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Frankly, I don't advocate anyone taking the kinds risks I take, whether riding a Rokon in rough ground or prospecting in Baja. Certainly there are enough assholes on both sides of the border to make prospecting a dangerous hobby. Several years ago two hunters from here in Yuma were killed in N. AZ by a fellow they befriended on their hunt. Is it more likely in Baja, possibly. Paul and I had our GPZ's stolen from my driveway in Yuma. Would you flash your Rolex after dark in Detroit? Did the Argonauts of all the various gold rushes stay home because there were wild animals, dangerous serpents, bandits or wild Injuns? It is all a personal choice and everyone gets to decide how much risk is acceptable. When I start encountering shoeclerks from Payless in Baja, then I'll know it's time to move on. I've been traveling in Baja for over 50 years, with very few problems. That may all change tomorrow, but until it does I'll take my adventures where I find them.

I know we had a recent thread on this but I wanted to say I had two broken pairs of UR 30s and because of that other thread, I sent them in to Koss for repair. I got them back about two weeks later. I am very happy with the repaired and refurbished headphones, they are just like new. Some may think other types of headphones are better, but its very good to have spares as they do break sometimes. Broken headphones are not good for much, but these refurbished ones will make sure I always have a spare pair or two for a long time to come.

Haal the 705 is actually a very easy detector to learn. Like DSmith said play with it and see what happens each time you try it. A couple things to remember that are very important. If you run the 705 in the preprogrammed coin mode you will rarely find the good old coins because those TID's are blocked out to be rejected. Read Randy Horner's ebook and set one of your preprogrammed modes to open up the tide for those old coins and watch your best and oldest coin finds stacking up. The other thing play with the other tones that are on there. Don't just stick with the 99 tone as minelab calls it. It is actually one tone for each tid notch. Try the 4 tone and two tone. Never ever pass by a target for example 10 12 and with it -6 -8 if those 4 tids keep coming up it will be a nickel with a nail or other piece of iron.

Having a bit of fun with the GM 1000 so thought I might chronicle my finds in the one spot (if that's allowed??). Went out this afternoon with the literal dog, the figurative dog and the 3 hounds (the kids ). Took the GM to a spot where I had been before with the SDC and the Zed and had never found anything but rubbish. Old quartz vein site that had been pretty well smashed by the old boys. Lots and lots of targets with a little bit of sign of previous detectorists but I am assuming they were put off by the rubbish too. Today I strapped on the big coil for a bit of a change. Have almost exclusively used the little fella as I think it's a bit more stable and sensitive - although I have absolutely nothing to back that up with. A few small pieces of lead and a bit of ? tin. And one nice little specie ?? Also had a bit of a noise in the quartz wall but it was hard to get close enough so will be heading back there with the little coil to get a better swipe at it. Only out for about 45 mins so plenty more to this story (hopefully )

My prospecting partner from San Diego and I made a quick trip down to Baja for some prospecting. The area is an old placer site about 190 miles south of the border. He's been detecting the area for over 20 years, from Gold Bug through Minelab 2200 and now with the GPZ. All the patches have been hit pretty hard but we managed to scrape up a few nice pieces. We had 3 good days of detecting, I spent one day on the old patches and the rest of the time exploring for new spots. My nugget total was half of his since he opted to stay on the old patches. We drove as far as we could up an old wash then traveled another 2 to 3 miles by motorbike, then hiked another mile or so up some steep canyons. He uses a Yamaha Big Wheel trail bike, I used my newest prospecting steed the Rokon 2 wheel drive mototractor. The Rokon is a terrain traveling son of a gun, if you can hang on. I managed to dump it a couple times, invariably in bowling ball sized rocks or on steep boulder strewn hills. I'm still nursing a bruised ankle after that 200 lb machine came down on top of me pinning my leg and ankle underneath. It's definitely not for the faint of heart or those that are 2 wheel vehicle balance challenged (like me). All my falls occurred from momentary indecision and hesitation. The solution seems to be pick a line, then hit the gas or stay at home. My nuggets all came from a single wash where recent rains had blown out some of the overburden leaving bedrock within detector depth. My partner pulled almost an oz swinging low and slow over the old hillside placer diggings. This was really our tune up trip, preparing for an extended trip another 300 miles south after Christmas.

This nugget is said to be the world's largest crystalline nugget. http://www.calaverasenterprise.com/sierra_lodestar/article_ca273814-da1c-11e7-b866-b37713f31b00.html

https://thedailydetectorist.com/2017/12/11/one-dead-and-twelve-injured-in-failed-metal-detector-unvailing-stunts/ Just had to share!

Others have recommending switching your brand prefernce, and I'm not going to weigh in on that. But if you're sticking with a Garrett you'll be better off with the AT-Gold for finding nuggets. It also will find coins, jewelry, and relics. (KG and Ringy from the US TV show Diggers, who are supplied/sponsored by Garrett, chose the AT-Gold over the AT-Pro for their relic hunting.) Biggest downside vs. Pro is that it won't work in salt water (but it will perform in fresh water). Here is a comparison chart, including the new AT-Max, which Steve posted recently: Also you'd be wise to carefully read through Steve's reviews. He mostly covers gold detectors there so you won't find the AT-Pro, but the AT-Gold is reviewed and receives good marks: http://www.detectorprospector.com/gold-prospecting-equipment/metal-detectors-metal-detecting-accessories.htm Since your budget is limited you should consider buying a used detector, for example on Ebay.

That is the other thing I do is I use the 2 tone or 4 tone simply because if my brain was to try and process what the 705 is telling me with 99 tones set I would be more nuts then I am now I also feel that with 99 tones set for the detector to process it looses some sensitivity so I am usually set in two tone or four tone,but I have experimented with the 99 tones set and usually only last about and hour tops with it set that way,like I said in an earlier post the best way to get a feel for the 705 is to play with all the settings it is vary easy to go back to the factory settings if you do not like what you have set up but to me that is truly the only way to find out just what the 705 is capable of play with everything that is in it.

Condors, you crack me up?! You know how to live life buddy.

Ya know, that's something I hadn't even considered. I appreciate that idea. It sorta looks like it was formed in rock. I guess I should do a specific gravity test on it to start with. Right now, though, all my time is spoken for. But, that's something I should do this winter. It's also too big to weigh on my little Gem Pro 250 scale, too. Jim

I was cruising through the Minelab website looking for any new bits on the Equinox and came across this marketing video that compares the detectors in the "Treasure Detector" range. I think it's interesting, though not surprising, that the marketing hype is toned-down when the Equinox is compared to the rest of the Minelab range.

Most of us Prospectors are avid outdoorsman! You can find us with the same smile on our faces be it fishing or hunting. This Deer Season my old Buddy NuggetSlayer (Jeff), headed up to the hills to hunt some Deer. Well early into the hunt on opening day, he took carful aim at a 2x2 Blacktail Buck. One well placed shot, Jeff let the Deer run over the top of the ridge to bleed out as he hike to find the blood trail to track it down. It ran a little further than he expected, but the woods opened up and was easy hiking following the Deers trail. Called his hunting partner on the radio for some help, he had it field dressed ready for the hump back to the truck, when he arrived. With all the excitement of the hunt, he was dreading dodging all the pine trees and brush on the other side of the hill and down to the truck. Then it hit him, he was smack in the middle of and old Hydraulic Pit. He quickly changed from his hunting hat (even though it’s the same dirty one) to his prospecting hat! Deer hanging at camp and rested up he hiked back to the Hydro Pit and scouted it, he sent me pictures of both Deer and Hydro Pit. I told him it looks like a no-brainer, just a matter of getting it under the coil and dig it! We waited well after hunting season to finally get there with our GPZ’s. Chilly start with the trucks temperature gauge saying 25 degrees. But the little hike over the ridge made it feel a few degrees warmer, lol. As any Hydro Pit, plenty of trash...Relics to some, but the wrong color for today’s hunt. I finally, found a dink and called Jeff on the radio. Didn’t take him long to find one several yards from me. Jeff, made a big circle and came back to his spot and heard another possible target at the edge of his dig hole...yep another nugget! Well to make a long story short, he found a little spot that didn’t get washed away back in the day. We messed around making his hole bigger and 14 of them 15 nuggets came out of that pay material. Well this spot is to far for a day trip and it’s way to chilly, until after next Springs snow melt to finish this spot off and to explore the entire Hydraulic Pit. Now, Jeff can afford some Potato Salad with his Deer Steaks! Until the next hunt LuckyLundy

Hahahah.. great choice for emergency hydration--- seems like my Aussie mates know that trick well

It's great to have a mechanic in the family. I did put the pick inside my pack and it punctured my camelback bladder. I had to cut that day short after running out of water. So I went back to camp and drank beer.

Interesting scenario,i am assuming its a hidden hoard of gold coins and as you have mentioned that they 'could' be in a glass container then it would be a sub 200 year old hoard,of course could be wrong but you dont have any further details. In a situation like that here in the UK if i was too come across a scattered hoard ie the plough has taken the top off the container and spread the hoard in a reasonably tight radius,then i would try and locate the stray coins then try and locate the container,usually ours are located in earthenware pot that type of thing and usually down at the 18-26'' depth range,which is the type of range that you have mentioned.The detectors that i have and use for these types of detecting hunts are either the Whites TDI Pro(pulse) with a range of coils from 12'' upto 20'' that certainly will give you the depth especially on the bulk or container of the hoard/stash or what ever you are detecting for.A couple of other detectors that i use are the Nexus SE (dual 9'' coil) or the Nexus MP with the 14x13'' coil,both of these machines are VLF but will certainly hit the bulk hoard container at the depth that you are after. One other and last resort and the deepest option that i use is a Fisher TW-5 twin box,basically no good on single coins but will have no problems locating a container of coins in the area size that you have mention,how deep will a twin box go on a hoard size container with coins in,well i will stick my neck out here and say that will nail the container at even greater depth,it all depends on the size of the target,the larger it is the deeper a twin box setup will go,but remember no good on single coins. This may or may not help you,but this is the method that i have use with some success here in the UK,surprisingly enough if you are on a tight budget and non of this information you have provided,you can buy a much cheaper setup say like a older version MXT and buy the Whites 15'' coil Concentric coil for a very reasonable price,this then allows you to use the stock coil for locating the stray or single coins or what ever you are after,then the larger 15'' coil for locating the actual container.This option does basically exactly the same as a high end Pulse machine or specialist dedicated machine at a fraction of the cost. Of course this is just my opinion and thoughts on how i would tackle such a detecting scenario and it has been successful i may add.

I have been using the X Terra 705 since 08 or 09 but for me what I have found while using the 705 on hot ground or mild ground that less gain equals more with the 705 and maybe that is why I have gotten along with the GM1000 so well when i am running the X TERRA 705 if I get into an area that has lots of hot rocks or it becomes unstable from the ground I start lowering my sensitivity and it usually quiets down,I run in prospecting mode almost exclusively with tracking activated the thing with the 705 you have to learn to trust that the GB tracking is working which I do trust I have seen GB numbers as high as the mid to high 40s and as low as single digit numbers within a 10 to 20 foot area, with the X Terra 705 the lower the GB numbers the hotter or more mineralized the ground is but even though I run with the GB tracking activated I still will occasionally stop and re ground balance and check the GB numbers just to see what the GB numbers are. I found the best find for me back in 09 with the 705 while I was living in Ohio the house I owned was built in 1889 and its pretty much what got me into detecting the only info that I could ever find out about the house in my research of it was there was two bank robbers had been arrested in it , it was on about 3/4 of an acre and for the first 3-6 months I did nothing except detect the front and back yards found several mercs some of which were down to 10 or 11 inches deep and other silvers and good things but the best find I ever found and still to this day have not beat for me was under the house which had a basement with an attached crawl space the crawl space had a dirt floor and was big enough that once you were inside of it you could stand up and swing a detector while detecting the crawl space in the furthest back corner I got a hit with numbers that were jumping all over the place I dug up a box that someone had buried it contained all kinds of coins in the box lots of silvers and other coins but the best coins in it was 12- 2.5 dollar gold pieces I don't know at this point what would ever top that find for me maybe that 2 pound gold nugget but for me i will always remember that find I have always felt the the X TERRA 705 was and still is one of the most under rated detectors on the market,still to this day even though I have been using the 705 for as long as I have been I still learn new things about it that amazes me if you have one and do not like it you haven't given it enough of a chance and learned all of its great features the X TERRA 705 is the one detector that will always be with me until either I or it dies thats how much I love the 705 I have used other detectors but none of the others I took to like I did the 705 me and them just did not click so I ended up getting rid of them but the 705 still lives with me for those thinking about getting the 705 download Randy Horton's E Book on the Minelab site and read it several times its a great free book with lots of great info

Personally, I'm happy there is a external speaker on the Equinox. Occasionally I use the external speaker on my CTX when bench testing, or in the test garden, or for quick hunts, it comes in handy. Multi-frequency Minelabs do well in wet salt conditions, and I'm sure the Equinox will have it's place next to my PI at the beach. No worries here!

"Orogenic Gold Deposits" by geology films 2014 (on YouTube) covers mountain building, high pressure fluids, faults, earthquakes, pulses and gold deposition. One item of interest was regarding the precipitation of gold after crossing a wall rock containing "carbon". The carbon (C) combined with hydrogen (H) to form methane (CH4). Methane (gas) interacted with the quartz solution causing the gold to drop out of solution is the green schist zone. The Tuolumne County pocket mines were associated with "diorite dikes" and secondary quartz crossings passed through a "black mineralized slate" wall rock. These crossings were at an acute angle to the the primary NW vein (Sonora Fault). The Siskiyou pocket mines are apparently associated with "Andesite" dikes which is the extrusive equalivalent of the intrusive "Diorite". There are seven short informative videos covering the Orogenic deposits around the Pacific Rim, check them out.

Wes, I strongly agree that a smaller coil would be very useful for creek hunting, brushy, and rocky areas, but will i pay upwards of what could be a $1,000.00 coil, probably not. In these environments, for me, i will dust off the 5000 and use my $240.00 Nugget Finder Sadie coil. Brian.

Actually just found this video test between a GPZ and GPX on an undug target using larger coils. Hopefully Nenad does not mind me posting his test here on this forum and subject. There appears to be very little difference between both the GPX and GPZ on this target.