" hobby too.
Anyway thanks for a new perspective on things.
Good Luck!
Stay Gold!
Opie

 

[smokeythecat]

Hey, if a machine works, stick with it.

 

[chub]

Dont get me wrong, the thread is more about the health of the brand from a business / longevity / consumer interaction perspective .

chub

 

[JoeInMO]

Dont get me wrong, the thread is more about the health of the brand from a business / longevity / consumer interaction perspective .

chub

Yes, that's the perspective I've used since I have no experience with their products.

I did look up some information on First Texas Holdings Corp. on Hoovers / D&B. They show just over $100 million in annual revenue, but the concerning thing is that their credit is rated as "HIGH RISK". That's not good.

I did check Minelab Americas, Inc. just as a quick comparison... they show $4.12 million in annual revenue, but they have a "LOW RISK" credit rating.

The annual revenue numbers for these privately held corporations is usually way off so I wouldn't put much faith in those numbers, but I don't think Hoovers / D&B would issue a HIGH RISK warning without cause.

I hope Fisher and all the others are able to turn things around and offer competitive products. We all win that way.

-Joe

 

[JoeInMO]

Correction to my previous post.

I was informed that Minelab is owned by the Coden Group of Australia... a publicly traded company with annual revenue of over $200 million.

-Joe

 

[Rick K]

Codan is an Australian company and does its accounting in Australian dollars (AUD) - not in US dollars (USD). Last full year results stated that Codan’s revenue was 229 million AUD - that’s about 163 million USD. Minelab accounted for about AUD 164 million (USD 117 million) of the total. Here’s a link to the annual report.

https://hotcopper.com.au/documentdownload?id=uOMxKKzFkiWRTLKhOROKAxjvSDYL4g66yRT2v/R9/rFiGug=