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  1. The long awaited post about Suction Dredging in California Simply put…….Dredging is coming back to California Spring of next year. Firstly, we know you are as skeptical as we are, after all, we’ve been told things over the past 9 years (like rulings from courts and such) which give us hope, but it always ended up being the same BS, delays, denials and shutdowns The small mining community donated millions to go to court, Brandon Rinehart was dragged through many court battles and that too we all donated to. All to no avail. The politicians and courts didn’t give us much to trust in their words. , they stabbed us in the back every single time. It was all pure politics and science was ignored. Then AMRA introduced SB1222 and things busted wide open. We first of all want to thank Senator Stone and our small mining community for showing up, making calls, sending letters and getting the heck off their butts and being heard, it made the difference. To quote one of the Senators, they didn’t see that support coming. But most of all, our AMRA staff. History and stuff: California passed a law (signed by Brown in Jan 2016), SB637 and because of that and their right to “reasonable regulation” in the state, we must abide by it until things can either be reversed, or changed at the federal level. Some believe the state cannot regulate suction dredging and we agree to some degree here at AMRA, but what would happen if you dredged right now without the permit mandated by SB637? You’d have your equipment confiscated, you’d be fined and you’d be dragged through the California court system and found guilty based on the current language. As a part of SB637 (The Suction Dredge Bill) signed into law in January of 2016, it was mandated that the California Water Board (CAWB) study and evaluate whether permitting should be allowed in the state, and if so, the CAWB was tasked with creating a permitting structure. We believe the sponsors of SB637, Izzy Martin and the enviro group The Sierra Fund, along with their Senator who brought the bill forward, Ben Allen, a Democrat from Hollywood believed the CAWB would toe the political line and just slow walk, or deny permits all along. SB637 morphed into a defacto prohibition on mining as it then labeled all things as suction dredges. High bankers, water pumps, track wheel chairs, trucks and even sluice boxes. People were cited, their equipment confiscated and fines were paid. We pointed out that this morphing of language was illegal, immoral and adversely affected 10’s of thousands of people. Kind of hard to say an airplane is a wheelbarrow just because both have wheels and that is precisely what the vague language in SB637 did. They stated “you can still pan”. As we pointed out in testimony at the Senate hearing on SB1222, panning is not, nor has it ever been a mining method. It is a final process, but not a mining method. Therefore, since that was really all they left us with, we made that argument, which was quite compelling that this is a ban and an illegal prohibition on small scale mining. So the CAWB didn’t toe the political line as some expected. What happened is the folks at the CAWB who are scientists and engineers pulled the raw data of all the studies over the past 20 years which were provided to them by WMA (Western Mining Alliance) and decided to see if dredging was in fact harming fish or fish habitat. What they concluded was dredging was deminimus, meaning it doesn’t harm fish or fish habitat. Their Board of Directors voted unanimously it is deminimus (no harm). We attended and presented (on your behalf) at every one of the public hearings with the CAWB when the permitting was being discussed and we produced a pretty compelling video of the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) actively suction dredging in other states to “create fish habitat”. Let that sink in for a minute….other states are dredging to “create” fish habitat. How is it that other states dredge to create fish habitat, but California thinks it kills fish? Well, it is because this is all political and not scientific (like you guys didn’t know that…). So what happened is they didn’t take Craig’s word for what the outcome was on all these studies, they pulled the raw data and then over the next year, AMRA worked with them on a permitting structure and we did this quietly and behind the scenes. If you recall, the DFG created a nightmare proposal on dredging, the one we recommended was nothing like that. It was one that didn’t involve keeping a diary, waiting a year for a permit or costing 5 grand to run a 4” dredge while being limited to a small 20 foot area in a creek they chose. CAWB listened and while ultimately it was their decision on what permitting structure to go with, it is nothing like we feared. Over the past week we have been in meetings, had calls and emails too numerous to list asking questions we know you’d be asking because hell, they are what we would want to know as we are miners through and through like many of you. Most questions we can answer now, some we cannot answer until late June when we have some formal meetings with the Director of the CAWB and a few Senators, but we are in fact going to be dredging next spring. It will be nearly impossible for the CAWB to pull back this acknowledgment that dredging WILL be permitted next year. AMRA will be discussing this live all weekend at out outing near Groveland CA, it's open to the public and it's free. We will also be covering this in detail at our annual dinner in Chino CA June 2nd, see our website for details or the post below for the outing directions and times. So, here’s the nuts and bolts: Firstly, almost all of the equipment wrapped up in the vague language of SB637 is being reversed and will once again be legal and not considered a suction dredge. High bankers are one piece of equipment we are still actively discussing and may involve a permit of some kind if run in the creek. We believe strongly since this is incidental fallback, like a dredge, it adds nothing and does not cause any adverse impacts on California waterways. Science should prevail, not emotion or how someone feels it might, may, could or potentially impact a waterway. Facts and science. Permitting applications will be available in early Spring and we are shooting for the very first day of Spring which is March 20, 2019. Why does it take this long, well this whole process was in fact ready to go last summer and the permitting structure was created, written and was ready for public comment, then the Director of the Water Board was replaced. The new Director, appointed by Governor Brown stopped all progress on the permits. SB637 had a mandate of 1 year for the CAWB to come up with a plan and they are now at 2 years, 4 months and 16 days. That is not just unacceptable, it is in violation of the law and we made sure they knew that. What remains now in the process is the public comment period where they tell the public what they plan to do and ask for comments. We expect you all to provide input. Cost: It is not going to be $2000 like someone posted on FB, that is incorrect. The permit costs we expect to be around $200 or close to it. They have a calculation where the permit structure needs to be 110% of the cost to do the permits so it shouldn’t be that much. It will be an on-line application process meaning you go to a specific link at the CAWB and fill it out on your computer. It should take no more than 3 or 4 weeks for the permit, but we are going to see if this can be sped up like the Ag permits farmers obtain routinely and rapidly. The permits are good perpetually, meaning that you pay for the permit in 2019, then if you want to dredge next year, you do not have to re-apply, just pay the fee and go dredge. I dredge multiple rivers, do I need a permit for each waterway? No, one permit for the whole state. Do studies have to be done for the creek I want to dredge? No. There will be no site specific studies required for any permits. Will I need to get a DFG permit like we did in 2009 in addition to the CAWB permit? No. Department of Fish and Game, who is currently required to obtain a permit from……….will be eliminated. No permits will be required from DFG for suction dredging. Who enforces this? DFG will be the enforcement arm and will be the agency tasked with checking for permits like we all remember….although in decades of dredging with a permit, I never once got checked. Do we have to keep silly diaries and all the other documentation like what was proposed before? No. There are no after season, nor continual season reporting requirements like DFG proposed in 2012 like keeping a diary and all that nonsense. There are a few things still unanswered like: Are there restrictions on sizes of dredges and motors. We believe dredging will be handled like it was prior to the moratorium in 2009, but do need this in writing before making a statement. What specific rivers/waterways will have a season, although it appears as it is exactly like it was in 2009. No dredging during spawning season (which we support). The exact cost, although we believe it will be a few hundred dollars at most, not the $2,000 circulating on the internet. We also do not know the specific regulations to a fine detail. However the CAWB has specifically stated they would like AMRA (Shannon Poe) to help them with the language and make sure the language does not encompass other equipment like the vague SB637. So as you can see, this is monumental. We are going to obtain this in writing shortly and you have our sincere promise that we will be working with them daily if necessary. They have made these statements in front of two sitting California Senators. It would be close to impossible for them to back out of this without some severe exposure to a lawsuit….and bring one we would on your behalf. We know you’ll have questions, and if we can answer them, we will, if we cannot, we will get them. Mr. Shannon Poe President, AMRA Fighting for your right to mine
    10 points
  2. The Ferrite is needed to accurately calibrate the detector, the ground holds varying degrees of Ferrite like signals called X. In Auto mode the detector will slowly measure any X component in the ground but can be adversely affected by Salt and Saturation signals. If there is no Ferrite available then the detector can be used in Auto mode and hopefully the ground conditions will allow for a reasonable X measurement. When Quick-Trak is triggered the X balance and G balance track really quickly then throttle back to their respective speeds, in the case of Auto mode the X balance is really slow with an active G balance when Quick-Trak is released. In Semi Auto mode the X balance is FIXED once the Quick-Trak button is released. If you do not have a Ferrite then with Quick-Trak engaged used the "Walk and Detect" method shown in the Minelab YouTube tutorials. Ideally it is better to use the Ferrite at all times using Quick-Trak in Auto, Semi Auto or Manual mode. Using the Ferrite is far more accurate than solely relying on there being enough X signal in the ground. Hope this helps JP
    5 points
  3. Super Cool! If it can handle the punishment of Hardcore Diggers? Enjoy! Cheers, Ig
    4 points
  4. https://www.americanminingrights.com/dredging-in-california-next-year/ Whether there is any truth to this, or it is stonewalled by legislation remains to be seen. Interesting though.
    4 points
  5. Possibly my last beach hunt until fall. They don't allow detecting while the public is using the beach, once they open for the season. Today I tried 2 beaches, but quickly left the first one to go back to a more reliable one. It was a good move. The gold streak continues with 2 (possibly 3) gold items. I found some nice silver too, including a beefy .925 Academy ring. Great day to be out detecting and I finally found my first gold chain with the Equinox!
    2 points
  6. People who use detectors in the water have been converting from S shafts to straight shafts for years. If the Equinox was a S shaft you would have just as many complaints if not more. Go figure. So four pages and a few more complaints, but not a single person has been able to name just one waterproof detector of comparable performance that has better ergonomics. Apparently and as usual Minelab takes heat for not being better than they are when everyone else is at a minimum no better and in most cases are demonstrably much worse. And no, detectors that are not waterproof do not count because removing the waterproof requirement removes a major engineering obstacle as regards ergonomics.
    2 points
  7. Dave, no debate that the GPZ 7000 is the best machine for meteorites. I totally agree as I noted above. The only drawbacks to the GPZ is its weight and lack of a small coil option. However, the EQ handles the hot rocks better than the GM. The point of my post is that SittingElf should not buy a GM for Meteorite hunting if he already owns an EQ. As you know (and this is mostly for SittingElf) there are several techniques to successfully work around hot rocks including (1) slightly lifting the coil to reveal the weak signal of hot rocks, (2) changing frequencies to recognize the signature of hot rocks, (3) learning the look of hot rocks in the area you are detecting and (4) a quick kick of the suspected hot rock. On “desert pavement” these techniques seem to work well. They become second nature after a while. Lunk has had great success with the GM finding meteorites. He may have additional input on the techniques he uses.
    2 points
  8. This is only my opinion.... My Equinox 800 is not very good with meteorites if you have any kind of discrimination on. With the detector wide open, Franconia is just full of hot rocks and sets the detector off big time, even though it does hit on the detector in wide open mode. But you will be hitting a thousand hot rocks before finding a Franconia. I have tested it on both Gold Basin, and Franconia meteorites. Not sure about GM 1000, as I dont own one. The best detector for meteorite detecting is still the 7000, or pulse detector.... Dave
    2 points
  9. Thanks all, and JP.... Hey JP I had a question. DO you gain most of your knowledge on these machines with trial and error in the field yourself, or do you actually get to pick Bruce Candys brain ??? Thanks, Dave
    2 points
  10. I made my own big foot coil...pinpointing is easy at the front of the coil and i can get very good depth with the tdi using this coil
    2 points
  11. It is rare I would dig a nickle on a hunt let alone 3! Was a quick 3 hour hunt in a very small 1800s park I have hit for many years. Most of this stuff had to have been previously masked by screw tops and iron. More than a few of these had a nail come out of the plug first or after I retrieved the target. One wheat has iron oxide on the obverse from where it has been resting on a nail, cant get a date off of it. I had such a great time! I had to share, thank you for your time and looking! What a day! 1941 Jefferson 1909 V Nickle x2 1916, 1919, cant see date Wheat 1903, 1893, 1890 IHC Sterling Ring 2 piece great seal button 1951 Canadian Cent and other tiny non FE stuff!
    2 points
  12. I keep reading comments by people who think the ergonomics of the Equinox are just horrible. Coming from my 7 lb harnessed GPZ 7000 the commentary is interesting. People do know the Equinox is a waterproof detector, right? My challenge? Please list all the waterproof metal detectors you think have better ergonomics out of the box than an Equinox. Current waterproof detectors from major manufacturers listed by weight. Click for larger version...
    1 point
  13. If you have comments on these proposed revisions, the deadline is June 4. It’s very important that we hear from many of you on this important issue. NOTICE OF PROPOSED CHANGES ON MINING IN THE REGULATIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES BRIEF DESCRIPTION The Department of Natural Resources proposes to change regulations on mining rights, addressing claim location, conflicting rights, annual labor, and penalties and eligibilities to cure abandonments. The Department of Natural Resources proposes to change regulations on mining. The Department of Natural Resources proposes to adopt regulation changes in Title 11 of the Alaska Administrative Code, dealing with mining, including the following: (1) 11 AAC 86.215 is proposed to be amended to address requirements for mining locations on state-owned land. (2) 11 AAC 86.216 is proposed to be added to address overlapping and conflicting mining locations on state-owned lands. (3) 11 AAC 86.220 is proposed to be amended to address annual labor, recording and amending affidavits of annual labor, essential facts required for affidavits of annual labor, and cash payments made instead of performing annual labor. (4) 11 AAC 86.224 is proposed to be added to address penalties and eligibility to cure an abandonment of a claim or location under AS 38.05.265. (5) 11 AAC 86.541 is proposed to be amended to address conditions for termination of a tide or submerged land mining lease and to address default cures in lease contracts. (6) 11 AAC 86.590 is proposed to be added to provide definitions. You may comment on the proposed regulation changes, including the potential costs to private persons of complying with the proposed changes, by submitting written comments to the Department of Natural Resources, 550 W. 7th Avenue, Suite 1070, Anchorage, AK 99501-3579 or by e-mail to dnr.mining.regulation@alaska.gov or by fax to 907-269-8904. The comments must be received by the department no later than 5:00 p.m. on Monday, June 4, 2018. You may submit written questions relevant to the proposed action to: Joseph Joyner, Department of Natural Resources, 550 W 7th Ave., Suite 1070, Anchorage, Alaska 99501-3579 Fax: (907) 269-8904, E-Mail: dnr.mining.regulation@alaska.gov. The questions must be received at least 10 days before the end of the public comment period. The Department of Natural Resources will aggregate its response to substantially similar questions and make the questions and responses available on the Alaska Online Public Notice System https://aws.state.ak.us/OnlinePublicNotices/Login.aspx and agency website at http://www.dnr.state.ak.us/mlw/hottopics. If you are a person with a disability who needs a special accommodation in order to participate in this process, please contact Joseph Joyner at 907-269-8511 no later than May 25, 2018, to ensure that any necessary accommodations can be provided. For more information, a copy of the proposed regulation changes, or if you have any questions regarding the proposed regulations, go to http://www.dnr.state.ak.us/mlw/hottopics, or write to the Department of Natural Resources, Attention Joseph Joyner, 550 W. 7th Avenue, Suite 1070, Anchorage, Alaska 99501-3579; or call 907-269-8511. After the public comment period ends, the Department of Natural Resources will either adopt these or other provisions dealing with the same subject, without further notice, or decide to take no action on them. The language of the final regulations may be different from that of the proposed regulations. YOU SHOULD COMMENT DURING THE TIME ALLOWED IF YOUR INTERESTS COULD BE AFFECTED. Statutory authority: AS 27.05.010; AS 38.05.020; AS 38.05.185; AS 38.05.195; AS 38.05.205; AS 38.05.210; AS 38.05.211; AS 38.05.242; AS 38.05.250; AS 38.05.255; AS 38.05.265; AS 38.05.300 Statutes being implemented, interpreted, or made specific: AS 27.05.010; AS 38.05.020; AS 38.05.185; AS 38.05.195; AS 38.05.205; AS 38.05.210; AS 38.05.211; AS 38.05.242; AS 38.05.250; AS 38.05.255; AS 38.05.265; AS 38.05.300 Fiscal information: The proposed regulation changes are not expected to require an increased appropriation. The proposed regulations provide for user fees for certain elective services or elective uses of state-owned facilities, but do not establish mandatory permitting or compliance requirements that impose costs on a private person, other state agencies, or municipalities. Date: May 3, 2018 ________________________________ Andrew T. Mack Commissioner, Department of Natural Resources ADDITIONAL REGULATION NOTICE INFORMATION (AS 44.62.190(d))1 1. Adopting agency: Department of Natural Resources 2. General subject of regulation: Mining 3. Citation of regulation (may be grouped): 11 AAC 86.201, 11 AAC 86.215, 11 AAC 86.216, 11 AAC 86.220, 11 AAC 86.224, 11 AAC 86.541, 11 AAC 86.590 4. Department of Law file number, if any: 5. Reason for the proposed action: ( ) Compliance with federal law or action (identify): ( ) Compliance with new or changed state statute ( ) Compliance with federal or state court decision (identify): ( X ) Development of program standards ( X ) Other (identify): Mining Rights 6. Appropriation/Allocation: Resource Development / Claims, Permits, and Leases 7. Estimated annual cost to comply with the proposed action to: A private person: None Another state agency: None A municipality: None 8. Cost of implementation to the state agency and available funding (in thousands of dollars): Initial Year Subsequent FY 19 Years Operating Cost $ 0 $ 0 Capital Cost $ 0 $ 0 1002 Federal receipts $ 0 $ 0 1003 General fund match $ 0 $ 0 1004 General fund $ 0 $ 0 1005 General fund/ program $ 0 $ 0 Other (identify) $ 0 $ 0 9. The name of the contact person for the regulation: Name: Joseph Joyner Title: Natural Resource Manager Address: DNR, DMLW, 550 W. 7th Ave. Ste. 1070, Anch., AK 99501-3579 Telephone: 907-269-8511 E-mail address: joe.joyner@alaska.gov 10. The origin of the proposed action: __X__ Staff of state agency _____ Federal government _____ General public _____ Petition for regulation change _____ Other (identify): 11. Date: May 3, 2018 Prepared by: Name: Joe Joyner Title: Natural Resource Manager Telephone: 907-269-8511
    1 point
  14. Pro-Pointer AT Z-Lynk Instructional Video - Basic features and functions of the fully wireless Pro-Pointer AT Z-Lynk pinpointer are demonstrated. Sections include: wireless syncing; a tip on factory reset; adjusting detection and sensitivity settings; lost pinpointer alarm; retuning the Pro-Pointer to find targets faster or to overcome environmental challenges; battery replacement; and general care. Pro-Pointer AT Z-Lynk Owner's Manual More Information On Garrett Z-Lynk Wireless Audio Options
    1 point
  15. Tom and I got out for a few hours after work yesterday to one of his "back-pocket" spots that's been well worked over the years. It's getting stingy with targets, but I still managed to get a few keepers, including the oldest seated dime I've found, as my previous oldest seated was an 1840 half dollar, and an 1840 seated half dime. Hunted in Field 2, auto GB, noise cancel, 22 gain, 50 tones, multi-freq, default settings for everything else. If anyone has any idea what this do-hickey is, I'd greatly appreciate an ID. It's about an inch long, and the ID of the circle at the top is about the diameter of a U.S. nickel: Big ole piece of lead was super deep (and super disappointing at the reveal), two old pieces of green copper, we find at Spanish era sites. The large piece is 4.75" long, surprised that wasn't dug up long ago, but just goes to show that there's still potential for large silver, or relics to still be there. Nice old late 1700's/early 1800's flat button: And the grand finale - lol This seated dime was deep, came in as a high tone whisper, and even the pinpoint audio was weak/soft. I've been fooled with plenty of deep iron that sounds similar, but this sounded good enough to go for, took several shovel loads of dirt to get to it, and finally the pin-pointer was sounding off as I saw a dark black disc fly by in the dirt movement. I felt around for it, and located it, and before looking at it I felt it to see if it had a loop as I suspected it was going to be a button, no loop, OK, time to check it out and it was an 1838-O seated dime!! Thanks for looking and HH, Cal
    1 point
  16. Nothing wrong with the Nox at all i think , in terms of the ergonomics .
    1 point
  17. For me personally I prefer the ergos of my Multi Kruzer over my Nox 800, but that's because I mostly use a 5X9.5" or 7" round concentric on it. I'm pretty sure that the 800 will feel better in 2019 when the smaller coil becomes available for it. ?
    1 point
  18. You will find smaller stuff than staples with that machine...get a sorting device to separate the targets. You can use a small coil cover or plastic scoop, not your hands. The machine will pick-up the salt in your hands and mess with you finding the targets... fred
    1 point
  19. Geeeeez I feel like I am in heaven with my Equinox looking down on all the people with issues of likes and dislikes about it . After raring kids in this crazy world nothing bugs or annoys me anymore. ?? PS . I❤️ It Mr Minelab
    1 point
  20. Hello Cal Your mystery object in first photograph is a screw down grease cup with the top part missing, the top would have been just over 1" deep and filled with grease and it would have occasionally been screwed down to pressure more grease to a revolving shaft on a tractor or farm machinery these date as far back as the old steam engines used to drive thrashing machines. Here below is a Google link to many of the same. https://www.google.co.uk/search?source=hp&ei=g_n3WpyyHsTVwQLs-rUI&q=Images+of+a+screw+down+grease+cups&oq=Images+of+a+screw+down+grease+cups&gs_l=psy-ab.12...4428312.4459676.0.4462524.35.32.0.2.2.0.201.4719.0j30j1.31.0....0...1c.1.64.psy-ab..2.31.4398.0..0j0i131k1j0i22i30k1j0i22i10i30k1j0i10k1j33i22i29i30k1j33i21k1j33i160k1.0.OWi0IxFg99M
    1 point
  21. Very nice , can't wait until my 800 gets here,,,on Monday.
    1 point
  22. Awesome, I think you got the hang of the EQ
    1 point
  23. Received my Kruzer accessory coils, the 5x9.5" DD, 5" round DD, and the 7" round concentric. I like having my extra coils on their own lower rods but kinda hated spending $30.00 for each Kruzer lower rod so I ordered three Racer 2 lower rods at $16.95 each. The only difference being the Racer rod weigh 4 oz each and the Kruzer rods weigh 2.2 oz each. I like a light weight detector as much as the next guy, but the Kruzer is light enough that I can add 2 oz to it without issue. I put the Kruzer rod on the 7x11" standard coil and the three smaller coils all have the Racer rods mounted. The Coils and Lower Rods all came with coil bolts and washers so I have plenty of spares.
    1 point
  24. Thanks everyone for the comments! Tomorrow I'm heading to a jeweler and later to my local coin shop to ask them their opinions on the ring. I'm thinking I have something pretty old here. I am going to ask about repairing it also. I'll check back after I see everyone and follow up. I did go back out this morning to the same beach. Got more coins but I did get a little tiny rectangle, gold in color with a cursive "R" on it. It rang up around 12/13 I think and it has a pretty high pitched ring to it when I drop it so I'm thinking it's brass. It fits on top of a penny for size reference.
    1 point
  25. Makro Gold Kruzer is now for sale and in stock !
    1 point
  26. YES!! To be able to switch between different setting combinations would be great. The GPX is good to a point, but you still have to switch mode and timing, so two switches and maybe a menu tweak. With the GPZ interface you could as an example have: 1. General search mode: General/Difficult/Low Smooth/Sens 9/Ground Smoothing Off etc etc 2. Low mineral mode: HY/Normal/Smoothing Off/Sens 6/Patch etc etc 3. Z19 mode: Extra Deep/Normal/Low Smoothing/Sens 8..... Be a lot easier to flick between 1, 2 & 3 than it is to go through and make all the changes individually
    1 point
  27. It very well could be a great coil on the GPX.. I just didn’t like them on the E-Trac and CTX. FBS is completely different technology then the GPX 4500. Bryan
    1 point
  28. The steak lives on until next fall! Very nice work! I always enjoy reading about your hunts and enjoy hunting the beach vicariously through them. Thanks! Dean
    1 point
  29. I will try that out next time i am out , on Tuesday. I have decided that instead of selling my Explorer 11 , i am going to sell my E.Trac . My Terra and Explorer can cope with all the beach issues so if the Nox cant i will be fine . Also trying to get a good price for the Explorer is pretty poor so the ET has to go .
    1 point
  30. Oh I quite agree Jeff. Brad’s photos could depict a number of common sulfides / arsenides and there are other possibilities. For example, I have a few ore samples exhibiting native silver ‘horns’ and veinlets protruding from oxidized surface niccolite embedded in a light brown carbonate rock, that look very similar to Brad’s sample. But I seriously doubt this is what Brad has found in his area, as these are quite rare. We make our best guess based on the info provided and what we think we see in the photo. The one photo appears to depict some foliation, but there’s no way to be certain. This is why I included a schist photo for him to do a comparison. It ensures that he’ll know if his sample is schist or something else. Jim.
    1 point
  31. Hi, I am around 75% certain that Jim Hemmingway has correctly identified your specimen. As he said the photo is fairly blurry so that other 25% lurking in my mind says that this could also be a specimen of one of the Iron/Copper Sulfides like chalcopyrite or bornite. If tiny pieces of the specimen are easily removed by your fingernail and look like tiny thin sheets then it is definitely a phyllite or decomposing muscovite mica schist. If the specimen is harder and more compact with chunky pieces breaking off then my 25% minority guess is probably closer to the correct ID in which case we are looking at a mineral or combination of minerals.
    1 point
  32. Hi Brad… your photos are a bit blurred, but your sample appears to be a “schist”. Schist is a generic term for a foliated metamorphic rock. It displays well-developed foliation (leaves or sheaves of leaves), often through inclusion of mica. It represents the ultimate stage of metamorphism. A schist is usually derived from fine-grained sedimentary rock such as shale that has been exposed to some combination of heat / pressure. Individual minerals in schist have grown during metamorphism so that they are easily visible to the naked eye. Foliation takes place when pressure squeezes the flat or elongate minerals within a rock so they become aligned. These rocks develop a platy or sheet-like structure that reflects the direction that pressure was applied. Schists are named for their mineral constituents, for example, mica schist is notably rich in mica such as biotite or muscovite. From what I can see, that is what is depicted in your photo. Below I’ve included a close-up depiction of a mica schist so that you can compare your sample to it as a confirmation. Hope this helps. Jim.
    1 point
  33. Some of you on this forum may never have seen any or all of the episodes of The Meteorite Men. I encourage you to go online and find the episodes and watch as many of them as you can find. This episode is about finding huge meteorites in Kansas. I remember watching it on TV the first time and a couple of times in repeat while they were still showing them a few years back. I remembered this episode because of a sled the boys built and drug across the ground to find some very valuable finds. I did not know them when they were putting together these shows but I have since met them in Tucson and been with many meteorite hunters (some of you are here)! I like this one because it shows some information about ALL meteorite strewn fields and some of the technology they used and still use to find meteorites. I'm sure they have some of the most recent Minelabs like I do which finds meteorites with ease if they are there. Mitchel
    1 point
  34. Except for brief experiments I have always run my GPZ 7000 in full auto tracking.I am not saying this is what others should do - just answering the question.
    1 point
  35. I have not used an auto ground tracking detector that doesn`t track out some gold, the Z auto tracking is miles ahead of the SDs-GPXs which I found you could not trust to run in auto tracking, but even the Z tracks out some, not much but (unless as Fred suggest there missed?). Most signals it tracks out are mineralisation, just a very odd one gets through. Set your user button to manual GB and switch to it each time you hit one of those iffy signals easy to do and soon you`ll gain confidence and go mostly with the repeatable signals. This is one of the features that sets the Z out from the PIs, it allows you to cover ground without being held up checking too many iffy signals. Now if only ML`d get rid of that pesky quick track button and replace it with a GB alternate between manual/auto button as per the PIs they`d make it even better, give us the option of taking that crappy process out if we wish.
    1 point
  36. Dave, I hunt in semi-auto as Jp suggested ... I have tried to ground balance out very small nuggets and could not...But, if he says it can be done then I believe... Of course you can't know what you missed if you missed it.haha fred
    1 point
  37. Welcome to the forum! Fisher Gold Bug 2 or Whites Goldmaster / GMT series. Why? Because many successful meteorite hunters use those machines and they have a proven track record, unlike every detector you listed. You can no doubt find meteorites with any of them, but you would be the one proving it.
    1 point
  38. Mike,a terrific article and and very apt at the moment,i have a very shallow river very near me and this has been a magnet for travellers for well over a 1000 years,this has not only a ford crossing which for the most part was the main way of crossing the river but 300 years ago a humpback bridge was built so this allowed more modern forms of transport ie horse and carts etc. What makes this specific site interesting is that because the water is shallow and has a sandy bank on both side of the river,its like a magnet for children with say fishing nets and building sand castles,of course when kids come down with mums too play in the river,the young mums usually have grannies old victorian gold rings on her finger which as a general rule have quality lumps of ice in the settings,and we are all aware what happens with fingers and rings when fingers get wet the rings fall off into the water and for the most part they will never find them again. Over recent years i have offered my services in recovering these types of jewellery usually suggesting if i find them they make a small donation to a local cancer charity.Have never taken any reward money although it is offered i dont get a buzz out of that,but i do get a buzz out of hunting for this type of jewellery.Detectors that i use can be both VLF and Pulse,as the water is very shallow ie only about 6-8'' maximum a older Tesoro with a small 4'' coil works wonders on gold ring size items and has of course superb discrimination into the bargain,but if its a small item like a small chain with a clasp or a charm on it then i use a Pulse with a very small coil,of late this has been a TDI Pro with a small folded mono coil on.One secret weapon which is also one i use is possibly the least expensive detector going and that is the Tesoro Compadre mine has the little 4'' coil on it and is deadly on small fine gold jewellery. Its a public holiday here in the UK on monday and as the weather is really good over the long weekend this inturn will bring the mums and kids again out playing in the river,so i am expecting a possible call mid week asking for some help recovering a ring or some other form of jewellery. Mike a terrific article and only just seen it,this is how i locate potential high value rings and jewellery,it gives me a big buzz when i find it again and hand it back too the owner who will hand it down the family line again.
    1 point
  39. I'm having trouble following the logic, earlier you said it was aesthetics (looks, subjective feelings) not ergonomics now you are saying just the opposite, it's now a "law of physics". Since I don't really have a dog in the hunt as I could go either way, I am going to bow out of this whole shaft thing because it is getting exhausting running around in circles. Thanks.
    1 point
  40. You have probably already seen it Scott. Find a deep target and test, and increasing recovery speed causes almost no discernible loss of depth. The target sound gets shorter, but that is about it until you get to 8, where it can shorten out of existence. In my ground anyway lowering recovery speed adds no depth worth noting but significantly increases the risk of masking. In my opinion any extra targets gained by any minimal depth increase at lower recovery speeds is vastly outweighed by the risk of targets lost due to masking. In bad ground a lower recovery speed increases ground noise, again making any real useable depth gain debatable. In my worst ground (and it’s Really bad) I am just not seeing it. More to the point, aren’t people trying to pull targets out of ground already pounded with BBS/FBS detectors? If so, then where is the reason in trying to turn Equinox into BBS/FBS if those machines have already been used and can find no more? Remaining targets, if any exist, will be there due to masking. Even ground with low trash still has trash and that trash can mask stuff. And there really is more to Multi-IQ than just speed and masking. I can’t put my finger on it but I know it’s there. It sees stuff other machines don’t see, plain and simple as that. People really need to let Equinox be Equinox. Trust that the defaults are close to what you really want, no matter what, for at least the first week or two. Immediately dropping to recovery speed 1 or 2 when the default is 6 and the user has no prior experience with the machine is really just kind of nuts. I think most poor results people are having is trying to outthink the engineers. Trust me, they are way, way smarter than any of us when it comes to what makes Multi-IQ tick and what settings are best.
    1 point
  41. What gets me is how FAST Nokta/Makro is moving. In just a couple years they went from oddball FORS type units to the Racers, then Impact, and now Kruzer series. They have done more in three years than everyone else in the last ten years. The U.S. manufacturers in particular need to pick up the pace. If this is where Nok/Mak can get in a few years then think what the next couple years will bring. If Nokta and Makro had the marketing muscle of Garrett, for instance, they would be crushing it. Outside the forums however I am not convinced many people have heard of the company. That will change however as they are laying quite a foundation for future success.
    1 point
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