AussieMatt

A lot of people here do that too mate. Get as close as they can then set up base camp. They will then do day trips with their 4wd or a lot have motorbikes or quad bikes. The tracks do dissapear in places hence the advantage of the bikes.Not sure about satellite internet but for the very remote areas & if in Western Australia I would take a satellite phone, good GPS, decent 2 way radios & even a PLB/EPIRB. Australia is really too vast & diverse to give a complete answer as it would be very dependant on the area/s you wanted to go. An all 4wd set up, as shown above, is obviously going to give you the most versatility but trips can be & are done with on road gear, you just limit how far off the track you can get. Some set ups I found on an Aussie forum that may be of interest: https://www.prospectingaustralia.com.au/forum/viewtopic.php?id=1293

Jeep's in Australia don't make it to the bog. $49,000 lemons: http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/ashton-wood-ready-to-destroy-his-lemon-jeep-after-viral-campaign/story-fnihsrf2-1227079770279#load-story-comments Two bob is what my watch is worth. Can't break a bob off it?

The bracket the control box is attached to with screws is riveted to the shaft. From memory it was these rivets that broke. Whether it can be body mounted or not is inconsequential, it still broke & shows these things can & do happen to more than one brand regardless of pricing. That was the point I was trying to show, not trying to point the finger at any particular brand/s or any particular machine/s. I'm sure we have all seen or heard of accidental breakages on all major brands?Just sayin'!

Hope it is all sorted out amicably for you.

So is Jeep responsible when you get bogged, is Castlemaine (or any other brewer) responsible when you spill your beer, is it Walco's fault when you leave your pick behind etc. NO! Why is Minelab or any detector manufacturer responsible for our mistakes/accidents? Yes they could probably beef them up then the same people whining about them being flimsy would be whining about the extra weight - oh wait they do already. Unfortunately accidents do happen & it can't always be the manufacturers fault? By the sounds of your daily occurences I wouldn't lend you a two bob watch!

Moral to the story: Don't drop your $10k or whatever priced detector if you can help it. As a footnote I heard of a bloke that had leant his TDI against his ute only to have it slide down & hit the ground. The control box was broken off the shaft mount. He was a little bit upset at Whites blaming a poor design etc. but mostly upset at himself for leaving it like he did. That's just one example of many similar "human error" type incidents that can't always be leveled at the manufacturers. So these problems are not limited to Minelab or Minelab users! p.s I hope you don't stop talking about the GPZ Steve. I don't find anything suspect in what you say in fact as someone who doesn't have one yet I find them, as well as what other owners have to say, beneficial in getting an understanding of how it ticks in anticipation of either owning or using one down the track.

It really depends on where your going. Western Australia needs more preparation & supplies than what you would need in most areas of the eastern states. Take note of most as there is still some harsh country about. There are plenty of places you can tow a normal camper or caravan with a normal vehicle. There are others that need 4wd. There are places that have hot showers, toilets & powered sites close to goldfields & others that you will require to be prepared for I.e. you need to be self sufficient! It's all about researching where you want to go & preparing accordingly.

Yep it's old news rehashed for a new story. Still to see or hear of a 100% complete copy that actually works yet though. Closest I've heard of was some actual PI units but they wouldn't ground balance. I guess they didn't get everything one needs to rip them off? If they don't have the codes for the MCU's then they will just be boat anchors.

https://youtube.com/channel/UCanm0gYhAZNL6-wNKkSXx8Q

Think it's the TDI SL Mark got? http://www.detectorprospector.com/forum/topic/1061-whites-tdi-information/#entry11383 Nice few coins & the first of many once you get some more hours up no doubt.

Heres a GP3500 done with the Golden Mask telescopic shaft:https://www.prospectingaustralia.com.au/forum/viewtopic.php?id=12376

Hi Fred - I actually found a post by Reg from a year or so back where he explains that the TDI was never designed to use very large coils but went on to say that with some testing & higher pulse delay settings it should run larger coils that can be used with a Minelab + that it is extremely forgiving with coil sizes. Link deleted since Findmall Forum update broke all old links I tend to agree with Steve that coils made specifically for the TDI would be best considering they will still work at 10uS. Jason from Razorback Coils had also made this comment in regards to larger coils " The biggest one would go on the TDI would be the 16" round mono. The TDI does great at that size for larger items and bigger gold. After that size the TDI really does not gain any depth with the bigger coils there is just not enough power there to push any deeper." This would be why they have their available coil sizing no doubt. I think between Steve & what I've found that I've got an answer but it would still be interesting to hear/see any success with larger coils on the TDI. Steve - that is a nice lump of a specci! Sorry for getting off track on the other GP/GPX thread - I have big coils & deeper gold on my mind lately. A by-product of too many hours on the SDC?

Just with the Minelab PI coils being used on the TDI's. I've heard that once you get over about 14" with some coils the TDI's struggle to run them regardless of pulse delay settings etc? Was wondering if anyone has had any success with a larger coil on a TDI? Most, in Australia at least, seem to have success with smaller coils on the TDI series like NF Sadie & 12" x 7", 14" x 7/9" etc. Only ever heard of one being used with a 16" Coiltek but never seen or heard back any results with it, although I see one bloke said he tried one & then sold it going back to a Coiltek Blitz 14" x 9" which runs fine at 10uS. They seem to do well on small gold with the smaller coils here @ 10uS.Was wondering if this is why Miner John/Razorback are making coils specific to the TDI & Minelabs I.e. they have a 14" round for the TDI but it's not compatible with the Minelab PI's. They do however have other coils specifically for the Minelabs.

With all the air testing that you do I was wondering if you have found that these results line up with your in situ finds, in particular those in nastier type ground. Reason being is I have read of manufacturers claiming that their machines/coils may not air test well but will perform better on in situ targets. I have also read on a UK site - Garys Detecting I think - where they say that if a detector/coil performs badly in air tests that won't/can't improve in ground. They do however note that some detectors/coils can lose up to 30% performance from air testing to in ground results whereas a poorly performing air test machine/coil may not lose anything. Just a thought as I always prefer to hear or see actual in situ finds/results rather than air tests. Would be interesting to see any direct correlation between the two - air test v actual finds?

One respected modder in Australia actually advises that modding a GPX is not needed. http://www.minelabmods.com/joomla3/ http://www.minelabmods.com/joomla3/index.php/news/135-minelab-new-policy-think-twice-before-you-mod I can't vouch for his mods but he did make a very good battery & true, completely wireless audio system the "Little Ripper" which is unfortunately no longer available. I can vouch for those - they were a top set up.

I know a lot of people in Australia were very cautious of them but they appear to be proving themselves here & now have a good following. Good reports on Stinky Pete (the Aussie dealer) too! I have sent an enquiry to the Aussie Miner John dealer on the 14" mono round. They too are getting some great results/reports around the traps & another that I will definitely keep in mind. Whatever I do get I will test in the field. Personally I have little faith in air tests & prefer in situ testing. I'll soon know if it's/they're any good. Edit: Got word back from Brian the Aussie dealer for Miner John coils. "At this stage there is no 14 inch round coil for the Minelab machines. The closest size would be the 14 x 9 Razorback coil built for the minelab." Bugger - was hoping they'd have the round.

The only reports I have seen in the last couple of years in Australia on actual goldfields use is all very positive. They seem to be right up there with Minelab, NF & Coiltek + many here consider them as more stable, less prone to bump falsing etc. I've only used NF or Coiltek aftermarket coils before but the reports/results here in Australia definitely have me looking at Detech as another option for my next coil. I agree with Goldhound - if they had a 14" mono it would be on its way to me now.

http://noktadetectors.com/fors-core_metal-detector-dealers-in-united-states.html

I had the green SD2200D & never found any gold with it. To me it didn't seem to be running right so I sent it into Minelab. They checked it out & updated it to the latest specs (SD2200v2). After I got it back I started to find gold - not saying that means anything in particular as a lot of people I have talked to reckon the SD2200D was better & went deeper too? I can't really say that one is better than the other but know that after being checked & updated to v2 specs I started finding gold & it did run a lot better afterwards but it could have just needed an alignment etc. After I got it back I used to run a NF 14X7 Advantage mono coil - many told me that the SD2200 would be too noisey down here for a mono but it was generally ok in all but a few areas.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/131112537426 These work well on the SDC too. Just need to get a 2m curly lead with 6.35mm / 1/4" plugs & the adapter cable to suit the SDC socket.

Some info written by Jack Lange: http://www.docsdetecting.com/docsplace/jlange/gp.html

It should pick up the 6 grain nugget? As an example here is a bloke in Australia still picking up bits of around 4 grains with a SD2000: http://golddetecting.4umer.net/t21565-a-good-week-for-the-sd2000 I think from memory most people told me not to expect too much on nuggets less than 0.5 grams (8-9 grains) from the SD series. My smallest with a SD2200D (had been updated to v2 specs) was 0.26 gram (tad over 4 grains) but yeah everything else was over 0.5 gram. The GP Extreme's big claim to fame on release was better sensitivity to smaller gold so I would assume it could at least match or better the examples above. Can't say for sure as I have never used one.

Haha - I need to do this with about 15grams of SDC nuglets :-D

Great topic! I can see I will be re-reading it a few times. Thanks to everyone who has contributed.

Just wondering what you base this on? I know of one prospector (who posts here) that uses the CTX for just that - high trash areas. In 2012 he had netted over 2 ounces from these areas so I assume that would be much higher now. Not discounting the others - all good machines. The CTX statement seems a big call though?Also my experience with the GMT on highly mineralised ground isn't glowing. It does ok but is a pain in highly variable ground & in some areas is useless. It overloads & doesn't handle the ground at all. In saying that I have found some gold with it but in milder conditions. Need to target specific areas with the higher frequency machines in my opinion. I haven't used the MXT but have used its little brother the SST. It tracks well but was very susceptible to hotrocks even when dumbed right down. At 14khz I wasn't finding the usual bird shot etc. so I believe sensitivity in highly mineralised ground isn't good either. I had read elsewhere a claim that the 14khz MXT will find smaller than 0.06 gram bits in mineralised ground but I'd like to see that with my own eyes in ground that I consider mineralised. I doubt that the 14khz would be sensitive enough or the machine could handle the ground & maintain that sort of sensitivity. I could be wrong but like I said would like to witness that sort of sensitivity first hand. VLF's can certainly still be useful in trashy goldfield areas & are underestimated I reckon especially in Australia. You do need to be choosey with areas though.