Erik Oostra

Here's some old footage of Magnetic Island in 1926.. I spend a lot of time researching the island's history and rely on old films like these to work out the best places to hunt.. 

https://d2bx93w6kas18u.cloudfront.net/titles/roundtow/roundtow2_pr.mp4 

These are some other bits of gold jewellery found at my Silver Mine.. They were found a couple of months apart.. The island's first guest house stood at this spot over a hundred years ago, which makes me think the gold jewellery I'm finding here is quite old (for Australia).. I usually find many silver coins here dating back to the first settlement of the region from the early 1870s onward..  

41 minutes ago, Joe Beechnut OBN said:

Different beach, different results. 

You're sure right about that Joe, that's a very different result compared to my beaches.. where the Deus II (with a 11'' coil) has trouble on targets buried 20-25 cm deep (around 8-10'' deep).. Wild stuff! Just goes to show not to get too carried away with what others are finding and to do your own testing instead.. 😃 

Here's a map of Magnetic Island with its many beaches and a picture showing what they look like in real life.. The picture shows Radical Bay and Balding Bay with the Palm Islands in the background.. It just goes to show the huge variety of beaches people hunt on.. This is also the reason why my tests must be taken with a grain of salt (pardon the pun) when comparing them to yours.. My beaches have a fair amount of black sand as the island was born when magma pushed through cracks in the Earth's crust to form a dome, this dome has weathered down to what the island looks like today.. The island is made up of many different sorts of granite, including the sort that formed gold (there are 8 old gold diggings on the island).. 

On 1/28/2022 at 6:42 PM, phrunt said:

Hopefully you're more impressed with it under water to justify the spend and parting with your GPX.

You were spot on with this one Phrunt.. I'm more impressed with the Deus II as a scuba detector than a beach detector.. 

And there's also a happy ending to me selling the GPX 5000 to buy the Deus II.. The prospector who I sold it to already has the GPX 6000 and GPZ 7000 to work his claims around Georgetown, Forsayth and the Palmer River, but he's always had a soft spot for the 5000 because of it's huge range of coils.. He's no small time operator, he's got the big machinery out on his claims to process as much dirt as he can.. He's been prospecting for 22 years as a interest and turned professional 6 years ago.. When he told me how much he made from gold prospecting/mining, I nearly fell over backwards.. Well into the tens of millions..  

Anyway, he invited me to come hunt on his claims.. He'll even lend me back the GPX 5000, so I'm using a detector I'm familiar with.. So, all's well that ends well.. 😃 

3 hours ago, phrunt said:

Now the next step would be to bury the same coin until one detector finds it and the other doesn't or identifies it as iron while the other still gives a good ID, that'd be a good indicator of depth I would guess.

Sorry Phrunt but I'm done testing.. 😃 Just going to enjoy both the detectors for the time being.. The equinox on the beach and the Deus II in the sea.. But I will keep on posting any queries or observations I have on the Deus II.. 

Judging by some of the videos coming out by prospectors, it seems the Deus II is also not much chop on small/tiny gold nuggets.. As I've mentioned, I also have some reservations about it as a beach detector compared to the Equinox, a larger coil makes all the difference.. But as a scuba detector it's working out just great.. Mission accomplished.. 😁

Here's a test of the Deus II vs the Equinox on a 1943 silver shilling.. This is the reason why I use a large coil on the Equinox.. Although I would've dug the target with both detectors because of the high readings, they did jump about a fair bit between numbers (if it wasn't for the high numbers it could have been a bottle cap, they jump about too).. Both detectors are at full volume.. Also notice how much the Deus II shaft wobbles when extended.. 

9 hours ago, phrunt said:

the only thing I'm left to see with it is how it handles finding very deep silver coins but I guess its limited again by it's coil size and I'd be surprised if it can match the Nox there with its limitations. 

I've just tested this on my beach.. see my thread comparing the Deus II vs the Equinox.. I've made some videos, I'm sure the results won't surprise you.. 😬

I do have a bit of a concern about the battery life.. now, before anyone jumps on me, I do know (having read the manual a million times) that the coil battery drains faster in the Diving program, and that the control box battery drains faster when you've got the bone-phones attached.. But I didn't realise how fast.. Yesterday at Horseshoe Bay I checked the battery on the control box to see how battery was doing before diving (the coil was fully charged the night before).. it showed 1 bar on the battery meter, but about 20 minutes into the dive the Deus II died.. 

This is no great disaster for me (more of a pain in the arse) as I'm at most 5 minutes away from home on the island.. But it does compare badly to the Equinox battery which holds its charge much longer underwater.. Could this be because I'm running it with the volume turned up so high on the bone-phones? 

My camera (a cheap Chinese knock-off of the GoPro) kept playing up underwater, but it did accidentally take a few great pictures as I was getting out of the water.. including an (me thinks) awesome selfie.. 

XP.. feel free to use these pictures in your advertising.. 😁

This morning inside the shark net at Picnic Bay.. I don't like using a camera on the job but I thought I'd take the opportunity to try and show the display of the Deus II a bit better during a dive (Diving program).. At the end of the video it shows the detector floating away from me as I'm digging a target.. 

Forget all I said about the long stiff plastic lead on the bone-phones, it's great! Whenever the Deus II does it's amazing disappearing act underwater by floating away from me, I just give the lead a quick tug and it zooms straight back.. 😁

2 hours ago, Geezer said:

You have much greater hearing loss than I, but have sorted it out and are able to continue. How do you do it so well?

Thanks Geezer.. I also have loud constant 'ringing' in both ears (tinnitus).. I have difficulty hearing over the top of this ringing, especially in the mid to high tones.. I wear hearing aids and lipread to get by, as it's pretty hopeless without them..  My hearing loss is hereditary, my great-granddad, granddad, mum, me and my twin brother and now my son as well.. My hearing started to go in my early teens and is steadily getting worse.. my mum is nearly deaf and uses very sophisticated hearing devices to hear the phone etc., and that'll be me a few years down the track.. Because the hearing loss is so gradual, I've never really noticed it.. I've learned to live with it.. same applies underwater, I time it with breathing out so I can hear the detector over the bubbles.. and my eyes are constantly glued to the target ID whenever the detector makes a likely squeak.. on the beach I use the speakers instead of headphones, I wear a hearing aid on the side of my swinging arm (right).. I don't wear one on the left so there's very little sound coming in from that side.. I'm in a little sound bubble with me and the speaker that way.. Even with a noisy background (waves and wind) I find this works well for me.. 😁    

1 hour ago, dewcon4414 said:

Did you feel the dive mode reduced your sensitivity to the point you may have lost targets.  But then you dont know what you dont know unless someone is comparing targets for a bit.  I dont see your opinion as anything other than that thanks.

Thanks Dewcon.. The Diving program seems very sensitive/stable on the targets I'm after.. I've been testing it underwater with various rings and coins buried at different depths and seeing how the Deus II compares with the Equinox and PulseDive.. So far, I'm very impressed with the Deus II as a scuba detector.. on the beach I'm finding it has no real advantage over the Equinox.. but that's on my beaches, yours may well be different.. 

2 hours ago, cudamark said:

Erik, it seems to me that the first and easiest way to see if your bone phones are working properly, is to have one of your mates with good hearing give them a go.

A mate has tried them out.. he reckons they are plenty loud for him but he also can't feel any vibrations.. looks like I got a dud without the vibrations.. I'm using them as normal headphones with just with the sound and I'm happy with that.. If I send them back I'll be stuck without headphones again.. I'll have a rethink in a few weeks whether to send them back for a replacement if I find I need a headphone that vibrates as well as makes a sound.. 😁 

54 minutes ago, Jeff McClendon said:

Just by looking at your videos, the sand there looks similar to some of the Southern California beaches I have hunted that have moderate levels of black sand and can definitely give VLFs problems.

Thanks Jeff, that's good information.. 😃 

1 hour ago, Jeff McClendon said:

So, as you try to do a ground grab ground balance by pressing the pinpoint button and slowly pumping the coil, instead of watching the numbers in the bottom right corner of the display, try to watch the bar graph in the bottom left corner that alternates with the battery levels and see what happens.

Thanks for your help Jeff.. I've just made a quick video to show you what happens.. 

A comment by Jeff on another one of my threads comparing the Deus II to the Equinox, has got me thinking about black-sand beaches.. and when can a beach be called a black-sand beach? 

Jeff watched the videos (page 18 on this thread) and noticed the black sand on my beach, you can see it clearly in dark streaks during back-wash.. He correctly pointed out that the amount of black sand could be why it's difficult to determine which detector is better at the job.. I fully agree, but for me it's always been this way.. I don't have easy access to other beaches except for those on this Island (there's a lot), and they all have black sand (maybe the island's name provides a clue?)..

So, I would like to know how my beach stacks up against yours in terms of black sand.. Have a quick look at the videos and please tell me what you think, I'd really like to know as it'll give me a better idea of what I'm dealing with.. 😃  

15 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

I spend a lot of time simply using detectors for the sheer enjoyment of it, noodling through a park for instance, and just digging all manner of stuff. Most of it worthless. But what of it? I’m not doing this to get rich, but to enjoy myself, and I do. I’d observe that many who do not last at this hobby, are not in it for fun, but for money.

15 hours ago, Chase Goldman said:

The above pretty much sums up my hobby detecting philosophy.  It's a hobby, it's therapy; it's adventure; it's meeting new people; it's busting my detecting buddies' chops; it's going to new places and seeing new sights; it's touching history; it's touching treasure; it's getting out of the house and getting fresh air; it's getting exercise; it's getting tick bites, poison ivy, twisted ankles, sore muscles, heat exhaustion, dehydration, hypothermia and sunburn; it's getting your truck stuck in the middle of nowhere; it's pushing yourself just beyond your limits; it's getting frustrated; it's doing a happy dance with no one else around; it's nerding out on gadgets and technology; it's learning how to use a map and historical records to do research; it's learning how to read the land and human nature for clues.

As a newbie to the game, I couldn't agree more! Not a day passes that I'm not on some beach or underwater with a metal detector in my hand.. Or the rare days that I can't go out are spend trying to work out where the good stuff is hidden.. For me, it's the sheer enjoyment of it all.. Despite any aches and pains, nothing beats the thrill of the hunt.. Those who have seen my videos on this thread (page 18) will understand the kind of hunting I enjoy most.. People get surprised to learn I get up at low-tide, even from 1:30 am to 3:30 am during different times of the month.. They don't understand the sheer enjoyment of finding a target in moving water with a head-lamp.. 😃 It's a rare thing to find such a great bunch of like-minded people.. So, happy hunting to everyone!   

On 2/6/2022 at 11:23 PM, Chase Goldman said:

you have determined it has no performance benefit vs. your Equinox on the beach but dealing with all the antenna wires and cheap quality bone phones and and it's subpar cables seems a chore.

Spot on Chase! although I would have said 'bullshit' instead of 'a chore'..

On 2/6/2022 at 11:23 PM, Chase Goldman said:

Doesn't engender a lot of confidence in the product and speaking for myself, it's kind of a downer because we had high hopes for it.

Spot on again Chase!  I also had high hopes for the Deus II.. be prepared for bitter disappointment, especially compared to the Equinox..

On 2/6/2022 at 11:23 PM, Chase Goldman said:

At some point you might want to consider cutting your losses if the bone phones don't work out.  No shame in that as even popular detectors are not everyone's cup of tea. 

Thanks for your great advice Chase, but as I said a million times 'I can hear the bone-phones'.. on my ears with the volume cranked up high.. All sweet! just what I needed.. now I can hear the Deus II.. it might not be how you'd use them underwater, but it works for me.. Have you ever taken your Deus for a dive? 

On 2/6/2022 at 10:11 PM, Chase Goldman said:

So you adjusted the equalizer to emphasize the low freqs as recommended and it didn't help.

Yes! that's what I meant by 'I'm trying the lowest tone possible'.. I realise I should have said 'adjusting the audio frequencies downward to 100 or 300 Hz'.. maybe my explanations are getting lost in translation somehow..

This was the first thing I was interested in with the bone-phones, that little inset note at the center of the page caught my attention when I read the manual.. My hearing loss (hereditary) is bad in the mid to high tone range, that's why I love them low tones! Not only do they make things vibrate, I can also hear them.. When I detect I wear only one hearing aid, the one on the right closest to the speaker.. this cuts out most sound on my left.. For me, this works..

I also greatly dislike wired headphones or any other headphone on my head.. I can hear the speaker within my own little sound bubble, concentrating on what the detector is telling me without any outside noise.. 

42 minutes ago, Jeff McClendon said:

So when the bone phones are selected as the audio output choice on the display, all subsequent program choices whether beach programs or turf programs will automatically switch to square audio?

that's what I'm finding.. 

My hearing is simply too bad.. I have to wear them on the ears with the volume cranked right up.. and there's no vibrations, on the cheek bone or anywhere else.. maybe mine are a dud, or when you get yours you can tell me if you've noticed the same thing or not..