Myers Depot Metal Detectors

My Etrac is dead. :( Send it for repair or get something else?**UPDATE** Repair estimate is in...ouch!**UPDATE 2**Got my detector back but the menus a

Waveoff said:
I just got the repair estimate from the detector center. They said the main circuit board is fried. The guy was saying that normally it's a $10 capacitor and a cheap fix whatever the machine is exhibiting symptoms like mine had. He said my machine was the first one they've seen where the circuit board was fried. The total cost for repair is going to be $359.87.:shock:

I originally paid $525 for it.

Taking into consideration the total amount of money I would have into this thing after repair, what would you all do?

Get it fixed and keep it?

Get it fixed, throw it on eBay or craigslist, take the money and put it towards a used CTX?

Don't get it fixed and part it out?
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Would you be able to replace it with one that had a clean bill of health from the factory for $360?

You also have an investment in the coils that you wouldn't have to replace.

Or, you could sell it all on ebay along with the coils, and use that toward a replacement detector, albeit with a new learning curve.

Decisions, decisions... Only you can really decide what to do...
 
I'd fix it. A factory refurbished Etrac is easily worth $375. You figure it may be a expensive repair but you'll have a factory refurbished (Etrac) and probably a warranty on the repair.

I'm surprised they aren't footing more of the bill though. Is it out of warranty or is the damage done to the machine considered user error vs a manufacture defect?
 
ChrisMD said:
It’s not factory refurbished though. He could get it back and a week later the LCD goes out and there’s a couple hundred bucks more repair.
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If he sends it in to minelab and they fix it that is considered factory refurbished vs a third party fixing the machine. I'd assume the repair work would have a warranty.

I assume when a manufacture services their own products they bring the product up to par when it was on the assembly line.
 
ChrisMD said:
Factory refurbished is a machine/device etc getting a complete inspection and parts replacement to look like new. He’s just getting a board replaced. Minelab doesn’t warranty repairs on out of warranty machines. There’s been plenty of postings over at the Etrac and CTX board in Findmall of people getting caught up in repair chains, where it goes in for one issue that gets fixed, comes back and a week later something else goes.
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That's just a poor warranty service then. In that case I wouldn't even purchase anything from mindlab if the warranty services are that problematic. I'm happy with my Tesoro lifetime warranty.

for $359 dollar's I would expect a full inspection and repair of anything bad. Basically a refurbished unit. Not for them to only fix the problem that is wrong and no inspection to even see if something else is about to go.

In that case its basically worth it for parts. It's like a car falling apart, do you want to fix one thing, investing heavily risking something else going bad.

Last thing I would do is reinvest in another mindlab though unless you want to go through this again in the future.
 
ChrisMD said:
That’s the fun with Electronics, there isn’t a test that’s going to tell you how much longer you’re going to get out of something like a board, resistors, capacitors, LCD’s, etc. I’m sure they look it over while they have it but behind a functions/doesn’t function test they can’t tell longevity.

Tesoro isn’t immune to it, they just have the lifetime warranty, but you’re still paying shipping. I had an Outlaw that crapped out on me 2 months after getting it, got repaired and came back, and then developed a new issue and had to go back. No reflection on Tesoro for me, just the nature of the beast.

Where Minelab is evil is their repairs are always the high end of expensive. Compared across the spectrum I’d rate their out of warranty service as piss poor, simply because of how expensive it is I wish they’d pass right to repair laws where they had to make all spare parts available, then we could fix them ourselves.
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I get that you can't determine longevity.

A example would be a playstation I sent it for repairs.
I've paid for out of warranty services before such as disc drive replacement. My original one year manufacture warranty was expired.

They don't only warranty the repair work they do but the system as a whole free from defects for like one year from repair. So in other words if a capacitor blows a week after you get the system back from a disc drive repair it's still under warranty as a whole. You're not paying a whole other repair service. You're basically paying for a refurbished system with a warranty service again. Often people wouldn't even get their same system back. They get a different system with different serial number.

That would be warranty through manufacture (Sony) if you took it to get it repaired from a private third party they are likely to only warranty the particular work they are doing.
 
I sent them an email asking if they had any demo or refurb units they would be willing to sell to me for around $360 in exchange for my unit. The original estimate was actually around $560 until the dude said his boss was willing to use a board from a demo unit for $275. I also asked if there was any warranty on the repair work and/or the entire detector if I chose to have my machine repaired. We'll see what they say and I will report back.

If no deal is made with them, I suppose I'll just get my broken machine back and part it out. I've got my eyes out for a used CTX...
 
ChrisMD said:
Not sure which used one you are looking at, but I see a lot of overpriced used ones. As a frame of reference, I paid $1750 new.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Thanks Chris! I do see quite a few used ones that are pretty overpriced. I'm going to be patient and wait for a good deal to come along. I'm watching one on eBay right now and have checked craigslist nationwide to see what's out there.
 
Hey Fred

Waveoff said:
Thanks! I appreciate the feedback from someone who has used both machines. I would definitely give the Nox a chance if I had one. I've seen way more positives than negatives on it.
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I have an Equinox 800 you can try, I f your not too busy next week let me know. I hunt with a guy who uses an eTrac, we compare signals all the time and I will say it goes both ways with one machine seeing a target that the other one doesn't. I really like the 800 but will not part with my eTrac any time soon. Lightweight, waterproof, and the ability to pull coins out of trash is undeniable. HH Mark.
 
markinswpa said:
I have an Equinox 800 you can try, I f your not too busy next week let me know. I hunt with a guy who uses an eTrac, we compare signals all the time and I will say it goes both ways with one machine seeing a target that the other one doesn't. I really like the 800 but will not part with my eTrac any time soon. Lightweight, waterproof, and the ability to pull coins out of trash is undeniable. HH Mark.
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Thank you for the offer, Mark. I'll try to give you a call sometime during the week. I'd like to give the Nox a try!
 
zeemang said:
I'd get it fixed and run it until it catches on fire personally...
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I'll see what they say as far as any sort of warranty on their work. I'd hate to get the detector back and have something else go wrong with it soon after. That would make me want to douse it with gasoline and set it on fire...
 
Sorry to hear that about the machine,minelabs are tough and usually don't see them broke..If I were in your shoes I'd get it fixed,you cannot buy one for the price of that repair.
 
woodbutcher said:
Sorry to hear that about the machine,minelabs are tough and usually don't see them broke..If I were in your shoes I'd get it fixed,you cannot buy one for the price of that repair.
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Good point. In the short time I owned it since buying it from you, it has found me some pretty awesome stuff! I'm curious to see what the repair center says in response to my email.
 
I'd get it fixed. You could very easily sell it for more than the cost of the repair if you decide to move on to something else. Not many other detectors out there that can sniff out the silver like the e-trac. I honestly dont see the advantage of getting the CTX unless you're planning to water hunt. I guarantee you that on land, the e-trac will hit every target that the CTX does.
 
Waveoff said:
I'll see what they say as far as any sort of warranty on their work. I'd hate to get the detector back and have something else go wrong with it soon after. That would make me want to douse it with gasoline and set it on fire...
Click to expand...

I believe you get a 6 month warranty after repairs. Its been a long time since I sent one in so I'm going from memory there.
 
pballwiz said:
I'd get it fixed. You could very easily sell it for more than the cost of the repair if you decide to move on to something else. Not many other detectors out there that can sniff out the silver like the e-trac. I honestly dont see the advantage of getting the CTX unless you're planning to water hunt. I guarantee you that on land, the e-trac will hit every target that the CTX does.
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I may get it fixed. I'm still not sure. The CTX would be nice because I don't mind hunting in the rain and I would like to do a little water hunting. The faster recovery speed is pretty attractive as well. However, the Etrac isn't as slow as a lot of people make it out to be.
 
Well I finally heard back from Dan at the detector center today after I resent the same email I sent them on Friday after business hours. They said they would sell me another Etrac but it would be a lot more than the cost of the repair. A dollar amount wasn't given to me when I asked. He said my machine is essentially a new machine since it has a whole new circuit board in it. I expressed my concerns about something else failing on it shortly after getting it back. He didn't seem too worried about something else breaking on my detector. It would've been nice if they said they would have my back in the event something else went wrong with it. In any case, like Jason said a couple of posts back, the warranty is 6 months on the repair. I decided to have them fix my detector and it's on the way back to me now. I guess I'll run it for a few hunts and decide whether I want to keep it or sell it. Thank you to everyone who gave me their feedback and advice. I'll post a picture of the invoice when I get my Etrac back.
 
My Etrac arrived just a short time ago in the mail. I turned it on to test it out and the menus are all in German...awesome.:facepalm::mad:

I called the detector center and advised them of this. Their response? "It wasn't like that when it left here." Yeah...ok...whatever! I call BS on that one... From what I understand, the user can't change the language on the Etrac. It needs to be sent in to have the language changed for a nominal fee. The guy tried talking me through changing the language on it by going to the settings page. He claimed the Etrac he had in his hands gave the option to change the language just above the Master Reset option. Maybe newer Etrac's have this functionality. Mine does not. I just went to Minelab's website and checked the latest user manual download. It does not show language as a selectable option in the user menus. I also tried looking in the Exchange program and there's no option to change languages there either.

I am extremely annoyed right now to say the least. I feel like they just slapped the replacement board inside my machine and said it was good to go without actually checking anything. And then to tell me on the phone that my detector wasn't in German when it left their facility? Unacceptable...:mad:

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