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  1. I chase the old gold pocket prospectors who worked out the pockets long ago. What they missed were cleanup during the 1930’s depression. Over the last 170 years the ground has been worked hard by ground sluicing and fires. The hillsides are steep, rocky and thick in brush, vines and canyon oak. The lower elevation red soils favor buckbrush with the east belt soils favoring manzanita. Over the years I have come up with a method for picking up the old timers leftovers that requires crawling under and through these hillside thickets. I have patch-worked together a couple of VLF detectors and I have a good PI detector for the hot ground. What I looking for is a rugged waterproof wireless multi frequency (either in the coil or controller) VLF detector with a 9x5 enclosed Double D coil, an adjustable 150 ohm wireless headphones with one ear cup and a telescoping shaft. In a full multi frequency and individual range of 14, 20, 30, 40, 45, 50 kHz with adjustable polyphonic 5 tones. A modified the Equinox 800 costs to over $1200, the XP ORX is too limited and along with the Deus untested on these California soil types. I have had luck with the Makro Gold Racer but it is limited to 56 kHz & I hate the tones. The Minelab 705 has been a good fit but is dated and limited to 3, 7.5 and 18.75 kHz. The Nokta Makro Legend may be a fit along with the XP Deus II. However far and few between when I get to the top or discover a long hidden camp I scan for coins. Any recommendations based on real gold prospecting experience on mineralized ground?
  2. Does anyone know if this was a specimen or a solid? I've only been in the Piru area looking for gold one or two times over 10 years ago. I was told I would get into trouble there because they were protecting an invasive frog. I didn't know where to go. This history seems to say. Has anyone been there and had success? I've heard a few stories about people sneaking into some areas but don't know the details. SCVHistory.com | The Story Of Our Valley by A.B. Perkins | Part 5: Mining.
  3. I attended our detecting club meeting on Friday night and this was my display. I found a lot of foreign coins this month, quite a few very worn wheats, a silver dime and silver quarter. You may have seen some of these items on another thread. It was a fun month but I didn't get out to the gold fields. Maybe this month I will.
  4. polished end of specimenthis came off of a matrix on the end of a red host rock seen in following pics end of a host rock . A matrix cluster of … ? host rock is red and seen in the following pics peice end of a host rock matrix of a host rock with large cluster matrix on end of red rock end of host rock matrix
  5. A couple weeks ago I took the wife gold panning/sluicing. That stuff is hard on my knees so, I fired up the D2 and just went walking down a short washed out road along the creek. Well after a few bullet casings I got a 96 X2 and this is what I popped out. Dumb luck or just lucky I guess. California Mother Lode keeps giving.
  6. I learned something from this story. I never imagined. How one woman helped start the California gold rush (fox40.com)
  7. Hello everyone I need some seasoned experts to take a glimpse at my find and judge if I'm right this is a meteorite or meteor(not). I've had this rock in my collection for some time and upon resent researching I read that Carbonaceous Meteorite are composed of millimeter sized chondrules called a matrix. This rock in my post has weathered fractured breaks, thumb prints shaped holes, rounded, and grainy like sand. Ill try to weight is and get it's mass and volume to check the rocks specific gravity. Someone tell me if I'm wrong or right thinking this is a meteorite.
  8. Gold was discovered before January 24, 1848 in California but it was James Marshall who started the Gold Rush! The Discovery of Gold in California
  9. In the past 7-8 weeks I've owned the Deus 2, I've been out with it a lot. That's about to end as California is in a drought. Summer is nearly here, and the ground is now already quite dry and becoming hard to dig in, so I won't be out much until the rains return. I've primarily used it to search for coins and jewelry in parks and fields, but also looked for gold nuggets here in California for 7-8 hours (and unfortunately didn't find any). I started with the January V0.6 version and switched to the V0.7 in late April. I updated to V0.71 as soon as it was out to correct the only issue I've ever had which was with the pinpoint mode in V0.7. Overall, I've been very happy with the machine and its performance. I've especially enjoyed the light weight and super ergonomics and have never felt tired from swinging this unit. Its been a pleasure to use since the beginning and I really enjoy the various audio options. The sounds of the pitch tones and full tones just sound so good to my ears! Coming from the Equinox 800, I didn't find the transition to another mulitfrequency machine difficult, it was just a matter of learning the new menu system on the XP. I mostly used the stock programs and over time learned to tweak settings a bit to work best in my conditions. I think somebody new to the Deus platform would be able to use stock programs to start and get great performance right away and then gradually learn what the various settings do to further optimize. One of the most unique and useful features of the Deus 2 for me has been is its mineralization level graph. I've known all along I hunt in very difficult soil conditions, but the Deus 2 confirmed this with hard data. Where I hunt, the mineralization graph is generally 3/4 to full bars, so high to severely mineralized. I've used this information to help me set my reactivity level in the different programs I've used. The higher the mineralization, the higher I set the reactivity level. The factory preset levels of 2.5 to 3 generally work ok in 3/4 bar soil, and I had to use reactivity 4 in one site with full bars while looking for coins. I generally get a max of 4-5 inches of solid ID numbers on a coin in my soil and less as the mineralization bar increases to near full. Signal clarity and strength start to really get lost past 2 inches. One helpful setting has been audio response. I have had good success raising this up to a "6" to hear faint deeper or smaller targets better and was glad to see signals didn't seem to become more distorted like I at first feared. This is something for those of you in difficult soil to consider trying, despite the drawback of losing potential audio information about how deep and weak a coin signal might be. This setting for me has been a "mini game-changer" as it allows me to hear things I'd otherwise miss. I've been happy with the 9 inch coil on the Deus 2. I think its a great all-around coil size. Nice depth, but still small enough to limit targets under the coil at one time. I hunt in thick trash often and the size works well for pinpointing targets without the need to engage pinpoint mode very often. This is one of the top pluses of the Deus 2 for me. I know where targets are located with a simple "X" sweep and this saves lots of time. This is a big deal when the goal is to retrieve more targets in the time spent hunting. The machine itself also separates and IDs items very well. I can often tell where 2 targets are when right next to each other by carefully swinging around and mentally taking note of each target location based on the sounds or ID#. The separation abilities of the Deus 2 are quite good and from what I see, XP deserves the reputation it has for making machines that excel in trash or iron-infested sites. Non-ferrous signals really stand out on this machine. This saves a lot of time locating things precisely and also helps find desirable targets from among the trash. Like all machines though, you still have to put in your time digging junk to get the good stuff! I probably won't use this machine for nugget hunting in the future since I have a Minelab GPX6000 which is much better suited for the job. It cuts through severely mineralized soil far better, but I do intend to keep using the Deus 2 as my primary coin and jewelry hunting machine. I hope to someday take it to the beach and do some diamond ring and other jewelry hunting, though I do live quite far from any beaches with a lot of activity. While I don't often search specifically for relics, I also hope to use the Deus 2 in the future at some old ghost towns or mining locations and am confident its a great machine for a place like that. If I were to only have 1 metal detector(a crazy idea, I know!) , I think the Deus 2 would be in the running for my only choice. It can do a lot very, very well such as hunt for jewelry and coins in parks, be used at the beach or when diving, and even if somebody wanted to take it nugget hunting. It can do all of those things quite well, even though other machines may be better in certain areas or situations. But, since I primarily detect natural gold nuggets, in this case I'd pick a Minelab GPX pulse-induction model. If I could also have a vlf companion, I'd get the Deus 2. I know newer and possibly better models to compete with the Deus 2 will be out in the next year or two, but I'd still be happy with the Deus 2 once they are out, since I think it will be very tough to beat the light weight and ergonomics of it, and it should stay very competitive in separating and ID abilities for quite a few years to come.
  10. Nugget Hunting a Hydraulic Pit Me and Gary @Two Toes head deep into the Sierra's in search of those elusive Gold Nuggets the Old timers missed. Yes I include Gary in with the Old Timers as he has Detected this spot before. Nugget Hunting in a Hydraulic pit isn't the easiest thing to do but it's one of the funnest and most rewarding ways of finding Gold. On this adventure we take three different Metal Detectors The Minelab SDC 2300, White's TDI, and a White's Gold Master V-Sat this allows us to use both Pulse Induction and VLF technologies in our search for Gold and Treasures. Watch as we pull those Gold Nuggets the old timers missed over a hundred years ago out of the ground !!!!! Gary finds a old Lead soldered painted Can with Gold inside what did the Old timers us it for ? I find Six musket balls encased in rotting wood how long have those been there ? Plus Many many old square Nails !!!!! Thanks for watching I hope you enjoyed the adventure we sure had fun finding all the cool stuff and wondering what and how they used it. SG 046
  11. Here is an article with some interesting information about possibly reopening a gold mine. I am not so much interested in 'this' mine as much as the author's information about other aspects of mining. How accurate is it? I think there are a few readers here with some competitive knowledge. https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2022/01/gold-mines-reopening-california/621403/
  12. Everything changed in California and THE WEST. Every year there is a different version of the same story. It was not the first gold discovered in the west but it is the discovery credited with starting The Gold Rush which did change everything. https://www.fairfieldsuntimes.com/opinion/great-american-stories-the-original-49ers/article_bd9b9762-eb2c-5c8a-9c86-0b40fab7794b.html
  13. Most of the Southern California members of this forum are acquainted with the Rattlesnake Canyon area. It has been reported that a large pack of feral dogs has killed and eaten at least 14 cattle in RSC in recent weeks. So if you are going to prospect there, take care. HH Jim
  14. Just been cruising the hills in search of. I have been enlarging my detecting area around the original site so here are some recent finds. Little heart shaped piece of gold was when I told my wife the DEUS will find gold and it did. I will add that all but the gold was found by the 800
  15. All of the Sierra Nevada national forests will be closed to public entry as of Sunday evening due to extreme fire danger. Claim holders are supposed to be treated the same as in holders (private land accessed by forest roads) but I'm sure a claim owner would be in for a #&// of a battle if he/she were to attempt to access a claim.
  16. While the forum was down I continued hunting my usual spot. The ground is hard as cement and I require a sweat band on my head but it is still fun. I have found easily 20 plus pounds of lead at this site. I have found tons of random junk I don’t post and a few of the latest good finds I will post. I must say I am still using the DEUS and have come to really like it for ghost town type hunting. It really does separate well in iron if you move slow. The little tag thing was rolled up and I magnified it but still not sure what it says. Oh and I’m usually CVISChris but things have changed
  17. https://www.icmj.com/magazine/article/plp-update-4454/?fbclid=IwAR3-OTlUQ3SqYmxYpp-BeaVHxKIee0IEIzY5ZlJc2kCiMhmNLq-HFTvSYq4 This effort deserves a vote of thanks from all of us.
  18. The targets were scarce but crazy good today. Two more firsts for me and a cast wreath which is number two for this site. I have been detecting for many years and have never found a site like this. Gold coin number 2!! Holy smokes.
  19. Hillside Detecting for Placer Gold Nuggets Armed with a Minelab SDC 2300 and a White's Gold Master V-Sat Jeff and Gary (Two Toe's) try some Hillside detecting for Placer Gold Nuggets. High bench gold in the morning and River deposited gold in the afternoon. We moved a lot of rocks and brush looking for those elusive Nuggets and didnt go home empty handed !!! Our Hawaiian buddy Tim ( Blue Lead Gold Productions ) likes to send me pictures and video of what we are missing on the island during the winter months so I've included a few clips from him in the video. Hope you enjoy the video. SG 038
  20. We took two trips back to the gold rush camp area. I have identified 6 structures at the site so far. My neck is burned and my family is tired but everybody seems to enjoy themselves. No coins on the last two trips but some cool stuff has been pulled out. Powder flasks give a hell of a tone on the Equinox! Speaking of the Nox, it can find small stuff as in tiny buttons and pieces of lead. So here are the pics. My wife dug the Bowie knife and it may be my favorite find. The trident looking thing is a mystery and it was dug by my sons friend with a Whites XLT I gifted him. Cool find. Dug a square buckle with a star if anybody has info on it I would appreciate it. A blurry pic of a child’s ring with a diamond imprint.
  21. Grabbed detectors and my wife with her new Vanquish 540 and headed back to the gold rush site. We spent a nice day together digging up some serious history. I had never dug a gold rush era buckle 3 weeks ago now, I have a collection. She found the seated dime and something older but almost wiped clean. It’s slightly larger than the dime and I can see a shield so if you guys could help with ID that would be great. She also found the old key but I was the buckle master. I also found a few beads while digging targets and some buttons.
  22. I have detected the gold rush site two more times since my last post. I bought my wife a Vanquish 540 Pro Pack after the first hunt because she wanted to be part of the action. She is doing good at digging iron but we will work on that and maybe she can find the good stuff. I have dug 4 coins total and all are a first for me. My pictures are using a phone under the garage lights so please forgive me. I appreciate your feedback on the finds and the copper is a Swedish coin from 1822 I do believe. The ring and the gold coin were found right next to each other at the chimney pile. The buckle parts are spread out around the area. I am using the Equinox 800 in park 1 and 50 tones. Beyond happy with this awesome site.
  23. Many people think that gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill in January of 1848 but it was actually discovered on March 9, 1842 in Southern California. That is the official 'story' here: http://www.hometownstation.com/santa-clarita-latest-news/in-history-placerita-canyon-celebrates-176th-anniversary-of-the-oak-of-the-golden-dream-224619 Mitchel
  24. Regrettably, both the Big Bear and Rattlesnake Canyon placer areas in Southern California are being threatened by a fast-moving wildfire. Bummer. These are the prettiest auriferous areas in SoCal.
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