Jim Taylor

Hmmm, did you happen to drive back on the Iowa Hill road to get to Colfax and I80? If so, I think finding that nugget was the second luckiest thing for the day.

If you get turned onto something here, I've got a good family friend who does surveying (and used to do sub-divisions and development here when you could do that) who can advise. I would definitely get his opinion before leaping.

You should have good luck in El Dorado County (Placerville, Diamond Springs, etc.). The County is so resistant to development, land should be given away. You can't subdivide economically, and if you want to build, you are into the property $100k before you turn a shovel for the foundation, in addition to the cost of the land.

Rob and Steve. Thanks for the quick response. That's the information I was looking for, gentlemen. Rob, there is a dealer I've worked with before who has provided me with great advice and service. Some guy named Rob in Arizona. Since I'm a believer that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it", I'll be sticking with you if I decide on the package and it's available. I'll give you a call later to discuss my particulars and see if the 4800 would provided any added value for my purposes. I've seen your previous post on the two detectors and know your preference for the 4500 on the ground you normally detect.

I think the difference is the GPX 4800 versus the 4500, unless I'm missing something.

If you don't mind my asking, what was the deal on the GPX 4800 and SDC 2300 bundle?

I appreciate the tips, especially about the book. I've got some property with a filled in mine near Placerville that I need to determine if it is worth working. I've done the research, and can't find anything on it in county records, so I'm pretty much stuck excavating and prospecting it myself (with the help of my son-in-law). It's been a project for vacations, but in a few months when I retire I'm going to get serious about it. I do have two quick questions that I hope you will answer. Do you do your own milling, or do you send the ore out? The second question is related - do you only use gravity separation for extracting the gold, and do you do that yourself? Ah, I guess that was three questions. JT

Long time reader, first time post so be gentle. I just received an email this morning from Minelab that announces for the remainder of December they are bundling the GPX 4500 and the SDC 2300 for $3999, just $249 over the regular price of the SDC 2300 alone. I haven't found anything on the site that indicates what is included in the package (like possibly the Commander 15X12 Mono search coil in the current $2699 GPX 4500 package). I'm sure dealers will check in soon as to what is authorized. I purchased a GPX 4500 not long ago, or I would be all over this. In fact, at this price, I may purchase the package, and either keep the additional 4500 as a hot spare, or just sell it.