F75 LTD...Might want to wait

Well...I took the plunge and purchased an F75 LTD 2. Waited a week for it to show up, then had to take a day off from mining and sit around the house all day to sign for the package. Least they could do is deliver it in the AM so you don't lose the whole day.

Much to my dismay, serial number is 11-14 and it has the "mama" glitch. On top of that the display is flopping around inside the control box. It falls down so you can't even see all of the menu choices. Needless to say I'm more than a little disappointed. I haven't had a Fisher machine since the original Gold Bug (and it still works), I was really looking forward to adding the "topnotch" F75 LTD to the stable.

Air test depth seems pretty good to me. My first F75 so I'm a rookie. Hit a nickel easily at 13" in both AM and BP. Actually I noticed absolutely no difference between either mode, both set at 99 sens and 0 disc. It did run quiet in both software version at 99 sens. That was nice.

In the ground tests are a little confusing. I don't remember the exact GB numbers, the ground is a little hot here at the house but not that extreme. I could barely pick up a 5" silver dime I have buried. The 5" silver 50 cent came through though. These were both at 99 sens no disc. Seems a little weak to me. Probably something I'm doing wrong.

One thing I can't figure out yet is testing on a $1.00 gold coin. Air test hit around 8-9 inches Both modes. But if I tossed it on the ground the signal seemed faint and audio was just a grunt. No other tones...just a grunt. Is this normal for this machine?

So... long story short. You might want to wait a bit before attempting a purchase. I will find out tomorrow where to send this piece of junk. Back to where I bought it from or back to Fisher. One way or another it's not staying here.

I'm heading back to the claim with the GPX 5000. I can count on that machine.

Kenny

Mind saying where you got it. I'd hate to see someone else get one of those 11 month not so good versions.

(((( Wow. ))))

Guys turns out the 11-14 units are not per se a bad batch. This posted today from FT on Facebook:

Fisher Research Labs
3 hrs ·

Upgrade Update

We have received some excellent feedback from many delighted customers in regards to their recent upgraded units. We plan on offering this upgrade service through March 1st of 2015.

Early on, we ran into a few hiccups with some of the older unit’s circuits and hardware not being compatible with the new upgrade software. Thanks to our customer’s reports and our dedicated engineers, we were able to identify, diagnose and rectify the issue very early in the process.

Further complicating this, well intentioned community members wrongly reported that the non-compatibility issue could be identified through a serial number range. This is not the case. You cannot rely on a serial number range, rather you have to rely on performance, as affected units will have a noticeable loss in performance.

As always anyone who feels their detector is not operating as it should, whether it’s an upgraded unit or a new one, should call our repair department so we can get it looked at.

We also experienced some shipping delays over the holidays and would like to apologize to those customers who experienced delays.

Thank you for your continued support

"Mind saying where you got it. I'd hate to see someone else get one of those 11 month not so good versions."

I understand wanting to give others a heads up but I really don't want to divulge the source. The guy has an excellent reputation and excellent service. I should have asked him to turn it on before shipping. Not his fault. I will ask him to check out anymore he has in inventory and contact Fisher.

"Guys turns out the 11-14 units are not per se a bad batch. This posted today from FT on Facebook: "

I read that right after I posted LOL. You can read what they say but it sure seems a little lopsided with the 11-14 versus the rest.......Just sayin.

Kenny

Ok that works. And I agree with you. I would like to hear who has the 11 month version that works correctly in AM and disc. (depth wise and without the momma bug).
Ah ha. Read the post above. You bought a new unit ddmk6 didn't you. So, so much for the statement above unless FTP is upgrading existing stock (old F75LTDS/SE and are selling them as new units. So either the FTP post is the truth or they are in fact upgrading old stock.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/16/2015 03:50AM by tnsharpshooter.

There seems to be a lot of confusion going on within Fisher and on the forums. People are being told several different things by the same people at Fisher. There's a thread on Find mall right now about a recent conversation with Juan at Fisher in which he told the caller that there hasn't been any real problem with subpar machines, with the exception of one that had a bad soldering place. Then we hear of somebody else that related the conversation that several of the older machines were being "recalled". And now Fisher puts out the bulletin admitting there were problems in the first run batch of them....which would be the 11-14 models because that's when they started doing the updates. But at the same time, they say there's no relation to the serial number and version numbers. Maybe the root cause for so much confusion is the lack of communication and consistency in which Fisher is relaying info. When 3 people can call them and get told 3 different things from the same person. ..something is amiss.

I've even read where some have been told by FT if they have the 11 month version, go ahead and send it in. I would love to be a fly on the wall at one of their production meetings. And when I was in the USAF, this is not how we did business. It would be hard to keep a plane airborne by doing so. You reckon I should apply???



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/16/2015 04:03AM by tnsharpshooter.

Kinda reminds me of the presidents spin machine,the way they address the issue. Silly.

Fisher needs to communicate better and get quality control in order. They have great highly experienced engineers so I know that's not the problem. I think the problem is in the components and assembly to much cutting corners if you ask me. I really hope they come around and start building consistent top quality machines again. I jumped ship after the first and only f75 I had caused me way to many problems.

Ask if the dealer will take it back, and give you a refund. Then your aggrivation is done.

Get a refund or send it in. That machine is the definirtion of "subpar".

deathray Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Kinda reminds me of the presidents spin
> machine,the way they address the issue. Silly.


spinnin' like a top!..ehe! he! he!
man makes ya dizzy!

(h.h.!)
j.t.

Customer: I have a problem.
First Texas: There are no problems. Next question.


Did I hear a Turkey gobble? A weird gobble sounded like: Nokta,Nokta.

Mike Scott made a post on Finds 'F' series forum to the effect that the problems were only related to 'older' units being upgraded. The fact that
yours is a 'brand new' unit doesn't mesh with his post, i.e. yours should be a 'brand new' pc board......This is very confusing....

The problem is what Mike Scott and the facebook note says IS NOT the same. Facebook says it was "older units" and Not the 11/14,but Mike says that"some" of the 11/14 were involved. We will never know the real truth and beatings will continue until moral improves.

As others have said..... all of the "mixed" messages sound to me like a poor attempt at damage control. 'WoW' is right, Tom. First the 19, now this....I was looking forward to their multi-freq. detector (whenever that may be).. Think I'll continue to look overseas. I just purchased a loupe from Belarus. A superior product at a reasonable price. Seeing good things coming from that area... Thanks for the info. Kenny, much appreciated.

You cannot rely on a serial number range, rather you have to rely on performance, as affected units will have a noticeable loss in performance.


Isn't that Fisher's job?

Where is quality control?

Send them all out and let the customer test them?

Some people that don't read forums and don't have information to compare their unit to will never know they have a sub-par unit.

Glad I am not a customer.

Well...it's on it's way back to Fisher. Before anything is said I want to thank Hector and Juan at Fisher for being super helpful and efficient. Although I can't justify one single reason I should be having a conversation with them over a brand new detector.

When I called I first spoke with Hector, at least until I mentioned 11-14, I was immmediately transfered to Jaun. I described the issues and I'm really not sure what to think about one of the answers. I was told that the "mama" sound during pinpoint is normal when using 2 tone, 2H and 2L. If this is in fact true, I'm not real sure I want the unit at all, makes it pretty tough to pin point ANYTHING.

Went on from there to mention the display rattling around in the control box and not being able to hit a dime at 5". They were pretty quick to jump on the screen as being the root of all the problems.......Maybe, maybe not, who knows for sure. The only thing I do know is the detector was not functioning as it should.

End result, it is...Fisher sent an RMA and mailing label first thing this morning and it is on it's way back home. They offered to replace it with a brand new machine so I won't have to wait until this one is repaired. I gladly accepted :-) I asked Juan to pull one off the shelf and please calibrate it, field test it prior to sending it my way. He assured me this would happen and I believe him.

I spoke with the vendor I purchased the unit from. He was a little disturbed over the fact that his distributor sent him a bunch of these 11-14 units after it was known that there were problems with some of the first run machines with this serial number. He called Fisher to discuss. Fisher assured him that the issue is not the 11-14 serial number. They had a few machines with that number that had problems but the problems were not related to the 11-14. Things just got blown out of porportion. Hmmmmmmm......((Personally, from my reading it seems like the only machines having problems are the 11-14's)) Maybe it's also coincidental that the one I purchased was an 11-14 and it was broke, really broke??? If it was me and I was sitting on a bunch of 11-14 serial number machines....I would be very persistent until Fisher exchanged them. Just my opinion...AND ONLY MY OPINION, I'm not trying to stir the pot here.

I will keep you posted when the new unit arrives and I get some testing time. Bear in mind....this is (will be) my first F75 so I'm no pro. Most of my detecting is with a GPX 5000 and a couple other gold oriented vlf's. I'm just breaking into the coin/relic thing over the last year or so.

Kenny

Hi,, It's inexcusable/unpardonable and pathetic that they could not even post something on their web site about this problem a long time ago....Heck they could of posted something on a forum and not on Facebag....We deserve to be treated with respect and not have to scrounge around for information....I know they/FT have been active on the forums but nothing was ever mentioned....Just about everything they posted on Facebag is a bunch of bull when comparing it to what I have read on this matter....I don't go to Facebag,,I go to a manufactures web sites when I want some info,,,,gee-whiz get real....If they are to cheap to pay one of their workers ($2.42 hr) to check these machines out, I will pay for it,,,,just to see that I get a good one, if I was to order one.... but I'm not now.... I have no proof but part of the problem could be with the startup of another new plant.....JJ

PS: I knew it was just a matter of time before they posted some information somewhere,,,,,Nokta comes to mind..LoL
edit: I pulled the link and info to give them a break for now....



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/17/2015 01:37AM by jimmyjiver.

Goodmore, maybe that's what they were betting on. And yes, does make one wonder just how many folks out there just don't know?? And think about this. Hasn't FT gotten persons email address when they ship in for update?? Has anyone been emailed by FT showing their concern for maybe a bad update?? I wonder where they are getting the people to manage/run their operations? I would be very leery in buying a newly released flagship model from them. I'm not bashing FT, just using my common sense. And yes any manufacturer can make a mistake. It's what they do after the fact, the way they go about correcting, their communications that are judged!!!!!

DDMK6....man I feel bad for ya. I know what it's like to wait....expectantly/ excitedly for a new detector to arrive. But I haven't had the misfortune of getting a dud yet ACCEPT when I first updated after my first detector (ACE250). I updated to a Garrett AT Pro and it would not hit a copper penny at 4 inches. My ACE250 would ring like chapel bells on Christmas Morn over that 4 inch penny. I was not at all happy.
I hope that they send you an AWESOME unit!!!!!

Hi,,,,I had to post something again that I was thinking about....The F-75 was supposed to be released in 2006 to celebrate their 75th anniversary (F-75)....I know they was taking orders for it back then so it's almost 10 years old already and they are still milking it....Plus they still have not got it right yet, now I wonder how many bum units have been released since then & people don't even know they have a bad one....Could you imagine a computer or cell phone etc. being that old before a new release....I hate to say it but I believe they might be losing their fan base...I own 3 or 4 Fishers & Teknetics and had a few of them that had problems....I'm kinda scared or skeptical about buying one because of the quality of them now...... I also hear that there's a lot of bad coils too....JJ

Thanks Kevin B. I have no doubt Fisher will make good on it. I really look forward to receiving a fully functional unit. From everything I have read it seems that the F75 is an excellent machine. ((this is an awesome place to learn)) If I didn't feel that way I surely wouldn't have purchased one :-)

I really didn't intend for this post to be a bash fest on Fisher. I just wanted to let people know that there still are some defective units floating around and maybe a little more patience (I have very little) would be prudent before purchasing one. I have been considering this machine for almost a year and I just decided to pull the trigger. Maybe just a hair too soon LOL.

It will all work itself out and maybe I can find just one of those awesome coins Ron and the guys found :-)

Kenny

goodmore Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> You cannot rely on a serial number range, rather
> you have to rely on performance, as affected units
> will have a noticeable loss in performance.
>
>
> Isn't that Fisher's job?
>
> Where is quality control?
>
> Send them all out and let the customer test them?
>
> Some people that don't read forums and don't have
> information to compare their unit to will never
> know they have a sub-par unit.
>
> Glad I am not a customer.


don't give up on the plastic wonder!
it's a winner at $1099.00,and if ya don't think so,just ask them!
they'll tell ya!..(lol)

(h.h.!)
j.t.

goodmore Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> You cannot rely on a serial number range, rather
> you have to rely on performance, as affected units
> will have a noticeable loss in performance.
>
>
> Isn't that Fisher's job?
>
> Where is quality control?
>
> Send them all out and let the customer test them?
>
> Some people that don't read forums and don't have
> information to compare their unit to will never
> know they have a sub-par unit.
>
> Glad I am not a customer.


seems like this piss poor performance stuff
should be "caught" even at the door on the way out!
just make sure it's caught!

(h.h.!)
j.t.

Quote
Goodmore
You cannot rely on a serial number range, rather you have to rely on performance, as affected units will have a noticeable loss in performance.

Isn't that Fisher's job?

Where is quality control?

Send them all out and let the customer test them?

Some people that don't read forums and don't have information to compare their unit to will never know they have a sub-par unit.

Glad I am not a customer.

I still don't understand why FT doesn't follow a formal quality system like other manufacturers. High quality is not a goal in itself, but rather one target to achieve profitability. And that's the primary reason for any company to exist.

The soon to be released version of ISO9001-2015 mandates that customer complaints be summarized and communicated to upper management for periodic review. Internal audits are mandatory (who best to follow-up?) and corrective actions need to be verified.

This is not a FT quality problem; this is a FT management problem at the highest level.

Well Mike Scott finally stepped behind the podium and gave an address on the situation:


Quotes

"what a mess......
Juan had some miscommunications and wasn’t prepared to handle some calls and questions we didn’t anticipate him having to answer.
I wish I would have been able to get involved sooner to help and I apologize for not doing so.

I am not in customer service or repairs but if anyone has important questions not being answered through normal channels like our website or calling the factory direct or have not received a return phone call or email you can always ask for me @ extension 307 or email me at ms@frsttx.com Gene Scullion AKA ‘Scully’ is also available at extension 311 email gscullion@frsttx.com
I travel extensively so I may not be able to get back to you right away especially if I am out of the country. Gene is usually available if you can’t reach me.

The information on our Facebook page is accurate, early on we had some varying unit hardware that wasn’t compatible with the upgrade. When we started to get some of these units back we diagnosed the problem and solved it, that’s why 1114 was misconstrued as bad…..Some 1114’s were not compatible with the upgrade but not all. If you have a unit that doesn’t seem to be operating properly we encourage you to send it to us.

This forum is not censored by Fisher even though we pay to sponsor it. Please, try and be respectful and keep the name calling and insults towards the sponsor company to yourselves or save it for your email to me Just as you would be respectful to another member of this forum let’s try and treat the company that sponsors it with the same respect.

Going forward please feel free to pass this contact info along to new members if their issues are not being addressed.

Thanks and Dig Deep!

Mike Scott
Director of Business Development
First Texas Products"

This is the same Mike Scott that starred on the Travel Channel TV show "Dig Wars".

He claimed to have found over a million dollars worth of relics TOO...LOL

Daniel Tn Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Well Mike Scott finally stepped behind the podium
> and gave an address on the situation:
>
>
> Quotes
>
> "what a mess......
> Juan had some miscommunications and wasn’t
> prepared to handle some calls and questions we
> didn’t anticipate him having to answer.
> I wish I would have been able to get involved
> sooner to help and I apologize for not doing so.
>
> I am not in customer service or repairs but if
> anyone has important questions not being answered
> through normal channels like our website or
> calling the factory direct or have not received a
> return phone call or email you can always ask for
> me @ extension 307 or email me at ms@frsttx.com
> Gene Scullion AKA ‘Scully’ is also available
> at extension 311 email gscullion@frsttx.com
> I travel extensively so I may not be able to get
> back to you right away especially if I am out of
> the country. Gene is usually available if you
> can’t reach me.
>
> The information on our Facebook page is accurate,
> early on we had some varying unit hardware that
> wasn’t compatible with the upgrade. When we
> started to get some of these units back we
> diagnosed the problem and solved it, that’s why
> 1114 was misconstrued as bad…..Some 1114’s
> were not compatible with the upgrade but not all.
> If you have a unit that doesn’t seem to be
> operating properly we encourage you to send it to
> us.
>
> This forum is not censored by Fisher even though
> we pay to sponsor it. Please, try and be
> respectful and keep the name calling and insults
> towards the sponsor company to yourselves or save
> it for your email to me Just as you would be
> respectful to another member of this forum let’s
> try and treat the company that sponsors it with
> the same respect.
>
> Going forward please feel free to pass this
> contact info along to new members if their issues
> are not being addressed.
>
> Thanks and Dig Deep!
>
> Mike Scott
> Director of Business Development
> First Texas Products"

Thanks Daniel,

I don’t know where to start…….. 1rst off I appreciate the constructive criticism.
We certainly could have done a lot of things quite a bit better. I wish I could be more involved with things like QC at the factory in TX but being in sales, marketing and business development I don’t get much of a chance. I will always try my best to help regardless of the issue.

I like to read the forums when I can but don’t have a lot of time to get involved in threads or monitor and answer questions so the same offer and contact info from FM is extended here as well. I will be traveling domestically and internationally until the end of February so phone calls might be best through this month then Feb 2nd to the 22nd I am in the bush of West Africa with little access to email and none on phone.

I would like to apologize to anyone having experienced any of the headaches that have been associated with this and to let me know if I can help in any way going forward.

Thanks and Dig Deep!

Mike