goldbrick

Featherdfishead, thanks for the story and pics. Quite the interesting adventure.

Scott, sorry we missed you, did not get in until late on Friday. I would have enjoyed BSing. I would suggest a rendezvous but I have since departed the county. I need to be in Oregon on the 10th so I did not want my fifth wheel to be stuck on the wrong side of Siskiyou Summit due to the snow they have forecast. Darn weather is good all winter then the first chance I get to have a little fun it starts snowing(what did I say about lifes vagaries?) I will return in July, I will send you a PM. You are correct about the hot ground there and VLFs. When the Fe meter is one bar from being pegged I don't think a guy will obtain much depth even if you can find a machine to run quieter. Steve, I regret selling my Gold Bug Pro to my little sister, if I had not I could cross check the machines. As it is now I am left guessing the reasons for the goldfield programs noisiness. So I ordered a Makro Racer Pro Package last night. Unlike the Deus I hope it will be a good all-rounder for coin, relics, and NUGGETS. I grew tired of waiting on Gold Racer so I used the same reasoning you had for liking the F-75 for a gold machine. ( If I want to find fly-poop I will use my GB2) I considered the F19 but the deal breaker there is no three tone mode.

I was spaced out, staring out the window with my mouth hanging open,contemplating the vagaries that occur in our lives when I was struck by a revelation. Maybe my detector isn't a P.O.S., maybe it is broken? The problem is my XP Deus is very noisy in All Metal mode. In the highly variable ground of N. California I can not get it to run quiet in AM. The ground grab function does not get an exacting enough GB so I am forced to manually GB the Deus. It will run smooth for a few feet but then start yakking at me. Re-GB and repeat the scenario ad nauseam. Auto tracking is just as noisy. I have found gold with it listening through the noise but it is mentally fatiguing to try to determine a faint target or is it noise? The Discriminate modes run quiet, the machine is a real peach for coin and relic hunting but All Metal mode just sucks and its bringing me down. I know Ray, Scott, Steve and hopefully others on here own a Deus or did. Have your machines exhibited the same behavior? What say you gentlemen? Thanks, Merton

Hello Karathound, You wrote "There is a lot of hunting on these properties also, so lots of shotgun shells, buckshot, birdshot, bullets, iron, foil, etc. Basically it is like a dump in some areas. " A VLF will discriminate the ferrous but you will still have to dig all the trash left from hunters if you want to find nuggets. Electronic prospector = garbage collector.

Hi Steve, maybe you can clear something up for me. I recently sold my GB Pro in anticipation of buying a Nokta Racer or Gold Racer. I wanted a coin and relic machine that would be a back-up for my Deus, a spare detector for guests, yet also function as a VLF gold nugget machine for areas too trashy for my GPX 4500. I thought from early reports the Nokta machines would fit the bill. It seemed to be a turn on and go detector with many attributes a coin and relic hunter yearns for. It also has 3 tones(important to me for times when coin hunting is the only detecting available) which my GB Pro lacked. Just recently on Tom's forum there was a video posted, kind of a shoot out between the F19 and Racer. In it the Racer VID's almost every high tone target at 82-84, regardless of composition or shape. What is the sense in having a nice big VID display if it calls everything the same number? Did you find this to be so in your evaluation? Does the Fors Core also lump many targets into a small VID window? I already own one VLF detector that you must audibly discriminate every target because the VID is poor. I was hoping to purchase a detector with better VID than the Deus yet still perform well in coin, relic, and prospecting applications. After watching that video I must question if I lent the Racer to a newbie if they would not just end up with a pocketful of aluminum when coin shooting. I know there is no perfect detector for all uses. Also this is only one video and opinions can be manipulated although I don't think this videographer has an agenda other than providing info to help people. I am just wondering if this VID lumping is a deal breaker for me.

Kellyco may have lost their monopoly due to the "Impact" fiasco.

On the 23rd of March AZO started advertising Nokta detectors for sale. Now if we want to purchase a Fors Core or Fors Gold we have a choice of dealers. I wonder if others will follow?

Sun Ray Pro Golds.

Klunker, I built me a tin foil hat so the Vulcan mind probe is no longer a viable research option!

This is an outstanding post. Thanks Barry for the info you provide. Thanks Ray for starting the thread. Claim owners only own the mineral rights to their claim. If I want to hunt legal relics on a mining claim I am going to do it. If the claim owner is around I will discuss it with them first. I will not let somebody's ignorance of the law proscribe my legal activities. By the way, I own multiple mining claims.

Ray, the way I read the law is if you do not collect any minerals or rocks you are legal to pursue relics, within the bounds of the Antiquities Act of course.

I can't identify the trigger but I enjoyed your post. Thanks. Merton

I have a Pro-swing. Every time I hunker down to get the target out of the spoils pile the j-bar pulls apart (becomes two pieces) for some reason. For the life of me I can not figure out why? Any suggestions

Steve, I am curious what the small box w/toggle switch on your right hip is? Does it have something to do with the external speaker you are wearing? Merton

There has recently been some discussion somewhere in the forums about 20-30 KHz detectors recently and their applications for prospecting. I ran across this while reading a link on a thread at NASA Tom's Forum, a quote by Dave Johnson, design engineer. "Metal detector manufacturers generally avoid the 20-30kHz range because of electrical interference from military communications." Here's the link to the interview- http://www.fisherlab.com/hobby/davejohnson/davejohnsonjohngardinerinterview.htm Merton

Dang it Steve, I was hoping for something new and exciting. Alas, my dreams and aspirations are dashed on the rocks of life once again. I am intrigued by Racer performance with 11" coil on small nuggets in this video- . What will Gold Racer do with a small coil ? Mmmmm, no surprises but solid performance in a well built machine for an attractive price I suppose.I sold my Gold Bug Pro yesterday in advance of the bottom dropping out of that market! Now I will have to get by with only my Deus in the JAMFD category while awaiting release of Gold Racer. Merton

I must be missing something because if the following statement by Tom D - (Here is where things get interesting (important): the depth of all-metal mode ... vs ... ID mode is identical (once again..... in my inert Florida dirt). In fact .... the better/more intelligible selection.... is the 2-tone mode. This is the deepest mode. ) is correct and applies to mineralized dirt also, would not this machine be unique in the matter of equal depth in AM and Discriminate mode(D12). So if F75, Racer, and Fors Core are equal in depth In AM then it would follow that Racer would be the clear winner on gold in the discriminate mode. I was under the impression(often I am wrong ) any ID mode (pre-Racer) cost depth even if set at 0 because the signal is still processed through filters. I was hunting a cabin site that is next to a patch the other day( thanks goes to Lucky Lundy for the pointy finger!) with my Deus. Where the Minelabs had left off due to trash I started hunting in AM. As I worked closer to the cabin I was no longer able to discriminate by watching the VID in single tone AM as the area turned into a bed of nails. I was forced to switch to 2 tone and hunt by audio. Is this a scenario the lowly $650 machine is going to kick butt in versus machines costing more? Merton

Mike , Thanks for the interesting info. I was reading about 1853 dimes just the other day. I have one I found nugget hunting. So when I read some were key date I tore in to look at mine. Alas, no joy. Mine has arrows. I would be bummed but how could I when I am the proud finder of an 1853 seated? Merton

Not one bum in evidence. They must have gave them the "bum's rush" .

Ray, can't remember the name of the saloon but I do remember they will sell you a shot of red eye for $2 if you buy a beer Chris, heck yes we looked at, ogled, peered, and fantasized about that gold. Rick, we will be going soon. I had some coin and relic hunting to do that has been on my mind. It is not on my mind anymore as the place gave me a whoopin

We knew it was going to rain like a cow peeing on a flat rock so what to do? My brother-in-law Bryan and myself are vacationing in Northern California. With a deluge forecast for yesterday, there would be no forays with a detector so we loaded up in the truck and headed to Old Sacramento. The railroad museum there is one of the largest in North America. Go early because you can spend a whole day in there easy. The massive amount of railroad iron there will delight any man with even a passing interest in the Iron Horse. We eventually got too hungry so we ducked around the corner to an old saloon from 1877. It has good sandwiches, great beer, and a hot Latina barmaid wearing fish net stockings! After sating your raging desire for comestibles, liquid refreshment, and eye candy go back around the corner to the state history museum. (editor - emphasis added) Upstairs they have a decent gold display. Some wonderful specimens of the yellow metal there. What's not to like? Just saying if you are in the area you won't regret going..........

Bring on the V4 . If it does exist I hope they paid attention to ergonomics.

Scott, sounds like the Basalt Blues. Have you tried a 5000 w/small coil in Fine gold timing at this location? I have witnessed the 5000 handle Basalt well when it was causing me real problems with the 4500. Paul, you are rambling. You need to focus. On another note Paul, I am finished with my "continuing education" so I returned from Seattle last night. I am hooking up this A.M. and heading south. I should have ten days before I go to sea again. Maybe you can come over the mountain and get a little visiting and hunting in? I would like to try your 2300 out.

Congratulations Ron. I was feeling kinda bad for you with your partners killing it, and no love for you. But you were a good sport(unlike some of the Seahawks)through it all. Gotta be karma. Del Norter, That is interesting as I am pretty sure they did the same thing(adding 10% copper) to 1853-1855 seated dimes.

Those guys are livin the dream.