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Where can I buy Minelab Batteries?

gavin		Posted : Monday, 3 October 2011 5:09:51 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Administrators, Registered Joined: 20/02/2010(UTC) Posts: 1,326 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 736 times Was thanked: 535 time(s) in 287 post(s)		Hi, Anyone know where I can buy Minelab batteries suitable for a GPX 4500? I want to have a 2nd one spare for my longer bush missions. Thanks in advance for any suggestions. Cheers, Gavin
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1864hatter		Posted : Monday, 3 October 2011 5:28:39 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 4/08/2010(UTC) Posts: 1,007 Location: Auckland.... Thanks: 49 times Was thanked: 566 time(s) in 269 post(s)		Hey try seaching for skipper on here he posted what he does
		And now....On sandy beaches and muddy soil, rings and coins await my coil!

gavin		Posted : Monday, 3 October 2011 6:11:17 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Administrators, Registered Joined: 20/02/2010(UTC) Posts: 1,326 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 736 times Was thanked: 535 time(s) in 287 post(s)		Cheers 1864hatter - I'll PM him :) Also wondering if anyone has had any experience with these lightweight battery options for the Minelabs? ... http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Minelab-GPX-4000-4500-5000-2-Battery-light-weight-set-/190542091354 Looks like an interesting option!
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Stumbler		Posted : Monday, 3 October 2011 8:33:36 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Flake Groups: Registered Joined: 20/09/2010(UTC) Posts: 18 Thanks: 3 times Was thanked: 4 time(s) in 3 post(s)		Hey Gavin I've seen those lithium Velcro attached batteries, they weigh very very little, not sure how long they last though. Our battery on the GP 3500 went dead and just replaced it with another gel battery and got a half-size back up, cost was about $50 and $35 respectively, the larger was a tight fit in the original Minelab plastic battery holder, but works fine; still very heavy though. If you take in the original battery to a reasonable battery place they should find a close replacement, just might need to fit spades to the wires etc for easy transfer.

gavin		Posted : Tuesday, 4 October 2011 12:37:23 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Administrators, Registered Joined: 20/02/2010(UTC) Posts: 1,326 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 736 times Was thanked: 535 time(s) in 287 post(s)		Cheers Stumbler - hadn't thought of taking the unit apart to swap batteries. Will keep it in mind though as sounds a cheaper option. And good to know there's the option to just swap out the gel battery itself if needs be. At the moment I'm thinking of getting a spare fully cased battery though for longer bush missions just for convenience of swapping over and recharging. Cheers, Gavin
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starflash		Posted : Tuesday, 4 October 2011 2:39:31 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 16/08/2010(UTC) Posts: 192 Location: auckland, tairua Thanks: 18 times Was thanked: 38 time(s) in 30 post(s)		Hi gavin, yes i have the coiltek light weight battery system on my 3500, they work very well and i get well over 4 hours detecting on each battery, very small and light, no need for a harness just clip to belt, the 4500 lith ion is an excellent battery though, so if i were you i would get a spare from miners den or other, just so you dont have to carry around different chargers, it all becomes a headache when you have so many things to remember to pack, yes i have forgotten my charger before, dooohh

gavin		Posted : Tuesday, 4 October 2011 5:41:06 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Administrators, Registered Joined: 20/02/2010(UTC) Posts: 1,326 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 736 times Was thanked: 535 time(s) in 287 post(s)		Cheers starflash. Interesting what you say about the life of the light weight Coiltek batteries, was just chatting to the Minelab dealer on the phone here in Chch and he reckoned their charge only lasted about an hour and the depth of the machine was also reduced. Guess he was keener to sell his own product ;) Apparently the original gel-pack Minelab batteries cost $189 and the better lith ion one's jump up to $695!? Will do a bit of research and see how good the cheaper option is I think!
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oroplata		Posted : Wednesday, 5 October 2011 9:20:25 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered, Moderators Joined: 16/06/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,040 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 23 times Was thanked: 211 time(s) in 152 post(s)		That suggests the coiltek batteries can't supply the current the minelab detector needs to run at full power. Interesting.
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Lammerlaw		Posted : Wednesday, 5 October 2011 10:04:55 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		have a look here and you will find the cheapest answer I think - actually it is a bit of a mute point as I happened to have bought the detector it comes from BUT when I wasnt looking and following advice from a person known to us a third party who shall remain un named got my battery, prized the top off to see how it worked, realised that in keeping with what he had been told it was indeed an ordinary, every day motorbike battery dollied up by Minelab with a cap and connections and sold at a 'small' profit of about a hundred dollars plus. He then adapted the MInelab cap and connections and here you see the results! Absolutely marvellous. Thats the good news - now the bad news is that another person on here out with my son out performed him using a Goldbug - needless to say we have 'upgraded' to Goldbugs at one tenth of the price! http://forums.paydirt.co...8_DIY-SD-GP-Battery.aspx

gavin		Posted : Wednesday, 5 October 2011 5:57:20 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Administrators, Registered Joined: 20/02/2010(UTC) Posts: 1,326 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 736 times Was thanked: 535 time(s) in 287 post(s)		Cheers Lammerlaw - interesting regarding battery being fairly ordinary. May wait till it's a bit nearer the end of it's life before I start to pull mine apart ;) I need an extra though so one can be on charge while the other is in use. Interesting regarding the Goldbug - couldn't you have told me sooner eh! :P Nah, I'm happy with the toy at the mo. Would be curious to compare with a Goldbug myself out in the wild.
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1864hatter		Posted : Wednesday, 5 October 2011 7:00:59 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 4/08/2010(UTC) Posts: 1,007 Location: Auckland.... Thanks: 49 times Was thanked: 566 time(s) in 269 post(s)		I think that the detector you use is only a part of the equation when it comes to finding gold. Also not all detectors are suitable for all aplications, there is no debating that the current minelabs will detect deeper than detectors like the fishers. However the fisher was not designed (perhaps it just cant) to go deep, its niche is exposed bedrock with crevices. The minelab is capable of finding the larger pices of gold in any area but the small pieces may be missed. Likewise the gold bug is useless for deep gold regardless of if its a one ounce piece. So its a bit like buying a large 4 wheel drive and only using it on the road... a small cheap car would work just as well. So basically drive your car on the bit of ground it was designed for and you should be fine. Sorry for hijacking your thread somewhat gavin but im sure the above may be of help to some. Oh and Lammerlaw if you take the gp extreme to an area that has larger gold deeper down then i know that it would out do my detector every time. regardless of what detector you use - good luck out there
		And now....On sandy beaches and muddy soil, rings and coins await my coil!

starflash		Posted : Wednesday, 5 October 2011 8:29:45 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 16/08/2010(UTC) Posts: 192 Location: auckland, tairua Thanks: 18 times Was thanked: 38 time(s) in 30 post(s)		gavin, do you have the lith ion battery in the silver case, if so that will last you all day, didnt realise they were so expensive, but they are fast charging and long lasting, clearly the best, the coiltek one was about 530 bucks by memory and was very similar to the minelab lith ion. did you get a gel battery with yours?, was it 8.2 volts? note any battery producing that will do, i get back up batteries for my 3500 for about $20 and last all day, i will find out if they produce a voltage capable of running your 4500

gavin		Posted : Wednesday, 5 October 2011 9:04:33 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Administrators, Registered Joined: 20/02/2010(UTC) Posts: 1,326 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 736 times Was thanked: 535 time(s) in 287 post(s)		@1864hatter - Don't worry about the hijack - any useful advice is always appreciated ;) @starflash - Someone from Oz has offered to send a Coiltek GPX battery over. AU$330, approx NZ$415. Not quite as expensive as the Minelab one. I'm finding the Aussie dealers are selling them a bit cheaper than over here so I may have to enlist the help of an Aussie friend to forward them on - seems Minelab don't allow dealers over there to sell to Kiwi's :( I'd be very interested to hear about your battery setup as when my first battery fails I'll be having a play myself to see if I can keep things a little cheaper. I do have a lth ion one in a silver case. Seems to be working well, but I'm off bush for a week and not sure how reliable the charging options may be (whatever we decide to take in) so wanted to have a spare battery to reduce risk of loosing detecting time. Going to be a fair way away from civilization and probably the truck as well unless we decide to try and drive it up the river in the arse end of no-where.
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oroplata		Posted : Wednesday, 5 October 2011 9:30:35 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered, Moderators Joined: 16/06/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,040 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 23 times Was thanked: 211 time(s) in 152 post(s)		Might be a cheaper, better option available in a few years... http://www.sciencedaily....2011/09/110929074021.htm
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Lammerlaw		Posted : Wednesday, 5 October 2011 10:22:48 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		Originally Posted by: 1864hatter I think that the detector you use is only a part of the equation when it comes to finding gold. Also not all detectors are suitable for all aplications, there is no debating that the current minelabs will detect deeper than detectors like the fishers. However the fisher was not designed (perhaps it just cant) to go deep, its niche is exposed bedrock with crevices. The minelab is capable of finding the larger pices of gold in any area but the small pieces may be missed. Likewise the gold bug is useless for deep gold regardless of if its a one ounce piece. So its a bit like buying a large 4 wheel drive and only using it on the road... a small cheap car would work just as well. So basically drive your car on the bit of ground it was designed for and you should be fine. Sorry for hijacking your thread somewhat gavin but im sure the above may be of help to some. Oh and Lammerlaw if you take the gp extreme to an area that has larger gold deeper down then i know that it would out do my detector every time. regardless of what detector you use - good luck out there Hi Matt I knew that but fact is that you are quite the character with that thing and I am indeed impressed...I also know that where you were is similar to many spots up there and therefore one could safely assume that your detector is king pin all the way in that country - in any case it prompted me to buy one of those infernal machines of yours - that spot had already been done over with a Minelab 4500 and the chap who did it is no slouch in using it as he knocked me over backwards with what he got one day on my place. If the truth be known what I need is something that detects beneath three foot tall tussocks and through one to three feet of soil, clay and over burden and then I would be laughing. There is a spot on my place where there was a claim but the face slipped on the miner (named in history as co discoverer of one of New Zealands famous gold fields) and killed him. His claim was offered for auction as a 'rich claim' (Papers Past) but never again worked and if I had 'the' detector and the patience to get to work it then....who knows. I am sold on the wee Goldbug...your fault Matt! I will blame you until it pays itself off and somehow methinks its dredger year this year!

kiwijw		Posted : Wednesday, 5 October 2011 11:40:43 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 28/03/2010(UTC) Posts: 1,152 Thanks: 92 times Was thanked: 658 time(s) in 324 post(s)		Hi Graeme, What is the smallest size coil your son is using on the Extreme? The smaller the coil there are more windings & the tighter the windings are & the more intense & concentrated the electromagnetic field is, making it a lot more sensitive on small shallow gold. eg in the bed rock cracks & crevices. Just like what you said about the gold bug. The smallest gold I have found with my GP 3000 in bed rock is .03 of a gram. That is pretty small in any bodies language. Regards John :)

Lammerlaw		Posted : Wednesday, 5 October 2011 11:52:53 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 24/05/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,721 Thanks: 72 times Was thanked: 579 time(s) in 396 post(s)		Originally Posted by: kiwijw Hi Graeme, What is the smallest size coil your son is using on the Extreme? The smaller the coil there are more windings & the tighter the windings are & the more intense & concentrated the electromagnetic field is, making it a lot more sensitive on small shallow gold. eg in the bed rock cracks & crevices. Just like what you said about the gold bug. The smallest gold I have found with my GP 3000 in bed rock is .03 of a gram. That is pretty small in any bodies language. Regards John :) Hi John I had to get it out to check and the coil is a 10 X 5 inch mono coil. I have been amazed at the small size of some of the gold he has got but Matts detector simply seemed to outshine it on this particular instance. I am not a detector expert though I have had a Garrett Deepseeker for thirty years but never found gold with it other than gold rings. Today its an entire new generation of Gold seeking - my day was the beginning and peak of the dredging era of the 1960s onward when as a kid I was out with family. Cheers Graeme Edited by user Wednesday, 12 October 2011 8:08:45 PM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified

exkiwi123		Posted : Friday, 14 October 2011 12:40:26 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Nugget Groups: Registered Joined: 27/08/2011(UTC) Posts: 50 Location: Urunga Was thanked: 9 time(s) in 7 post(s)		hi gavin //lammerlaw // re battery gp 3500 --- gpx 4500 check if buying different batt---- if voltage ok they may veary or some may drop voltage quickley // www.gold detecting@ prospecting forum .com.au there is a lot of info discused on there re batteries volt eg ...... ///ex kiwi123
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