Congratulations!
In my career, I've done everything from the BH Junior to machines like the CZ's and F75's. And in the process I've worked for several different companies. Of the stuff I've designed, some I've been proud of and others not so proud. My own personal preferences haven't always matched what happened in the sales department.
Working for Tesoro during the late 1990's, I designed two products that made it to market-- the Diablo uMax, and the LoboST. My personal fondness in products is a good compromise between performance, simplicity, and price tag. As it turned out, the LoboST was a market success, it's still a popular machine, and as far as I know it's the same thing that was shipping 15 years ago. The Diablo uMax fell through the cracks (I'll spare everyone here my opinions how that happened) but of the two products, it was the Diablo uMax I was most proud of.
Several years ago, I mentioned in a forum post my fondness for the Diablo uMax. And how after I left Tesoro I'd passed up a chance to buy a used one for a reasonable price because I was having to pinch pennies at that time, it was an opportunity I'd kissed goodbye but actually could have afforded it with a bit of personal frugality elsewhere, it's not like I'd been starving.
Jim Straight, bless his heart, read my post and took pity on himself who was getting too rickety to do much gold prospecting any more, and on me whom he knew personally, sort of. He shipped me his personal very beat up (this is Jim Straight we're talking about!) Diablo uMax as a gift.
As ugly as it is, it's among my most treasured possessions. When I need a "reality check" machine against which to compare something we've got under development here in El Paso, that machine is often the one I pull out of the stack first. It still works as well as the day it was born.
Steve Herschbach (whose reputation is sufficiently greater than mine that I don't need to explain who he is) said recently in a forum post somewhere, that the Diablo uMax would be a viable product today. They are almost impossible to find used: nobody who has one will let go of the damn thing. I can get away with saying this because I don't think there's much chance that Tesoro would find it profitable to resurrect the Diablo uMax, and because here in El Paso we are working on entirely different stuff.
There won't be any more Diablo uMaxes. As always, them what gots 'em ain't gonna sell 'em except through estate sales or because they see the grim reaper stalking and are trying to lighten the backpack.
Congratulations again, pyledriver, and Happy New Year! And use some good beeper headphones: for reasons beyond my control, the Diablo uMax is a bit of a porch dog on speaker unless your hearing is really good.
--Dave J.
PS: even though it's a Tesoro, go to the Fisher or Teknetics website and track down my online book "Gold Prospecting with a VLF Metal Detector". (If you have a local dealer, they may have the print copy in stock.) Since you're a gold prospecting newbie, there's gobs of stuff in that book you need to know in order to connect the dots between you and the gold. Wishing you the best, and hope you'll PM me when you find that first nugget!
I've forgotten to ask Rusty a couple a times as other more pressing matters had me call him and slipped my mind at the time. Any info on that'n??thanx for clarifications-John
