GPX4500 Made of Gold


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Hard to get a handle on what's going on with Ebay. I think there is a lot of scamming.

I was cleaning out one of my storage rooms the other day and I see this GPX4000 Minelab box, shoved way in the back behind some other boxes. I thought, "Oh that's my empty box from my GPX4000." So I decided to pull it out and put it with some other empties, and low and behold... not empty at all, brand new GPX4000.

So I thought, what the heck, I'll put this up on Ebay in a quick 3 day auction. So a brand new machine with a warranty, and I won't lie, I inflated the price to a starting bid of $4200. including free PRIORITY MAIL shipping. So $4200 isn't that much inflation being the price of a GPX4000, when they were being sold was $4000 and the shipping costs and insurance, packaging run $100. I need to move this machine because it's just not a good idea to have new discontinued merchandise sitting around, losing value every day, but I also wanted to see what it would do against these other machines.

I think I would be scared to death to actually send a machine to someone goofy enough to pay $8200, unless I had absolute cash payment in my hand before I sent it, it just seems very unrealistic that someone would pay that kind of money, no matter how scarce the item is. So it makes you wonde whether the seller is running a scam and shill bidding the items up, or whether you have several guys that are bidding it up because they intend to pay for the item with a stolen credit card.

It's all very bizarre.

Currently there are 2 GPX4500's that are supposed to be new and never used, which means they are not being sold by a dealer, hence no warranty, they are up to $8250, and they are beiong sold by the same seller. He says he bought them in July of 2009 and has never used them. Then there are supposed to be slightly used machines for $7,750 etc.

Not one single GPX4500 being sold from a dealer that I can tell. One dealer has a bulk lot of 10 listed, but he hasn't received them as of yet. We dealers have actually had people calling that want to buy 10, 20 machines and are offering to pay deposits of at least $1000 a machine up front.

I have heard that they are going to Dubai, some to Africa. All that I know is whereever they are going, Minelab can't keep up with the demand.

I heard of a dealer who was offered $4800 each for 50 machines with a $50,000 cash deposit. A sale like that might pay the rent for a month or two, or if it fell through it could devastate you financially. I just keep remembering what my Daddy told me, "If it's too good to be true.... you know the rest!"

Anyway the point is, with all of these 4500's you would think a BRAND NEW with WARRANTY GPX-4000 would fetch at least $4200. I have 5 watchers and no bidders.

I have no doubt it will sell, but In think these high bid 4500's have been shill bidded up to these ridiculous levels.

I am trying to get things around the shop cleaned up, and organized and turn some of my detectors into cash. I am shocked at the amount of stuff I have accumulated.

I have, 3 old Green SD2200's that I took out of stock thinking I could use them as rental machines. Never did rent them out, but I loaned them out twice. I have my personal GP3000, GP3500 and GPX4000 and GPX4500. As good a business man as I am in some ways, I am really terrible in other ways. The only way I can get away with keeping all of those machines is because they are at the shop, if my wife saw all of them she would freak out.

I'm like my wife, she has dresses that have gone out of style in her closet still hanging there with the tags on them. I have boots from a discontinued style just sitting on my shelf collecting dust and taking up room. I have old COILTEK battery regulator systems from when we were taking 12 volt batteries and stepping them down to 7.3 volts to run SD's. I have step up regulators that took the 6.7 volt battery and stepped it up to 7.3 volts.

If you saw my shop it's like a Metal Detecting accessory show on an acid trip. I have close to three quarter of a million dollars in inventory, and probably $50,000 or more of it is obsolete and no one would even want the stuff.

I have a bunch of Jack Lange training videos. GREAT! RIGHT? NO, they are VCR tapes. Most people don't even have VCR players anymore. Maybe I will have to include a free VCR to get rid of the tapes.

Well I guess I will find out when I start putting things on Ebay. Sorry for rambling, but the longer I type the more time I can take to put off cleaning this joint up. :rolleyes:

Doc

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Hi Doc,

That is the weird part about this. These folks basically want a GPX-4500 or nothing. They do not seem to know that other machines can be had that will in most cases serve as well. Like your GPX-4500. By the way I just sold a used GPX-4500 for $2999 so $4200 new with warranty is not out of line.

I'm afraid I've succumbed. Winter is about here, so I just put my personal used GPX-4500 up for sale for $7900. Which is an insane price. I figure anyone that buys it is only ripping themselves off if they are indeed willing to pay these kinds of outrageous prices. And I in turn would be stupid not to take twice what something is worth if someone is willing to pay it.

But then again something is only worth what you can sell it for, and it appears a GPX-4500 is worth a tidy sum right now. It will be interesting to see if someone bites. But there is no doubt these things are all leaving the country as I can barely understand the people who keep calling trying to buy one. The emails are the best - I'll have to post one when I get back in the office. You rarely get to see English get mangled so badly.

Steve Herschbach

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I don't blame you. Remember Minelab's original ad on the GP4500, "Worth Their Weight In Gold." That seems to be coming true.

Doc

Hi Doc,

That is the weird part about this. These folks basically want a GPX-4500 or nothing. They do not seem to know that other machines can be had that will in most cases serve as well. Like your GPX-4500. By the way I just sold a used GPX-4500 for $2999 so $4200 new with warranty is not out of line.

I'm afraid I've succumbed. Winter is about here, so I just put my personal used GPX-4500 up for sale for $7900. Which is an insane price. I figure anyone that buys it is only ripping themselves off if they are indeed willing to pay these kinds of outrageous prices. And I in turn would be stupid not to take twice what something is worth if someone is willing to pay it.

But then again something is only worth what you can sell it for, and it appears a GPX-4500 is worth a tidy sum right now. It will be interesting to see if someone bites. But there is no doubt these things are all leaving the country as I can barely understand the people who keep calling trying to buy one. The emails are the best - I'll have to post one when I get back in the office. You rarely get to see English get mangled so badly.

Steve Herschbach

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Doc

What do the bidders know that you and us here don't know? There sure is some secrecy and unexplainable demand for the GPX4500. Demand for other gold recovery equipment ought to be increasing as well, if a gold rush is in fact happening somewhere in the world. I smell a BIG RAT :huh:

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Guest GoldProspectinginOz
Doc

What do the bidders know that you and us here don't know? There sure is some secrecy and unexplainable demand for the GPX4500. Demand for other gold recovery equipment ought to be increasing as well, if a gold rush is in fact happening somewhere in the world. I smell a BIG RAT :huh:

You my friend are not the only one that smells a rat!!!!!!!

doug

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Dutchman Im not sure what the 4500 rush is all about either. I don't think the difference in technology between the 4000 and the 4500 justifies the price difference, $7,000 to $10,000 for the 4500? like I said on another string I witnessed the 80's gold rush but it was all about dredges back then and the same thing happened. There weren't that many people hunting nuggets with detectors, very few by today's count.. so its difficult to explain the detector rush other than convenience and no water required to use.. But I've read they sold water that had to be hauled in to wash gold an drink in a very dry and gold rich area of the La paz placers for as much as $8.00 a gallon and this was in the late 1800's AzNuggetBob

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What do the bidders know that you and us here don't know?

More like, its what they dont know that we do know. Best part about this is that in a year when they have all but given up on finding thier fortune & riches, those very minelabs will be up for sale at a significantly less price. Maybe i`ll have a 4500 for $2,500 in a year or so..

You know how people are when they first learn about the hobbie, they always check out the latest & greatest first......

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Well, It's no puzzle to me what's going on. I made it a point to get to know some of these foreign buyers, who aren't actually foreignors , but have legally obtained citizenship here in the U.S. and are working here as U.S. citizens. The gold rush is real and incredible nuggets are being found . I have been invited to join some of them and they have assured me I'd be safe. They need help learning how to use the detectors and basic prospecting techniques. The recent find of a 17 kilo mass of gold has really sent things into a frenzy and they don't even waste time on nuggets under 2 or 3 grams. Some are only interested in making a few dollars reselling detectors, but some are really excited about the thrill of digging up nuggets. I know where the rush is and it isn't Dubai. That's just where many Africans work and have the money to buy detectors to send home to either their prospecting relatives, or entrepeneurs who can almost name their price. These detectors have to be smuggled in or large bribes paid to customs officials and of course they stand a chance of losing their considerable investment. I might just take an old beat up 2100 over there and see what I can find. Can't take the gold out but can get a little below spot on the blackmarket and wire the money home. One last great adventure for an old man??? The situation is similar in Mongolia where incredible patches are being found. Great time for a gold rush with gold over $1,000.00 an ounce. The only reason there is a shortage of detectors here and in Australia is because some dealers somewhere are selling one hell of a lot of detectors.----Bob

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Guest GoldProspectinginOz
Well, It's no puzzle to me what's going on. I made it a point to get to know some of these foreign buyers, who aren't actually foreignors , but have legally obtained citizenship here in the U.S. and are working here as U.S. citizens. The gold rush is real and incredible nuggets are being found . I have been invited to join some of them and they have assured me I'd be safe. They need help learning how to use the detectors and basic prospecting techniques. The recent find of a 17 kilo mass of gold has really sent things into a frenzy and they don't even waste time on nuggets under 2 or 3 grams. Some are only interested in making a few dollars reselling detectors, but some are really excited about the thrill of digging up nuggets. I know where the rush is and it isn't Dubai. That's just where many Africans work and have the money to buy detectors to send home to either their prospecting relatives, or entrepeneurs who can almost name their price. These detectors have to be smuggled in or large bribes paid to customs officials and of course they stand a chance of losing their considerable investment. I might just take an old beat up 2100 over there and see what I can find. Can't take the gold out but can get a little below spot on the blackmarket and wire the money home. One last great adventure for an old man??? The situation is similar in Mongolia where incredible patches are being found. Great time for a gold rush with gold over $1,000.00 an ounce. The only reason there is a shortage of detectors here and in Australia is because some dealers somewhere are selling one hell of a lot of detectors.----Bob

So in the interests of a quick dollar ML have abandoned their loyal USA and Oz customers/dealers who have been their backbone for 14 years?

cheers,

doug

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Geez Doug your like a spam that wont go away????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

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Well Doug, I spent a lot of time in OZ and one thing I learned was that many Australians have a very poor grasp of how capitalism works. You are obviously one of those. After all didn't you state a while back that your buddies aren't interested in making money , but just want to put out an affordable detector? If that affordable detector turns out to be better than any Minelab don't you suppose that the demand might drive the price up? Possibly after it has changed hands and ended up on a shelf somewhere in Africa or Mongolia? I suppose the beurocrats could step in and set detector prices to avert the total collapse of the dealer networks. Some call it greed, some call it making money in an economy where most businesses are struggling or going bankrupt. I happen to know some of the biggest dealers in the U.S. and they are taking care of their loyal US customers first , with no price increases as of yet and all orders are on a waiting list with large orders of multiple units not being considered legitimate orders. That all being said, US and OZ demand could not possibly be swamping the Minelab factories. Someone somewhere is buying a lot of detectors, and someone is supplying them or there wouldn't be a shortage. And why shouldn't this be so? Shouldn't an African have a right to buy a top of the line detector? And shouldn't Minelab consider them a worthy customer and supply them with what they want? I think it's great that the rest of the world is realizing that they untapped resources that may bring some of them out of a very dreary existance. I was amazed while detecting in Mexico that there were some of the poorest people in the western hemisphere living in shacks within a few miles of where I was walking around digging up gold nuggets. Last time down there I did see a few of them with detectors and one of them even had a gp extreme. The backward countries have the internet now and they are waking up to what's going on. And what they see is us on the forums raving about our GPX 4500s and showing pictures of our nuggets and even a smallish one is equal to months of slave type labor for them. I think I would do everything possible to get one of those if I was in that situation especially if I had realized that there were nuggets to be found near my village.-------Bob

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Well Doug, I spent a lot of time in OZ and one thing I learned was that many Australians have a very poor grasp of how capitalism works. You are obviously one of those. After all didn't you state a while back that your buddies aren't interested in making money , but just want to put out an affordable detector? If that affordable detector turns out to be better than any Minelab don't you suppose that the demand might drive the price up? Possibly after it has changed hands and ended up on a shelf somewhere in Africa or Mongolia? I suppose the beurocrats could step in and set detector prices to avert the total collapse of the dealer networks. Some call it greed, some call it making money in an economy where most businesses are struggling or going bankrupt. I happen to know some of the biggest dealers in the U.S. and they are taking care of their loyal US customers first , with no price increases as of yet and all orders are on a waiting list with large orders of multiple units not being considered legitimate orders. That all being said, US and OZ demand could not possibly be swamping the Minelab factories. Someone somewhere is buying a lot of detectors, and someone is supplying them or there wouldn't be a shortage. And why shouldn't this be so? Shouldn't an African have a right to buy a top of the line detector? And shouldn't Minelab consider them a worthy customer and supply them with what they want? I think it's great that the rest of the world is realizing that they untapped resources that may bring some of them out of a very dreary existance. I was amazed while detecting in Mexico that there were some of the poorest people in the western hemisphere living in shacks within a few miles of where I was walking around digging up gold nuggets. Last time down there I did see a few of them with detectors and one of them even had a gp extreme. The backward countries have the internet now and they are waking up to what's going on. And what they see is us on the forums raving about our GPX 4500s and showing pictures of our nuggets and even a smallish one is equal to months of slave type labor for them. I think I would do everything possible to get one of those if I was in that situation especially if I had realized that there were nuggets to be found near my village.-------Bob

The proposition that poor, largely uneducated, mostly illiterate artisanal peasant miners with very low median incomes in some African countries or Mongollia or whatever could read a instruction manual, or a menu or use a 4500 is totally ludicrous and is quite frankly laughable. Who in these countries us going to teach them to use a 4500 effectively and why would you sell detectors there when most of them would have no repair or service facilities and for warranty repairs /service the detectors would have to be sent thousands of Km to distant facilities?It makes no commercial sense when ML have eager and willing US and Oz customers and onshore repair service facilities in these countries.

cheers,

doug

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The proposition that poor, largely uneducated, mostly illiterate artisanal peasant miners with very low median incomes in some African countries or Mongollia or whatever could read a instruction manual, or a menu or use a 4500 is totally ludicrous and is quite frankly laughable. Who in these countries us going to teach them to use a 4500 effectively and why would you sell detectors there when most of them would have no repair or service facilities and for warranty repairs /service the detectors would have to be sent thousands of Km to distant facilities?It makes no commercial sense when ML have eager and willing US and Oz customers and onshore repair service facilities in these countries.

cheers,

doug

Doug . The gentlemen I met were very well mannered , educated people who can translate for their freinds who can't read english and some African countries are former English colonies where English is the second language. That Is no barrier. They were thrilled however when I gave them one of Chris's videos on running the GPX. You also have to understand that they aren't concerned with repairs, but only with an urgency to get out there fast and reap the harvest. Minelab would be perfectly happy if they never had to repair one. I got the feeling that these people sensed that a good detector would bring their extended families wealth they never dreamed of which to us may still seem like poverty. One fellow I'm sure was a business man who was just trying to find some detectors to sell to make a fast buck once he smuggled them home. He only wanted " The one with the screen that lights up" . Maybe some good finds were made with a 4500 and some of them are convinced that is the only detector to buy. Maybe they are just fascinated by the technology. I tried to tell them that an SD would serve them well , but that was the only one they want. And literacy has nothing to do with running a detector well. One of the best electronic prospectors I know who happens to be one of your countrymen can neither read nor write any language. Some people are born to it and the high tech stuff discussed on the forums means nothing to them . They just flat out know how to make detector do marvelous things. Believe me there are already some experts out in the savanna. This has been going on for several years now as some of them have been quietly piling up the nuggets and I'm sure this is where some of the money is coming from. Even a poorly adjusted GPX4500 will find lots of gold on a new patch and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to use the factory presets.----Bob

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Doug . The gentlemen I met were very well mannered , educated people who can translate for their freinds who can't read english and some African countries are former English colonies where English is the second language. That Is no barrier. They were thrilled however when I gave them one of Chris's videos on running the GPX. You also have to understand that they aren't concerned with repairs, but only with an urgency to get out there fast and reap the harvest. Minelab would be perfectly happy if they never had to repair one. I got the feeling that these people sensed that a good detector would bring their extended families wealth they never dreamed of which to us may still seem like poverty. One fellow I'm sure was a business man who was just trying to find some detectors to sell to make a fast buck once he smuggled them home. He only wanted " The one with the screen that lights up" . Maybe some good finds were made with a 4500 and some of them are convinced that is the only detector to buy. Maybe they are just fascinated by the technology. I tried to tell them that an SD would serve them well , but that was the only one they want. And literacy has nothing to do with running a detector well. One of the best electronic prospectors I know who happens to be one of your countrymen can neither read nor write any language. Some people are born to it and the high tech stuff discussed on the forums means nothing to them . They just flat out know how to make detector do marvelous things. Believe me there are already some experts out in the savanna. This has been going on for several years now as some of them have been quietly piling up the nuggets and I'm sure this is where some of the money is coming from. Even a poorly adjusted GPX4500 will find lots of gold on a new patch and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to use the factory presets.----Bob

Sorry I just don't buy the story that the shortage of 4500's is due to goldrushes in Arica.They do not acord with what some of my own forum members who live in Africa tell me. You also forget that some of these African countries are beset by horrific wars and are run by warloads/rebels/ bandits / corrupt governments etc eg Sudan/Congo etc and there is massive civil unrest and banditry etc where anything like a 4500 would be "confiscated" from artisanal miners by warlords or bandits very quickly. Again I must ask to how are these artisanal peasant miners living on poverty incomes going to afford a 4500? (at inflated prices to boot!) Get real! Do some reading and research and make up your own mind. By the way who are the African/ Asian ML dealers who are supposedly buying and selling massive quantities of 4500's? The real reason for the 4500 shortage will eventually leak out I am sure!

cheers,

doug

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Guest GoldProspectinginOz
"goldrushes in Arica.They do not acord with what some of my own forum"

Doug, you wrote the above, I have to ask you, are you one of those poor, largely uneducated, mostly illiterate artisanal peasants??? :lol: :lol: :lol:

Answer my previous questions (post #51 http://www.nuggethunting.com/forums/index....40&start=40 ) or are you afraid of getting your backside kicked again!!!!LOL!

cheers,

doug

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Hi Bob,

Why won't these people consider a GP 3500 or GP 3000 or come on for gosh sakes a White's TDI? Why is it a GPX-4500 or nothing? That is the part I can't figure out. You would be doing them a service to explain to them that there are alternatives. Maybe not as good, but close and for less than $10,000.00.

Steve Herschbach

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Doug. You obviously didn't read my posts properly . The money to buy these detectors is coming from Africans working in the rich Arab countries where the Arab population won't lower themselves to working construction jobs etc. . There is also a fairly large population of African workers here in the U.S. who are also buying any GPX 4500 they can find. The Arabs will usually only hire Muslims and north Africa is home to millions of Black Muslims eager to work for them as the economy in the countries you mentioned are in a shambles. THESE WORKERS ARE WELL PAID BY AFRICAN STANDARDS AND DO HAVE THE MONEY to finance the trade in detectors. I did do a lot of research and also felt that these fellows I met were telling me pretty much the truth about what was going on in their country. Two of my neighbors had GPXs they wanted to sell and I called one of the guys who asked me if I knew where any GPXs were for sale in new or like new condition. Both of these detectors fit that description and he drove for several hours to pick them up. He paid their asking price with 100 dollar bills. These were pristine detectors in the original box without even any dust on them or a scratch on the stock coils. He wanted no extra coils or other extras as he was having to break them down and scatter the parts in his luggage and others luggage hoping to slip them by customs officials in his country. The boxes were discarded. You are right about one thing . He did tell me he was worried about confiscation by bandits , but the bandits weren't warlords , but corrupt government officials working at the airports. He was hoping that a few $100 dollar bills would take care of the problem which is apparently standard procedure in his home country. The demand is real and I have to admit that I was skeptical at first about what was going on with this shortage of GPXs. Since I have personally now had dealings with these buyers, I feel that I have a pretty good grip on what is happening. A couple of them spotted my GPX 4500 standing in the corner and begged me to sell it also. Since I have no way to replace it at the moment I declined their offer to buy it. My grandson has my backup GP3500 in W.A. at the moment and I would have no detector. The money is there and the demand is there. Whether the people who end up with these detectors strike it rich or not remains to be seen , but obviously they are willing to give it a shot and extrordinary effort, time, and money is going into obtaining a top of the line Minelab. Apparently some have awakened to the fact that a lowly SD 2200 will do the job quite nicely and dealers are having difficulties obtaining these also. I can only imagine what is going on at Minelab/Codan corporate headquarters as they have to adjust to this new set of conditions. Imagine the frustrations of the dealers who could sell 20 at a time if they could only get them when only a few years ago they were battling for every sale. It is a good time for those who bought a GPX on impulse and never really used them to sell them for a good price and recover their investment-.---Bob

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Hey , If I had a 4500 plus a back-up machine , the 4500 would be on e-bay in a heartbeat! Nothing wrong with making some honest money. If people are willing to fork over the dough, than... it is what it is....

I actually thought about puting my 2200 V2 up just to see what would happen....but it seems these arent the detectors that those people want.

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Guest GoldProspectinginOz
Good post Bob!! I hate to tell ya but you went WAY over Dougs head with the facts. He thinks that it is some master plan that Minelab cooked up to sell machines.

The shortage maybe due to other reasons?

doug

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