Like many or most USA based metal detecting companies, they have a statement, like this one copied from their website:
[size=large]"Made in America and Family-Owned Since 1950"[/size]
I am American, and I own some American built firearms and also a couple of Foreign Brands that have plants here in the USA so, I guess you could call them 'Made in America" products as well. I have friends who have teased me at times through the years when I own and use a Foreign Brand detector, telling me they don't want to own or use anything that isn't "Made in America." Well, check out where our telephones, TV's, stereos, and even the computers and printers were are working with right now happen to be made.
My counter to that is that NO metal detector, made anywhere, is completely Made in America or any other country using only that country's parts. Almost all the circuitry components are made in China or Taiwan or someplace other than the USA. The Velcro arm straps that White's includes with their detectors, like the MX Sport, have a little sticker on them, 'China' ,to show who makes that detector part, and you have to wonder about all the plastics and such.
The XVenture has a hard-wired 9" Concentric coil, that sure looks just like the 9" coils White's uses, but they are hard-wired. So, does White's install the search coil on the detector after they get in back in the USA and then calibrate the detector for proper performance with the assigned coil? Doesn't seem likely. Or do they make all the 9" coils and supply them to the XVenture builder? That seems rather expensive and unlikely. Or does the XVenture manufacturer also manufacture the search coils, and that would seem more probable.
So then the question I ask myself, is if the XVenture manufacturer is making all the 9" coils, are they also making the ones White's needs for the other models that operate at a similar frequency and use that size coil? Seems possible, to even probable, and a cost-savings to me. What about the plastic housings on all the plastic equipped models they now offer or have in the planning stage. Where is that plastic being made?
You have to wonder when the "Made in America" is portrayed, and search coils should be an important part of the whole metal detector to ensure peak design performance, but on the White's website, two of the first ,or first few, coils offered are the Detech Ultimate and new MX Sport 7" that are 'Made in Bulgaria."
I wish manufactures, all of them, would just say things like 'An American Company' or 'Assembled in America' or whatever part of the world they are in, because many parts used [size=small]
(electronic components nuts, bolts, screws, spring clips, rod locks, arm cup straps, plastic housings and the list goes on)[/size] are often outsourced and were manufactured in a different country.
Honestly, I'm pleased to see White's offer a low-end, bargain-priced entry-level detector that appears to work. Great for getting youngsters started in this great hobby. I just noticed the XVenture listed on White's website a couple of days ago and it wasn't when I first saw the XVenture ad a few months ago. It is for sale via Amazon, or on the big 'bay' it is sold directly by White's from Sweet Home. I also know a couple of dealers who haven't been very pleased with the manufacturer dealing directly against them on the lower-priced models they already have, and they never heard or were informed about the XVenture. Nor the fact that it is a White's design that is manufactured in China.
Here's a cut-and-past from their ad giving the necessary product description:
Item specifics
Condition:
New: A brand-new, unused, unopened, undamaged item in its original packaging
Brand: White's Electronics
Intended Use: Beach/Surf, Pinpointing, General Purpose
Features: Volume Control, Discrimination Knob
Type: Handheld
Country/Region of Manufacture: China
Model: Xventure Kids Metal Detector
Designed by White's Electronics, this is a "real" metal detector right-sized and simplified to be fun and rewarding for kids seven and older.
I have 13 grandchildren and certainly not all of them are into metal detecting, but some are, and as other youngsters get the urge, I know I am going to check out the XVenture because it is 'simple' and it is affordable for kids and grandkids. I do like several White's detector models, and especially feel the current MXT All-Pro is their best multi-purpose detector. I also lake the MX5 for day-to-day hunting as it ought to work well for many 'average' Hobbyists and even Avid Detectorists.
But I also like the brands in my current detector battery regardless of which country the business is located in, and I don't care about the supplier of the parts they use to build them, or White's, as long as they are quality parts and the build quality and performance are there.
I'm glad that White's and Garrett and Tesoro and the brands at First Texas Products are American Based Companies with jobs for Americans. But I also appreciate the fact that all the parts they use do NOT all come from the US of A and their detectors are simply
Assembled in America with parts from a variety of sources including foreign manufacture.
This XVenture is a new AdVenture for White's and it will be interesting to see if offerings down the road will be able to hit a lower MSRP and be more competitive with what's on the market today. Overall, White's detectors have been and are overpriced for what they offer and have been for the past decade or so. This might be a path that will be a shot in the arm and help White's, who seem to be struggling a bit in recent years, get back into the top of this competitive metal detecting industry market.
Just personal opinions and there's no harm in that. We all have them.
Monte
