fishing8046

When it rains like it has for the past few weeks the mud becomes a huge obstacle. Although the detectors have better reception finding the target in the mud diggins is a difficult chore to find them. I seem to be chasing the target around the hole and on occasion even losing smaller targets. Not only do I use the PI detector but I also bring along the Gold Monster to use as a pinpointer. Still, it is a challenge. Any insights or suggestions?

Great topic Rob let me share a recent experience There are still folks out there willing to tunnel in. I ran into a prospector two or so years back who was making a coyote hole tunneling in a very rich placer area. I won't say exactly where but he had found a very hard-packed top cap near a gold-producing drainage that was about 8' thick and tunneled in just like the old-timers where the hard pack met the bedrock. He had the luxury of a battery-operated headlamp and a small hand-held vacuum. He had tunneled in about 30' in one direction before the bedrock started dropping down and 20' in another. When I saw him he was just coming out of the ground to take a five-gallon bucket of dirt to his truck. We talked for a few minutes just normal stuff then I asked him aren't you afraid of a cave-in? Still wearing his headlamp and standing near his truck he said no not at all and walked over to the top cap near his entry hole and hit it with a hammer. See until this gets wet it is solid. I asked him "Man it has to be a bit spooky in a hole you go in head first and have to back out of," He said not really stating he had widened out inside chasing the bedrock. That is when our conversation went to the returns he was getting. I asked him about the 5-gallon bucket he had just put in his truck. He said that is the good stuff right on the bedrock and maybe 2" above the bedrock. I was very interested as a metal detector knowing this was ground I could never get to but was very curious about his take. When I asked he kind of wanted to not fully disclose but gave me this. “I was getting about 10 grams to the bucket" I didn't want to press him more at that point. I thanked him and we went on our way. For me, I do not like the underground so I have total respect for this man for assessing the risks and figuring out where and how to get it. I just don’t For me, I do not like the underground so total respect for this man for assessing the risks and figuring out where and how to get it.

A vein of gold the diameter of a pencil 10' long would weigh 2 pounds....🙂

Rob Very good response Thank You!

Rob Very Nice! Thank you for sharing, this is so interesting I hope you have time for a few questions. Did you detect all of the gold nuggets or were some nuggets recovered by placering and detecting? I realize it was more than one hike, likely many, but after you located the area how far did you hike from the nearest road? In your 40hr a week work are you often in remote areas? Last question. Can you share any videos?

This is such an interesting post. I enjoyed the read. I have always wanted to check the area out but damn there are a lot of people up there these days. I like the solitude of the prospecting and would prefer not to find anything all day than to share my day.

Thanks Bob Can you take some of these topics and run with them? your new postings will help and I know you have tremendous knowledge of each and every one of the. Come on let's get something started I am sure Rob will appreciate the help

Thanks, Bob I appreciate you. Being left-handed I am always coming at things out of the box. Still looking for a comment from Rob. I am hoping he has been assembling his post on a Word document so he can cut and paste them on the forum... Rob let us know if you need some help or if you are just done...

Rob Just 10 posts on this that or the other and this forum will gain traction again. 1) Favorite places to hunt. (Gultches, Hillsides, Mine Dumps, Screen piles, bedrock etc.) Tips and tricks 2) Best research sources, maps, Out of box technics " Here is how to find a new location" 3) GPX coils and setting (Simplify the use of a PI) Pi Basics. 4) Metal detecting patterns. We all have things we relate to gold and these tell-tell signs are the first indicator of gold. 5) Seasons As we all know there are different approaches for each season. Summer Dress right and hunt the areas that normally have the worst vegetation Fall Check the areas that have eroded Winter Hunt the gut of the gulch too hot to hunt when it's hot Spring Find the drainages that historically produce and expand 6) I hate to say equipment but the object is to get and identify as many targets as possible in the course of the day. What does that mean? What type of ground are you hunting? What is your pick of choice? Are there different picks for different areas/seasons Do you know when your detector is telling you Iron or non-Ferrous How do you dig a target? Can you use your coil to pinpoint a target's location? 7) Favorite places to hunt: Deserts High Deserts Foot Hill Mountains Rivers Streams Creek Beds Washes Gultches 😎 What do you do with the gold you find Save your gold Sell Your Gold Repurpose your gold for jewelry 9) Trip preparation: research 10) Hunting Gear. Camel Pack, Foods for breaks, Water or Gator Aid, etc Any or all of the 10 items would make a great thread the idea is to make a contribution to your fellow gold hunters who are dwindling in numbers by the year but each and every one of them has the knowledge to pass on Rob This is your forum you are the best of human beings I challenge you to post a topic on each of the items I have outlined or one of your choice. I hope this helps

Rob Are any new detector videos something to keep your forum alive?

That is really good information. I had a similar thing happen recently the boulder was half that size but the target was still audible on the edge of the bolder. It took a minute to figure out the target was under the bolder. Very nice find!

Circling back on this post. AUWanderer I am curious what you decided? Did you buy an EVO or something else? Maybe you scraped the detector for a high banker. Just curios. I am now in the same position you were in when you posted this. Wondering about buying a larger coil for more depth? Searching for gold nuggets with a metal detector is as much of an art as it is a skill.

Thanks Rob I should have included my setting in the post Here are some details I am running in Sensitive/Extra-Slow I have the have the stabilizer set at 4 or 5 and the RX Gain 10-12 depending on EMI I tend to want to hear the buzz of the threshold while detecting. This may be a mistake. I have been able this year in some cases to tell the sound of Tin vs the sound of lead - But still don't hear truly what is described as the Whoee/Wowee, Wowee/Whoee or High/Low Low/High I can some times hear that different sound from the trash when it is lead but not always. Should I be silencing the threshold? Different Stabilizer/Gain Setting? Again the advice is very much appreciated. Thank you

I have a weird pattern going this year. Finding more gold with my eyes than my detector. I bend down to dig a junk target near bedrock and look over to see a small piece of gold the detector didn't hear and probably couldn't hear. The sunbaker is not the goal it's the .25-5 gram nuggets. I have been swinging the 6x8 Sadie this year since the monsoon rains started down here in southern Arizona. Man that thing punches deep in wet ground just can't seem to get it over gold. I think it hears smaller gold than the EVO, but who knows I have found far more +or - 1 gram plus with the EVO 8x12 using the GPX 4500 It is crazy but the 4500 for me does not hear anything less than .35 unlike what I see on Youtube with the 5000 picking up .10 gold with the same coil. I think I have some pretty serious experience detecting. Starting with the GB2 so I think I understand the sounds. I now have a Gold Monster with a collapsible shaft on my back pack to minimize the time it takes to recover a deep target. Some times the Gold Monster is best after the floods in the running creeks for getting the days gold. My pick has a good size rare earth magnet and shovel end to quickly remove the Ferrous trash. It is amazing how many targets I pick up in a single outing, but gold has not been the major one this year. Any tips and tricks on setting with the 4500 would be greatly appreciated. Any hep on GPX 4500 Setting with either the Sadie 6x8 or the Evo 8x12 would go a long way

VAGOLD that nugget is really dirty what does it look like cleaned up?