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Showing content with the highest reputation on 08/25/2019 in Posts

  1. I kind of hesitate to bring some of my ring finds for customers because I know some folks think that it's not hard to find a ring when someone tells you where they lost it and ringfinders like me are glorified hustlers. I wanted to share this one because it was truly a quest and the ending was worth every step and every swing of the detector in the 95 degree heat and dust. I got a call from Michael last night saying he had been helping coach his young daughters cross country team at Rancho Santa Susana park in Simi Valley. He went home without his platinum wedding ring. As fate would have it they had run all over the park (It's huge!) and even up on the hills across the street. He thought he could have lost it in the bark area, a couple grass areas, along a 2 mile path and finally the hills across the street. We started with the bark area which was about 300 yards long by 25 yards or so at it's widest. He said he had sprinted in this area with the kids and the ring may have flown off there. Unfortunately for me it didn't as I canvassed the whole area in about an hour and a half just swinging my nox while kids played soccer next to me. I was looking for that 12-13 double beep as it was going to be on the surface. I turned my sensitivity all the way down so I would only get surface signals which helped speed things up. I was also the idiot who forgot to bring water so I was starting to sweat through my clothes hoping I could hijack and unsuspecting soccer players water while they weren't looking. We finished the bark area and detected a path on the way to the grassy area #1. I gridded it, found 2 nickels that had promise given the signal I was hunting for was 12-13 nickel as that's where all my men's platinum rings have come in at. We declared grassy area #1 done and went to grassy area #2. About a half hour in I began to sense he was giving up and truthfully I was beginning to think this wasn't going to end well. I was starting to to tell him the other things he could do to find his ring(police, craigslist, pawn shop) and I had literally covered all but a 10x10 area of the grass and something told me to search it even though it really wasn't an area he thought he'd lost it at. Again I want to emphasize I felt like I was being led/pushed to go search it. I got over to it, started gridding and I got a nice double beep with a 12-13 VDI. I had my shades on so I couldn't really see the grass and I was just pulling out my Deus propointer to verify the signal when Michael reached down and started screaming "you found my ring, you found my ring!" Before I could even speak he put me into bear hug and he started shaking and crying with joy that he had his ring back. He had a hold of me for at least a minute and then we prayed, gave God thanks for the recovery and he got it back together and called his wife. If you've never found something another person has lost you're really missing out on one of the greatest experiences of your life. To me metal detecting isn't my hobby, it's my ministry. Most of my customers are women and they have a tendency to be very emotional so you can imagine I was taken aback by how important this ring was to him as he said over and over that it represented his love for his wife. Finding this ring today was a needle in the haystack recovery that God led me to. I'm not trying to get all spiritual but it's just who I am and how I roll. I hope all of you have at least half as good a weekend as I am.
    10 points
  2. Hi All, I'm new to detecting and this group. Have only been out a few times myself looking for coins/relics/jewellery etc. I'm a bit of a shed tinkerer and decided to knock up some picks from old leaf springs from a LandCruiser. Made two different sizes. One for my older son and one for my girl. Thought I would share them with you guys. I was pretty stocked with them! Cheers PS. They do not look like this anymore... I didn't want to get them dirty at first. They were almost mounted on the wall! hahaha
    6 points
  3. Hi All, Had a quick hunt today at an old home site. Currently a grassed park, there was a house on the site in the 1950's. I targeted the area that looked like a couple of clotheslines in the aerial. The aerial isn't of great quality so difficult to confirm. I ended up finding a couple of old lipstick tubes in the area which makes me think there may have been a couple of upturned pockets in the area (i.e. a clothesline or two). Unfortunately no coins or anything else of value... I'll be heading back there when I have grown my confidence with the machine. Cheers all Rob
    6 points
  4. So many touching stories and memories of your 4 legged companions and even a few 2 fisted roos.. It just goes to show how attached we are to our loved ones and sometimes more than we realize. My 4 legged partner is Hero. He gets excited every time I put on my detecting cloths as he knows I'm about to head out into the field. Most times he stays home to guard the place. I do take him to Eastern Oregon so he can see his girlfriend (part wolf) on occasion. he is a medium long coat full bred German Shepherd, so he does not care for hot days much. Likes to stay in or around water. Thanks for sharing everyone and I really enjoyed this post Steve.
    4 points
  5. Hi All, I have been trawling this site for a number of months and figured it was about time I started contributing what I can! (which is not much at this stage). I have equipped myself with an Equinox 800 and hope to be able to make the most of it! Focus will be on relics/coins/jewellery for now with a goal of heading into some gold country. Not sure the equinox will handle the hot earth of the Goldfields so there may be further acquisitions before a trip to the Goldfields. I'm enjoying hunting the parks at the moment so i'll stick with that. Thanks for all the information so far! Cheers all
    3 points
  6. Found this one in between some tree roots, surprised it has the detail it has. The rough edge I was hoping it was a pine tree but still cool find.
    3 points
  7. Those magazine illustrators really were skillful at their task, getting us to fantasize over the possibilities. Just another lost art in today's internet/social-media/cellphone/selfie photo-dominated age. Here's a slightly later issue (vol. 3, #3) from 1971. Remind anyone of Northern Nevada desert (or Southern Nevada, Northern Arizona, SE California,....? And the back cover: From the accompanying article (written by the infamous Bill Mahan, founder of D-Tex): The total count was 202x silver dollars, 79x $20 gold pieces, 53x $10 gold pieces, 43x $5 gold pieces, 2x $2.50 gold pieces. Mint dates range from 1850-1881. The detector Charles had borrowed form his dad was an old 1966 model D-Tex Standard.... He barely had a signal. It was (later) found that the battery was down to less than 4 volts. It was purly accidental that he detected anything at all. Any detectorist's bucket lister includes a gold coin. How about a cache of 177? Imagine the world-wide media attention such a 6-7 figure find would garner today.
    3 points
  8. The pristine nails have typically Chuck - in that case those pristine nails have typically been annealed by fire (not intentionally though). They look great because the annealing inhibits the corrosion process, but are too soft to actually be used and will bend easily under a hammer. When recovering the corroded nails at archeological sites we call the severely corroded nails "cheetos". The type of nail (hand forged, machine cut (starting in the late 1700's to late 1800's), or the modern wire nail) and the type of head on the nail provides clues as to when the nail was made, what it was used for and can help you date or determine what a former structure was used for at an archeological site. When I do volunteer survey work at local historic sites, the archeologists get really excited about ferrous recoveries that detectorists typically throw in the scrap pile. I have learned a lot about what seemingingly mundane or junk targets are telling me about a site when I am detecting it for relics. It is all about doing the detective work up front and during the hunt, piecing together the back story of the site from old maps, to historical records, to the trees, water soures, and terrain to envision where the dwelling or long-term camp was likely to be located. Once you start heading in that direction, hitting the nails and/or seeing pieces of plates or pottery on the ground, you know you have arrived. That is why I always like to hear the iron when I am relic hunting and don't mind recovering the nails. Some additional info: https://www.uvm.edu/~histpres/203/nails.html https://www.harpgallery.com/library/nails.htm
    3 points
  9. The AT Pro, AT Gold and AT Max all have Iron Audio on/off. That's the main problem for me. It should be incrementally adjustable for the detecting conditions. That is not hard to do in this day and age. Neither is overall master volume control for the AT Pro and AT Gold. Jeff
    2 points
  10. GB, I actually have that DeTex model (see attached photos). Your magazine mentions "Nevada's Largest Gold Nugget", what exactly does it weigh and where was it found? Just love these old Treasure Magazines and their article. Busho, I have one too, but mine works like a dream. I can easily go to the mall parking lot on a Saturday afternoon and turn that baby on, guaranteed it will point to a big metal car every time. You have to believe my friend...just believe.
    2 points
  11. Welcome to the forum! Rest assured a properly tuned metal detector will “handle” any ground. It simply requires reducing the sensitivity until the detector is stable, and then working within whatever limits that imposes. Gold can be found with most any detector if on good ground and with a skillful operator behind the machine. I am not saying all detectors are equal, but the truth is it’s the operators that vary far more than the detectors themselves. Enjoy!
    2 points
  12. Westy 27 Yes the ID could change from air test to being in the ground. You really don’t know what’s next to your target and the minerals in the ground could effect your ID . Now this is just me ! If I was you I’d dig everything until you really knew your detector. Sometimes that trash can be a treasure . Remember if one person has been there they may have lost something . Chuck
    2 points
  13. I think I am starting to get the hang of this metal detecting thing, and I am still learning from everyone here on what to expect out of this 800 unit. Thanks to everyone who has been helping guide me through this and yes I want to find gold everyday with it! This is where I posted Saturdays find and how long it took me. https://www.detectorprospector.com/forums/topic/10613-suggestion-for-construction-site/ Valen
    2 points
  14. FASCINATING. Thanks for sharing, Chase. This information is very interesting, and it confirms the reason I almost NEVER find square nails in Oklahoma. Oklahoma, long the land of Native Americans resettled here in the 1830s, was not opened for "white" settlement in much of the state until 1889 to 1891. So, the "dating" of the use of nail types explains my observations quite well. Meanwhile, when hunting back home in western PA, I very frequently find the type-B "cut nail" (which I have always referred to as a "square nail.") One time here in Oklahoma however, detecting an old U.S. Military fort (1850-1870), we -- like Walter -- stumbled onto a huge cache of square nails (type B, as I now know, thanks to Chase's info). They were all in a large "bunch," and so -- while the outer ones were rusted, the "inner" nails in the bunch were quite well-preserved. It was an interesting find, for sure! Steve
    2 points
  15. The 12x15" Semi Ellip MONO by Commander will go deeper on larger gold than the stock 11" round MONO as I have done many side by side testing. Now to be honest, I have not done a side by side with the new flat winding ELITE series against the 12x15 Commander, but I did notice more depth with the ELITE when compared to the standard 11" round MONO. As Lundy mentioned, back in the day, the 12x15" MONO Commander was my favorite coil as with many of my Field Staff Experts and we dug some really deep nuggets at Rye Patch with them. The 11" ELITE is better on the smaller nuggets though and in certain areas they are more prevalent.
    2 points
  16. From back in May when i first found my little nugget patch. Some of the smaller pieces of gold in this spot would ring up to the iron side, but since almost every target in this spot is gold, it shows you that on small gold the probability indicator should be ignored. Some nice gold for only an hour or so spent detecting. Will have more videos to come, im slowly working through my backlog. Thanks for watching!
    1 point
  17. Dragged a buddy mine to an area where I found a 2 cent. Had my Tejon with larger coil this time around and got a small but nice hit near a pine tree, told him to dig it might be good. I looked back after a few minutes and saw a huge mound of dirt so i went back and relocated it. Turned out to be a 4 leaf clover charm gold plated over zinc so I said want it? Might bring you some luck... he said no all pissed off. Continuing on i found 5 Indian heads with dates from late 1800's to 1908, pocket knife and a barber dime to top it off. The Charm is now hot glued to the Tejon 🙂 What was odd is the Indian heads showed up as a 60 on his Garrett. Really strange as they usually show up 74-76 on those machines. Even on my Tejon they were pretty much on the pull ring if not on the fringe. Usually skip those signals but for some reason they just sounded a bit better than a pull ring. Too bad the pine trees beat them up. Think a bit more baking soda and toothbrush will clean them up a bit more.
    1 point
  18. Thanks for the kind words but I really don't want them to be about me but rather what an awesome hobby we have in detecting. I can think of no other hobby where you can find money, history, jewelry, gold AND make others happy in the process. GB is right in that the folks here are the best and thanks to Steve and his ability to shut some things down it has and continues to be the best place to share and talk detecting. To be alive is to be making a difference and man I felt alive yesterday!
    1 point
  19. Wow. I don't want to dampen your enthusiasm for your newfound passion, but, frankly, I would slow down on the coil acquisition and focus on learning your new detectors with a minimal of variables at this point (i.e. different coils). It seems you are just starting out with PI prospecting detecting (if not detecting in general) but it is not clear to me your background as a prospecting detectorist is with your VHF 800 and Gold Monster detectors so ignore the following if it is stuff you already know and I will just put it out there for anyone else new to the hobby in general. Remember Steve's words of wisdom earlier in this thread: "People go chasing off after coils way to soon in a lot of cases when simply mastering what they have would be more productive." My advice to you is to just get out there and start learning your new detectors with the stock coils. There is a lot to learn just on setting up soil timings and learning nuances of the audio language of the GPX...and the GPZ is a completely different beast. They are both very different than the VHF detectors you may be used to. Mixing it up with all these coils, you'll be spending more time loosening and adjusting coil bolts and cords than getting quality detect time training your brain on a consistent baseline coil audio response to various targets. From that you can start to gradually learn how additional coil types sound and purchase coils on the basis of what they can actually bring to the table in terms of filling the target/capability gaps of your existing coil(s). All these coils will make the GPX sound and behave slightly differently even with the same exact detector settings. Avoid the temptation to be enamored of all the bright shiny hardware accessories and user claims of this and that until you get a handle on your detector, your sites, and the targets that reside there [you may already have]. Not sure if this applies to you, but for those new to the hobby, detecting takes a lot of patience, target acquisition and recovery is not all that easy (at least not as easy as the skillfully edited You Tube videos would lead you to believe) and before you invest TOO heavily, it is wise to make sure it is something you are going to enjoy for years to come. I have seen many folks get frustrated and quit the hobby because they spent too much time wrestling with an overwhelming mass of hardware that they could not master. Keep the detector piece as simple as possible when starting out. Though it seems resources are not an issue for you, just know that standalone coils, especially specialty coils tend to not hold their resale value as well as detectors. So be cautious in investing in coils you may not even need as your return on investment may be pretty low. Regardless, have fun with your new equipment, but focus on learning those new detectors at this point and the best way to do that is minimize the variables that can reset your learning curve like too many coils. There will be plenty of time in the future to acquire new hardware, it ain't going anywhere, will probably only get better, and frankly 90% of success in detecting is getting yourself onto a good site where the targets reside, knowing how to attack that site, and gaining field experience. After that, the equipment's effect on success is really about splitting hairs and the perceived performance deltas come from our obsessive-compulsive personality disorders that make us think that the equipment really makes that big a difference. I mean, who doesn't like to buy more tools just because they're cool and not because we need them. GL HH.
    1 point
  20. Excellent conclusion. Two (old) lipstick tubes close to each other is a good indication of a clothesline, although not a guarantee. I've done well under clotheslines. Most of my old coin and relic finds have been from parks which were formed in the last 50 years but were homesteads prior to that. This includes one Mexican War button (mid 1840's), one Civil War button and a CW cartridge box plate. I've just recently been searching another park which had an 1892 built home torn down in 1969. Still haven't found the sweet spot on that one but I'm not discouraged.
    1 point
  21. That may be true of concentric coils, but that's not how a DD coil works (which is what the Equinox uses). On a DD coil, the active detect region is beneath the center spine area where the two "D" coils intersect. Although you may have some edge sensitivity effects that can affect overall sensitivity and coil overload in thick target situations with larger DD coils, the target recovery time is determined by the detector solely, and the center spine strip thickness (the overlap region) and sweep speed determine how long the target remains in the thin overlap region which is basically the same thickness for all three Equinox coils. Although you could have a situation where more than one target ends up under the active region center strip, recovery speed does nothing for you in that situation because both targets are simultaneously under the active region, you are just less likely to have that happen with a smaller dismeter, shorter length coil. Equinox DD coil diameter or length/width for the large Elliptical coil) primarily affects depth and sweep coverage and ability to sweep the coil side-to-side in tight confines and has nothing to do with recovery speed based target separation. See this thread for more information on DD vs. Concentric coils.
    1 point
  22. Given that FT gave the world a “peek” at the AQ last spring at the outdoor “Messe” in Germany, I tend to doubt that they would want to have it appear at Detectival or any of the other rallies in Europe this September. It isn’t ready for release - we know that because it isn’t released. Showing it anywhere else would likely just stir up questions.
    1 point
  23. Westy27 Don’t give up on anyplace until you hunt it . If you live in a city that has buses then you want to hunt the bus stops. They can produce more than most think they would. You said the house dates back to the 50’s. Then you should find silver there. Don’t give up and keep telling yourself that. Chuck
    1 point
  24. I've been metal detecting with my Minelab Equinox 800 all summer sine getting it in April 2018, but just finding the usual coins and nothing exciting to post. The last several days outside Reno I made it out to a new site and found a cache of 75 square(actually rectangle) cut nails and some other interesting items. One item appears to be the end of an old spoon. Using Field 1 pretty much factory settings, but when in town and hunting parks I lower recovery speed down to 3 and slow speed rate speed way down . ( I find gets better depth) . Also, switch target zones to 5 to get more different sounds on the various targets. For the first 1 and 1/2 years of using the Equinox I used Park 1 all the time, but after getting more experienced with it, help from this forum, and reading a couple of books on the NOX( Clive James Clynick and Andy Sabisch books) I feel comfortable enough using some other modes and changing the factory settings. After using a Whites XLT for 15 years it definitely was a learning curve with he NOX , but well worth the learning process. Now, up to 1061 coins and $71.16 for 2019 including the water/sand finds with another detector. (including 9 wheat cents). The forum does great job of speeding up the learning process. Great day in the field.
    1 point
  25. Bloke I know got one of these things a number of years ago. He tries to deny it if you tell people 😁 Piece of junk.
    1 point
  26. This is what I have found in just 3 hours today after I mowed the yard. I just got back and ran some water over this batch of finds and patted them dry. I found so many rusted nuts and bolts I lost count. Those rang up as a solid 12 so I dug them thinking of a nickel. The chain that I found is Silver and has Mother of Pearl in a tear drop shape and that was the first thing that I hit. Who would have thought that it was sitting right on top of the soil and not in bad shape. I did place it in my ultrasonic jewelry cleaner and I think it came out fairly nice. The coins were found within 2 to 4 inches deep since the grass was removed. I have not yet searched more than a third of the area yet due to all the hits I had, so tomorrow I will be back there again. Valen
    1 point
  27. Those are some nice chunky gold nuggets you saved. Very nice photos and story to add. Thanks for sharing and wishing you the best with the new one coming.
    1 point
  28. Totally agree, Jeff regarding audio and iron performance. Very capable detectors. And the AT Pro was a groundbreaking detector in its day. Glad Garrett improved the visual interface somewhat on the Max. Garrett bumped up the gain (which frankly has caused it to be more chatty than deeper, necessitating a gain reduction back to Pro levels so what was actually gained?) and claims of 50% depth increase (especially without specifics) should be taken with a grain of salt considering that there was no compelling technological breakthrough going on other than the gain increase. The frequency shift from 15 to 13.6 khz was insignificant from a performance standpoint. Garrett should have instead focused on improving the overall audio, audio ID and iron audio capabilities, perhaps providing multiple selectable operating frequencies (not just frequency shifting) and perhaps improving or providing adjustable recovery which hinders its ability in thick iron and trash and at mineralized sites. Hope Garrett wakes up and starts working on what it needs to do to be competitive with the Nokta/Macros, Minelabs, and XPs of the world with its next generation. A warmed over AT series detector for the next iteration is just not going to cut it. Their ability to be competitive, and more importantly innovative, again, would only be a good thing for the hobby.
    1 point
  29. This site has a pretty powerful yet easy to use advanced search feature which is needed because of the troves of valuable info stashed here and there. Hope this link helps answer your question. But what it boils down to is that the 5000 has a couple of additional timings for salt and mineralized soils and a couple of extra custom presets. Other than that, performance-wise they are about the same.
    1 point
  30. Funny you should mention that. There was some evidence of a campfire or some other type of fire at the site including some pieces of melted glass. As always, thanks to everyone for the added information about square cut nails and comments. Good hunting!
    1 point
  31. I have owned the AT Pro and AT Gold along with getting to use the newer AT Max too for some testing. I really like all three detectors and I could easily put all three in the very good to excellent category except for one area (for me personally) of the feature set that is lacking. There are not enough audio features on the AT series for me. Three tone audio which is somewhat adjustable, no volume control on the Pro and the Gold, and no Iron audio volume control on the Gold and the Max make it hard for me to fully enjoy these detectors in moderate to heavy iron and moderate to heavy mineralized detecting areas. So, yes the AT series are good detectors, no doubt, but for the money, especially the Gold and Max, they could be so much better with some more modern, upgraded audio capabilities which the competition has had for many years already. Jeff
    1 point
  32. Good stuff. I think all the ones I've found are Type B. I assume the terminal dates of use are only approximate. My uncle (a home builder) not only reused wood from demolitions but also nails, having lived through the great depression when almost nothing of any usefulness was thrown away. I wish I had asked him if he ever (re)used square nails. Also, if he had somehow come upon a keg of virgin square nails I have a feeling he would have found a way to use them. I found revealing these two similar statements from the two articles: Cut nails are still made today, however, with the type B method. These are commonly used for fastening hardwood flooring and for various other specialty uses. Machinery was developed to produce cut nails in the 1900's, and they are still used in flooring and concrete applications, where holding power is paramount, and power nailing tools are standard. Machine made cut nails are also made for use in reproduction or hobbyist replica furniture, but they are so perfect and identical that it is usually easy to see that they are new. From the second excerpt, it appears that the square nails in current use can easily be distinguished from the antique varieties. I certainly hope that is the case.
    1 point
  33. Most square nails I find here in Indiana are severly rusted (globs of rust stuck to them) but recogizable. Sometimes, though, they are pristine other than their dark color. I suspect different nails have different treatments and also different alloy compositions. Interesting find.
    1 point
  34. It is not a filter, it is selecting the quietest multi IQ operating channel at the time. Since there are so many variables, no guarantees it will work next time as power line load/time of day and even humidity all play a part in how well the noise propagates. But, hey, it’s worth a shot, especially if you don’t mind also being locked into whatever mode (e.g., Park 1) is associated with that channel setting as each mode has its own unique set of operating channels the noise cancel algorithm scans (which is why each mode needs to be individually noise cancelled). So if you switch modes, you are effectively switching operating channels. The 800 allows you to manually select the quietest channel in addition to auto noise cancel, which would more easily allow you to set up the same channel repeatedly if auto doesn’t do the trick. Unfortunately, you can’t do that on the 600.
    1 point
  35. Does anyone know if an 800 will connect to a phone or any other Bluetooth app or device that records video or audio? It sure would be interesting to record directly from the detector. I guess the best way is the old way of just putting the sound on the detector speaker and then capture the event that way. Mitchel
    1 point
  36. Steve, you would typically have to use a field mixer to do this before feeding it into the camera audio input or mike jack, unless you had a video camera with on board audio mixing and two audio inputs or a microphone with a built-in line level mixer. Otherwise you could separately record the live voice over narration audio (with another camera or digital recorder) and lay it on top of the video and detector audio in post production using a video editing program (since the canera is not trained on you while you are doing live narration, getting the audio to line up exactly is not critical). I have done a lot of event videography (weddings, graduations, recitals, etc.) with decent mid-range videography equipment. But I am such a perfectionist when it comes to that stuff, I would be fiddling with all that video gear that I wouldn't be able to focus on detecting, so I have made very few live detecting videos. For Equinox, I would probably rig up an external speaker connected to the headphone jack and allow the camera mic to just pick up my voice and the speaker audio of the detector whike I listened to the tones through my BT headphones. Alternatively, I could feed the detector audio into a BT APTX LL receiver with a clip on speaker/mic plugged into the receiver and the speaker/mic clipped to my shirt or jacket that way I can hear the detector audio and the camera mic could also pick it up along with my voice commentary. HTH
    1 point
  37. Besides latency, the other issue with using a wireless receiver as the source for your recorded audio is how do YOU hear the detector itself while recording, since the control head on-board speaker is cut out whenever you are using wireless audio. So here are some strange Equinox wireless audio fun facts that may provide some folks with alternative ideas to route "auxiliary" sources of "no latency" detector audio out to video or audio recording devices (or detecting "partners") instead of having to inconveniently capture lower fidelity audio from the control head loudspeaker so both you and the camera or your "partner" can hear the audio simultaneously. Many folks don't know this, but if you are using the BT headphones or the WM08 receiver, the control head speaker audio is cut out, but the headphone jack audio is still active. In this manner you can actually use the BT headphones to be able to hear tones yourself and you can route hardwired audio from the headphone jack via a mini-patch cable into a camera mounted on your detector shaft, detector housing, or mounted on your hat, backpack, or clothing. Another way this "feature" can be "used" is to enable a partner to hear the audio via the BT headphones while you swing and simultaneously listen to the audio using a pair of hardwired phones which can be useful in helping someone else walk along and learn how to use the Equinox. Another strange thing is that if you are using the supplied BT headphones, which also have a "hard wired" headphone jack on one earcup, is that you can actually use the headphones as a BT receiver and you can plug a separate set of hard-wired stereo headphones or earbuds into the headphone jack of the BT headphones and get audio that way. In this way you can "rest" the BT headphones around your neck/shoulders while using a set of wired earbuds. Not too practical, but it can be done if you want to use more comfortable wired earbuds in hot weather- though the bulky full-sized BT headphones are still resting on your shoulders/neck (I can't recall as I type this whether the BT headphone speakers are cut out if you do this, but I do think that is the case). Also, although only one set of BT headphones or a single BT receiver can be used in conjunction with the Equinox's BT transmitter output at any time, however, up to four separate WM08 Wi-Stream modules can be simultaneously paired with the Equinox at any time for small, four-person "group" Equinox instruction opportunities. Though, good luck getting your hands on four WM08 receivers at any one time unless you can borrow them from four Equinox 800 owners, because they are cost-prohibitive to be obtained as stand alone wireless accessories. All strange but true wireless Equinox audio factoids.
    1 point
  38. I've already posted Rooster before. But he had a wonderful day last weekend with Klunker & I.
    1 point
  39. Eventually, when you come across and understand what iron bias does, you'll see a similar thing. 4 settings for the 600 vs 10 for the 800, but the max setting of 4 on the 600 equals 6 on the 800. Other differences you will notice include limitations on non-ferrous tone settings, limitations on single frequency selections, lack of the user profile button, lack of backlight adjustment, lack of included wireless audio accessories (but the 600 is wireless ready), etc. These are all nice, but not necessarily essential "missing" features on the 600. The 600 is a very capable detector in its own right, so you shouldn't be discouraged once you start realizing what you can and cannot do vs.the 800. Definitely peruse the Essential Info thread and for a more comprehensive look at 600 vs. 800 features see this forum link in the essentials thread and Steve's Minelab Treasure Talk artcle on the subject, here. Welcome and happy hunting with your 600.
    1 point
  40. I was in the same place you are a few months ago. I have learned a ton here as well. My best advice is read lots to learn but keep the actual detecting simple. Just use the default settings, noise cancel, ground balance if needed, adjust the sensitivity down enough so you dont have constant chatter, and just detect. Listen closely to the target, then dig it up and see what it is. Pretty soon you will be guessing what's down there before you dig like the rest of us (and be wrong fairly often like the rest of us 😀)
    1 point
  41. I will honestly say I had a Vaquero for over a year and could actually hear and know pencils eraser ends before digging. I've always thought Tesoro's had one of the best if not the very best audio in the detector industry.
    1 point
  42. After having bought and used a Minelab Equinox 800 for more than 80 hours/ 1 year, I bought a Garrett AT Max as well. The AT Max is my favourite detector now. Don't get me wrong, the Equinox is a very very good detector in my opinion and I'm keeping it for sure. However I can not really get used to the "tight" vdi scale of -9 to 40. I prefer a vdi scale of 0 to 99. And the handle/straight-stem combination causes my arm (elbow/shoulder) to hurt some after even half an hour. No problems with the S-stems of my other two detectors. But most importantly (for me personally) the AT Max has something extra, that I have never experienced with another brand of detector, namely: FUN. It's hard to describe why or how, but just looking at it and using the AT Max gives me joy. And every time the Max connects immediately with the MS-3 headphones (or my Z-Lynk receiver for use with my XP backphones) and the wireless AT Z-Lynk pinpointer. BTW, this "FUN-factor" is not advertised by Garrett, but you get it nevertheless and for free. 😉 I think (and it's just my personal opinion, others may have a completely different opinion of course) the Equinox is more technically advanced and adjustable to personal preferences. More frequencies and also simultaneous frequencies will give me more confidence of being able to adjust everything to the "max" (with the Eqx instead of the Max 😀) while prospecting or searching around salt water. The Equinox has everything I want in a detector, but , since I bought the AT Max, I find myself taking out the AT Max to the fields and parks every time. On topic: Garrett AT Series That Good? : ( for me) YES! I suppose, now I'm a Garrett-fanboy, as well as an Equinox-fanboy. 😁
    1 point
  43. Yeah, I have a brass probe, but not a Garrett one. Mine is half that. Its a brass rod stuck in plastic, hard to get wrong I figured, bought the cheapest version on Amazon.
    1 point
  44. I don't remember that specific ad but there were multiple 'build your own' articles you could start from scratch, as well as a few kits. See this thread where I pictured my (broken) Heathkit GD-48. (See this Findmall thread where someone posted a tantalizing but incomplete schematic. Phrunt will be building one, now. 😁 Link deleted since Findmall Forum update broke all old links . Those come up on Ebay frequently. Apparently injection molded plastics were still in their infancy(?) since the housings (control unit and searchcoil) were flimsy and broke easily.
    1 point
  45. I have one as holes are not allowed in the parks in my city, just popping with a screwdriver. I use the probe to find the object first. I'm not talented at it AT ALL yet. Honestly unless I cheat and cut the turf with a pocketknife first it hurts my hands. I've mostly gone other places.
    1 point
  46. Welcome to the forum Joe If the machine is going to be used 99% of the time doing other things, why do you need it? The machines you have are fine for such minimal use. Your Equinox 600 with 6” coil in Field Mode 2 and all metal/horseshoe engaged will be very close to the Gold Bug Pro in performance. Both are just slightly better than a properly tuned T2 with small coil. Basically you have three detectors that are very close in performance and you are just splitting hairs as to which may be the best. Everyone has favorites and you can collect opinions all week long, but the truth is I personally could use any one of them or a dozen other VLF detectors and go find gold. It’s not the tiny difference between this hot VLF or that hot VLF that will make the difference, it is your access to good gold bearing ground and your knowledge of the machine you use that will make the difference between success or failure. Bottom line is the Gold Bug Pro is a very simple to use and very well proven detector. If you can’t find gold with it, find better ground and work on your detecting skills. But I could say the same of the other two machines you already own also. As far as Equinox goes, the 600 is nearly as good as the 800 for nugget detecting. I advise either Park 2 or Field 2, not Park 1 as mentioned by the earlier poster. I am sure I am one of the few that’s actually put it to the test and most people just assume the 600 is not near the gold finding machine as the 800 simply because the 800 has a “Gold Mode” and the 600 does not. From my article at https://www.detectorprospector.com/forums/topic/6799-equinox-800-gold-nugget-detecting-tips/ Note: the following works as well on both Equinox 600 and Equinox 800. Since Gold Mode lacks target tones, going to Field 2 and using the solutions above plus the additional possibility of tones is another alternative. Instead of using Gold Mode and blocking the lowest target id numbers they can be left open to signal as ferrous or mixed ferrous targets. And you now have 5, 10, and 15 kHz options that Gold Mode lacks. Be very careful because the default rejection pattern for Field 2 rejects target id 1 and 2. This will reject most small gold nugget readings and reduce signal strength on larger gold by blocking part of the signal. Field 2 set up properly is quite close to Gold Mode performance and a perfectly acceptable nugget detecting alternative. Field Mode 2 Frequency: Multi Ground Balance: Auto (Ground pump method) Sensitivity: 18 - 23 Recovery Speed: 4 - 6 (default is 7) Iron Bias: 0 Accept/Reject: Everything accepted, rely on tones (alternative reject -9, -8, and -7 if too much ground feedback) There are so many decent VLF detectors you can use now it’s like asking which computer you can get to best run Microsoft Word. I see minimal difference in actual gold found between a 1995 Fisher Gold Bug 2 and any competitive machine made since. The VLF tech flatlined some time ago and from my perspective everything since is just different flavors of ice cream. All tasty but none all that much superior to the others. The operator in my opinion makes the difference in all the ways that matter. Best of luck to you no matter what detector you choose to use. Steve's Guide to Gold Nugget Detectors
    1 point
  47. Minelab Commander Coils Click the image below for larger view. I really like the 15 x 12 Minelab coils but where you really do need to go aftermarket is the big coils. I would never swing an 18” Commander coil when I could be using a much lighter aftermarket coil. The Minelab coils are very good, but they are also heavy. I generally agree with you though Fred. People go chasing off after coils way to soon in a lot of cases when simply mastering what they have would be more productive. Minelab Commander Coils For GPX Series Detectors (work with GP and SD series also)
    1 point
  48. The two prominent Trails into the Klondike interior were originated thru Skagway and Valdez Alaska, I guess I had been inadvertently studying these trails for many years, as I was very interested in this Gold Rush, the antics of some of the characters involved and of course the many waypoints they established...After some thought I decided the Chilcoot trail was to far away for me to ever spend much time looking, but the Valdez trail basically came thru my own back yard...I poured over books written by these characters and it was quite an interesting education....I'm not going to get into that part too much as it is a lot to talk about so I will confine this into the area that is close to my home in Copper Center.. The trail came up the Valdez Glacier then turned and followed the Klutina Glacier to the beginnings of the river it formed.. At the bottom of the Glacier was Boulder Camp not much left of that area because the Glacier had receded a lot but you could see why it was called that it truly is a boulder patch. The other camps leading to the main stopping point were pretty insignificant but Sawmill camp, the place where boats were constructed to float the Roiling Klutina River to the Copper was really a relic hunters paradise. However, it is a look and don't touch now as it is part of the massive Wrangel Park.. it took a Super Cub with large tires to fly myself and companions there but we explored took photos and really enjoyed looking at the piles of gear those old timers had packed over the Glacier and left Behind.. Whomwver is interested in knowing more can find a copy of Basil Austins "Diary of. 98er" this particular book has hand drawn maps of campsites etc all the way to the Klondike. I found Basil Austins personal copy in Powells bookstore in Portland Oregon in the 70s ..I almost choked when I picked this book up and started looking thru it..lol I couldn't get to the Check stand quickly enough... Very interesting reading, however keep in mind that most of these sites are off limits as they run smack dab thru this massive park system. I just wanted to point out a few important things about history. If you want to find Things of Old, choose something and research, research, research, it carefully...for myself I spent years doing just that and unexpectedly I found a treasure map in an old bookstore.....the one site I will talk about is very close to my home in Copper Center.. Stampeders walked all over my land, some paid the ultimate price and are resting in the cemetery constructed by their mates very close to the Copper River...Lots of relics I have found are in the little museum on the bypass road in Copper Center, it is a very nice place to visit if you are ever there.. I've spent hours scouring that area listening for a golden whisper that so far has eluded me, I did find 5 coins at one of the sites all dated before 98, I'm happy with that as the Quarter, dime, nickel, and Indian heads hold a special place for me.. Hope you enjoyed my true story.....
    1 point
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