The decision framework for buying a locating system: walkover versus wireline versus gyro, the DCI model ladder from SE through Falcon to Ares with the generation traps that cost buyers real money, how to choose a transmitter by frequency, length, housing fit, power mode and temperature rating, the site conditions that justify stepping up a tier, and a seven-step protocol for testing a used locator before you pay.

The definitive used-buyer guide to the most common serious locator in HDD: the F5-vs-Falcon-F5 sticker check, what a complete system actually includes, where the Falcon F5 sits under the newer Falcon F5+ and Ares, real 2026 used pricing, the region-code and Sub-k transmitter traps, and the inspection routine we run on every unit we stock.

The mid-tier of the Falcon locator ladder, decoded for used buyers: what the Falcon F2 does, the one thing it structurally cannot do (Sub-k rebar locating, ever), the F1/F2/F5 decision framework, live 2026 pricing from our own shelf, and the finding most buyers get backwards: display tier now moves used price more than the F2-versus-F5 choice itself.