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Who enjoy's digging holes besides me? Using an excavator is lots of fun but sometimes it can be even better if you use a pick and shovel. There is something exciting about hole digging. You never know what is lying just below your feet. I'm always looking for gold but sometimes you fing unexpected treasures. Old coins, nails, buckets, tuttle tooth saws, jewelry, cans, bottles, gems, etc, etc. Besides the possibility of finding interesting and forgotten items it's also great exercise. So I say, if you are feeling bored, go dig a hole. You just might find something cool. Happy digging!

I consider myself very fortunate to be an early recipient of @kac 's new Devil's Tongue Park Probe. I took it to the beach for the specific task of hunting the campground tot lot. The lot is covered with miserable shredded pine, hard to dig in with anything. My Ranger shovel just bounced off it. 😀 The Probe popped out about $1.30 in change in less than an hour with ease. Gotta say I'm really impressed with this tool, it's like owning a very good knife at an extremely reasonable price. I liken it to this 1940's John Ek knife in my collection, full tang and very tough. I paired it with a scabbard I found on Amazon that cost more than the tool but fits it perfectly. 🤔 Scraping and digging are easy, the probe is very handy in any environment where you either do or don't want to leave any trace 🤣 it's rugged. I really like the maple handle. It blew right through the shred. It should be a great crevice tool as well, I'll try that when I need to, it will always be in my bag or on my belt. I also used it on the beach, it clicks when you hit a target. I believe you can get them now at Backwoods Metal Detectors, along with his incredible Devil's Tongue digger. 🙂 Great tools at a great price. https://backwoodsmetaldetectors.com

As most of you guys noticed I make and sell picks, this all came about from me making picks for myself and other detectorist wanting to know where they could get one. So I would like to know, What are you using? What do you like about it? What do you dislike? What handle length, inches? How about a picture of your pick. Ivan

Question for experts in water detection at sea... Detecting in the water while diving, or without diving but at low tide, when you find a coin or ring in the cracks of the rocks, some f them very deep and narrow, what tools do you use to get them out without dying in the attempt? When I dive I use the knife, although sometimes I get desperate and it takes many minutes, and maybe someone has already found some instrument for it. And you, what tools do you use for it?

For those that have been wondering if Ruslan is still shipping Stavr scoops…..the answer is yes. I ordered the EVROEXCAVATOR-2 v.33 on Sept 20th and got it today the 11th. Looks great, now just need to get a handle for it.

I recently bought a Tesoro Diablo II nugget detector on local Craigslist for a really great price. I wanted a nugget machine because I currently don’t have one and I had never seen, much less owned - a Diablo II. It comes after the Diablo and before the Lobo, Diablo Micro Max, and LST. It uses the same 20kHz coils as the original Lobo and is all metal only. The main reason I went for it was that included in the price was - A Hodan pick, a Faswing rock hammer, driving hammer, two drills and a pair of snake proof gaiters - plus a couple of loupes, a Keene “gold Magnet”. I was telling a fellow AZ Treasures Unlimited club member about this and mentioned that a while back, it was posted (here, I think) that these were no longer available because the company was no longer making them. If I remember the post correctly, it went on to say that it was because John Hodan had passed on. I am delighted to announce that while the company is gone, I am reliably informed that John is alive and well.

I got myself a cheap poly-carbonate sand scoop. It's kind of sturdy, but I already found that it doesn't work particularly well, especially in wet sand, for at least three reasons: it's not as sturdy as stainless steel and digging the gravel is not easy, the holes are not big enough for the wet sand to fall through easily (I think I need a mesh at the bottom somehow), and, for compactness, my scoop doesn't have a long handle, which makes it pretty difficult to dig quickly and often... I was hoping that somebody could point me out to a better scoop that I could either buy online (Amazon, Lazada - the latter is better as there are no import duties in Thailand) or that could inspire me to ask someone here to make for me. The ideal one would be: small in size with the mesh that allows the wet sand to fall through (but, which would also allow or the scoop to be pushed into the sand with one's foot) with a longer handle, possibly removable (but not the full length as it won't be portable enough the way I do it - motorcycling...) cheap... (I know, but one has to start somewhere...). Cheers!

Just received my Gold Pit scoop from Doc today! It was kindly offered as a prize. It looks like it will work very well for separating and trapping heavies in the bottom pocket of the scoop, making it much easier to recover. I think it will also make a good quick grab sampler for dry panning too. I like the blue color one too- contrasts well against gold and won’t be easy to lose in a grassy area. Thanks Doc!😁 i

Got some areas that I want to hit but can't really use my regular digger as the ground is really dry and want to be bit more discrete. Made a mini digger/probe using 1095 high carbon steel. Thinking I may use a lower carbon steel as this can be brittle but it is surprisingly strong and holding up well even on packed dirt. Still have to get my technique down but it does a pretty nice job.

So always bugged me how the tiny stuff falls through scoops which is no big deal when your on land but when your wading it is damn near impossible to get an earing to the surface. Printed this on my 3d printer in ABS and used some double face mounting tape to hold it. So far it works perfectly for what I want. Here are the earings I found along with a tiny gold teddy bear, jade rose earing that has part of the back on it. Also tiny split shot. Signal on split shot can bounce a little but I dig them anyways to be sure. On another note, same pond I found a monster size 13 titanium ring. Tonight a guy and his fiance asked if I found a large titanium ring with a groove in the area and described it to a t. I was able to return that.

Does anyone use this? Seems like a good price. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007WFG2I/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?tag=slickdeals09-20&ascsubtag=39d8d9f0e10811ecb689e61b785c285b0INT&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&th=1

The homemade pick I have used for quite a while and really happy with stopped working Sunday. I decided a slightly larger handle would last longer. Can't remember what I made the original handle from. The pick itself is carved out of a leaf spring and I welded a 1"inside diameter pipe on for a collar. It balanced well. It was tough. I liked it. Then the handle broke. Cut the old collar off and welded an 1 1/4" piece on that is a little longer, you know, for strength. Then I couldn't find any of my broken shovel handles, I usually have one around. A piece of manzanita l had would make a cool handle. Unique. I screwed it up I think. Now the head looks out of proportion and it doesn't balance like before. I'll try it today and see. I've read some of the other posts on picks looking at designs, ergonomics, function etc. Does anyone else have a home made digger? I did see the post using plow discs.

Premium Sand Scoop Stainless Steel 2-piece handle for easy transportation 3-Way Adjustable Angle 7/16" (11mm) Laser Cut Holes Sharp Front Edge Perfect 9" Size Opening MSRP: NOKTA MAKRO PREMIUM SAND SCOOP-$99,95 NOKTA MAKRO PREMIUM SAND SCOOP HANDLE-$15,95 NOKTA MAKRO PREMIUM SAND SCOOP ROD SET-$11,95 NOKTA MAKRO PREMIUM SAND SCOOP-3-IN-1 SET-$119,95

Sharpening My Digger --- A How To Question Ok, so I like to have my Lesche Digger razor sharp when I go out to look for possibles. My question is; what do my fellow detectorists use to keep digging tools sharp? Due to arm, wrist, elbow, and shoulder injuries; and drought like ground matrix, razor sharp is the solution for me. Currently my sharpening tool is an old Harbor Freight type 'el cheapo' bench grinder. It works OK, but removes too much stock and does not always get the edges, or more importantly the tip, as sharp as I would like. The Delta model 23-700 looks like the right solution for me. Yes/No --- What are your suggestions? nwdetectorist TOO MUCH DIRT --- NOT ENUFF Hunting with the EQ 800 and best back up ever, the Tesoro Bandido II uMax

Any thoughts on the best pick axe to use for heavy work. Durability & weight is a consideration.

I have been wanting a Walco pick for the last 12 years now and have had a hell of a time getting my hands on one. Last month I contacted Lucky Strike Gold Prospecting in Geelong Australia 🦘 and to my surprise, Justin said yes we will ship to the United States. He had the Solid Swinger handle and he had the Walco heavy duty pick with a 29" handle. It has taken a month for them to get here. This pick has a very well balanced pick head with plenty of length on the hoe blade to sink deep along the edges of a hole to widen it as you have to go deeper. I my opinion, and this is just my opinion but Apex picks just don't have the details figured out. They told me they refuse to lengthen the hoe blade. I told them then I won't buy an Apex pick. This Waco pick is light weight but still feels like it has enough weight to sink the pick deeply into the ground. Pick end and the hoe end. I'm impressed with this pick for sure. The Solid Swinger handle is awesome as well. Now I don't have to worry about breaking a handle when I am swinging that big 25" NF DDX coil. Hahaha 😁. Justin with Lucky Strike provided great customer service. I would highly recommend them. Can't say I am too impressed with both the USPS and Australia Post on the shipping end of a month long.

KAC started a thread to show a new and awesome looking pouch from Garrett. It quickly got hijacked by folks showing their pouches and F350Platinum suggested someone start a new Pouch Comparison thread... well I'm your Huckleberry! Let's see what you got. Pouch preferences preferred. 😎 Here are some of mine... I know... I have a problem... 😆

This may save some of our mates in Australia some time in shipping. Finders Keepers Gold in Kalgoorlie Australia is carrying my GSpot Scoops and also the cover for the GPX6000. Ring them up if you need either of these items. Metal Detectors - Metal Detectors For Sale - Buy Metal Detectors Online (finderskeepersgold.com) Address: 80b Hannan Street KALGOORLIE WA 6430 Phone: (08) 9021 7207 Email: info@finderskeepersgold.com Thank you, Doc

Looks like Garrett has a higher end pouch with pretty much the features I was looking for. Wore out my others, velcro on one does diddly and zipper broke on my old Garrett pouch. Was some talk on one of the threads a little bit ago on pouches but can't find it. I was almost tempted to get some made up but this one looks promising so got one on the way. https://garrett.com/accessories/recovery-tools/garrett-all-terrain-dig-pouch All Terrain Dig Pouch from Garrett Metal Detectors on Vimeo.

I'm always looking for new stuff to try out on a limited budget, and think I may have found an interesting new item. I like the Calces365 waterproof beach bag, I've been using it for everything for quite a while, but my last coin shooting trip to the campground took the zippers out on the bag, the dirt and sand ate them up. I trashed the finds pocket by zipping it more than 300 times in 4 days. However, for $13 they are easily replaceable if not sold out. Recently I was looking for a replacement, the beach bag belt belt is too thin to hold my pinpointer and Doc's shovel bag well, it does but it isn't great. I came across the above rig, apparently new from Calces365. It's only $19.99. It comes in camo and black. It has two pouches Velcro-attached to a very comfortable and tough belt. One has 3 pockets, front, large inside, and Velcro-closure mesh inside. The other is a large trash bag with a mesh bottom and a drawstring that can fold up small. Velcro doesn't wear out too fast if you brush the dirt out of it from time to time. They should probably use self-repairing zippers but that would drive the cost up. It has a 52" belt that has one drawback, if you have to make it small the bags almost go to your back to attach to the inside Velcro. I'm tall but not "big". If they sewed Velcro to the first 8" of the outside that would fix it. You can slide the pouch under the outside if you want to, but you'd lose some hold. The belt can easily hold a pinpointer loop (wish it had one) and whatever else you want to attach. I know some don't like mesh in a bag, so you could throw a small towel in the bottom to keep sand from falling out, I have no problem with the trash bag getting lighter but it never seems to. 😀 It's about as large as I would want it to be as well. It can be found here and probably on eBay: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B08ZSWF8N2

Check out our new accessory packages! The accessory packages will provide you with all the necessary accessories that you can use with Nokta Makro detectors at unbeatable prices! Makes a great gift for the upcoming holiday season as well! https://www.noktadetectors.com/accessory-packages/

I picked this up on Ebay for my updcoming trip west: I like the lightweight, compact design. The overall quality is quite good, with the aluminum parts appearing to be anodized. Shown in the photo is the central magnet assembly removed from the hexagonal tube. Here are a couple concerns I have: 1) Particularly when installed, the effect of the magnets seems weak. I think the ad says 13 1/2 lb pickup force (however that is measured) but given the distance of the magnets from the outside of the hex extrusion when fully installed, it doesn't seem to have much strength. 2) The magnet frame assembly weighs almost half of the entire unit -- 408 g vs. 430 g for everything else. That's not so bad, but for hiking and backpacking, every ounce saved helps. 3) The magnet assembly (when installed) rotates 360 degrees without any stop/lock to hold it in a desired position. My guess is that bumping either end on a rock or vegetation (think of the black plastic ends as knobs) could cause it to rotate to an undesirable position. The design is clever in that in order to clear the rake after filling with iron trash you just rotate the magnet assmbly until the fork tines push off the nails, wire, etc. -- a type of easy self-cleaning. However, I might be willing to dispense with that feature to mod it for stronger pull. So here's some advice I'm seeking: Do I replace these alnico magnetics with neodymium ones? If so, how many and how strong? Should I stay with the magnets on the inside or just attach them outside, and if the latter, where? I should have included a ruler for scale. The width of the rake is 10.5 inches (267 mm) and the tines are 1 inch long and 7/8 inch separation. Each hexagonal face is 3/4 inch across.

Does anyone know a way to dip in grass without the grass dying. When digging in my yard, I try to not kill the grass. But the circle of grass in dig always turns brown/yellow. I was wondering if there was a way to prevent this, or is this something that just happens. Thanks!

I like carrying my small Apex pick but it’s always left me wanting a bit more when digging the blade is a narrow scraping down on a target but I’ve put up with it because it’s lightweight and digs OK. A couple months ago the bracket welded onto the rear bumper holding my spare tire and aux fuel tank cracked and was starting to flop around held mostly in place by the large bolt the swing out arm pivots on. The bumper actually works well with the exception it’s breaking and a new setup would run me $1500 to $2000 so I decided to teach myself to weld on YouTube and bought myself a little mig/tig welder, fixing the bumper has gone well so far and I’ve branched out to other projects modifying my picks and a few other things. On my small apex pick I add two small wings with 1/4 weldable steel one to each side widening the pick from 3” to 5” and creating a scoop out of the blade, I also slimmed down the pointed side to compensate for the added weight of the blade and shaped the point better for getting down into and between the desert rocks. If this works well I’ll modify the Apex Tallon next.

I just bought this magnet off of brute magnetic's For magnet fishing and I hope I find some neat finds i will keep you guys informed on how it goes and if i find anything! https://brutemagnetics.com/collections/top-mount/products/brute-box-500-lb-magnet-fishing-bundle-2-95-magnet-rope-carabiner-threadlocker