blackjack

Phrunt's suggestion is good, I hip mounted my Excalibur II and way back always used my Garrett Groundhog as a hip mounted unit, it's hard to get better than a hip mount if the detector suits. I really liked my Excalibur II, slow but it punched deep. Keep the Sovereign, where are you going to get another one. Just my thoughts as usual.

On 4/29/2024 at 3:10 AM, John-Edmonton said:

I had some years ago. I found that it wasn't all that good for our very flat, thin flour gold that can float on water without using soap to break up the water surface tension. Our flour gold can take off like a piece of tissue paper in the wind with water turbulence in the sluice, so I ended up with unacceptable gold loss. Now, for gold with a little more density, it might work well.

I also did some math. Calculating the volume of those little holes  on the dream mat vs. the volume of my drop riffles. I went with riffles because of the substantial increase of capture surface  area. It allows for more gold to be captured and buried like in the real world, and many more traps to allow the gold to just "drop" as opposed to creating a reverse water flow, trying to get the gold uphill into that condensed round pocket. And, as previously mentioned, our light flour gold can take off like a piece of tissue paper in the wind.

 

 

Yes John, my experience is that most of the gold drops into the first riffle or second one, that tells me the system is working. I'm reminded of a quote from a little 'gem' of an Australian made movie 'The Castle' 'tell him he's dreamin'.  Translation:  a response to an ad in The Trading post for someone that's asking too much money for jousting sticks, Erik Oostra, geof_junk and others may know what I'm talking about.

Thanks John, his improved impeller design is interesting, I used DWV PVC fittings from the hardware store to make mine, a 40mm 45 degree fitting with a internal reducer to create the venturi. Nothing new about that, I'm sure I'm not the first to try that approach. I decided a power jet system would be the easiest to use in the field, I coupled it to a 2000 gal./hr bilge pump. It works great, but my testing was done at the beach using sand. The challenging part for me was in a stream or river sucking different size material, the nozzle design is critical to stop blockages, as is the operating method, it's easy to go too fast and also create blockages. The other thing I found was that the gold was staying in the hose in low points, not getting to the sluice, yes we all know gold is heavy. To state the obvious, ribbed hose is not a good idea, I found clear copper wound/ reinforced hose to be the best. If I was to revisit this system I would reduce the hose and power jet system size, but It's gathering dust, I've gone to sniping, the rivers we work have the gold in the cracks in the bedrock, with very little in the gravels. Thank again for the links.

Mat hols gold really well

30 minutes ago, Dean Stone said:

Thanks Blackjack, I know what you mean by getting things lite, I have went from a 4" dredge, to a 3" highbanker dredge combo, and now to a 2" Keens dredge. Where i prospect has to many big rock to highbank, so a dredge is what i use to get around throse rocks. I do most of my prospecting in OHIO. with small gold. I think i would need to run to fast for the Dream Mat. That is why i ask. I have Gold Hog Mat, and don't like it much, so carpet and miners moss with ripples work good.  Thanks for the reply.  Dean

Yes mat holds gold really well, probably better than Dream Mat. BUT I've never used Dream Mat, hopefully someone who's used both can give you their thoughts. Obviously the down side of carpet is you don't know how you are going till clean up

Hey Dean, just my experience, afters years of trying all sorts of matting, door mat, rubber, carpet etc. the conclusion I came to after lots of testing with a known gold amount was they all catch gold, i.e. most of or all that you put through them. I have no experience with high bankers, so excluding them what I know about are simple stream/ river sluices whether set up with a pump or in stream. What became important for me was portability, so sluices that don't use matting. I've ended up with two Angus MacKirk stream sluices, the AU trap and a smaller back pack model, they are simple drop riffle types, no matting, they catch gold, including small gold. The key is setup, depending on flow and what size material you are processing, the angle needs to be as small as possible, while still moving material through it. Keep it simple, because it is. A said at the start, just my experience. Happy gold hunting.

3 hours ago, Lost Scout said:

Shiny and jet black. If you were in the western US is say obsidian. It has a conchoidal fracture, glass like and used to make arrow heads.

Wasn't sheet lead used to cover the bows of ships?

Thanks Lost Scout it certainly looks the same and your description matches. Yes you are right about lead in fact I think they used it below the water line as an antifoul and to protect the wooden hull from teredo worm, but it is in small pieces and shows no sign of corrosion, It's certainly a good explanation. I wondered if it was used to line the oil barrels ? This was a shore based operation one of nine in the bay, Recherche Bay, on the far S/E coast of Tasmania. The whaling was done from longboats in the D'entrecasteaux channel between the Tassie mainland and Bruny island, ships would return to resupply and pick up the oil. This particular station used a natural granite shelf as a flensing deck, it's located at Snake point, just inside of Fishers point on the southside of the bay, near the old Pilot station, for those who like to look at places via google earth.

On 4/5/2024 at 1:49 PM, Erik Oostra said:

The oldest thing I've found so far is older than white settlement in this region.. It's a Chinese coin dating back to the Ch'ien-lung Emperor who reigned from 1735 to 1796.. White settlement in the Townsville region and Magnetic Island didn't kick off until the late 1860s.. The Chinese sailor who lost his coin on the island might well have beaten Captain Cook (1770) to this part of the Coral Sea.. I wonder what the island's Aboriginal people made of all these weird visitors..   

The coin itself is not valuable, too many were made during this Emperor's reign.. But for me it's the pleasure of imagining this little coin's journey before my Foxy Noxy hit on it.. Or I should say: 'until it ended up in a box with other scrap junk'.. Before anyone panics, I gave it a spit and polish and sold it to a coin collector who bought it as part of a 'job lot' with some silver Victorian era coins.. 

When I first found this coin I thought it was a pendant or token of some sort.. But its remote location in the bush well away from tourist beaches made me think again.. Also some folk on this forum identified it as the real deal.. The coin collector likewise said it wasn't a token.. Anyhow, the little Chinese coin has finally found a home with someone who treasures it.. Disney eat your heart out..  

Thinking about what I just wrote and seeing the picture again make me kick myself for selling it..  

Good find Erik, hard to top that here in Australia, my oldest piece that can be dated is pieces of sheet lead from a whaling station that stopped working in the late 1830's, I also found a brass button and canvas eyelet at the same site. There is a lot of pieces of sheet lead at this site, can anyone tell me what it was used for ? As far as an undatable relic, it's a cutting or scraping tool, knapped from a piece of hard shiny jet black rock, I'm usure what mineral. I found it in the Weld river valley here in southern Tasmania. This was the route that the local first nations people used to access the west coast in summer. Maybe 40,000 years old ?

This topic reminds me of a quote I recently saw " I may be old but at least I saw the world before it went to sh.t " I will again quote what I have quoted in the past, " Insurance companies, and their lawyers are cause for a lot of concern", I think we can add bureaucrats to that as well. Those with out a functioning moral compass will break the law anyway. It's not about laws, it's about doing what's right. Of course I see the flaw in this reasoning is that we all differ on what the "right" thing is, but in the end a consensus should give us that answer.

Yes Ethan, it's S/W of the Pilbara/ Nullagine, but about as far for you. I have no plans for a W.A. trip at this stage, if I go anywhere this winter it would be to Tibooburra. If I was in S.A. like you that's would be where I would plan to go, you probably won't strike it rich there but you have a better chance of finding gold than in W.A. The West is good if you know where to go [which I don't anymore]. Getting permissions and navigating and paying for permits like 40e could be difficult, but it's been 30 years since I've prospected there, so I'm really not qualified to comment, it just appears to me that it's become harder. Hopefully someone from W.A. will comment on this. I know my cousin and his wife did well on their last trip, but they were working on a friends lease. Good luck, and keep us informed.

On 1/19/2024 at 4:04 AM, Ethan in Adelaide said:

Hi Jack, how you been? Any luck and trip planning last year and this year?

 

We were unable to make it last year, because our ute didn't arrive on time, as well as dad had to go back to China as his visa application was rejected. So he is in China now and I will apply again, so hopefully he can come back in a month time. 

Now I have got the ute last December and pretty much ready to go. We still plan to go WA this year, possibly from end of May to mid August. Still Laverton areas I guess.. How about you?  

 

 

Kind regards,
Ethan

Hey Ethan, how's it going ? No I haven't been able to get away, my sniping partners have taken to detecting with some success in the Corinna area [Tasmania ] they are following the gold trail in creeks and are clearing the overburden/gravel and detecting the bedrock. They are averaging 4 grams a weekend, but are working for it. I have done some detecting in the Leonora/Laverton area years ago [ early 1980's ] at Eucalyptus, Pyke Hollow and Pennyweight Point, but other than that are I don't know it well. It would be quite a bit extra travel time for you but the area I would like to get back to is the Ashburton gold fields. My dad and I did that area in an old Holden towing a trailer with two trail bikes in the early 80's, our main destination was Top Camp, we were the first in there with detectors, we did quite well so we didn't look at any other spots in detail. We went in from the western end at Nanutarra to Ashburton Downs station then to Top Camp from there we followed station roads going east coming out at Meekatharra, passing some very promising areas with alluvial workings [ dryblowings ]. We had to get fuel at three stations on that track, and not one station owner would accept any money 😊let me know when you are going and I will contact my cousin, and see what he says about some possible locations for you, he knows all the spots, he had a dryblowing outfit all his working life, of course I can't be sure he'll tell me anything though. 

5 hours ago, Tony said:

I fully understand but at least your clad coins can offer up clues as to what else might be around. Several years ago, there was talk that the Australian mint was going to produce a $5 coin......that's probably unlikely now 👎

Back around 2003, there was a monster winter storm that hit our area. At the time, I was offshore on a local touristy island (Rottnest Island). One of the exposed beaches coughed up over $250 in $1 and $2 coins.....a dozen or so silver coins and four big gold rings. I was down there at a 1am low tide with just a headlight....no detector needed for the first three hours !!

The whole beach lost 6 feet of sand.....all that was left was exposed limestone bedrock.

I didn't even bother with the "other coins". What a night that was and not another soul around....they were all in bed whilst I braved 70 mph winds, torrential rain and hail. I could hear the heavy 8 metre swell thundering over the outer reef....in the pitch black it was quite scary.....easily the best beach combing / detecting experience I ever had. I wish I'd taken pictures at the time as it was quite a haul.

I also had high hopes for a $5 coin, our 'plastic' notes and their durability are to blame, I think. Were you at the Basin by any chance ?

3 hours ago, Tony said:

I sure do miss coins.....I can remember when they were everywhere. Here in Australia, we have $1 and $2 coins and these were lost in vast numbers. I can recall finding $50 worth most hunts. Nowadays, maybe $10. But to me, these lost coins and the condition they were in held greater value. Were they shiny, blackened, green or crusty green?....that information was priceless. Everyone swipes the plastic or their phone....no need for cash at the beach anymore.

It's a shame the pull tabs and can slaw haven't suffered the same fate.......and then there's the proliferation of stainless steel and Tungsten Carbide rings.

Whinge over........😟

Tony I agree, speaking for myself, I think it's okay to lament. If you think that's a whinge, then you need to talk to my wife about my 'constructive criticism' not directed at her by the way, I may be reckless but not stupid. Criticism [noun] to censure, or evaluate ? I prefer the latter. Not whinging Tony, evaluating.

Thanks Gold Catcher, yes I agree no detector will ever eliminate operator error, there is no substitute for experience. Steve confirmed what I suspected regarding the comparisons between the older models and the 6000. This is something that my cousin Lang pointed out, he was finding gold on ground that had been hammered in previous years by earlier models with his 6000. Given the small size we average here in Tasmania and the recognized ability of the 6000 to find it, a 5000 would be a compromise. For now I will stick with my Equinox 800, a unit that I find gold with, I'm confident and comfortable with it.  As usual I think I've got the right advice from DP. Thanks to abenson for the video and phrunt, g-j, Gold Catcher and Steve for there valued advice to me, as well as others who contributed.

1 hour ago, geof_junk said:

My rules are 50% location, 45% Operators skills and 10% appropriate Detector and Coil.

That means there has to be gold there, and if the user of the detector correctly used, you will find gold but the bit left behind you might get them by changing detector and coil.   .........   By the time you get happy with your skills you will be able to justify looking for a better (though the gain maybe small) equipment from the gold found. 

 

NB That adds up to 105% and you need it to find Au metal.

I think the 6000 may eliminate some percentage of operator skill ?

13 hours ago, geof_junk said:

That works out to about 0.25 gm average size speck. Just counting the small ones that similar to my old GP-3000 of about 0.3 grams so if he allows for the odd larger nuggets in his yield it should give you a target size to aim for in a patch, then think of the depth and size of a bigger one or two in the area.

14 hours ago, phrunt said:

@Gerry in Idaho could likely give you an in-detail description of gold types missed as he does classes on it demonstrating it to people, it tends to be porous or prickly gold is worst affected, but it's not only that, there is more even normal looking bits its quite weak on.

I don't really think the 6000 is all that much better than the 5000 on gram stuff, unless it's the type of gold the 5000 is weak on, the right composition piece and I think they would be pretty similar in performance and because the 5000 can benefit from larger coils it will inherently have the depth advantage for the bigger deep gold hunters.

I filmed a video showing the holes in detecting on the 5000 and 4500 a while ago, showing nuggets they should easily pick up that they either didn't at all, or were very weak on, I'll try find the video, it really is surprising the gold the older GPX models can miss.  I also demonstrated in the video how changing timings from for example sensitive extra to fine gold can change the results somewhat, changing timings can close up the holes on some gold to a degree, but then some timings work better than others so you really need to cover ground a few times in different timings.   It's the big improvement made with the 6000 was closing these gaps.

Now I am focused on its flaws here, on a good amount of gold its perfectly fine and handles ground better than anything else there is but the reason I think many are happy with the 6000 after having the 5000 is that these holes are fixed more so than the small gold improvements, yes they are there too, but the holes being fixed is bringing more gold to the surface than the extra small gold capability, the gold most are finding isn't that tiny or deep the 5000 would miss it all.

Thanks phrunt I would like to see that video, I also remember reading that you thought the GPX 4500 was in the same class as the 5000. Do you still think that ? g_j I do understand where you are coming from, mentioning bigger nuggets, are you suggesting that the older models are more likely to find a deeper large nugget than the 6000, something I suspect may be true but have no experience to back it up. My problem is simple my sniping partners have moved to detecting using 6000's they have had success and are crowing about the virtues of the 6000 telling me that a 5000 won't cut it. This is where my problem comes in, budget, I can't justify the cost of a 6000 even second hand, but given the success of the 6000 the price of a second hand 5000 has come down to a point that I'm willing to pay especially when you consider the amount of coils and accessories that can come with a used unit. In Tasmania the nuggets mostly are small but they are finding a good proportion of 1 gram + Assay results of gold that I've sold previously show that we have high purity usually around 95% most nuggets are quartz free but do sometimes have a small amount of ironstone. I was of the opinion that I would go as old as a GP 3500 but given the price of used 5000's I'm not sure about that any more, the advice is usually to get the latest model you can afford. But if a good 3500 came up at a suitable price, would it be a good choice. Thanks

21 minutes ago, geof_junk said:

Although there is helps of 0.1gm (about 310 holes per ounce) and 0.01gm (about 3100 holes per ounce) nuggets specks. I would select the largest coil that will give a good signal on the size of gold you have to dig to keep the  number of holes.

 

Yes g_j I laughed at you reply but I hear you, I do dislike digging. I's a conundrum that requires some serious thought though. I spoke to my cousin in W.A. he's found more gold than most, he's firm on the 6000. In worked ground on a recent trip to Meekatharra between him and his wife he said they found something over 600 pieces for 138 grams. Yes that's 600 holes at least but it's also $14,500 Au

21 minutes ago, phrunt said:

The 6000 will smoke the 5000 on small gold, regardless of coil on either detector, The worst coil on the 6000 will be better than the best coil on the 5000 at finding small gold.  

The problem with the 5000 isn't so much the small gold, it can hit down to very small sizes, well under .1 of a gram as long as the gold is the right composition, even down to .04 of a gram is possible given the right conditions, coil and settings, however that's the problem, all stars have to align.  The 6000 and 7000 on the other hand will hit down to 0.03 of a gram reasonably often, sometimes smaller.

As the gold gets bigger the gap dramatically closes and at some point, the 5000 takes over as deeper than the 6000, especially with the correct coil fitted, but then, if it's the wrong type of gold that the 5000 doesn't like, that performance is hindered dramatically, to the point a decent size picker can sit on the coil of a 5000 and barely respond.

The 5000 will handle ground the 6000 can't go near, and that's its strongest point, hot rocks that can't be dealt with on the 6000 can be made non-existent with the 5000

My hope was the Axiom is the 5000 with the detection holes fixed, I'm not sure if it is? Someone may know.

The 11" on the Equinox is very good on small gold, extremely good in fact, even the 15x12" is very good on small gold, the 6" will hit smaller gold better but we are talking in the 0.00X of a gram range where it pulls ahead the most,

Thanks phrunt an informed and comprehensive reply to my questions. Given the extra depth and coverage for nugget shooting I need to rethink my use of the 11" coil on the nox. At what point [gram wise] do you think the 5000 betters the 6000. Also it was good to have a user confirm that the 5000 can handle hotter ground. Have you or others worked out the 'right' gold composition. You mentioned the Axiom, it's been around for a while, I would like to here from people who run one especially those who have also used the 5 and 6000. Thanks again.

On 2/10/2022 at 2:38 AM, abenson said:

Here is the video I did comparing various metal detectors on the buried gold nuggets. You can see in this video which ones do better on various size nuggets. Take this test with a grain of salt. Mineralization, nugget shape, target depth and site conditions will all effect detector performance. This is just a test I did in Arizona so your area could be much different and the nuggets were freshly buried.

 

Hey abenson thanks for taking the time to do the test for us, I was particularly interested in the results for the Equinox and the GPX 5000. I have an Equinox 800, for the smaller pieces I was surprised to see the 11" pick them up, I would have thought only the 6" would have targeted that size. Maybe I need to rethink my use of the 6" coil. It did appear that you were using full sensitivity ? I'm thinking of getting a GPX 5000 partly based on budget, but also I'm thinking it may be a bit more versatile than the GPX 6000. I was surprised to see in your test that even with a small coil the 5000 couldn't pick up the smaller targets. How would a 6000 have performed on the smaller bits and how does it compare with the 5000 on gold over say 1 gram ? Your opinion and other peoples would be welcomed on the performance of the 11"vs 6" on the Equinox for gold and their opinions on the 5000 and 6000, Thanks

On 11/13/2023 at 12:33 AM, Chase Goldman said:

If you are after relics in mineralized soil, the Axiom punches as deep as the now discontinued GPX 5000.  I sold my GPX 4800 once I proved this for myself on a couple of multi day relic outings.

The GPX 5000 discontinued ? That's news to me, as it is still on Minelabs Australian website, If it's been discontinued in the U.S. then I'm sure the same will happen here.

16 hours ago, RickUK said:

 

Fred or Bert out in Aussie land would gear up for say GPZ7000 for gold nuggets but for me or Frank here in Euroland who are after say hoards/Relic etc would/could use different machines as they are more suited to our needs and requirements.

Sorry Rick, you're a bit behind the times, Fred and Bert are now in nursing homes, Bruce is more appropriate now, regards to you and all the Nigels in pommie land. Pip, pip old chap.🙂

Yes mn not accurate, as you say but, good reading just the same, thanks. I'll let geof_junk tell us about the largest nugget ever found 😉

Unfortunately some some people will go to extreme lengths to cash in on other peoples hard work and success, Levi at Tassie Boys Prospecting told me that he has found trail cameras set up in an effort to pin down his locations. And despite all the effort and amount of followers him and Rob Parsons have, thereby attracting tourists to Tasmania, Parks and Wildlife have fined Rob for filming on their land without a permit. Sorry, abenson for going off topic, it looks like your research has paid off, nice gold coin.

On 9/8/2023 at 5:51 AM, phrunt said:

If I thought it was vaible I'd be there in a heartbeat, seeing I'm next door, already have a vehicle there and my wife goes a couple of times a year to visit family and I stay home as I left the place for a reason, can't stand the heat 🙂 and love my snow.   For a shortish trip with little local knowledge, I can't see it being viable without some local help.  I do regret not even knowing the detecting for gold hobby existed when I lived there, a large part of the 32 years I was there were wasted years I could have been out swinging during the glory days.  I'll give it a go at some point but it's more than likely for the adventure than a successful gold trip, my expectations will be low.

Now, beach detecting I can see very viable, some of the QLD and NSW beaches are so packed with people there is bound to be good finds, and with such a beach culture chances a pretty high of some good finds, it's a shame the younger crowd don't tend to wear real jewellery these days as much so the bulk of the finds would likely be junkers.  I think I'd end up enjoying looking for jewellery on an Australian trip more so than gold which is why I've prepared myself with a pulse dive and waterproof detector/headphones ready for a pending future trip.  At least the water keeps me away from the heat. somewhat 🙂

 

This may be under the heading of too much 'information' but way back in the 70's and 80's I did enjoy a day at the beach. In particular 'free beaches'. Back in the good old days even at normal beaches, going topless for the ladies didn't even raise an eyebrow, but back to my point, the one feature that stood out [no it's not what you're thinking, that's just the way your mind works ] at 'free beaches' was the amount of jewellery that was worn, by both men and women. The only thing that was frowned upon was having a camera, I'm guessing that in high summer a metal detector would draw a similar response so winter would be the best time, you'll get the beach to yourself. I still can't get the image of Erik Oostra detecting in his thongs out of my mind. 

20 hours ago, davsgold said:

yes its a very poor article, they didn't even know who found the "Hand of Faith"  well Kevin Hiller did along with his wife Bep

Hand of Faith

• Discoverers: Unknown
• Location: Kingower, Victoria
• Date: 1980
• Gross Weight: 875 ozt (27.2 kg; 60.0 lb)
• Net Weight: N/A
• Notes: Found using a metal detector.

I did notice that as well. But to the critics, all I can say is, as a 'guide' it's a reasonable starting point. For someone from overseas what better place than Kalgoorlie in W.A. for gold, or Leonora. The golden triangle would be a 'fair' starting point in Victoria, the list did include Wedderburn and Castlemaine. Derby would be a great place to start looking for sapphires in Tasmania and there's definitely opals at Coober Pedy and Lightning Ridge. The Tanami Desert may be a stretch, but I have found gold on it's far western side S/W of Halls Creek.

Yes I agree with George Kinsey and Doc Bach, if the find was on public land keep it to yourself, obviously if it's on someone else's land they need to get a share. With out doing a fact check, but from what I've been told the government changed the 'ownership laws' in the 1970's when people started finding shipwrecks on the West Australian coast, mostly Dutch ships on their way to the 'Spice Islands'. It was at a time when longitude was hard to calculate and many ships following the westerly winds didn't turn 'left' in time and ended up wrecked on the W.A. coast. Strangely since the laws have been changed few shipwrecks have been discovered !