Tony

I go with hardwired every time....coils and especially headphones. My conditions are hard on equipment....hunting in 2 to 3 foot breakers will just about force you to hard wire everything.

I have never drilled drainage holes in my lower shafts but it might save a very small amount of weight. I often point the coil skywards and drain what's in there. I have broken a few lower shafts so my way of thinking is I don't need another potential weak spot by drilling holes down there.

Plasti-Dip my beach and water coils / skidplates taped on my prospecting coils.

I've seen the Fisher Gold Bug 2 do very well in the more moderate ground here in Western Australia, often targeting the old areas that the original miners dumped all their iron rubbish........very unfriendly to a PI unless you enjoy hearing junk targets every other step.

38 minutes ago, phrunt said:

Yep, DredgeNZ is my usual Fisher store and Detectors Downunder is the other option.

It's very unusual for Fisher to be cheaper in NZ, well anything really, as currently our dollar is worth 92 cents to the Australian dollar, quite low compared to recent years but I guess they're seeing Fisher as bad sellers and just trying to clear stock.

Some weird price differences but Fisher have had better value in NZ than Australia for a while now.

Also some much better Minelab prices (4500 was good value in NZ towards the end of it's time) and the Excalibur is $400 cheaper in NZ.

Anyhow, I'd better keep this post on topic 😐

Can't answer your specific question Simon but Fisher detectors in NZ are a lot cheaper than Australia. The Gold Bug 2 combo is nearly $500 kiwi dollars cheaper. Can I ask where you might be purchasing Fisher stuff from (I'm guessing DredgeNZ ?)

Just as a side note....the Excalibur is also quite a bit cheaper in NZ than Australia.

......grab the 14" coil....should ping a bigger nugget at depth.

Tony

Looks great.....but Simon.......deep down you know you'll need another cabin......just for your pin-pointers 😁

.......and tiny dobs of flux works wonder with solder flow and good electrical joint contact. Finish with a light spray of isopropyl alcohol to clean the area.

8 minutes ago, Oceandog said:

 

I checked my 2 sovereigns and my 2 halves. Both Australian .

Sovereign came in at 50-51

Half Sov came in at 35-37

Thank you Oceandog.......and welcome to the forum !!

If only the non-ferrous tone wasn't so high pitched......

A quick Google search has the British and Australian Sovereign coins near enough identical in size and composition.

On 8/14/2023 at 9:46 AM, phrunt said:

I'll find out, I believe these were 2 of the cons used.

Please update if possible....thanks. Maybe the UK and Australian sovereigns are similar.

On 8/12/2023 at 9:55 PM, TampaBayBrad said:

Yet another reason you have to dig pull tabs. 😒

I don't mind digging pull-tabs.......so long as every other target is a gold coin 🙂

9 hours ago, phrunt said:

Half Sovereign – 33, 35
Full Sovereign – 50, 53-54

Air test numbers.

 

Don't tell me you had some laying around somewhere.....🙂

Hello Manticore experts......anyone care to guess where these Australian gold coins might show up on the Manticore ID.

The modern half-sovereign include a diameter of 19.30 mm and a thickness of 0.99mm. On the other hand, the full sovereign has a diameter of 22.05 mm and a thickness of 1.52 mm. The half-sovereign, weighing 3.99 g, is around half that of the full sovereign, which weighs 7.98 g.dimensions and are both 22K gold.

Thanks for any guesstimations !!

If I ever make it to the USA for some prospecting......here's my vehicle of choice (Bushmaster) that I'll bring with me. Locally made in Australia too. Hopefully ol' Grizz will just chew on the tyres until boredom sets in.

I enjoyed reading that……glad to hear the Manticore is providing a good deal of enjoyment. Maybe no one has detected the area since you were last there.

I’m close to pulling the trigger on a Manticore myself ❤️

With all due respect……eBay and the like are flooded with $50 metal detectors and probably don’t need anymore. I’m sorry I can’t be more constructive than that. 

2 hours ago, DSMITH said:

my friend said him and his guide had to set there for an hour trying to regain their composer

….and change their underwear.

16 minutes ago, phrunt said:

If you end up with a 40 I'd be interested in what you think of it, particually if it runs stable.

Is that relative to local EMI or by maxing it out….

13 minutes ago, phrunt said:

One side of my face went floppy when you said you have no pinpointer, I felt physically ill and gagged a few times trying to hold it in.

I was expecting a much worse reaction……Defibrillator and 000.

Thanks for all the info from your post….I hope to get a response from Reeds Prospecting if they want my business😎

Can someone enlighten me on why there is no love for the humble 9v battery. The physical form factor relative to 6 x 1.5 AA batteries is surely an advantage. I can get a 4 pack of Duracell 9v for a reasonable price. Is it a short run for the 9v?

I’m trying to get one “bundled” with the Manticore…..offering a “free” Pro-Find 35 as part of the current promotion here in Australia. With the Aussie “peso” dropping like crazy, I can’t see myself buying anything from overseas for a while. 
 

FYI…..I currently have no pin-pointer whatsoever. Waiting for Simons reaction on that 😂
 

3 hours ago, TE Gold said:

And I keep reading how dangerous Australia is! At least yoù wont get eaten w hi ile on land.

Yep…..give me snakes, spiders and scorpions any day 😳

I saw a Polish website where the Sphinx 02 is available to purchase.

I’m not sure of the differences between the two models.