Featherdfishead

Respect and knowledge is the key. Just like in life really Norvic and Gold Hound - I appreciate your views and love the animal discussions. AjR

The gold will come Dean. I have noticed the exact same thing with the lead and just the very old waxy looking white stuff as you said. That is nearly the exact sound some of the hot rocks or mineral pockets at depth have given off for me, but not always - still learning too. The aussie arm rest mod makes it awkward to fold up easy so is not an option for me. I got the aussie cover from Robs and love it. It has two straps to help keep the arm cuff from folding up on ya and the machine can still fold up fine. Put tennis tape on it the firs day i got it - a must. Wont be out this weekend cause i'm headn to Sparks to visit family but will be hitting it hard the next weekend with my new Yamaha Zuma 125 as my new mining scoot Oh Yaa! Good Luck AjR

As i've said before i hunt with one earphone up (cause i'm to cheap to buy rattlers and i love my Grey Ghosts) and always have a dog but i virtually never carry a gun. Were i live everywhere is cat or bear country, many of my buddies would never feel comfortable spending any time out in the woods without a gun. When i do carry a gun its if i'm cleaning a highly productive area and am worried about some tweeker trying to rob me on my way out or when going deep into the wilderness for many days - this is mostly to acquire food if need be and of course animal protection too. I have encountered hundreds of Black Bears and have never had an actual close call but I've also stood intrigued when others would have shit and likely ran - maybe gotten malled. Mountain lions are definitely the most dangerous animal out there but unless your really quick on your draw its unlikely you'd even touch your gun if a cougar decided you were going to be dinner. I have been tracked along a ridge a few times while deer hunting. I was able to look back over the open steep slope and see the cat a good 1000 + yard back scenting along my trail and cruisen my way. I sat watching for a while and then sent a shot into the dirt of a hillside some what close to the cat. It disappeared instantly. I back tracked and fallowed my trail and its trail along mine a while before i lost it. Another time i didnt even know the cat had tracked me until i crossed the trail i had come into the area by in the morning. just aside my tracks were cougar tracks all the way back to just below the ol county road. No dog this day but my closest to being a snack "that i know of". I say carry what makes you feel safe but also be safe with your weapons. If your not the most proficient and confident gun handler you may just wound your target and really just escalate the situation. I've heard bear spray work very well and have debated about getting one for the Tweekers - Lol. I always carry a KBar D-2 Steel Fighting Knife (Great Knife!) were ever i go. Its my own survival security weather it be urban or wilderness. Thanks for info on Permethrin - steve Dogs are the best AjR

Beautiful Snakes Col Douglas. Thanks for sharen AjR

357 Mag or sjmpainters 44 Mag - A good Dog or two and as ShastaGH said the Rattlers would be my get up. I hunt were there are lots of Cougars, Rattlers and good old Mr Black Bear. The Wasps and ticks bug me the most but i hunt with one earphone off when cruisen a new area but pull the other one on when slowing down and really working an area. I depend on my dogs tremendously when i cruise the forest detecting. I've always had a dog as long as i can remember so its natural to me. When i occasionally hunt areas close to a busy road and i leave the dogs home it funny because i mentally feel that my perimeter watch as i call it is down. External speakers would be great - unless Ole Grandfather Brown Bear gets curious about those funny ass noises in the bush - Lol. Guns and Hand Grenades my Uncle used to say AjR

Good Lookn Gold and now we know how Lunk does it - A dowseing Finger - Lol.

Howdy Dean, Glad to see you got your SDC- I've been so busy with family and trying to deal on a new-used motorcycle that i haven't been detecting since a short trip over a week ago which i got skunked on. As Chris said the SDC will hit loud on small gold when right on it but not over loading. Testing it on my 1/4 piece and it screams like a banshee. Good Luck Man - look forward to seeing your first SDC Gold AjR

One more ring than i've ever found

Great feeling huh Audog, Good Job Man!!! Now the fever will really grow and dreams of gold will fallow. AjR

Told the wife about this thread and of course she said i better get me a locator this summer since she knows i'll be hiting it harder than ever with my new SDC. I plan on climbing into some pretty hairy waterfalls that historically produced allot of gold and to my knowledge were impossible to dredge. A friend and his partner climbed into one such fall and pulled out 3 Oz's in the late 70's. Looks like i'll be getn one in the next month or so. Thanks for all the good info everyone. AjR

Coil cover is a must for me -I grind-em down pretty quickly - not the gentle type when prospecting. And i've never tested to see a difference without one.

Sweet Find Ron - Amazing its in such good shape - what period are we talking? Training the squirrels to dig for ya - great idea - Lol Thanks for shareing AjR

Good Job Steve and Thanks to everyone else for the Great Community and Lifetimes of knowledge no books could provide. Adam Robinson

I find it a good idea. AjR

Like Spencer said, pack that cat around while not detecting and you have one hell of a Popeye arm going on. Even better train him to use it. LOl Happy Cat

Amazing Nugget - Awesome Story!

Many places i hike into don't get GPS signals on a good Garmin and sometimes when they do it'll show the mark a ridge or two away. Does the EPIRB utilize a different type of signal and satellite system? My wife would love for me to have a beacon but I've put it off. Each spring i debate it again and go without. AjR

You Kick Ass Lunk - Good Job!!!

I sure have been loving my SDC and cant wait to do some diving with it. I've only got about 27 hrs on it but have done pretty well at the few spots I've hit. Met the skunk the other day but had a great time at a new location. The machine handles my hot serpentine very well and the rocks or seams that do sound off give a slight warble that sounds much different than a true target. Also i don't notice any difference in sound when ground balancing. I still do it each time i start up but have noticed no difference if i hadn't. I would recommend getting the aussie cover from Robs, its spendy but very well made and has a built in stand that you can rotate out. I got another month before it'll hit the 80's at 5000 + ft but i gotta wait till then to access some good spots. Good Luck Dean - Cant wait to see some of your SDC Shine AjR

Thanks for the info through out the post Steve. I never get to the ocean but will be using my SDC at the local swimming holes and lakes this summer. A chic i know told me were she tossed her diamond wedding ring in a local swimming hole last year when she left her husband. Luckily its in a stream that the substrate rarely turns over much. Looking forward to trying to find it. AjR

Just have them add extra jalapenos and you'll never now your burrito had snake eggs in it - Lol I'll eat just about anything on the Mexican side i've eaten Barbacoa afewtimes and found it delicious - also Vietnamese hot pots with tripe, and liver meat balls. Mmmm Have a good one man AjR

Love the Pics Rick - Gnarly for sure! Thanks for the pro advice Paul and survived a copperhead bite as a kid wew. If i remember correctly around 800 people a bitten per year with 2 dieing on average. 25% of bites are Dry Bites which means no venom was injected. If i hunted the deserts like you guys the chaps and boots would likely be good to have. Up were i am i'm not as concerned. I usually only kill rattlers that are by my house or in camp. I'll kill one or two a season just to eat but find them very useful alive and health controlling the rodent population. Shootn ums fun but i just try to chop the head off with a clean strike of the shovel or pick. One time i found developed eggs in a female and boiled them up. Trippy texture but yummy. AjR

Thanks Mike! Hadn't seen this report before - downloading it right now AjR

Great tale Ray, As a kid my buddy and i would bunny hop over them on our bikes when we found them in the road until he crashed next to one and it struck his bike. Lol My closest call was while climbing up a cliff face to take a look at an ospreys nest when i pulled myself up face level with the ol rattler i sketched and dropped down quickly nearly falling. And some how i forgot to mention that Rattlers are Great Eating. Fry'm with batter, tin foil and lemon butter, or right on the BBQ. Just be sure not to wash them with water because snake meat gets all stringy and comes apart in water, never eat one thats bitten itself and the longer there agitated before you kill them the tougher they'll be. Yum, Yum. AjR

Thanks For sharing the Pics Norvic - my wife and i find your view just as magnificent just different. Living along side such an intelligent and social pack of animals sure would be sweet. Most of us gold hounds do enjoy our space and find beauty in very rugged habitats. Good luck on your next walkabout. AjR