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My metal detector picture today includes a flag for a number of reasons. I'm proud of my country and my family. My mother was a Navy nurse in WWII and she met my dad who was a Navy pilot after the Battle of Midway. She had a brother who was shot down on Jolo Island in the Philippines near the end of the war. My step-dad was a Navy Seabee who landed on D-day and also saw action in the Pacific. My Aunt was in the Army in Algiers. My brother was a navigator for a Navy vessel in the 70s. Some of my uncle's air training as a radar operator in his P-61 Black Widow was in California and Arizona at temporary bases. I have some letters of his he wrote to my mom and there is a good chance that some of the areas where I find gold and WWII 35 and 50 cal shells were from his planes. I look up and wonder if he had looked down where I'm searching. Thank you Gerry for reminding me that I need to honor their service and legacy more often. Mitchel

Thank You to all Veterans Who served our Country & gave us our freedom to enjoy doing what we Love! Saturday's Nugget find near Randsburg, Yahoo!

Gerry’s Memorial weekend contest, entry #2.

Circa October 2005, Mosul Iraq. The man on the far right died over there after I was MEDEVACed. I got him into prospecting in AK.

Puttin’ in pic 3! Man I am having some good fun with this. Tomorrow is gonna be my gold day, I can feel it! LOL. Went RZR ridin’ again all day with my wife Erin and now grillin’ up some good ole start of the summer juicy burgers. Have a great weekend everyone! Tomorrow, Let Us Never Forget.

My family out this weekend dreaming of digging up gold in the Alaskan water! I’m new to the site and ready to get out this summer to prospect for that gold!

In the strict sense, Memorial Day is for remembering and honoring those who died in military service of the USA. It goes back to right after the USA Civil War. But it is customary to also honor those who have served but haven't given their lives in that pursuit. We also have a holiday on 11 November (Veterans Day) for honoring all who have served in the military. That one unfortantely isn't quite as celebrated. The following photo picked off of the internet emphasizes the distinction: (Gerry, not an entry, just for informational purposes.)

Thanks Gerry for this fine contest for a Gold Monster 1000 and especially for honoring those who are serving and those who have served for our military. A big shout out to my son, Scott serving on the Pasadena!!!!! It’s been raining constantly since Friday evening so even though my Equinox would have been fine getting wet, I am old enough to know when to give it up and get dried out. I did manage a short hunt on Sunday and came back with a couple of quality rings......sorry, no nuggets or flakes (the gold bearing creeks and rivers in the Denver area are really running fast and heavy so too dangerous). The Equinox got over a really nice .925 silver and Smoky Quartz beauty and a Navajo (Scott Skeeter) 14K gold and .925 silver band. Thanks, Jeff McClendon

Memorial Day! Coming from a long history of Family Military Service, I learned early that it’s for the Veterans that never returned Home. My Grandpa, corrected me at a young age...”It’s not Happy Memorial Day, but it’s a Good Day”. His words rang true, as I visited many American War Fallen Cemeteries in European Countries during my tours of duty. Now that I’m a US Air Force Retiree, the old Military saying of “We All Gave, But Some Gave More”, rings loud and clear on this Good Memorial Day. Now, I live in the “Battle Born State” unofficially the “Silver State” or “Sage Brush State”. Well living in the 7th largest land mass State, you have to have a modern Mule to battle the Sage Brush to find the hidden treasures of the Silver State. My Kolpin ATV Gun Racks carry my Detectors and yes, the clean ones next to the roof are brand new. My Buggy is Ruff & Ready! If you see it in your Prospecting adventures, swing by. I may need some company on a hot patch and always have a pointy finger to other nearby locations! Good Memorial Day, LuckyLundy

Count me in Gerry. Today is just a picture from the park in my backyard. Tomorrow is for the veterans in our family. Thanks for doing this. It means a lot to those who have family that served. J

Hello All, Well it's been a bit since I had the 12" NF Z Searchcoil on my GPZ 7000, but it managed to show the same results once again. It was about 3 months ago when I originally was field testing the new NF 12" Z Search, before it's release here in the US. I managed to take it back over a few patches I hammered hard with the stock 14x13 coil, but still was able to find about a dozen for so smaller gold nuggets that I missed. The hyper-sensitivity this new coils gives, plus the lightweight, make detecting with the GPZ 7000 much easier and pleasant. I managed to just get in the first batch of new NF coil for the GPZ and even got a few that I didn't expect. Most of them were pre-sold and spoken for, but I still have 1-2 left I think. I went out for my second, first day, meaning I only got one day on the first coil then a customer/good friend just had to have it. I ended up hunting all day, sun up to down down and scored the nuggets below. I'm super impressed with this coil, so if you own a Minelab GPZ 7000, this is something to consider if you're looking for a lighter coil and something that is more sensitive to smaller/specimens vs. the stock coil. Just a FYI, the original coil I sold has scored well over 100 nuggets from what I'm told and some of the recent coils that just hit customers hands (some pictures now on this forum) have scored gold. Congrats on all the new NF Z Searchoil owners and new ones to come! Rob https://www.robsdetectors.com/nugget-finder-12-z-searchcoil-for-gpz-7000/

Memorial Weekend Contest, win a Minelab GPX-6000 in your dreams. Ok, Detector Prospector fans. Most of us have been patiently waiting, some – not so patient. A few of us have even sold/traded our old detector to be ready for the release of the biggest dream of 2021. Here’s your chance to win that dream. BUT WAIT…. There’s more. This is not a dream for just you. That’s right, Gerry has stepped up the prize to the ultimate, most rewarding gift of all. Folks, I’m allowing you and your favorite detecting buddy (that’s what I said, - TWO of you!!!) to experience this dream TOGETHER. Here’s why I have went all out on this very special occasion, and by god it is special. In my 20+ yrs of selling Minelab detectors….I have never lost so much sleep, never tossed/turned/sweated and dreamed to the point where I almost pissed me-self. Heck even my Shepperd kicked me out of my own bed.. he did so. Folks, these dreams are real, their genuine and it hurts. Heck, I was just in the VA clinic last week and they scanned my brain for cause. You know it’s bad, when they tell you to come back next week for more treatment. I overheard one of the assistants and I could swear, they mentioned “Gold Fever”. Oh shit, it can’t be, I kept telling myself. Those flashbacks about took me life times prior. After all, the release of the SD-2100 in the early 90’s, then the big one of the GP-Extreme late 2000, or the popular series GPX in 2006 . Those were pretty bad on me, but that last one, the trickle and tease of the GPZ-7000 almost did me in and this go around, I’m not sure 50/50 I was told? Wife thinks I should double my life insurance, but I told her “it’s an existing condition”. Active posting DP members and just reading gawkers – Here’s the dang truth of it all. We survived. That’s right we did. Each of us had our own issues and some of us are still wearing those Gold Fever Dreamin scars, but we are breathing, walking, talking. And most importantly, we are dreaming. Heck those many scars I carry, at this point, it’s almost a Gold Detectorists Honor to show them off. But some of us do and we do it with PRIDE. Here is where I’d like everyone’s help. The numerous calls, texts, emails to me, my Field Staff, even my dedicated Minelab detector dealer friends, has to stop, if it’s about the GPX-6000. We know, we’ve heard and we’ve read. Bottom line is we want them just as bad as you folks. Heck, I even had to take the customers who were scheduled for training on the April Rye Patch, NV session and move them to the June class. Guess what, it’s almost June and so I’ll probably be moving them to the Fall class (which I just added another class to try and help get customers up to speed). Yes it’s a mess and yes the Covid Gold Fever is real, but us dealers can’t do anything until we get detectors. OK, Enough of the fun and laughs….but you can add some.. he he. In the meantime. I’d like to see you folks get out and celebrate this fine extended Memorial weekend and hopefully use your detectors. I do want to reward those who have read this far down. I (Gerry’s Detectors of Boise, Idaho) am really running a contest for all of you in the United States (sorry to my friends from other countries). I’m asking of US participants to post each day (starting today and posting to this thread), a picture you took this holiday weekend of Memorial Weekend theme with detector in the picture, examples are you family picnic and a detector in the picture, a Veteran memorial with detector, your front yard with American flag and detector in the picture, or you out detecting and camping this fine weekend…and with detector, you get the idea by now. Each day you can post 1 pic and your name will get put in a bucket for each day’s picture. BONUS - picture of “your gold find” with a metal detector. Now, before some of you get crazy with the term “gold find”, I’m talking Au gold, not a piece of gold foil, not a gold colored doodad, but real gold..a coin, a piece of gold jewelry and most certainly a gold nugget, picker or specimen that was found with your metal detector this Memorial Weekend starting today and ending Tuesday, June 1st at 5 PM MST zone. Reason I am going until Tuesday, is many of us will be in the hills and not returning until Tuesday. The BONUS gold picture gets your name in the bucket 2 times per day, max of 10, for those who are fortunate enough to find and post a gold find pic each day. Please don’t beat me as I am trying to have fun for most everyone. Rundown of the rules. 1 picture a day can be posted per DP member. So in reality, you could post a pic of this weekends events each day and end up with 5 entries, but you can only post 1 pic a day. Sometime next week I’ll count the pics and enter your name per amount of posted pics and of Memorial = 1 or Gold = 2, per day (remember 1 post a day no more than total of 5) with the last one by Tuesday, June 1st 5PM MST. I will take a tally and draw (no there will not be some big video show) a name. The winner will get a new Minelab Gold Monster 1000 metal detector courtesy of Gerry’s Detectors. No it’s not a GPX-6000, but it’s a real gold detector. Detector Prospector is the #1 metal detector forum in my opinion and I enjoy reading, learning, sharing pics, seeing gold finds. Go out, get some, spend time with family/friends or alone the way you may and be safe this Memorial Weekend. Don’t forget to think of the reason for this special weekend and the real meaning behind it. As a family of US military myself, I thank you all who have sacrificed for our freedoms and dreams AND SO IS THIS CONTEST – for a Gold Monster 1000 and the chance to dream with your detecting buddy about the GPX-6000. Again, a Memorial Themed pic with detector is 1 name in the bucket that day and a pic of your gold find is a BONUS which puts your name in the bucket 2X per that day. Thanks folks for helping calm the storm of GPX-6000 Gold Fever, as I know it’s real. But the reality is we all need to relax a little and enjoy this weekend...hopefully with detector in hand and surrounded by family/friends, laughter and making memories. PS, I'll probably shut the computer down later today, so chat with you all next week.

Running the Biggin today, reached down for some feint dimes and one nice 9" coin spill. Real nice coil, cleaning up what was left. That spill had 5 nickels 2 dimes and a quarter all stacked. Numbers were all over the place. But in disc mode easily made out the chimes with the nickel bongs. Doesn't always turn out that way. High, low or deep, the Biggin was snagging them today. The spill coins are near the tip of the shovel.

Thanks Gerry and all of those who have served our country. This morning i hit the turf local park hunt before the wife got up, and i was rewarded with two pieces of gold! Swinging the 11" on my 800 all metal with 21 sensitivity, and recovery at 7. The earring is 14k and had an id between 9-10. The ring was a total surprise id was showing 14 but sounded good and it was, 23k 3.0 gram and the earring is 1.5g. Happy Memorial Day ! 🤩 ht

Here is my pic, taken today from a little hunting trip at La Porte, CA. Good memorial weekend to all.

Tarsacci battery fits in snugly and is waterproof.

I got better... 😀 Went to the farmhouse yesterday and today. I feel like I'm at a beach, and it's ironic that it's Memorial Day weekend and I'm finding lots of memorials. 🇺🇸 The campground is full of Veterans, flags everywhere honoring those who made the ultimate sacrifice so that we can enjoy the freedom we have. Yesterday I dug the oldest coin so far, a wheat from the 40s, along with .46 in other newer coins: Trash was minimal. Got a big brass spline bushing, and a few bits of molten aluminum and other junk, a couple of sinkers. The best finds of the day: Copper or brass duck medallions and a copper electric lineman's loop nut. A Power company guy called it out as I dug it. The ducks may have been either prizes or on dog collars. Or something... 🤔 The ground here is easy to dig except for roots, but it's sandy loam that feels like talc. Very fine dust. Today's finds were off the charts for me: An old Lesney Matchbox Mercedes Trailer toy ca. 1967-69, a small octagonal compact, an aluminum token of some kind so encrusted it's unreadable, and 61 cents in modern coins. I tried all suggestions and found @rod-pa's to be the most productive. Using my usual program with all metal off and going really slow allowed me to retrieve the dime in a hole full of nails. I only turned all metal on to verify that iron was present, but something better was also. I want to thank everyone yet again for all their guidance. Those thunderstorms ended the day.

Hey Gold Catcher, Ya, I gotten a lot of feedback so far, everyone is super impressed by then. I love the fact it's even more sensitive, but the biggest factor is the weight overall of the GPZ 7000, so the lighter coil makes it easy hunting without a bungee all day for me. Here are a few more pictures of the first coil I got, notice the logo is slightly a bit different than the new one.

I sometimes forget that not eveybody has a solder iron in their hands 8 hours a day. Soldering lithium batteries is one of the more dangerous thing you can do with a soldering iron. I too have had a lithium battery pop on me while soldering. If you haven't made lithium battery packs, it's probably best to seek other solutions. I read somewhere that you can buy a Nox battery direct from Minelab for about $40 if you email them. Also, if you don't need to stay waterproof, there is the external battery option. Here's a popular one that just clips onto the Nox shaft. You could remove the stock battery and clip this on and there would be very little overall weight change. Nox External Battery

And then of course you also have Croc Diamonds...... As every self-respecting local in N.E. Angola knows all this stuff about diamonds forming at huge depths and temperatures is just BS and diamonds are really made in the heads of crocodiles. It stands to reason after all.. diamonds are found in rivers and crocs live in rivers. Croc dies, decomposes and his diamonds stay in the river. Nevertheless it came as a big surprise one day back in the '80's when the diamond security police carried a large sack into the plant office and dumped a very decomposed croc on the floor and asked the manager to get the stones out of its head. The manager was a fairly volatile Sicilian so you can guess his response.

Wouldn't expect the ID's to be much different, but you might punch down a little deeper at 4k and hit something that is on the edge of detection in multi. Silver is the first thing that gets stripped when a place has been previously detected as it is the easiest type of target to cherry pick.

The new nf coil only found a skunk today and the only gold found by my son was the tiny nuggy I planted for him to find with his new 2300 so he’d begin to get an idea what to listen for. It was planted alongside the edge of a small bush, I had him fire up his detector and started him swinging on another bush nearby. When he made it to the right bush as expected a little hi lo sounded out and he missed it, I had him go back and he ran the coil over it a couple times and then asked what’s that?, lol. So now he knows, he dug tiny trash no doubt if he’s lucky enough tomorrow when we take the grandson out he’ll find one then? the grandson (6) wants to go find treasure so I’ve got a flat shiny just under a gram we’ll hide for him to find, I think he can probably swing the Deus OK, video to follow.

After digging more trash for a skunk day.

So Gerry, great idea for Memorial Day. We are at Rye Patch thinking about my Dad who left us on June 3, 2020 at 93. He was a tail gunner on B-17 in WWII and a POW in Germany. He is signing the bombay door of Sentimental Journey, a flying B17 based at the Commemorative Air Force in Mesa. Heartfelt thanks to all who serve. Mike and Sally

Solitude, has led me on countless pokes of nuggets! The soothing silence of the open spaces help me put a Career in the Military to ease. I become one with my Metal Detector and never second guess my intuition when I’m in the zone. They say, Gold is where you find it and Metal Detecting the High Desert plains of Northern Nevada is a prime example. As many of you know, there’s a layer of soil covering the indicator rocks I look for in many different locations. It makes Patch Hunting a challenge as you may wonder out of your prime dirt area, if there is no bare spots showing rocks to keep you on track. So, Patch Hunting is time consuming and can be worth the time and effort. One Patch will lead to the next if you pay attention to the indicators, Mother Nature hides her treasures well. So, keep swinging that coil you never know where that next Patch will be at! LuckyLundy

Here's my collection so far..

My moms uncles flag and awards. KIA Vietnam, 1969.

Thanks to all who have served! Picture of me and my EQ800 ready to hunt. Memorial Day 2021.

How dangerous is all of this? Lithium batteries are known to explode when shorted. (I've seen it happen -- wouldn't want to be standing next to it, for sure. There are often built-in protections, e.g. diodes, but...) You say 'parallel' so positive terminal to positive terminal and negative to negative. Just don't accidentally do the opposite (positive to negative...). I'd recommend at leasat a good eye shield.... Always need to ask if it's worth taking safety risks to try and save a few (tens of?) bucks. I recall 30 years ago when working at a well known national lab, an engineer put a large lithium multicell in a lead lined concrete vault meant for (and containing!) high intensity radioactive sources. All I could think of was "what is wrong with this picture???!!!

Here's the scoop. Scuff cover done. We're done. As always, great to be out!

Thanks for posting, I'm always interested in history, history of gold prospecting is a added bonus! Since that video "First Contact" was just a preview I had to see the rest so after much searching I found a site that has the entire video in 2 parts that free to watch, I haven't found the second and third part of the trilogy ("Joe Leahy's Neighbours" and "Black Harvest")to watch for free yet but still looking. If you have watched the preview posted you can skip ahead about 9+ minutes because the preview is the first of the whole video, once the first part plays and finishes..just wait and the second part will load and play automatically. https://archive.org/details/firstcontact_201602/firstcontactreel1.mov

I find them on the beaches fairly often, but they are not very old! If they aren't corroded, I leave them at the beach entry for other kids, or give them away to those "future treasure hunters" who inevitably follow me at the beach! They will run back to show a parent, and it gives me enough time to escape, and refocus on my detecting!😂👍👍

Wat yo tink bunjee, yo bin dere, Yo go Manis no go par go, pinish por sur.

Thanks Chase! There is no EMI, I can run the machine at 24 sensitivity and it's still quiet. Great suggestion! I've tried it before. I use it a lot to check targets to see if they go low. I've read about others using it specifically. Would the IDs be much different? Last day tomorrow. Brutal weather today, I'm sure you got a taste of it. Didn't stop raining/misting here until 6PM and it's 57 out with a 24mph wind. 😵

If there is not a lot of iron and EMI is low, hit it with 4 khz SF.

I was not fluent in it, language not being my strong point. There were many funny uses of Pidgin such as lik lik haus sik for hospital, die = sick and die pinish for dead.

You found the gold MN, 25carat.

Part 3 of the series reviews some of his spreadsheet techniques and gives examples of some of the data fields he collects. As he mentions, there are many other data fields that can be added. The title of the video is "DIY DATA Power - How to DIY Your Own Gold Detecting Finds" and the link is (15585) DIY DATA Power - How to DIY Your Own Gold Detecting Finds - YouTube. A good and informative video that provides a nice starting point for those interested in both data collection and interpretation to increase their level of success.

Thankfully as an Australian I am ineligible as the rules were too long and complamicated for this black duck. Also, thankfully, I am able to live my GPX 6000 ‘dream’ and not just be waiting for the container ships to unload. That’s hard for you guys in the States. Got out for about 1.5 hours this arvo before dark. About a dozen lead shot, some large rusty bolt heads and nails and a little bit of the right colour. I assume Memorial Day is very similar to our ANZAC Day and is a time for thanks and reflection of those that have served their country to keep us safe and free. In that context it’s not appropriate to say ‘Happy’ Memorial Day but I do hope you all have a good weekend, get to spend some time with your loved ones and enjoy the solitude or comradery that prospecting brings you 🤗 Cheers, NE.

Two teeny bits. Dirty and then cleaned.

And here are is our big find for the weekend! Not skunked, but close!

Mr. Gerry.... Contest is pretty damned decent of you to offer this up!!!!! Had a beautiful day for me today and scared up 11 little bits. Left em dirty to try and prove I didn't rob the nugg jugg and cheat....lol So if I read the rules right I get 2 shots in the barrel? Anyways....this will be my only entry as I'm gonna stay on the couch for the rest of the holiday. Everybody have a good one and get out there if you can!!!!!

A thank you to all who serve and have served. Our weekend of bar-b-q in celebration and a hot desert hunt or two.

Thanks To All Serving, And Who Have Served!!🇺🇸👍👍

I was on the main island in mid 2000's---- Working with New Tribes Missions-- quite an eye opener-- the country, the people, the landscape, the language...... dispela day..... dispel day... This is THE day! I would go to Bouganville .... maybe i could hire a boater to drop me off over in West OZ.... i could wash ashore like a refugee-- surely you all dont still send people to Manis Island ,,,,do you???

Tim, Steve, I enjoyed hunting with you two over there in England. Cool trips! I've got one item I found in Oct 2019 declared as "treasure" that hasn't (to the best of my knowledge) even been evaluated yet. Due to the "experts" not being able to get together to do said evaluation because of the pandemic lock downs, I can understand the delay. What troubles me more is missing/stolen items. Coin collecting is the motivating force that got me started in this hobby, 51 year ago next week. I don't turn my nose up at cool relics and nice jewelry also, but, coins are my favorite find. In my last trip, I found a fairly rare coin, at least as a dug find. One that got posted (along with it's slick sister) on the Colchester website. It even had a comment posted by Chicago Ron that it was the best one he's seen dug. Well, somewhere along the way, it's disappeared. I know it made it from my pouch to whoever took the photos and posted them. After that, the trail has vanished, and nobody seems to be able find it. If this was an isolated incident, I might understand, but, this isn't the first item of mine that came up missing. In a previous hunt, I had found a gilded Victorian era candlestick that turned up missing from my finds also. Not as valuable to me as the coin, but still, it's something I was hoping to keep. I guess I'll have to take even better photos of each item next time, so, I can determine value and sue for damages! 😄

nice looking Wyo gold-- (and never miss an opportunity for an unabashed commercial Gerry.!!!! ) 🤣😂---- Sorry i couldnt help meself....

I don't know Chase.... some authorities insist a PI cannot be used to do what so many use PI detectors for at Culpepper! Truly terrific report, and I mean that. Our detector explorations have mirrored each other, though for me it is gold, you it is relics. The concept is the same. High value targets in trash at depth. What do you do? The truth is that if the targets are high value enough - you need to get them - then you will eventually arrive at PI no matter what. I've been chuckling at Tarsacci claims since day one, as anyone thinking a Tarsacci is as deep as a good Minelab PI simply does not know what they are talking about, and such claims are over the top. Yes, Tarsacci hits as deep as a White's TDI SL, even deeper, so the claim is not false. But it sure is not including top tier PI detectors either. I have a trash site with gold nuggets scattered through the site. This is common - camps were built close to the best gold, and often on top of it. Everyone hates digging trash, so I tried all the best VLF detectors. You can always pull stuff out of trash with a VLF, so people think they are finding stuff. And they do. But they are leaving a lot behind, probably more than they found. I finally got fed up with the VLFs, and hit the same area with a GPX 6000, digging every target. A magnet on a three foot digger makes it efficient, no bending over. Get beep, make it move, stab with magnet, move on, unless nothing on magnet. There was more gold found doing that, more than I found before - even after I cherry picked out the gold with VLFs, simply due to masking. No matter what people think, if you are in a ferrous bed, and leave the ferrous in place - probably 50% or more of the targets will never be found until the ferrous is removed. No VLF will get the job done even halfway well, and that's a fact. A fact that PI people exploit to great effect. There will always be skeptics, but if the targets have value, using a PI and digging all targets is the only way to know you are not leaving half the goods in the ground. I'm not exaggerating. A simple flake of ferrous on the surface can block a 1/4 ounce nugget a few inches below with ease. Detector do not see though metal to find metal - in general they find the first metal they see. New fast recovery machines help a little, smallest coils even more, but anytime you have two or more items under a coil at once, things will go sideways. What that means from my perspective is that VLFs are second tier tools used only when I can't get a PI to do the job, and that boils down to groomed areas where digging endless holes is not allowable. I've done all the same VLF comparisons you have done, and your views 100% mirror mine, and so I certainly confirm every word you have said through my own personal experience. I still have a Tarsacci, but it is oddly stuck in a gray area for me. No matter which way I turn with a VLF, it will never get the job done entirely. So if in the end I am going PI anyway, the VLF I use is more about being versatile and efficient. You can make a case for any of them depending on the situation and personal preferences. For me the 12" x 15" coil on the Equinox is a killer combo for a lot of my hunting, and so it wins just by having a certain coil I need that the other machines lack. It can be something that simple. Or Equinox being water resistant, where Deus is not. Whatever. From the PI perspective, all VLF decisions are hair splitters as to which of the less capable machines you want to use. In my world the VLF rides shotgun for the PI, and really only comes out for oddball situations, or park use. Again, great report, literally could not have done it better myself.