hawkeye

Very nice mod.   

Do you have any pictures of the control box construction phase of the build?  It is impressive.  Especially to a ham handed ten thumb guy like me.  

31

Tailings from a heap leaching/cyanide recovery operation should not have any detectable gold if any at all.  A mine dump may have some gold as Andyy suggests.  Dredge tailings maybe have nuggets if the area they dredged was known for nuggets rather than fine gold.  Most of the dredge piles in Montana are now sitting on private land because the original claims were patented.  I am not sure where one could get access to dredge piles.

If you don't already have this book get it.  It shows all the places in Montana that were placer mined:

http://www.mbmg.mtech.edu/mbmgcat/public/ListCitation.asp?pub_id=11597&

I would think your best bet would be to check for open land on the streams indicated in the book.  Also check our the Libby Creek free panning area south of Libby.  The Northeast Montana Prospecting Club has claims in that area.  Cost to join $50 or $75.

http://www.nwmtgoldprospectors.com

Not sure if you made your decision yet, but I had a Keene 12 volt "puffer" dry washer.  It worked good, but it is heavy and setting it up is somewhat awkward.  If you are going to be packing your drywasher for any distance I would get the Thompson.  I have read many good reviews of the Thompson.   

And for enthusiasm and colorful language you can't beat General Hercules.

(I know he has been on the forum before but I couldn't resist)

Nice gold.

You gotta love the 7000, but on the other hand you got to hate all the tiny pieces of iron junk they target.  I have reached the point where if the target moves after a boot scrape I'm moving on.  How do you cope with this annoying problem?

On 12/25/2017 at 11:36 PM, BOBCAT said:

I have recently found the Land Matters site and installed it on Google Earth. It is easy to use and the sliding dimming bar makes it even better. The only drawback is to find out the actual location of a claim is to get a plat from the county where it was recorded. It does list that when you do a search.

How did you install Land Matters on Google Earth?

We are still in the 19th century when it comes to getting the actual location of a claim.   That has nothing to do with Land Matters.  At least many county records can be searched online.  

Wore my CAT pants for the first time today in AZ.  Temperature about 70F.  Pants a little too hot for my liking at that temperature.  I do like the knee pads in the pockets idea.

My wife had to retake the picture a number of times because her laughing blurred the picture.  

Thank you Steve.  I will certainly check these out.  

Geology is very interesting to me.  I graduated from Montana School of Mines (so named in 1963), but with a degree in Petroleum Engineering.  Nevertheless I did take courses in geology, petrology and mineralogy.  I forgot most it of over the years as I was more involved with the drilling and production of oil and wells.  I have renewed my interest in geology since taking up the hobby  of detecting for gold.  I missed out on the "golden age" of detecting while pursuing my career in Petroleum and raising a family in areas not even close to gold.  So be it.

As I read the amazing "Reg Wilson" threads about the numerous large nuggets found in Australia I began thinking about the amazing depositional situation that created them.  I have "Googled" a bit to try and find any literature on the subject, but have not found anything to satisfy my curiosity.

 .  Can anyone recommend any papers or books that describes the creation of the Australian deposits.  I understand how gold is deposited, but what is unique about the Australian situation that resulted in so much large gold?

The Roadrunner's do have claims in the Rich Hill area, but I doubt they will rent out claims by the week.  Your best bet may be joining the GPAA.  They have a number of claims north of Morristown, AZ which is near Wickenburg.  Like any club claim they have been heavily detected. 

http://www.goldprospectors.org

Also you may want to check out the Quartzsite area.  GPAA has claims in that area and the Quartzsite Metal Detecting club has a number of claims and a very decent membership cost of $30.

http://quartzsitemetaldetectingclub.com

Steve, I like the forum "as is".   Thank you.  

Clay, thanks for your reply.  "Mystery" solved.  Points taken.

The so called "railroad lands" still remain a mystery to me.  They are marked on the LM map as managed by the BLM yet do not seem to be open for mineral claim (or they would be claimed to a certain extent).  So exactly what is their status?  I have never seen or heard a reasonable explanation.  Like Mitchel, when detecting Rye Patch I have assumed these lands were open for detecting.  I also assume if they were actual privately owned land they would show up that way on the land status map.  Looking for a definite answer.

A dream day of detecting.  Congratulations.

FOR SALE:

Overly complicated CTX 3030 complete with strange target ID system.  

Great nuggets Steve.

I note the shovel and the relatively narrow hole compared to the 19" coil.  Looks like the GM very helpful in pinpointing, and shovel better is for digging a deep narrow hole than a pick.  Very interesting, but how do you carry all that paraphernalia?

I am wondering if Tami and guillaume world are friends.  

I have one and it is a great pick.  Like the big scoop end for moving dirt out of the hole, AND back in the hole.  Works great on those "fake" targets where you dig and dig and then the signal just disappears.  I know the signal should get better the closer you get to the target, but I just can't resist going down a few more inches, then another few inches, then you are swearing into a big hole.  Hermit pick-good for moving dirt.  

Strick, try this:

https://store.minelab.com/mobile/product.aspx?ProductCode=3011-0301&404;https://store.minelab.com:443/product-p/3011-0301.htm=

3 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

How many of you know engineers? Have you spent a lot of time talking to engineers? They are not really famous for communication skills. They might think they are communicating, but they are speaking a different language. Their brains are often wired differently than "regular folks".

Steve, my wife totally agrees with this statement.  Personally I can't see it, everything we talk about makes perfect sense to me.  

One of my favorites:

Ask that question on any other forum and the only answer you will get is "do your research".  Steve, that is a great post, simply outstanding.