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Research, time, and lots of boot miles. Get away from the known areas and roads.

Got in 4 hours Tuesday AM, started out with rough water but by 11 am things were calming down. Took me about 30 minutes of messing with the controls before I got it to run stable and under control, then I slowly adjusted the setting as the water calmed. Started out with the settings ....delay 11.5 (15) Sensitivity 6, ATS 8, All metal , volume I ran high the whole time with the threshold just audible.. ( The settings that really seem to calm the AQ in rough water is the delay and ATS ) And by end of day I cut the delay down to 11, sensitivity 4, ATS 6, all metal, volume 9, and threshold 4/5 just audible. It was purring like a kitten. Dug a lot of nickels, no silver coins, one nickel / silver ring (my first marked that) and one 1.5 gram 10k.. This spot I have passed thru with the excalibur a few times of late, I've yet to find targets the way the AQ does. Shallow targets here are trash so I keep on walking on those..I only dig faints here...and the ring was maybe 12/14 inch's? The AQ loves the small gold rings. First time out this year with the drysuit, It was 60 degrees with winds early am. I hate being cold...Plus on one of the other forums some one posted about some flesh eat bacteria and I had cuts on me from working in the yard Monday so best to be safe. All worked out good and glad I went that route. Video of..........cam has been on the blink of late, I think the problem is moisture inside of the Go Pro. As you can tell by the frosty video. I checked to see if i got the gold ring on video, it did, then I stopped the recording..... then it would not restart. Once home I checked and it started to work again. I just dropped it in a bag of rice to see if that will draw some of the moisture out.

I spent about 5 1/2 hours digging in the dry beach area of the lake. My goal was to dig as much trash as possible and it worked out great I was able to nab a few keepers among the junk, silver toe ring, 2 silver earrings and a silver chain with the pendant. Also dug the usual clad and junk jewelry as well. Ran the Nox 600, my settings were: Park 1 F2-0 Sens- Recovery-3 Man GB-4 1-Tone I dug everything from-2 up

With lifeguards gone Kids gone cooler weather and the lowest water level in years, fresh water I was out chin deep in what it seems to be undetected area. all targets were very deep and have been there for a long time. The Irish ring is stamped 375, the locket 585, and the blue ring 14k and I have not cleaned the 14k at all it is tarnished or stained. All found with TDI BH but I did mark the area that the locket came from to return with my Nox to try and find the chain.

We've all seen, heard of or found coin spills...particularly if you primarily hunt beaches. However, throughout all the years I've been walking our Florida beaches this is the first Sinker Spill of this size that I've ever found. These sinkers came from the same 3x10ft area of Bicentenial Park beach and it wouldn't surprise me if I didn't find all that was there! 😁

I was wrong again.. it's another florin.. i'll get it right one day!

Just a short note on Joe’s “shorty” AQ battery. It fits well under the cuff and balance was not noticeably effected from the lighter than stock battery. Run time for me in “tone mode” was 6 hours 20 minutes. It is my understanding that in all metal it is approximately one hour less. The M12 (CTX) phones connector was a welcomed change and the power cable with a small loop and ninety degree connector also worked well. Get one of his battery set ups and avoid changing batteries in mid hunt, while they are available. I believe he has other set ups with even longer run times. Knocked it out of the park again Joe, thanks.

On 9 August, I posted my initial impression of Steve Goss’ latest offering---carbon fiber scoop handles for the T-Rex, Stealth and X-treme series of sand scoops. I’ve been using his product exclusively now for over a month and thought I’d submit a few follow up thoughts. Bottom line up front: Does his handle still impress me as it did when I first got it? ABSOLUTELY. A few descriptive words/phrases come to mind when evaluating this handle after many beach outings: Stout: This handle is indeed worthy of the term. It leaves no doubt that what you have in your hand is a very stout piece of carbon fiber. There isn’t one hint of flex or weakness in this thing. Reliable: I’m more than certain Steve’s handle will serve me well for years to come. Professional construction: Steve’s handle is not your big box store, mass produced item. This man takes pride in what he makes and each one reflects his strict attention to detail. Conclusion: I’m even more impressed now than I was when I first posted my initial report. If you decide you’d like a top notch carbon fiber handle, you can buy this with the utmost confidence that you’re getting the best I’ve seen since I bought my first detector in 1970. Again, I have no financial interest in Steve’s business. I’m just passing along my personal opinion.

Pro level. https://www.nimrodpacksystems.com/

I got out for nice long hunt with the AQ. I found quite a few targets to keep me busy. Five of the rings are junk and the other two silver. One of the silvers has real diamond chips. The gold ring came towards the end of the hunt and weighs 4.7g. I have found 5 gold rings with the AQ and a small pendant, so not too bad. Thanks for looking and happy hunting.

I found this of interest. The Murchison meteorite - Museums Victoria.pdf The 50th anniversary lecture ......LINK.....

I could use some advice from the true adventurers out there. I have used a regular backpack for the past 4 years and it has gone with me all over the West (and even in the Amazon jungles of Brazil) on my detecting adventures. Inside I carry food, water, first aid, extra coil, TP, and other essentials. I have strapped sleeping bags and gold pans to the outside. I have it ready to go for at least one or two nights sleeping in mild weather. But the miles have taken their toll. For those of you who venture far from your vehicle into the bush, I would like to know what kind of pack you use. Pics and advice are welcome. I am looking for something that can carry 1-2 gallons of water, a sleeping bag, battery bank, possibly the ability to strap my detector and pick to it for long hikes, and either waterproof or with a rain cover. Price is not important. I have an old frame pack I could use but it is gigantic.

I have been forcing my self to use my Deus more here lately. I am finding that I like the Deus very much. For the most part I am using Gold Maxx and deus fast. I have a custom deep program I use as well. What I am getting at is i am not really using as many of the programs and settings. I fiddle between 2 for the most part and some times 3. And that is Deus fast and either gold Maxx or the deep Custom one I made. I have been thinking of selling either my Deus remote set up and keeping the ORX or selling the ORX remote set up. I like the ORX for the large easy to see screen and iron probability bar. Plus I only fiddle with the coin programs anyway. I actually favor the ORX to tell you the truth. They are slightly different animals. And each has their own strong points. But target and depth between the 2 are equal. Who else has the same delima??

If you can navigate the crappy (at least on my desktop browser) interface/reader on their website, you'll find on p11 of this link the article by designer Jorge Saad detailing the history of the Gold Bug Pro's development. Whatever he says there is 'gospel' AFAIC. What I remember is something about 24-bits, which Minelab bragged about their revolutionary innovation for their Gold Monster 1000 when it was released multiple years after the Gold Bug. Now, maybe one was talking about the A/D converter and the other the CPU. In a lot of ways it doesn't matter how many bits (or processors) contained within; it's how the detector actually performs in the wild. Both of those detectors (GB Pro family and GM1000), although very different, have produced for their buyers.

The "Spectra Circle "has closed ... I got the Spectra Vision ... I think it is one of the few original Visions available in Europe. .so I will be able to make some direct comparison of Whites Vision from Spectra V3 and Spectra V3i ... Are there any differences in performance ....? I heard from a colleague that the "Vision" has the most raw power and therefore 15-20% is the deepest .. Is that true? ... We'll see ... and maybe we'll be surprised ... Another thing that is of great interest is the wireless transfer of programs between detectors Whites Vision and Spectra V3 - in theory it should work. So we'll see .. Other observations and opinions and tests regarding Vizion, Spectra V3 and V3i....by writing in this article ..

Thanks Carolina..Funny you told me your time and I was thinking....Maybe I was wrong. We will get it worked out for I will be testing each battery I make by using it for a one hour hunt (submersed) to make sure they function as needed. Then going thru threw the charge cycle...one time.

Yep, anyone that has ever fished has forgot that damn latch, at least once!! Always "fun" fishing all that crap out of the sand! Now you have enough lead for a couple of nice counterweights!!🤣👍👍

At least they weren't the small ones that keep falling through the scoop holes. That can be frustrating!

Reminds me a few weeks ago I hit the river at a local favorite fishing spot. Found over 3 lbs in sinkers. I forgot my pouch and had to use the front pocket on my waders. Lot of times if there is a gravel or rocky bottom the sinkers get caught up. The shoreline might prove better hunting grounds where people cast from.

Outstanding nvchris. Its true, research, long walks detecting and long days are essential for the serious and for success. Just hope not too many of the welling mass of new gold detectorists catch on to the secret to be honest

I have used a Camelbak military HAWG for the past 3 years and its bullet proof. 3 litre bladder and heaps of room I would say one of the best day packs on the market. It is a heavy pack for its size but it is made of heavy duty material and huges zips, yet to have one fail. And they are all clam shell opening so you can get to contents without digging.

What the issue is the brand you buy and use. SS or the plated composite material. The cheaper is 7 dollars, the SS is about 23 dollars..USD. The cheaper will last several years but it requires you keep cleaned and lubed both it and it's mate. The SS you can abuse it a little more but from time to time will need taken loose and lubed, other then that ...they seem to hold up until a internal wire breaks...One of the most important thing is to fill that internal area that the wires connect to the pins with Epoxy when installing... either. Salt is the issue, not really the wear. And that being said the Souriau brand that is used on the AQ will wear in time. A composite material..will, the screw together type are less prone to wear.

Welcome Chip, Looks like you have part of the equation figured out!!! Take your time and learn the machine on (your) time frame, do not rush into crazy settings, it will only get you discouraged. Glad to have you here to share in your experiences.

A base camp pack with a day pack is the go---- When in Special Forces I carried a base packs that weighed roughly 100 pounds- (plus my medic bag 35 pounds)-so roughly 65 pounds of gear--- but we dumped it as soon as we rucked to base camp and went to day packs with battle belts. For day trips 3 liters of water minimum--- in SEPARATE containers in case of a leak... A few of the regular items in case you get lost--- My point like the post above--for extended stays-- two packs are the go---- Could even be Army style like the Alice pack and the fanny pack (sorry Aussies) Gold Hound Dale got me on to this USA company --Eberlestock-- they have anything you need... We both have one of these--- i believe this is the model-- mine is over WA. still in the plastic (unless the Taskmaster traded it for a carton-!!-) 🤣 If you need more stuff than this can carry .... get a helicopter! EBERLESTOCK OPERATOR PACK

If you want to see the Apex in the action in the field here is a video I did over the weekend. Didn't compare it to anything in this video just got out and hunted with it.

Thanks Buddy, If you could give us a report in about a week that would be great. I used the same battery...... I had a run time of 5 hours and 30 minutes then 5 hours and 37 minutes the second time. All metal hunting the first trip then the second mostly all metal with a hour of mute mode. I am only making 5 Shorties like yours and 5 Big batteries. I get the ten batts out there and give them several months I may do another round this winter when things are slow if everyone is still happy. The shorty is 140 plus shipping 15 dollars and the Big Battery is 170 plus 15 shipping. I expect the Big Batt to get 11 plus hours. List is full, Got in a hunt today and will be working on them Weds..on Ji.....Cliv....Cli....De...See...Sha...Cu..EL..Te ...CC ...Ga/O

Thanks for the vid, Looks like great gear! Are you just going to get one of their's? Looks like they last! Here's a few others!👍👍

Well here she is. I ordered the coil last week. It is the 13" Detech Ultimate. I cannot believe how light weight it is. I am totally like a kid in a candy store today!! I put the Sun Ray probe on it a little different than how most people mount them. It really had some awesome separation too for such a large coil. I am not totally sold in the depth aspect just yet. I will have to do some.more testing. But for now it is awesome.

Hello all, Everything seemed to be in alignment yesterday morning, when i woke up about 4 A.M., and couldn't go back to sleep after looking at the tides and weather! Had some issues that prevented me from getting out the last few weeks, so i was itching to go! The wind was ripping pretty good, and i had a spot in mind that had been renurished and ruined for quite a while, that should be showing signs of huntability again! Also, it's a spot that you can "dual hunt", meaning ocean beach and water, than a short walk away, intercoastal beach and shallow water!! I got there before sunrise to beat the heat, and low tide hit at around 7:15; perfect! Did a quick peek, and liked what i saw! Geared up; and within a few minutes, i found a decent coin line running North from the rocks, to open beach, about midway between the cliff and water! All the coins and other objects were on the harder shell layer, under about 6-8 inches of soft eroded sand! I followed it till it petered out, than backtracked a different line back to the rocks! I was hitting a few targets in the rocks, and got to finally put my new PulseDive to the test! It worked great! A few times, i had to put my detector and scoop above the surf, and hand dig, and test over and over for a few tough targets that were locked in crevices and rock holes! Cool, but a little time intensive! I was hoping for a sliver, or long lost gold item, but ended up with some 70's and 80's coins instead! All good though! After about 2 hours, the incoming tide was beating me back from the good area, so i took a break, than switched over to the calm intercoastal side for about another 2 hours of relaxed hunting; mostly in the water! Overall, i was happy with what i recovered, even though no gold or silver today! Now i know that i can return, as the erosion progresses hopefully! If not, i know the other side has some jewlery waiting for me! 👍👍

Yeah, the marketing folks mentioned this early on. More is better, you know.

No problem buddy..I'll put you on the list...I have enough supplies to make 11 batteries. Once I get them done and out I'll do another order for supplies....then I'll start the second list. I maybe a little slower on that one but I promise it will happen. We start getting north winds I may go MIA...😁..for a few days''...

Wow! have an alarm clock that is nearly identical to yours. I us it when I have to get up early for a job that I don't want to do.

Nice rings. Great granddaughters love the heart ring best. El

Another great score for the you and the AQ!

I have a slice and a couple small pieces of Murchison. The new meteorite Aguas Zarcas is up there with the significance of Murchison.

Nice finds Dan!

It will be interesting to see mine was the original v3 and i had it back to the states changed to the v3i. The v3 was a lot easier to ground balance than the v3i and the wireless transfer was good. I had a mate that had the the v3 so we could transfer programs between each other. let us know how you go with it EL. Regards Pinpointa.

Yeah, they may have shown their hands and now Nokta/Makro knows what it needs to compete and beat them............might just be worth the wait..........................

Especially when it comes to Tesoros, they are like Timex watches, they just keep on ticking. If it works, use it. No reason to mess with a Tesoro unless you really need to.

Maybe someone else will translate this

I think a lot of people have lost interest in the Apex. With any metal detector I get I like to put it through all my tests and hunting grounds to see where it fits with the other units I have. I've taken it to parks to coin hunt, a really trashy ghost town and an old relic site. At this point I can say that it wouldn't be my first choice in any of those scenarios but you can make it work and you will find stuff. I'm going to hang onto it and see if they bring out some new coils for it. But as it stands it's a mediocre performer as it should be at the price. It's been a long time since I used an Ace detector and that was a 250, I can say I do like it a lot better than the 250. I also had an AT Pro and I still think I like the AT Pro performance better but the Apex is better in the ergonomics department. Better balanced, better display, better looking and wireless headphones built in.

Sweating, that’s his drinking bowl too, out hunting! Doc’s new scoops are deeper than the normal Treasure Scoops, he enjoys the extra time drinking all my water I carry for the both of us, lol Rick

Definitely! and, I'll probably do the same to learn the "language" of the AQ. Cliff

Bigtim, As you know, reading my posts, i got the All Pro! After reading several different posts here, and other stories and reviews, i thought i would like to have one new, before they were gone forever! And the deal was good! It was really a lot to do with the timing of several events! I don't plan to let it go for a long time! Maybe it was a metal detector midlife crisis; i don't know! But i think i made a good choice, for the way i detect! And it's a hell of a lot cheaper than a Blond and a Corvette! (Already married to a Blond, and i don't really like Corvettes! Except the split window 63') 😂👍👍

It may be more the authors than the magazine that you need to contact about the rights to their works. https://www.writersdigest.com/legal-questions/what-are-first-serial-rights-or-fnasr

That sounds perfect. We will check out towns before moving. I had enough of the big city life in LA and prefer tiny towns. I have good memories of growing up in small towns and wish the same for my kids.

Should have been included from when it was first released, I pushed hard for it and got ignored.🧐 In variable ground it is a God send, soon as the zero threshold becomes threshold like (ground response becomes more dominant and is breaking into the dead zone threshold position) it’s a simple matter of hold in and pump for a few seconds till quiet. This now allows you to run a more aggressive sensitivity level in hot ground and then keep on the GB grab as soon as the GB starts to drift. Using the AUTO sensitivity modes it is also very handy, I used to find the sensitivity would degrade if the GB went out of whack and it would then take too long for the GB to recover without doing a power cycle, now just Grab the GB again and keep walking. The Monster is now a well rounded metal detector and up there with the all-time VLF greats. Not good news for early adopters but good to see Minelab were willing to make the changes. JP Note: In salty/conductive ground pumping the coil might not always be the best option (conductive signal can be exacerbated by lifting the coil away from the ground), in this scenario hold in the GB grab and sweep side to side instead.

That's what I was thinking-- some SS alloys are non-magnetic. I just tried two different sized medical needles (tiny insulin and a big scary one) and each was only weakly attracted to either a one inch cube (25mm) or a 8mm cube neodynium magnet... Certainly not attracted enough to yank it out of the soil, even roto-tilled soil! The magnets would pick them off the surface, surely; but at that point, you might as well use a pliers, if you can see 'em. I have metal detected pins and needles and tiny ball bearings before, so maybe OP could get by with just a pin-pointer? They could get a very good quality pin-pointer for the price of a craptastic metal detector...

Bash -- WOW! THANK YOU for the wonderful review! I am so glad you are pleased with the shaft, and I enjoyed working with you to try and provide you with exactly what you were looking for! Working with you was quite enjoyable, and so the feeling is mutual! Thank you very much for taking the time to share your thoughts! Happy hunting! Steve