Stepping into the lion's den!

[Anonymous]

Hi Guys,
I feel like I am stepping into the lion's den here, so be gentle :<)
What I know about electronics wouldn't even fit in a thimble. I am more of a end user/operator, results oriented type of person. I have spent many years learning how to get the best performance out of a detector product and sharing that info with my customers.
I have found many threads on this forum are educational (for me) and to see some open up about the hobby is a breath of fresh air. I especially love Dave Johnsons marketing hype anologies --- how true Dave!
I look upon engineers as artists ---- allways seeking to create "the masterpiece". They are proud of their accomplishments and strive for that next level of technology. This is a good thing but we all know, artists must eat too.
I reckon what I am trying to say (in plain english) --- have any of you designers thought about catering some energies to the lower to mid price detectors (bread & butter) while chasing the ultimate detector design?
I can think of some variations, mods, etc. in the price range that the masses buy, which would fill a few niches. Just curious -- any comments?
Al

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Al
You don

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Al,
Are you speaking of PI detectors or detectors in general? And what features are you thinking of?
- Carl

 

[Anonymous]

I was talking detectors in general (VLF & PI). I know it's a PI forum, but some have designed mighty good VLF's over the years.
Example of what I am talking about:
New customer calls (just getting in to the hobby).
I quote that "discounted" prices on metal detectors run $100 to $1000. The folks that balk at $100 being too high --- you pass on (you won't satisfy them). The serious purchaser that want's to hunt salt water beaches (or other specialized endevors) stares at $500 to $1000 minimum for something that works.
While this seems reasonable for us, who have been in the hobby a while & know the costs ---- it turns off MANY, who "would have" tried out the hobby, if only a more reasonable priced detector could have been found.
I am just "fishing the waters" for a solution to this niche market.
Al

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Al
I guess I

 

[Anonymous]

If Tesoro could be persuaded to put the Diablo MicroMax back into production and sell it at a reasonable price, it would make a great starter and backup gold prospecting machine. This is a market void that manufacturers have been reluctant to fill out of fear of losing sales on their higher end products.
Another void in the market is a real metal detector sized for children and small adults. Manufacturers have been reluctant to manufacture such a product because they "already know" there isn't market for such a product-- because, after all, nobody buys such a machine from them! If you ask them "How many machines do you suppose Radio Shack sells, that are gifts for children?" ... well, Al, you've probably heard as many excuses as I have.
The manfacturing cost for the electronics and mono searchcoil for a basic PI unit doesn't amount to much. For beach use, the cost driver is in waterproofing.
For basic coinshooting, most manufacturers already offer worthwhile products in the $250-400 range. Some of the Tesoro products under $500 are credible relic machines because of their excellent iron rejection.
--Dave J.

 

[Anonymous]

I have talked to several manufactures over the years about filling "certain niches" and yes, I have heard probably as many excuses as you have.
I would much rather sell a customer what they want, instead of making excuses, as to why it doesn't exist.
Thanks for the feedback Dave.
Al

 

[Anonymous]

I think that Tesoro has a low end VLF unit called the "Compadre" which is small enough for a child to use comfortably.
--Dave J.

 

[Anonymous]

In my opinion, manufacturers do a pretty good job of spreading out their offerings over the price spectrum. In fact, I think some of them go too far with it. A while back ('99 I think) I took all of the major manufacturers' catalogs and counted the number of general purpose VLF detectors, not including water machines, gold machines, two-box, etc. Two or three had 10 or more models, I don't recall exactly, and some models were differentiated by only the slightest little feature.
To me, this is actually offering the customer too many choices. The difference in production cost of two adjacent models is often just the cost of a potentiometer since common circuit boards are used. In my opinion, 2 high-end, 2 mid-level, and 2 low-end general purpose models are a-plenty. And, yes, extend that low-end down to a decent $99 detector.
Any time you want to fill a niche with something that is not merely a knock-off design (i.e., requiring more engineering) then you will have to charge more money in order to recoup the additional investment. Like in gold machines. And water detectors which also add a high-priced enclosure. And super-low-volume machines mean super-high-prices, relatively speaking.
One possible niche machine is a $200 "water-resistant" PI detector. Something you can take into the surf and get splashed. Most beach hunters don't need waterproofing to 200 feet. Although this is a knock-off design, it would probably eat severely into the sales of current PI models. So I doubt you'll see it.
- Carl