sjmpainter

Had to check. I do still have the 4 inch and the 4x6 inch coil for my Gold Bug. At 19 KHz I wonder if they would work on my F19? Would it hurt to plug them in and see?

snakejim, 27 oz. and on the road system in a week with a four inch dredge. WOW! I would quit my job if I could find that kind of ground. Basically I feel you would not have many takers on the twenty percent deal. Mainly for the fact the ground would not produce a good return for the claim owner. Most claims on the road system have been worked hard and the ground is recreational in value. IE well under a ounce a week with a four inch dredge. If you find someone willing to lease on a percentage I would suggest you have some surety that the ground holds gold reserves that will insure a profitable trip. Otherwise it could be an expensive vacation with disappointment. I see a lot of claims for offer and a lot of exaggerated claims on gold with no formal assay. One good way to tell a bad claim for sell is if no commercial mining has been done - well if its not commercially feasible question that. If the claim owner wont let you sample before a lease or purchase stay away. I don`t want to dissuade you but I stress a word of caution. I see things I would consider overstated by the claim owners. Also do your due diligence and check claim ownership and current standing of the claims. Here is a link to DNR LAS to check ADL numbers.http://dnr.alaska.gov/projects/las/ Here is a link to check the Alaska Mapper for claims in the state.http://akmining.info/ Hope this helps...........

I wasn`t aware of the all plastic mode on an E Trac..................

Steve - you have to love that beach hunting. I am really impressed that you recovered the ear rings in the surf. From my recent trip I can say that is not easy.

Can`t wait to see what my F19 will do prospecting. What number dose the nugget come up as? Really motivated to see the nugget. Thanks. Was out for an hour tonight. one penny, one quarter and one M1 Garand clip.

Steve, good call on the dimension. The Lithium battery I was looking at is larger by a scoash. The F19 has a tight battery box and I doubt anything larger would fit. Ajr, 12-15 Hours is plenty of run time I was worried they would only go for a couple of hours. Also - if they can not handle abuse., I should shy away. Having a meltdown in a 800,00 detector, that would ruin my day. A four pack with charger seems to be around 34.00. I just bought a Alkaline for 3.99. For a few less hours of run time it`s a no brainer. Tvanwho, Prospecting is my main objective. I have been using it to coin shoot the local parks. Mainly because it is early in the season in Alaska and the ground is still froze. This is a new detector for me and still learning the ins and outs of it. The fist machine I own that has a display. I really like that. The discrimination is very accurate and although I have not used the all metal mode I can see that being great for gold as the bar graph still gives a metal reading. The ground balance is spot on and easy. This thing can cherry pick good stuff out of a cluster of trash extremely well. I do not relic hunt, but I can see those folks being really happy. I just used my first battery so 15-20 hours. Estimated clad coins 10-15 dollars, one chain, one pendant and two rings. And the ground is still froze past the sod and I am way to lazy to go chipping ice. Basically just an easy fun machine.

I am running a Fisher F19 mainly. It uses one Ea. Nine volt battery. I get the stated 15-20 hours from the Alkaline battery. If I figure them correct, they have 600 MAH at 9.2 volts. Tenergy and Maha NIMH seem to get good reviews but are rated at 250-300 MAH and 9 volts. I see the Lithium and LIPO have a higher rating of around 600-700 MAH but the voltage is 8.4. Seems to me the Lithium is equal to a Alkaline. The owns manual states the volume will decrease at low voltage. Is there a impact to performance? I think I should go with the highest MAH battery but I am unsure the effect the lower voltage will have?

Looking to buy rechargeable 9 volt battery`s. Wow a lot of options out there and I am clueless on all of it. Any suggestions on battery type and brands. Also is their and difference on the chargers? Seems the more I search the more confused I get. HELP.

Gold Hound do you have a picture of that Bronze sword. I would like to see that.

Thanks for all the ideas guys. Nice to know others are willing to show the hobby to the young ones. What a bunch of fun, kind off like herding cats. I did look at Ebay for some of the low end machines. Also looked at the Go Find. The Go Find 20 is priced at 170.00 and has a warranty. Plus looks adjustable not only on the lower shaft but the arm shaft as well. That is awesome! Looks easy to use with the target display icons. And it folds up to a small package. I think that fits the bill well. Looks like they are not available yet. Anyone know the arrival date. The rate I am finding change I could have enough for the cost in a few weeks. Again Thanks and HAPPY EASTER...............

Recently I picked up a Fisher F19. I have been hitting the local parks after work putting time on the new machine. Benn having a lot of fun with that and finding tones of clad and junk jewelry. Nothing to brag about but fun all the same. What I have found that interests me is the children. I get a lot of attention from the kids. Today one kid cornered me and asked a million questions. Finally I asked is she wanted to give it a go. Man those eyes lit up "CAN I REALLY". Hay why not. She spent the better part of an hour detecting before it was time to go. In talking to her I learned she was Autistic and has Asperger. That got me thinking I need a metal detector just for the kids. I am looking for suggestions on a good, entry level detector. Not really shur what to look at, but seems to me it needs to be simple in design and sized for kids but I would like it to be capable. Price is not a issue but I would expect that it would not be expensive. Maybe an older used model is the way to go? What do you guy`s think?

You should look in your area for a consignment shop or a auction house. Should get better than scrap value and no tire kickers. Good Luck.

I took some time to read Steve`s Journal looking for surf detecting. I really liked this one http://www.detectorprospector.com/steves-mining-journal/garrett-infinium-kaui-hawaii-gold-jewely.htm. If I had done some reading before my trip I would have been more prepared to deal with the surf and I know I would have a better catch. The targets are certainly there, I just was not prepared. Steve, I did three hours in the surf, that's hardcore. But I still would rather fall in the surf than the Alders.

mn90403, Thanks for the heads up on the Amazon tip. I did not know about that.

Steve, can`t wait to hear of the new Holiday hunt. I would like to know about how you select and go about working in the surf and I am sure we will get a full report on the equipment. I bought the Excalibur a few years back thinking it would be good for nugget hunting in water in Alaska. I realized quick that was the wrong application for the Excalibur. I was going to sell the unit a wile back and decided to wait until after the trip to Hawaii. I wanted to give it a go in an environment that it is intended for. I am glad I did. Having used the unit very little I spent time playing with the discrimination and sensitivity settings. So I dug everything. Towards the end I ran in all metal mode to try to get better depth. I did not find anything but large metal objects past eight inches. I now refer to beach detecting as pleasure detecting. If you ever get the chance to detect brushy areas of Alaska you will understand what I mean. Yes I am referring to the silver content of coins. I know 64 and early are ninth percent silver and I think 64 to 70 are forty percent? Here is something I learned on my trip. During WW2 Hawaii had there own notes.

Well the vacation is over. Back home and time to clean up and check for silver. Dose anyone have a good web site that gives silver content by year? The beach I was hunting has a 1960 era resort and a lot of local surfing activity. I think a good mix of all hunting possibilities A lot of folks informed me of jewelry that had been found as well as lost that helped keep me motivated as I dug a lot of junk.. I did notice the most concentrated targets seemed to be around entry points to the beach and launch points to the water. most of the body of the beach was sparse. I found the two pieces of jewelry at the water line where the beach and the coral meet. Only coins and low value stuff on the beach. I would say Steve is correct in working in the surf but I found this very challenging and would suggest caution if you don`t have a fair amount of experience in the water. Use a tether and some dive weights. BUT USE CAUTION. Oh and surf shoes are a must! Well This was my fist beach hunt and I absolutely had a BLAST. FYI I need to clean the coins but the oldest I can see is 1968 most are 1990 and newer.

Well here is my take. Not overly impressive but for the first beach hunt I did well. By the way what is a good way to clean the coins?

Hey guys thanks for the ideas. I did find a guy local "Dave`s Metal Detecting" What an awesome guy he sold me a good used scoop and gave some advice on surf detecting. If you are in Maui I recommend give the guy a call. Yes, fill all the holes and be courteous to all the folks that come to chat about your detecting. You would be amazed at how much info they will share as to where stuff has been lost and most are just plain fun to chat with. Personally. I always clean the beach as I go and it is not only a good thing to do but it is pretty hard to be upset with anyone picking up after others on their vacation. I do love all the ingenuity that we bring to prospecting so keep the ingenuity forthcoming. ALOHA

Thanks Steve. I need to find some idea that will work in the surf rite at the point the sand and coral meet. Lots of good targets but the wave action is miserable with out a screen of some sort. On another note I was curious how you could keep the new GPZ under wraps. A bit back you posted a full pic of your avatar. Seems you have been showing the secret for some time . Got a laugh at that. Hopefully I have some good finds to post............

So I am in Hawaii. Got the trusty Excallibur2. Finding lots of targets and doing well above the water line. BUT I FAILED TO BRING MY SAND SCOOP! I need pinch hit idea`s for a surf digging tool. Suggestions would be a help. Thanks.

I like to get set up and go as long as possible with out interruptions. I do pan my tailing pile when in doubt.

Absolutely great weather! I hope this is an indication of the summer. Been putting together a dredge, going to give it a test run this weekend. I hear that the Willow Fish-Hook Rd is open. So heading that way. Garden`s already in, WOW. Happy hunting..........

I`m assuming you have looked at a few of the mineral survey reports. I am hoping they will contain economic feasibility or assay type reports that will be specific to the patent and not just survey for platting and recording title. Can you comment on that.

Good info guy`s. I can tell I will have to read up on this as I`m already at a loss with some of this info. But I have to ask, what is a cold find?

I am looking for geological reports for a specific patented property. If I understand correctly before a patent is issued a survey has to be done and I am having difficulty finding one. Anyone know the process to obtain this kind of info?