Norvic

Yeah Jasong, I have an 11ft off-road caravan also but I cannot tow it into anywhere near where I prospect thus the rigged Troopy. If you have a roam around FNQ OZ via Google Earth Satellite, north of the 18th Parallel, you`ll see a lot of rough remote country. Fortunately for me it is so rugged and remote there is still many undiscovered patches. Most of the patches I`ve found in the last 20 plus years can only be got at by walking, no wheeled vehicle can access, in country that has little interest to fossickers as it has no records of gold finds, and you know the first bit of advice a fossicker gives is usually research and go where gold finds have a history. I simply advise remove the blinkers, clear history and geology (yeah geology too) out of your mind and go out there as a novice but a novice that knows how to use a gold detector, for gold arguably is the most widely spread element on earth, and we have the most advanced gold loaming machine man has ever had, MLs metal detectors.

What the hell are you fellas on about, what`s a shower?

Never heard of glamping so Googled it," resort style camping", wow!!!! JR, you`d have to have walked in my shoes in my remote part of OZ, the Redarc you are talking of is much the same as the Enerdrive plus DC/DC charger I use (as listed earlier), to use ones vehicle motor in camp with the diesel exhaust fumes distributed in ones camping area plus the craziness of running such a large motor for a couple of hours each day for such little output, no much better for me to have the very quiet light weight (15kg genny and 15l or 15kg of fuel enough for a month plus, for a year if sunny} away on the end of a 20m extension lead. Nah, JR again, you`d really have to walk in my shoes for last 40 plus years to know where I`m at, expresso coffee is the recent addition, true it is an indulgence but heh I`ve earnt it and you know what after those years I ask for no more but to continue as long as possible in this historic electronic gold rush of which I feel very privledged to be a part of. I threw the historic in because if in the extremely unlikely chance that the amount of gold it has produced comes to light some time in the future it will indeed be noteworthy and go down alongside the 1800s gold rushes as an individuals gold rush not a company`s rush.

I wish to correct your statement here a wee bit JP, a prime example is some gully washes in FNQ, certainly not all, perhaps that was just a typo on your part. I find with patience, persistence and when I`m in the mood manual GB is the way at times, auto or semi auto at other times but manual GB almost all the times in those quiet gullies for max depth no doubt. Actually I have never found areas in any of the OZ states I worked where manual GB can not be used to find gold, maybe this is because I started detecting long before auto GB capable detectors come on the scene but I doubt it. Manual GB to me is simply a setting on the Z that allows it to be more productive at times, tis a most powerful gold detector. PIs I almost always operated in Manual GB, the Z not always as its auto GB settings to me are so much more productive then the PIs that allow the selection of auto or manual GB. If we disagree here then I am happy to agree to disagree but if you are up this way and you have written property owner permission to detect in my "backyard" I can take you to many such noisy FNQ gullies as I am sure other long term FNQ operators can.

So very true for me this sentence, and I suspect for the majority of us. I add one more element and that is field experience over many years, once I considered I was close to having it down pat now I know I had blinkers on and will never get close, and to really put a spanner in the cog ML will come out with a new detector that blows all away, as they have for 30 plus years. Bring on the 8000😜

I`ll add a wee bit more to the above, my near 40 year experience with solar is it is a brilliant part solution to energy supply, even on my home off-grid solar system, roof full of solar, 300+ days of NQ OZ sun per year, massive battery capacity etc. there are days I have to run a generator (diesel) to maintain charge in the batteries. All it takes is a few cloudy days and that`s the reality. I live, breath solar and I know its limitations. Solar systems require a monitor to gauge battery charge, I use DIY enthusiast monitors because I enjoy hands on and come from that kind of era, there are consumer available monitors. If you run a solar/battery system whether fixed or in a vehicle without using a monitor or as it is intended to be used, the cost in battery replacement will soon dwarf the cost of a battery charge monitor, whilst the newer lithium batteries can give around 80% of their total capacity opposed to around 40% in lead acid batteries, you will destroy either if you take them outside their limits. Further the capacity quoted for batteries is when they are new they lose capacity as they age. Just a warning because if good solar practice is adhered to they are the bees knees, if not they are just expensive toys.

Love it, that Ferrari analogy is the go.

Indeed the 2kVa Honda will be plenty, mines a Yamaha 1kVa and it is ample for charging, runs for near 12 hours on 2.5 litres. Light and quiet, I usually run when I get back to camp "lugging" all that weight in the arvo, for a few hours before lights out. Gets the detector, UHF radio/navi and Satellite phone charged up ready for the next day and ensures the batteries are full for keeping the cold stuff cold. Depends on cloud, ambient temp etc. but allows you to camp out for weeks with water usually being the reason to move and then if the GoG been treating sometimes just back to a water hole to fill, wash clothes and return.

Crikey I agree with you JP, Gennies a must you`ll note the mean blue machine in the back of my setup photo. Talking about batteries, just replaced the 14 year old off-grid 48v 1080Ahrs lead acids in my Shouse, kept to lead acid as they had the runs on the board and have for 100years plus but reckon when the AGMs in Troopy go and as they are 4 years old suspect wont be long, will replace with lithium, time for this old codger to give the new kid on the block a go. Lighter weight more smoke to let out etc etc. Gotta love tech.

On ya Sheppo, that`ll be a top set up and will keep the detectors charged up for that lovely heavy stuff, plus plenty for extended stays out there. The Enerdrive DC/DC will let you add to in the future should you need it, plus 200AH of lithium will handle such addons with plenty of capacity for loads.

My 2 bob on getting more out of the Z, if the ground you work can be done using normal, or you can tolerate a noisy machine even in difficult try manual ground balance, requires you to GB manually which with the GPZ fast track is quick and easy requiring just a couple of up and down pumps with FT button depressed.. Set to whatever settings you are conditioned to use except Volume, keep that at 6 or lower. Get the hang of using manual and you will find the Z performs up a notch or so. Also don`t be afraid of using extra deep at times, it will not leave many signals once your tuned in.

Small kids???? They scared the s... out of me when I first saw them, and I`m a big kid...................

On ya Gerry, so different our ways to get that weight, with your permission maybe we should call our styles "evolution style", you and as Jeff has shown have evolved to hunt in the environment you have in your respective backyards. My backyard is similar in terrain but I have learnt to hunt for virgin patches well away from old mining in country no wheeled vehicle can traverse, shanks's pony is the only transport. My backyard has some spread out reef/lode mining and very little alluvial, patches are usually on slopes very few in creeks or gullies although sometimes the initial pieces that lead to those slopes are found in the creeks and sometimes by "electronic" loaming likely slopes. It is years in between times I run across other prospectors out there, most are as you say too lazy and only venture as far as wheeled transport will take them. That 6000 might be the detector that encroaches into our evolution style of mining. Many thanks for your detailed post, may many more illustrate their style in your thread.

Late starter I got into it at 27 in 79.

2x200watt and 2x80watt= 560 watt. The big issue with solar panels fixed on a vehicles roof rack is they rarely can output their max because of the angle they receive sunlight plus shading. More panels is a compromise to allow time detecting rather than setting up solar panels for max output, now at less than a $ a watt compared to $20 a watt when I first got into solar tis not a big compromise.

Thank you Jeff, that 10,000ft is the factor I suspect, the 6000 might be the detector to help even out our different environments a little. I work to 2000ft and your post helps me understand where you fellows are coming from. I wonder if one day we`ll have a detector operator working on say the moon, imagine how alien his methods would be to us, be long after I`m gone and is SF now. I hope Gerry gets the time to post tis a fascinating subject to hear the different environments we get that heavy stuff and how we adapt.

Elaborate on that one please Gerry, I feel it is because of the ground you work and your technique in working that ground, for me that statement would apply in the early VLF days before the PIs because the gold was just laying around but today the Z it`s depth on sub grammers and ozers but that`s in my backyard.

The 6000 has big shoes to replace but we know ML will do.

Just One More Good Target Before I Go . . . . Aye I`m with you UtahRich .....

For me I agree with the basic assessment that each ML even each ML VLFs were a step up, the first PI SD2000 was a big step on the VLFs, the 2100 another fairly big step, as you noted the 2200 was only a little step with its discrimination and auto GB after that each PI model had refinements with the 5000 the best for highly mineralized ground and then the ZVT Z was a few steps up in one hit, no cables, wireless speaker and increased depth and sensitivity plus more ergonomic ( I can hear lots rebelling to that)😉 I trust ML and have since the SD2100, simply ordering the next model well before release thus overall I rate ML above all other gold detector manufacturers, light years above, they are the "Microsoft" of Metal Detectors.

Wow, Aureous did a count and only got to 16 which includes the coin machines CTX & Deus, and I started in 79 thus we are of same vintage.

Yeah, I`m going with the original Zs screen for another season, will be the 6th season it survives ( I hope) the "dark" across the screen doesn`t get any worse. Not a matter of cost as just get my dealer to post me a new Z if it fails mid season, then send it away for repair. I`m fortunate have had no major drops, I don`t baby it, just I treat it as I believe a machine that sometimes earns itself in a few hours should be treated. To me the Z is magic and now with a good range of different size/configuration of X coils on it it has gone up another level, come on 6000 lets see if you compete with or compliment the Z.

Because I`m out there for weeks at a time, I return from prospecting and prepare a meal over the open fire at about 4pm, equal to anything you can prepare at home. If you`ve enjoyed a thick steak singed on the outside but rare grilled over an open fire lathered with mushroom/butter sauce, mashed spuds with garlic and onion diced into and mouth watering reconstituted dried vegies washed down with a port, an Expresso coffee, beer or cognac whatever you desire, under a blanket sky of a Zillion stars, again if you`d enjoyed such then you know where I`m coming from. Nice pocket of that heavy stuff to view via fire light just adds to each day, it don`t get any better. See you out there.

Here in OZ we have NBN Sky Muster that allows internet, streaming of movies and coupling of mobile phones. But it is a high altitude Geosynchronous Satellite thus needs a big fixed disk, works tops but not suited to portable use. Bit of a lag, as I often reply to a thread on DP only to find after posting some one else posted same info seconds before. But it is a Godsend for remote areas like where I`m at. Be extra special when Musk gets his system up and is reliable, service that is portable.

Yeah, I know where your coming from here, I guess whilst gold is not as good a conductor as say copper or silver, plug a cheap USB charger cable in that does not have gold plated contacts and has been around awhile and it becomes obvious that gold is in fact with age and attack from the elements a much better surface to conduct electricity then either copper or silver, anodise Aluminium and you find the surface does not conduct electricity.