Gold Hound

12 hours ago, jasong said:

The EMI situation in places close to massive population centers like in California or parts of Arizona is another level compared more remote, less populated parts of Australia, or even places like NNV. Just California has almost double the population of the entire country of Australia. Phoenix metro area has basically the entire population of New Zealand. Just as two relative references. Lots of military, power generation, air travel, and other stuff that produces EMI that travels some distance.

The SP01 is compressing/limiting/expanding the audio. I'm not sure which one exactly since I don't own one. But any kind of compression by definition destroys some part of the audio. So in that way, it's not a whole lot different than what low smoothing and boosting your sensitivity/volume is doing. In fact, before the SP01 came out, I posted about just such a thing on that old 4umer forum and how you could emulate such an idea with threshold and volume controls.

The bottom line to me is that those settings are there for a reason and a place. Where we happen to be is a particularly noisy place. And people should not be afraid to use a setting (or hardware like sp1) or say they never will use it, if the results are more gold and less headache.

That is after all, one of the principal design concepts of the 6000 from what I can tell based on the limited info we have.

I agree with you Jasong.

I tried various boosters and did not find any difference that I could not replicate by using the settings.

The settings are there and I use them...

And all of the extra wiring is a real pain! The detector is wireless and I like it that way!

3 hours ago, Jonathan Porter said:

There’s a likely looking spot, ping a nugget.🥴 Over and over again!!🤭 

I like my nuggets like my girls, being a bit of a challenge and playing hard to get. 😜🤣
 

More like ping.2 ping.2 ping.5 ...... 3kg leader 🤪

7 hours ago, Trent King said:

Reading between the lines the 6000 should be perfect for me, I do loads of loaming with detectors looking for reefs.

I reckon the main bit of leaked info to listen to is when they said, all gold types, all the time ( or something similar to that). This to me says it’s going to be good on small, queer shaped, prickly, speci bits (all gold) in highly variable mineralised ground (all the time).

Exatly what I'll be using it for!

And my wife will use it for her everyday detecting, she will apreciate the light weight🤩

I for one can't wait until I can get my hands on a 6000.

Light and compact and it will definitly be an upgrade in detection ability over the 5000 as minelab has never let me down in this department...

I sold my wife Amber's 5000 in December before the 5000 price dropped she can't wait until its released and the wetseason is over!

I never buy replacement coil covers.

I make them out of 1.5mm lexan, I cut them about 5mm larger than the coil diameter to alow for wear and stick them onto the coil (cover removed) with roof and gutter clear silicone. These skid plates out last the standard covers by many many times. They usually last multiple seasons where as the standard ones I would wear out in a week in some areas!

Hi Idaho gold

Nice finds, thanks for sharing.

I found these 2 with a GPX 5000 and a 25in mono coil in ground similar to the ground you were detecting in in central Australia

The 32 was at 1180mm and the 21 was at 980mm mesuered. Both clear broad warble signals.

Like Paul says, my favourite packs are the American made eberlestock ones.

I use the gunslinger 2, skycrane, and a couple of their smaller hydration style packs without the bladders installed. They are well worth the price! They are high quality and very innovative designs much better than any other brand I have tried.

I have owned and destroyed many packs and out of them all the eberlestock's lasted and were the most configurable of them all.

 Only use load bearing framed packs with good wide load carrying belts if you need to carry more than 8kg for extended periods like a multi day detecting mission, or you will fatigue much quicker which will make your trip less successful. You need to be able to distribute the weight on your hips rather than your shoulders or you will suffer and like Paul said use bottles over bladders as bladders rupture, which = death in the desert.

Hi Steve, guy's 

The shaft finally turned up from the Ukraine.

This covid has made a mess of international postage, not at all the sellers fault.

Im happy with the quality and function of it and the components will directly swap over to your monopod (which I also bought) Steve, so if I break the shaft I have a cheap replacement.

Thanks for the update link and info.

I installed it straight away, I have only ever had good experiences with all of minelabs updates in the past.

Can't believe all the negative rhetoric! I for one am greatful for any free performance enhancing updates. Shows how minlab is continually developing even their existing products.

Hi Steve, Guys

Still waiting for the shaft to turn up, international postage is really slow at the moment.

Dsrtdawg, nice set up mate!

I really like all of the collapsible mods everyone is developing, I have the monopod on the way too, I'm trying to think of ways to make it even more compact, got a couple of idea's that may work, but will require a bit of custom fabrication.

I really don't understand why ML doesn't make all of their detectors with shafts that collapse into compact easy to store units, without the need for disassembly to do so.

Hi Steve, guys.

Nice work on adapting the mono pod Steve!

I've been wanting to up grade the shaft to make my equinox more compact for hiking, car storage and travel. I only use mine for gold or treasure, no beach work for me so the colapsable telescope design is perfect. After looking around I ordered this Shaft:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Lightweight-Telescopic-Carbon-Fibre-Shaft-for-Minelab-Equinox-600-800-MD/353092024374?hash=item5235ecb836:g:RCwAAOSwztde0qvA

It looks ok to me, I'll report back on what its like.

And I figure if it is flimsy or I break it I will use the parts and adapt the same mono pod as you Steve.

I toss mine in a crucible and let the heat take care of them.

Here is an awesome post by Steve on the equinox for gold.

Hi Fingers

Only you can decide which detector will suit your needs.

But there is no way I would buy a ctx even back then just to hunt gold. My post was to assist any member who has a CTX to optimize it for gold.

The equinox is a way better detector all round than the CTX, don't worry about the cheaper price tag. Its running their latest multi iq technology. It way outperforms the ctx on gold.

If you are serious about finding gold I would find a good second hand GPX 5000 and run one of the modern spiral wound coils on it!

If you ask me the equinox 800 is the most versatile detector available, and is a very capable gold detector when used appropriately to suit it's limitations.

7 hours ago, fingers_ said:

What an amazing post @Gold Hound, I've just joined and grabbed your MLF, don't even have the detector or applications yet. Truth is I'm really new at gold detecting I hired a GM 1000 a week back and headed out to Bathurst & Ophir for a bit of fun......Totally hooked now!

Looking forward to my CTX 3030 arriving.

I would Get a equinox over the 3030 now. And read up on the equinox for gold posts on this forum.

This post is from 2016 a lot has changed since then.

Thanks guys

Treasure hunting and prospecting are very similar.

Location location location... did I mention location!

Finding the gold/treasure location is the hardest bit. Reserch using historical and new age technology and of course boots on the ground leads to success. 

My current favorite metal detector for gold is the 7000, for obvious reasons.

But my favorite past gold detector is the 5000 as I found my 5 largest bits with it and it has found me more gold than any other detector so far.

Some finds with the 5k;)

A good trip 10 days for over 1kg

another good trip 14 days for 17oz

the melt and a 2oz solid pice left over from a large quartz specimen that contained 4.5 kg of Au.

A nice patch, 146 ozt of NSW gold found in a couple of days with a nugget finder 25in coil mostly deep.

38oz 32oz 20oz and 8oz on the top row.

Still trying to find the photo's of my largest ever find, a 68kg quartz specimen that contained 14.1kg of gold. 

All found with the 5k! 

My first gold detector was the GP did well with it and never looked back.

My favorite for treasure has been the CTX I found over 1000 hammered coins and 100's of ancient jewelry items ranging from byzantine era to 2600 years bc in gold silver and bronze, I really cleaned up with it in Europe.

Below are some finds with the CTX

Some hammered coins from byzantine era 700ad to 2600bc

Jewelry same eras as above.

My favorite jewelry finds.

Full of confidence and ready for ATTACK I headed up into no man's land gpz and 19 in hand and found these.

Total finds for the trip not including the 2 bits in the post above.

This specimen contained 5oz of gold

Cleaned to show gold.

A 35ger and 23ger

Hi guys here is the first target I dug with the 19in coil;

I went specifically to this gully as I knew there had to be some deep gold left, and I had gone over it very carefully with a 11, 14, 20 and 25in coil on the GPX and the zed with its 14.

On the day I had my friend with me who was using a gpx and a 18in coiltek elite coil, he slowly walked up the gully before me and checked every target before I dug it to see if he could pick it up with an equivalent coil on the GPX.

The specimen contained 67g of gold and was solid inside. I detected it at a staggering 900mm +! I could not belive it. And the gpx didn't pick it up until about 300mm was taken off.

My pick handle is 1150mm long as a reference. And the nugget was trapped in a bedrock crack.

Payed for the coil within 10min of its first use... Can't complain about that.

Then 30min later I found this 27g solid manganese oxide covered piece on a patch same as above. Gpx didn't pick it up until 100mm was removed. Depth on this one was about 450mm. My pick head is 400mm long for reference.

So the ml 19 earned its place in my arsenal on the first day.

1 minute ago, vanursepaul said:

I was waiting for someone to chime in and tell ya that may be a good way to lose all your parts

 

shipping it to you in his luggage!!!!

🤠

You'd beta bring it ya mug...

16 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

I would use 4 wheels in open terrain. Rokon excels in two other terrains. First, dense forest or large rock terrain where trails narrow to the point where a 4 wheeler cannot pass. Second, goat trails in steep mountainous terrain, where a 4 wheeler will simply roll over sideways.

Where the 4 wheelers stop, the Rokon keeps going.

Are you still selling them Steve?

Because if you are its working on me 😂 I've just added one to my near future toys list. Thanks for the info on them.

I will get Paul to find me a nice late model second hand one he can then disassemble and clean it and Chuck it in his suitcase when he comes over...

Awesome post Doc.

That is pretty much exactly what I do. But I still like the saying 'Gold is where you find it' as it has encouraged me to think outside of the box and I have found heaps because of it.

What I am always trying to do is keep my detector in the most productive ground for as much time as possible. Research, knowledge and plain old hard work all add up to gold in the poke.

14 hours ago, Rivers rat said:

 

Go for it no excuses!!!!😆😆😆😆😆

 

RR

About a month ago I purchased a Polaris 570 sportsman 4x4 and I've stripped off all the plastics and I'm turning it into a serious long range camping rig.

Also that one is way too old especially for the money they are chasing.

4 hours ago, vanursepaul said:

Hmmmmm😝

 those things  weigh 200 kg!!!

 Yeah you should harden the f... up mate!!!! 
🤠

 

 

 

 

Oh may aswel use a 4x4 quad, didn't realize they were that heavy.

Thanks Steve 

They are an interesting concept, I'm using a KTM freeride which is a cross between a Enduro and a Trials bike its got the racing version of the 350 4 stroke but only weighs 90kg... death on wheels it has such a high power to weight ratio. Those Rocons look like a real pack mule.