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Thanks for sharing that link with us Dave.

Cheers Kon.

Good looking shafts Dave, unfortunately Aliexpress is the home of all things counterfeit !

Rick

I've been using the same ones for a while, I consider them to be aftermarket, not counterfeit as they're not trying to claim to be Minelab shafts, they don't have the logo either, however yes, Aliexpress is the king of counterfeit marketplaces and you have to be aware of what you're possibly buying on there, as it all likelihood it's not the brand you think it is

There are a massive range of aftermarket shafts for the Equinox and the GPX, people are knocking up their own out of carbon fiber tubes and reselling them, these Chinese GPZ shafts are a fraction of the price and it's just a bit of plastic, they've worked out OK for me so far.

Members take note.
The only King of counterfeit market places, are the governments of the world, who turn a blind eye on such in favour of personal gain/profits.
This forum does not support the buying or selling of any counterfeit goods, nor does it recommend to any member on here, to buy any Item/Good from any overseas/International company, dealers or their subsidiaries.  It is highly recommended that when wanting to purchase any Item/Good through the web, do your own research, so that you are aware of what you are buying, before proceeding to buy.
If the above items in question are not being sold as the original Minelab logo lower shafts, then as far as I'm concerned, they are just another aftermarket accessory, suited for use on the GPZ 7000.
Now apart from the motto  "you normally get, what you pay for" both Dave & phrunt, are 2 reputable members on here, who have both bought through Aliexpress & use such aftermarket accessories. So their word as to the lower shafts compatibility for use on the GPZ 7000, is good enough for me. (especially if one can purchase through PayPal)

Cheers Kon.

Yeah, re counterfeit, I have full faith in Toyotas, have had since my first in the mid 70s when they were called counterfeits. Now there is a reciprocal to counterfeit saying and I apologies to non-Toyota drivers for quoting it here, "If its not a Toyota its a lemon". The X coils some of us have found so productive are treated like counterfeits by some, maybe ML will wise up and allow them access to the chip and many more detector users will discover they are Xceptional coils, like NF and Coiltek have proved over many years use by ML detector users. Top aftermarket coils, parts etc compliment the detector they are fitted to not degrade it.

Although this thread is on "lower aftermarket shafts" for the GPZ 7000 Norvic, I both understand & agree with what you are saying. No one should ever judge a book by its cover, for (like a car, unless one drives one, how can they say I know what it feels like, certainly not by reading about driving, through a book?).
Like any other coil manufacturer, X-Coils has had their minor teething problems at the very beginning, upon the introduction of some of the very first X-Coil size/range, but, once any coil issue or problem were brought to their attention, they were quick to rectify/replace & improve on any underlying problems, associated with any of their coil line-up.  
Today (& in such a short period of space/time) I can actually rank the manufacturer/s of X-Coils, up there with the best of them.
It is both sad & a shame, that no mutual agreement deal could be reached/struck between Minelab & X-Coils (saving GPZ 7000 users from having to make an aftermarket GPZ coil Patch lead) in order to plug in & use the X-Coil range, (directly from coil plug end & into the detectors control box), but the reasons for & against, are strictly between Minelab & the X-Coil manufacturer.
This would have given Minelab GPZ users a broad variety of aftermarket coil selection, considering Minelab had no intention of making any other coil sizes apart from the 14X13 & 19 inch GPZ coils.



Cheers Kon.

Kon those issues at the start should have been rectified before the coils went on sale, and especially before ML were approached for the lead, this was not done.

I always felt cutting off the end of a coil lead to circumvent the security chip was essentially unethical and potentially going to end up going down the path of a legal challenge from ML, that was my view on it at the time and in some part I still feel the same. Time has shown that ML either did not feel the need or could not challenge it legally so in this case hindsight has proven it was not such a BIG deal after all.

I’ve watched Rick’s video of the 17” Concentric a number of times and it seems the coils have indeed come a long way since the early days, I was especially impressed by the Ferrite balance and also the overall quiet running behaviour of the coil over what seemed like hot variable ground, target sensitivity was impressive too.

The lower shafts that have been linked to on this thread are obviously knock off’s and I’d say its happened because there have been issues accessing parts in overseas markets through usual channels so some entrepreneurs have gone and made up a mould of the ML one and satisfied the demand. You see that type of thing a lot with plastic scoops and also the Hipstick ball joint base.

The thing you have to be careful with is the type of plastics used to do the injection moulding, the Chinese ones often used recycled plastics which can be a problem with an extremely sensitive detector like the GPZ so I would highly recommend users run the detector over the shafts in the most sensitive setting possible to see if the detector “sees” the shafts. You also need to realise the ML one is designed to break as a sacrificial part to protect the very expensive coil, if the plastics of the counterfeit are not the same as the genuine ML ones then you run the risk of breaking your coil!

At the end of the day it is a direct knockoff of a genuine ML designed and manufactured part so is the same ethical conundrum as a copied branded ML part. Trying to paint it as something else is just looking for group acceptance of the crossing of a fine line unethical practice. Not trying to rain on anyone’s parade but thats the ethical short and tall of it IMHO, especially buying off that website which is known for counterfeit!!

JP

Thanks JP, I didn't realise the lower shafts were sacrificial parts to protect the coil, It's likely the aftermarket shafts are weaker plastic and would break easier anyway I've noticed the clip feels softer to shut it over the genuine ones.  It still works just as well but it's not as stiff to close but still holds tight.

You had me a bit concerned over the plastic containing something that would set off the detector so I ran my Gold Bug 2 over it to see if it responds in any way, and all good there so it's not an issue.

While I'd rather run genuine lower shafts personally, I'd have to import them from Australia to get them here, and by the time you include shipping and import duties taxes (paying GST twice) the price is silly for a bit of plastic.   I suspect this is why these alternative ones exist as in Africa or wherever their primary market is the same problem exists like you suggested.   So in the end these lower shafts don't just end up a bit cheaper, they end up massively cheaper.

Often it's not so much the price that's the problem though, its the availability. I do suspect Minelab has sold more GPZ lower shafts in the past couple of years since X-coils appeared than they expected though.

Apologies for getting thread off track, aftermarket shafts, coils, boosters etc are part of the detecting scene. For me I`ll go with whatever produces, and that is the way of the marketplace and has been since year one. Manufacturers know this tis why they compete, tis why we get advancements in products. May ML and Toyota stay on top of their respective heaps, they both started out "copying" and have been both accused of "counterfeit" by some quarters similarly they both have healthy aftermarket suppliers modding and adding to their original products to suit the individual rather then the masses as modern manufacturing demands. I remember way back a slogan that claimed "only one detector manufacturer made mine detectors but not also mines", that slogan disappeared almost as fast as it appeared, why?

JP what happened happened & it is obvious that Minelab once finding out, came in to abolish, not help towards rectify the issues at hand. Just like the very few & unfortunate GPZ users, who for failing to properly/accurately make or get made, a good working patch lead in order to safely run their detector/X-coil properly, were made a good example of for all to see, by being charged an exorbitant price.  
Let me get this straight. You want us GPZ 7000 users to be loyal to Minelab & Minelab only, knowing that more productfull, or cost effective aftermarket products, are available from the rest of the world, that actually do help in doing the same job if not better than the original, at a fraction of the cost?    Let me ask you, is Minelab as loyal to their customers as what their loyal customers have been to them, when with each passing year prices of Minelab goods are skyrocketing through the roof? A good example of this is an 8 inch plastic skid plate for the SDC 2300, when mass produced would cost less than $1 Australian, yet it is sold for twenty times that here.  The art of metal detecting is nothing but another hobby, that few can lay claim to have had any major monetary rewards in return through their investments. Very lucky are the few who have access to private productive gold bearing ground, who happen to see good returns on their investments, but this doesn't speak for the many/majority of detectorists out there.  
If the product for sale above, is a  direct copy of the original Minelab lower shaft & is allowed to be sold on the Australian market, without it being challenged by consumer affairs, Australian customs or Minelab themselves, then as far as I'm concerned the consumer/buyer of such, is breaking no laws, for they are paying for their Items in earnest. I also have no doubt that the overseas products in question (at the prices offered) would somehow be made through some cheaper form of plastics, but as long as they do the same job, that's all the buyer is interested in.
Now if its a major headache/problem for Minelab, then let Minelab deal with it, for the consumer/buyer here in Australia, is sick of paying for items/goods, which are constantly being made very cheaply overseas, at the cost of Australian workers/jobs, whilst being charged in Australian dollars/prices, the same as if the goods would cost to be made here. If Minelab wanted none of their Item/goods counterfeited, then they should have stayed & dealt within Australia only (for the world is what it is) & not deal with the rest of world, where the risks are far greater, but the lure of turning over more & more of that almighty dollar, has no ends nor limits no?
I know not of any business/company that thinks not of their pockets first & the consumer last.  For that's business for you hey?
As for the X-Coils, I agree. They have come a long way from their beginnings, constantly striving towards producing better aftermarket alternatives. Alternatives that many a GPZ 7000 user, have been asking for from day one.

Cheers Kon.

The aftermarket products mostly only exist as there is a need for them, be it with price or necessity.  In the case of these Chinese shafts it's about the price more than anything, I highly doubt they're better quality, in fact I'm pretty certain they won't be but they do the job and when in my case I can buy 3 or so of them for the price of one original if I break one and have to replace it a couple of times I'm still better off plus I'll have spare parts then for other ones

As for other shafts, I changed my GPX shaft to a carbon fiber one to lighten it up a bit, my Equinox came out of the factory with a wobbly shaft which later Minelab admitted was a problem with them and offered to replace my shaft for me which they did, and it had some paperwork with it that shows the Equinox shaft was made in China, I just bought a Carbon shaft for it too as the aftermarket carbon shafts are far better.  My Gold Monster factory shaft kept coming unscrewed, it's a pretty cool design but the quality just isn't there, I used plumbing seal tape on it for a while to tighten the screw connection but gave up on that and put it on a better quality aftermarket shaft too.

As for coils, most people with a GPX choose to use aftermarket coils, now Coiltek's pumping out aftermarket coils for the Equinox so that'll be interesting to see how they go, hopefully an improvement over the very bump sensitive 6" stock coil when in high gain, I've of course got one on order.  I'd like them to make aftermarket Gold Monster coils too as it's even more bump sensitive but I think the GM is on it's last legs and due for replacement.

I personally like accessory aftermarket products, I usually find them some improvement over the originals and this isn't just with detecting equipment, pretty much everything, including vehicles (in my case parts) as has already been brought up.

This turned into quite an interesting thread with how different people perceive third party products.

As it was said about being able to afford spare parts,I am proud to spruik the fact  that half of my old pajero bomb is made up of after market spare parts.
It's the only way I can keep the old girl on the road, and I'm sure there are plenty of after market horror stories out there.
I think one would be fairly safe in purchasing a plastic knockoff for a detector? as we know the originals can break just as easy.
sorry to get right off topic,now back to the z shaft


cheers   moredeep

I agree moredeep, for there's a little to much shafting going on here.

Kon

Fables shafts again