Jump to content

Ace Apex On Gold Nuggets?


Recommended Posts

2 hours ago, Bohemia Miner said:

At first I'm thinking, no threshold, no small gold.  I did an air test (@  20 kHz) and it found a 1.5 grain nugget at 1 inch !  I was glad to see that as the launch video indicated it would find "small gold nuggets".

That doesn't sound too bad.  I wonder how it will perform when ground balanced in gold country.

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Pinging a 0.09g bit at 1 inch, even as an air test is quite impressive and promising.

Agreed mineralisation will reduce sensitivity but in 3 tests i have seen on small gold nuggets it seems more than handy the apex. The video test by john Edmondson was on a tiny tiny piece of gold..Basically a flake and it got it well. .about.an inch from memory. 

I.imagine the apex will excel on salt.lake gold nuggets...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 minutes ago, phrunt said:

Really? I would call that pretty poor, the Gold Bug Pro (19kHz) which I couldn't be bothered switching coils on gets around 2 inches in an air test on a 0.061 of a gram nugget I found on the weekend using the 13" Detech Ultimate coil, so I tried the Vanquish (forced multi frequency) with it's largest V12 coil which was on it and it gets over an inch on the 0.061 of a gram nugget. Then we don't even need to compare to dedicated nugget detectors like the GM1000 or GB2 that'd get much more depth on that size.  I imagine they would both do even better with their smaller coils like the Apex has got from factory.  I really don't think the Apex is going to be optimal for nugget hunting.

Agree with Simon.  The anecdotal AT Max (13.6 kHz) small gold finds described earlier could merely be opportunistic surface finds that could be picked up by any functional detector.  Furthermore, the AT Max is probably sufficiently different in design from the Apex that no performance correlation could be drawn.  Finally, just because you can "successfully ground balance" a detector to hot soil conditions doesn't mean the detector will have any appreciable depth performance under those conditions. It just means you've tuned out the ground feedback noise.

John Edmonton is an excellent detectorist with tens of thousands of hours on Garrett machines.  It is all he knows and he doesn't really consider that any other brand has much to offer him.  He makes some spectacular finds but I think that is more a testament to his skill and perseverance.  I shudder to think what he could do with a machine devoid of the inherent limitations of the flagship Garrett AT line and Ace Apex machines he favors such as poor recovery speed and the less sophisticated signal processing and tone customizations.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the feedback. 

Over here in oz the sdc 2300 is considered the bees knees on small gold. I guess i am just saying that the apex seems reasonable/capable at detecting small gold in the 0.1g to 0.3g range to a couple of inches or more. 

It may not be the optimum for this but at $900 versus an sdc 2300 $4000, its not too bad as a small nugget option??? Particularly if we get some smaller coils for the apex.

It may lack depth on small nuggets...but it will be wait and see

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If cost is an overriding consideration and your are open to considering other brands, there may be better overall values out there for what you want to do, the Equinox 600.or an 800 at just a slightly higher reach, price wise come to mind but there are a few other models of various brands that fall into the same category at about the same or even less cost but with the performance you seek.  Within the Garrett brand others are are recommending suitable higher performing alternatives to Apex.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is the Garrett forum. Please keep discussion of other brands on their respective forums. If making suggestions/comparisons there is the Metal Detector Advice & Comparisons forum. Bottom line is some people want a Garrett, period, and are not interested in other brands.

Any metal detector can find gold nuggets if they are large enough or shallow enough. Can the Apex find gold nuggets? Sure. Can an Ace 150 find gold nuggets? Sure. Finding gold nuggets is nothing special. Finding gold nuggets on ground pounded for decades by superior detectors is a different question, and doing so requires an experienced operator running top notch gear. You seem to have a burning desire for the Apex to be a real performer on gold nuggets Wazzie, but there is nothing to indicate it will do any better or even as good as detectors that have been around for decades. It is very likely the AT Gold is still the better choice in a Garrett when it comes to a VLF nugget detector.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks guys. Will keep you posted.

Discussion went a little sidetracked.  Only wanted to know smallest size range of gold nuggets with apex, and depth. Plus its ground balancing capability in mineralised soils.

From my perspective i am hopeful it will satisfy what i need.  It will be 80% treasure hunter and 20% goldfields purely as a small nugget detector.  It will be my second prospecting detector not my main one. Waz

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi all. 

I was just wondering how might you best configure the apex if working in trashy areas with nuggets?

Is there any point to discriminating or will it miss gold?

I am mainly a gold prospector, have not used discrimination much before, but could see it as handy if it can work. ..

Cheers waz

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 months later...

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...