SteveJJ

After much research and serious consideration, I chose the Mavic Pro. DJI has come out with newer ones, but I still find the MP to suit my needs the best. Small packing, long flight, excellent 4k video (I don't need pro quality, not selling my works). It's small enough to take along most anywhere and THAT means it does get used! It was a serious chunk of change at $1200 for the spare batteries and chargers and what not, but I have yet to regret it. All I'd wish for that it doesn't have is a true zoom on the lens...

Scrub geo-coordinates from digital photos if you want the location kept secret!

Steve, I hope you can run some comparative tests on small gold. Thanks.

I told my dealer that the ground is frozen under snow here, and to ship it to those that can put it to use right away. Hope it helps someone, and that mine comes by the thaw!

Yup, but much above the tree tops you lose lots of subtle details on the small screen anyway with such a wide angle lens. Having a range of miles is nice, and adding LED strobes gives you lots more "visible" line of sight range to work with. I'll be using mine wherever I go, if only to enjoy the scenery recorded later! Not essential, but since I have it....

If you want to compare google earth to Mavic Pro footage, you can see some shots of silver mines around Cobalt Ontario through the link below. Judge for yourself if it has value to you. Http://Vimeo.com/weotn

Still curious to see how tekpoint or f-pulse works on pickers or small gold compared to Garrett ATPro.

FM transmitter on the detector from the headphone jack. Lots of headphones have fm receivers...

I too wear HAs. I've enjoyed the comfort and utility of Motorola buds. They seal the ear canal behind the sound tubes so I get to hear the outside world through hearing aids controlled volume and have the APTx Bluetooth signal at a level that overrides my tinnitus. On top of that they are comfortable and the setup works great in a motorcycle helmet! Hearing the 800 supported APTX met one of the primary considerations for my next detector. That along with multiple simultaneous freqs and waterproof. Upgradable firmware also. It's hard to wait, but there's a foot of snow on the ground...

Me too!

I bought these because I liked the thigh pockets better than the others I could see. The right side one holds both my Lesche style digger AND the probe. The finds pockets tuck into the regular pockets if you want them out of the way. I know I'll never wear these out so hope my weight stays where it is! https://www.amazon.com/Helly-Hansen-Workwear-Chelsea-Construction/dp/B01IQYZKRY/ref=sr_1_sc_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1513360954&sr=8-2-spell&keywords=helli+work+pants+knee+pockets

I try to avoid "first model year" autos and tires, and have been comfortable with that. I mean, who wants a failure at 70mph? On tech that I do not depend on for continued living, I'm there! I won't camp out to be first in line, but I'll buy the first Eq800 I can get my hands on. I'm very pleased with my new Fisher F75, but the new tech has captured my interest, and its being waterproof is a clincher. I suppose I could wait on the Eq800, but I hope to learn the menus etc before I take it out. What I'm waiting to hear about is the new pinpointers from Fisher and Minelab. I like my 'carrot' enough I'll wait to see which one responds best to small low conductors, but I'm mostly in the Minelab Pro-Find 35 camp already. Besides, the ground is frozen here, won't have use of it until next season...

Sounds like a great idea - I've wondered when someone would do this, and how it would be accomplished. Now if there were competition and the price were less than half, I'd spring for it just to see how well they work. As it is, I'm $aving for an Eq800... Spinifex, if you have a Costco in your area, head on over and get tested again and try on a pair of demo units that have programmable profiles. My Rextons have 4 settings (one is for electromagnetic induction - is that weird to hear EM fields!) and I've had them tailored a bit different from norm. If their audiologist is a good person, they'll work with you on tailoring to your needs, bring the video so they can tell what frequencies you need to focus on for one setting, You might be pleasantly surprised. So far for me, headphones without aids work best, but in busy areas I'm not comfortable not hearing what's happening. For those times I've picked up some Motorola Buds - they work with the hearing aids in that their silicon cups don't occlude the sound pipes in the ear so I hear ambient from the aids and what the buds are playing, whether music or a bluetooth transmitter plugged into my detector (Avantree aptX for lowest latency works ok for me and the buds are aptX as well). While I can't wear them for more than an hour without drying out the ears, it works well for me to hear what's around me as well.

Ok, I'm a newb, and maybe a bit impressionable, but this really caught my attention. It's a long video by Doc of Gold Hog, but if you jump to about 20:00 you'll just see it in action to see for yourself. It's essentially a small short sluice that is hand operated. He processes a bucket in less time that it took me to do one pan (first day of panning). I figure this is a good way to run some material quickly, without the sluice. I'm just beginning and hope this isn't a hoax, but it sure looks to make a lot of sense. Maybe someday I'll have a dredge or high banker, but this sure beats the pan for concentrating and suits my budget. Hope you enjoy the vid as much as I did!

I'm curious if the Black and Standard are the same circuitry and only differ in the color and coil they come with. I looked to see if the black coil was sold separately on Tesoro.com but they don't list any separate coils, so I couldn't get an answer to that. I was thinking of selling my (gray) Vaquero once I got the F75, but it may just live in my trunk as a quick grab machine. It certainly is nice and light!

I need a DD214 detector! I know it's filed somewhere, but since moving I can't find it. Glad I have a bit of time yet! I have a question regarding coil options for the E800. Is it reasonable to believe that 'tuned' coils for a single freq might be issued by ML or 3rd party? More specifically, a 40KHz coil for gold. Or is the IQ tech better for small gold than single freq detecting?

Is there any chance the Eq800 will rival the GM100 for finding gold?

The "Heat Factory" ones I get from Costco don't run so hot, and last 5-6 hours. They're disposable. Package says to use them outside of the sock, so maybe that should be tried first. I've used them stuck to my feet under socks and the only discomfort was the big lump in my boot! A box of 30 pair is about $15 or there abouts. It snowed again (Minnesnowta) today but didn't stick much anywhere. Might see 40 this weekend but it'll be rainy they say. Hope to get out to detect some.

In theory, if you used a hand warmer on your wrist, near where your pulse can be felt, this should warm the blood going to your fingers giving them some advantage. My sister made me a pair of wrist warmers, from old sweater sleeves cut off, and the cuff had a stitch such that the thumb went through the small hole and the palm the rest. This would hold a hand warmer in position pretty well if snug enough to do so. I work outdoors and these wrist warmers cover the gap between jacket sleeve and glove that often gets cold air if not snow in there (one never slips or trips in rugged terrain when there's snow on the ground, right?). So before you toss out your old sweater or sweatshirt, or your kids if they've outgrown them (actually may be better as they'll hold closer), consider making wrist warmers to hold the hand warmer against your pulse point. Just a thought... Now if you've got a plan for softening the soil so targets can be dug in winter, I'm all ears!

Which detector's 14" coil found these? Zed or Monster?

I recently purchased a used TDI SL (here) that came with a White's Super Pulse 350 with similar dimensions. Is this the coil you're writing about? I've looked online for specs/details and haven't found much to tell me what it is. I gather it's a mono coil from the conversation, if it's the same one. How does it stack up against a Miner John folded mono of smaller size? I'm trying to learn as much as I can but it takes time to find relevant info online and each forum seems to have differences that get confusing jumping from one to another. I am so very grateful for the wonderful forums like this one that has so much good information from so many good contributors. Thanks!

We have our differences but our interests bear us through. He's the one bringing me into the hobby, truth be told. Actually, I'm the one that brought a camp chair along to sit and watch him dig the deep holes for targets he found with his 4500. Part of my joy is just soaking in the natural beauty that surrounds the tailings piles. I brought a drone to video the landscape, as well as to scan the areas for signs of digging and pile movement, and 'hidden' piles off in the trees. While I've enjoyed going for copper and silver, I'd like to have potential ROI so have interest in gold and platinum. Why not get 100x more for your finds? Now that he's invested in his GPX4500, he's more attuned to the potential returns. It doesn't hurt that Gerry, who sold him his 4500, detects in Oregon and has talked it up with him. I'm up for the whole Rocky mountain range, and anticipate spending much of my retirement out there. Oh, and I did purchase a TDI SL and am closing on a Gold Bug 2 in a couple days! 4x4 and camper to pull behind it next year. Gonna get the goods while the paychecks are coming in so I can enjoy retirement in a couple years.

I appreciate your sentiment however, but in this case it's not relevant. Actually he's just more into silver and copper crystals. He's not at all like you're imagining. He puts way more enthusiasm into the hobby than I do, I'm just more into the US west and gold is a potential reward for being there. Now that he has a GPX4500 he's getting excited for gold. It's the 2 day drive to get there that he's resisting. We pushed to drive back from Cobalt in 1 day, 860+ miles. That was tiring but we managed. Saved us a motel $tay.

Hi Peg, Thanks, tell me more about your GB2, one is on my short list. I'm leaning towards White's TDI SL at this time as an entry into PI, and have started a bit of savings so I can get one by Spring. Actually if the right deal comes along I'll jump on it, but nice to have patience too. Someone is going to need to sell to fund family gifts this holiday season... I'd like a GM1K, but will wait to see how the Equinox 800 stacks up to the competition before making a purchase. I'm giving serious thought to Gerry's training, but November? That could mean snow and while I work outdoors in Minnesota, it's not my idea of a fun vacation, snow and cold. I hope he's got another in Spring after the thaw. I like the discount offered to purchasers of detectors, compelling.

I'm eager to see the gallery of gold! I guess I'm too trusting and naive to have thought of security to that extent. My thoughts just don't run there. I am seriously considering spending a lot of time out west in a couple years once I retire. I've lived in Phoenix and Santa Fe and just love the southwest and on up the Rockies when the weather is good. I'm shopping for a pop-up camper for next Summer trips and if I like the lifestyle will likely move out of my house and rent it out to fund my passions wherever they may take me. So, spending some money now while I'm earning a paycheck does make a certain sense. I do have panning gear and have done some in the Black Hills but mostly got skunked. Still, it was a wonderful experience and I know I'll do it again, wherever there's a hint of color to chase. "Mechanized" prospecting isn't always allowed in all areas so I haven't bought/built a sluice, yet. Mostly I enjoy being outdoors in nature, and most any excuse to be there. Fortunately my job is largely outdoors so I stay tuned to the seasons and changes, and get paid to do so! Retirement will be a blessing filled with opportunities. Gold detecting will be just a part of that. Mastering UAV videography will be another part. Finding new vistas to enjoy, huge! Thanks for all you do for others Steve, it's a great service to share what you know so well and in so many ways. Glad to hear you say that Gerry's class will be good for me. He too believes a GM1K would be a great first gold specific detector. It's in the lead of my potentials line-up. Having detected alongside a friends GPX4500 last week demonstrated how deep it can work, way beyond my F75, with ease. I can't rule out a fine PI machine down the road, just not until I"m sure it will become part of my lifestyle. I have a motorcycle that I can part with to fund it, refining my toys is a common occurrence. Doing so while drawing a paycheck is just easier. Thanks to this and other fine forums, I have a wealth of information to work through to get myself more up to speed. Again, my thanks for all you do to contribute so much.