Norvic

Ohhhh Lunk..... buy, borrow, even steal a Xcoil large CC.

I have to agree to disagree with you d4AU, what you suggest was the go no doubt but today after 50+ years of detector operators doing such your chances are much better thinking outside that box, even bugger all thinking and lots of footwork/swinging out in the fringes. A stubborn faith with good strong legs and an ear for that first slight signal that leads to a patch, plus being a wee touched by the sun helps.🤪

From runnng VLFs for many years exclusively gold chasing to PIs/ZVT, I am going to stick my neck out and give the PIs/ZVT the tick here, whether in low/high mineralization I believe they have the depth but the VLFs have better discrimination. Could be that I`m biased, plus a wee bit old to be using large coils continuously. That`s something for the individual to work out in their circumstances/area.

I agree a PI is mostly the go, I say mostly as sometimes those nuggets are near the surface in these areas thus big signals and because a lot of the mineralization is eroded off the heights/ridges a VLF is very capable in such low mineralization with discrimination a bonus if there is ferrous junk. More than the detectors ability is the worth of a positive persistent attitude to carry you over the initial many days of frustrating searching. The QED is ample to get you going and gain the confidence/faith to prove up such areas, with your dredging gained knowledge of rock bars, and other features of streams that can create drop off zones for heavies like gold.

Hilly/Mountainous Terrans are/have been the go for me downunder here in FNQ OZ, no specific advice except to think outside the box as GS5000 advises. It isn`t easy, in fact is probably the most difficult country to detect, but for that reason you will not have much competition thus the ground is likely virgin ground ie. hasn`t had a coil scan it. Gold can be up high 100s even 1000s of feet above streambeds where even the quartz from the reefs/veins has weathered/eroded out down into the streams but an odd heavy nugget or maybe even a run of nuggets has lodged behind a rock bar perhaps on their way down. Even that original rock bar has weathered down, thus that indicators gone. How do you find it? the chief indicator quartz is mostly gone. Only way you find it is through persistence and stop listening to those stream beds calling you, likely you`ve done them anyway. Nah I doubt there is any easy way except do the footwork.

Aye have a top Veterans Day to USA Veterans, may all your days be Golden from your Downunder Allies. Today the 11th of November is our Remembrance Day, Poppy Day for our Canadian Allies, to the fallen who gave the Ultimate Sacrifice for the Freedom we enjoy Lest We Forget.

MLs on the money with both the SDC and the newer 6K re. the Zs for the deep large stuff, those scraps are the bread and butter always have been right back to the 80s when the higher frequency VLFs were introduced. Glamorous and heart thumping it is to dig up a bigun but the scraps pay the way in my backyard and I suspect in most of our backyards.

For me the GoldHawk 10x5 gets my vote, have found on the 6K the larger coils do not equate to much more depth as is generally the case for most detectors over the years, the ML 17 vs GH 10x5 will illustrate this with the GH 10x5 having a considerable edge in small size at depth by far. Only other detector I`ve used that gives very little depth advantage with larger coils is the SDC, of course in both detectors the larger coils give a wider search area with each swing. I`d love to see what around a 11 inch CC from X coils on the 6K does, have a suspicion it would be the bees knees for depth on "scraps" and larger.

Those Tassels are calling see ya soon Gerry........... he`ll be back Joe D

If you have to go and a gold prospector, Oneguy from this thread showed the way. May he be on those streets paved with gold.

D4G, Aye ML obviously and debatable rightly protects their tech, in doing so has given us mighty tools for near 30 years. I doubt any single detector will ever do it all, not in our lifetimes at least.

AU, nah I`d never tackle a Taipan with a detector they are much faster than a human only way is leave them alone or a 12 Guage ...... Phrunt I agree MLs involved in almost decapitating the Axiom, but it took two of them, a conspiracy for sure!!!!! Tis crazy to mix them, will rectify with a division, aye behind in that overhead tray is the mighty X coil CC 17' with the 12Xspiral fitted most used in FNQ heavy grass, not used a ML coil on the Z since first fitting a X coil. Who would/does🤣 GC the Expresso machine is left at home now, only go with an occasional cup of tea on missions. Coffee like alcohol I`ve found is not compatible with serious gold detecting, gold being the only drug we need😉 But the Expresso machine is fired up firstly when returning from a mission. Nah not affiliated with any detector manufacturer, totally dedicated to the GoG 😇

Many Thanks, Gerry, have been trying to work out how it got damaged as have a pretty cool purpose built overhead tray I built for my first Troopy back in 86, now fitted to new Troopy (Toyota haven`t changed the basic body on the Troopy for 40 plus years). I`ve attached photos to give an idea of this tray. Scratching my head with what happened and doubt I`ll ever know. You are not wrong about the Axiom, to the user getting away from the settings complexity has been an ongoing goal for Manufacturers from year one, the 6K certainly is near fully auto and a brilliant gold magnet as is the Axiom with its easy to use settings, for me I haven`t determined which is my king as yet, which is only the second time in 40 plus years detecting gold, was a Garrett A2B vs Dtek Search King back in the early 80s. Otherwise I`d had an older one as backup other as king ,now I have 2 kings and the Z as backup. Spoilt rotten but having a ball.

GJ and your pet taipans been retired............