For those looking to get into the hobby of detecting for nuggets


Recommended Posts

There are going to be those that do not agree with what I have to say, and there may be some that do! Regardless, I am going to give my honest opinion on this hobby to those who may be looking to get involved in it.

Metal detecting for gold nuggets can be a fun and exciting hobby, IF you have what is needed to get the job done right. I am not talking about the newest $10k gold detector, or the newest $2k drywasher. What I am talking about is a very deep understanding of Geology, a (theoretically) endless amount of money, a very reliable off-road vehicle (Jeep, Quad, or Razr/Rhino), and THOUSANDS OF HOURS of free time. The lure of gold is very strong and very real, but finding it is very difficult without the things I mentioned previously. Sure, there are those who are lucky enough to live in an area where gold is found frequently. However, if you live in Southern California, prepare to spend 99.9% of your time digging trash, ammo, and virtually every kind of metal EXCEPT gold. Over the past decade or so I have become more anti-Government than I thought I ever would become. I used to despise the thought of the BLM coming in and closing off public land. But after spending the last 4 years metal detecting, I am finding myself becoming a little more open to these closures.

The reason: A vast majority of prospectors (NOT ALL) are complete slobs and have no respect for the land. This seems to be a bigger issue in California than in other states, in my experience. It is absolutely disheartening to go to an area where gold is known to have been found and spend all day digging up nails, bullets, bottle caps, old wire, tin cans, staples, aluminum foil, birdshot, Capri Sun containers...and the list goes on and on and on. On top of that they throw their paper trash, glass bottles, leftover food and other items right there where they are working and leave. Don't get me wrong, you will ALWAYS have to dig a little trash when you are metal detecting, but to have it at the extent it is nowadays is ridiculous. So the only way you are really going to stand a chance is to go somewhere that no one else has been. This is where it gets difficult. There are plenty of areas out there that carry gold that have not been found yet. It is a fact! The problem is, if you do not know what to look for then you might as well be detecting in a Wal-Mart parking lot. The information for finding new areas is certainly out there, but unless you have a decent understanding of Geological terms and conditions, you will only find them with an amazing stroke of luck.

I have run into numerous new hunters while out on my ventures. They ask how long I have been in the hobby, and I tell them going on 5 years. The next general question is: Where is the best place to go? That is a question that every detectorist has been asked by a newbie at some point in time. My response, sadly, is that I have no clue. Obviously they are curious as to why I have been in for so long and don't know much, so I tell them the truth....I don't know anything about Geology so I don't know what to look for while scouting for a new area. This, and knowing how to do proper research is key to finding gold. Unfortunately, if you are not already in the know on these subjects your chance of success plummets drastically. So if you want to be successful at gold detecting, find and take a college class on Geology. DO NOT rely on other prospectors to give you any "real" help. Gold is one of the most powerful things in existence. It can literally make an honest man cheat, make your best friend your worst enemy, and vice versa....turn your worst enemy into your best friend (temporarily, of course). Don't be fooled by those that tell you that they will "Share" info with you. If you are a newbie you will have no idea if what you are being told is the truth or otherwise. Gold is the "Seed of Greed". I have fell for that move a few times because I am one of those people that believe that most people are good and honest folk. Not in the gold business. I have taken people to a location where I have found meteorites and shown them where to look. In most cases, they found a meteorite or two. A couple of them found their very first meteorite ever because I showed them where to look and what to look for to improve their chances. I was promised trips to their spots where they find gold, or their meteorite sweet spots in return (which they offered, I never asked) but of course once they found what they wanted they disappeared. Don't fall for it!! If you are lucky enough to find a spot that produces for you...KEEP IT TO YOURSELF!!!

Lastly....equipment!!! Do not let anybody convince you that you need to have the latest and greatest machines to find the gold. That is simply a lie. Do they help? Of course they do...IF you know where to go to use them, and you know how to use them correctly. I have spent well over $15,000 on prospecting gear over the last 4+ years and it has been a colossal waste of money! Why? Because again, knowing where to go and what to look for is the key. Some will tell you that you just need to learn how to use your machine, and they are correct. learning your equipment is vital to using it successfully. But when you are like me and you have got to where you can find paperclips two feet deep, and pieces of wire brush (guessing, but that size) at the same depth, I'd say I am using the machine quite well. LOL. Sure, buying the best and most expensive is always a good thing in my opinion. You're buying a good product, it does slightly increase your chance of success, and it certainly keeps the dealers and manufacturers happy. But refrain from doing that until you are ready both financially and knowledgeably. Don't do like I did and just start throwing cash at dealers for the top of the line stuff with absolutely no clue of how and where to use it.

Now there ARE some really good people in this hobby. You will find quite a few of them on this and Bill Southern's forums. And there is some really useful books and educational materials out there as well that can point you in the right direction. Chris Ralph's: Fists Full of Gold is a great informational item. Anything written by Jim Straight is a MUST HAVE as well. Just remember that if you get Jim's books to pick up a very good dictionary, or Glossary of Geological terms to go with them. Jim is old school and uses a lot of big, but important, words in his writings. It can be hard to understand at first, but the man is a genius when it comes to this stuff so learn what he has to say and put it to use. Good luck out there and don't give up. It can be extremely frustrating to go out time after time after time and come home empty handed. One day you WONT come home empty handed and you will be hooked forever!!!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting post, you raise some good points. Yes this is a VERY expensive hobby. I usually don't mind spending the money tho because when you're passionate about something you want your time to be well-spent while you're doing it. It's why I don't mind spending a bunch of money on books, boots, picks, detectors etc.

If I've only got 7-8 hours every weekend to prospect I want to be using good, if not the best equipment.

Geology is important when it comes to prospecting too. However all of your time should be spent finding GOLD. I got some really good advice about Rob pertaining to "gold indicators", host rocks, quartz etc. He said he's found gold in some odd places, areas without any "indicators" of gold. Basic geology knowledge about bedrock, mineral veins and erosion is good I think. But the best darn thing I think you can do is get out there and just prospect and detect. The more time you spend swinging a coil, in a mineralized zone, mountain range etc. the better your chances are of finding gold. Even better spend time where it's already been found in the past. The old timers already did all the hard work discovering it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It doesn't have to be an expensive hobby that is by choice no offense to anyone. I have less then $3000 invested over a period of 15 years yes I buy used equipment with the exception of one of my drywashers which I bought new. All of my equipment has paid for it self over again many times. I typically hunt alone so no one ever showed me any secret spots, no pointy fingers, etc. Basic research will get you into gold areas. This doesn't have to be an expensive hobby nor does it need to be a hard one.

So Chris Coffee are you quitting again?

Tortuga your post is spot on. Go where gold was found before and work the outer edges you never know.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As with ANY hobby you get into, there are several routs you can take. All hobbies have a high, middle and low road on costs. Hunting, fishing and even prospecting of all kinds are the same. All have expensive gear and they all have midrange and cheap gear. As with all hobbies, it is up to the individual to set their levels of expenditures. I know guys that find gold with low end detectors and other equipment. And we all know guys who buy the most expensive equipment available and yet they don't do very well at all. Hunting is the same way, you can have cheaper gear and do well or you can have the highest quality of gear and do just as good as the feller with the cheap gear. It all comes down to what you can afford and how much time you invest into your hobbie. Knowledge is gold with anything you do. Whether it's researching and scouting for that big buck or scouting for that big nugget, boots on the ground is key. Not money in my eyes. Just my opinion.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nope, not quitting. I refuse to quit again because it is too dang expensive to start up again. This post was for those folks who I have met at some of the GPAA and local clubs claims who lurk on these forums. They have the same thoughts I did when I first started. They see the same people posting pictures and telling stories of their finds not realizing how many times that person did not find anything. They just need to know how things really are before delving head deep into things.

I keep hearing folks say that nobody should be expecting someone to take them to their honey hole. I have NEVER EVER asked for someone to just take me to their sweet spot. The most I have asked for is just help learning how to research, and even offered payment for the help.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

For every 500-1,000 pieces of trash you might dig a nugget.

Seems about what my ratio here in Arizona is.

Be a lot easier to just buy them off eBay but NOTHING can match the thrill of finding your own. Like hitting the lottery.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting post for sure.

Being new to this Hobby, I can relate to some of Mr. Coffee's points.

But I have been taking the cautious route for the most part, buying the most expensive gear as used.

And I've created an "equipment cap" so to speak for myself.

What I have, will get me some gold. No question. So now I have put a hold on buying more gear until I score.

Now it is all up to me getting out there and searching.

As far as geology, I started with no real knowledge of geology but definitely know more now and learning more every day.

The basics are all there to read and learn, weather natural or man-made land formations to look for, contact zones of material, etc. Common sense after you know what to look for.

And researching has never been easier for us with the computer age.

All the info you ever need regarding access to said areas - private land, claims in place, gov. restrictions, Geology reports (old and new), property rights....all at our finger tips.

The gold is out there. That's been proven. And lots of info on existing areas with known gold.

So at least none of us have to go blindly.

I personally have gone into this with the frame of mind that this hobby is meant to get me back out hiking and exploring like I used to do before wife and kids and mortgages. So any time I get out, I am happy! if I score - then icing on the cake.

I have read enough about trash while detecting, that I expect it and not disappointed if that's all I get (although that is tough).

The number one thing you need, that you can't buy (BUT MUST RETAIN AT ALL TIMES)........a positive attitude.

Good points to consider Mr. Coffee and I will head them as I am hiking up my next canyon I have plotted to attack this weekend.

Cheers.

G

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I enjoy the outdoors, I enjoy the quite time and solitude.....I NEED the exercise:) This is the only outdoor hobby I enjoy that actually pays me back. I have not actually found any gold with my SDC 2300, but my drywasher has been very good at finding the little stuff. I found these drywash spots while out metal detecting. Gold was to small for the metal detector to pick up, but they looked like prime spots to run material through the dry washer.

So, I see my time in the field as beneficial on many fronts. I am getting much needed exercise, much more needed "unplugged" time, scouting for drywash spots and cleaning the field of all that trash.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Coin and treasure hunting paid for it's self. Gold dredging has paid for it's self. I've spent less money doing this. I've spent more money nugget hunting and most of it was on detectors. I've yet to see the light of day when it will pay for it's self. I just don't give a rats butt if it never does because I love doing it.

Remember you don't see a armor truck at a funeral.

Chuck Anders

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Chris you make some good points, but the number one thing you have to know is where to look and what to look for. Knowing your machine is sceondary.

A Geology class at your local college would be of questionable help. If it was through the School of Mines, maybe a different story. You don't need to know everything about Geology, just the Geology that will put you on the gold.

Have you ever watched the 1 hour presentation I gave on You Tube about how to find Virgin Patches? It tells you how to start looking and where.

If you are finding that much modern junk, you may be in the wrong area. The last 15 nuggets I have dug, maybe I have dug 8 trash targets. Mostly bullets or casings. I am off the beatin' path, looking in places other people have not looked. I am just looking for nuggety looking ground.

Like you, the area I go to in NW Arizona is not known for large gold, so I am never going to get rich, but I am having a lot of fun, not getting rich.

Are you ever going to find enough gold to pay for your detector? Not around your stomping grounds or mine, but there are plenty that do. I sold a new GPX5000 to a guy he found 9 ounces in 10 days. Sold one to a guy and he ahd his dad took a trip to Australia, scored 19 ounces.

But like I have said before, the guy with $35,000 worth of bass boat, outboard motor, trolling motor, all the latest rods, reels, lures licenses, etc. isn't going to catch $35,000 worth of bass either. It's a hobby. It's not like we do this for a living nor that we could. There are people who prospect for a living, in Australia and it is feast or famine. And it is hard work. And while they love what they do, would you like it if you HAD TO FIND gold to make ends meet. It might take the fun out of it.

Look at the folks that placer mine for a living. Look at the television show Gold Rush. You think any of those excavators or rock trucks, or BIG RED trommel only cost $10,000? Heck no. Not to mention that they burn thousands of dollars worth of fuel a day just running dirt to try to find gold. They are trying to make millions in gold and it is costing them hundreds of thousands to do it. Everything is relative.

I was gold prospecting before I became a dealer and I had already resigned myself to the fact that this was a great hobby that would give me lots of exercise and occasionally a nugget or two. That is all I expected and I have never been diappointed. Just like SCUBA diving, it is my other passion. I have spent thousands on regulators, tanks, custom wet suits and dry suits. 3 spear guns, buoyancy compensators, emergency regulator, a motorized underwater scooter. Everytime I go on a live aboard dive boat for 3 days it costs me another $600 or more. What's my return? Fun, excitement, living life, having stories to tell my grandchildren and the pictures to go along with it. Fresh fish, sometimes lobster. It's a blast.

I went into this hobby with my eyes wide open. Never expected it to pay for itself, but it certainly has given me more of a return than any other hobby. I thank God everytime I get to go out. I thank Him for the good health I enjoy that allows me to go out walking. I had my FITBIT watch on the other day it said I had walked 16,000 steps. That night I felt every one of them. Glad I had ADVIL on hand.

I still have my golf clubs in storage, I am not paying $175 for a round of golf.

Take care,

Doc

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If anyone gets into detecting and prospecting with thoughts such as:

people will show you where the good places are and return the favor if you show them your places,

people have respect for the land they detect on, will fill in their holes and will pack out their trash

(lots of people do not understand the responsibility they have for their actions).

you will find enough gold to pay for your equipment

you can make a living detecting for gold

you can just wander out into the desert or the foothills and find gold

research is not that important

thinking everyone else but you is finding gold and/or why is it taking so long to find that first piece.

you need to think about another hobby.

This is an optimist's hobby.

Your state of mind rules virtually everything that happens in the field.

The people who do this understand that the worst thing that happens while you are detecting

is that you have a great time outdoors.

Detecting teaches patience, tenacity, humility, curiosity and the importance of having a positive attitude and a sense of humor.

You come to see the value of intuition balanced with critical thinking.

Most important of all, you pretty much need a state of mind that believes the next swing of the coil

has the possibility of finding gold.

Otherwise, don't even bother to start you'll only be disappointed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Have you ever watched the 1 hour presentation I gave on You Tube about how to find Virgin Patches? It tells you how to start looking and where.

Really interesting presentation Doc! Just got done watching the whole thing.

Gave me some ideas on some virgin areas I've found myself down here in Southern Arizona.

It's hard to turn my back on the old known gold fields I've already been finding gold at but with a couple extra days off work I think I'll have time to get down to the virgin areas and swing my GPZ.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I tell folks that metal detecting for nuggets is the toughest form of prospecting you can possibly get into. Its not about learning your machine, although that is important. The difficult part is learning how to find near surface nuggets - and that takes time and skill. Owning a good detector does not make one an experienced and knowledgeable prospector any more than buying a pipe wrench at Home Depot makes one a journeyman plumber. Learning the skills of finding near surface nuggets is a perseverance test. If you are prone to be disappointed, discouraged and easily give up when you are not successful, you don't want to buy a metal detector because you will give up before you gain enough skills to be successful. The vast majority of metal detectors sold find only trash, and then dust. Trash because the operators don't know how to find nuggets and then dust when they give up and put the thing in a closet. Most guys buy something inexpensive (because detectors are not cheap) take them out a few times and find only trash, then give up and put their detector in the closet or sell it - that's the life story of probably more than 80% of all metal detectors sold. What you know about finding gold greatly affects what you find. You don't have to be a geological expert, but you do have to know about how gold deposits, where gold will likely be found within an area, able to recognize old workings that are overgrown or mostly washed away, etc. The more you know and more experience you have the better off you are.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Look for gold where it has been found before!, take your time, have fun, Make friends, have fun!. Don't worry about what its costing you, its a hobby! Metaldetectors are like wives, sometimes you get a bad one, move on to another! Metaldetecting never made me rich, but it sure gave me lots of thrills. Grubstake

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Grubstake... I was just surfing the net and saw your last post... So I thought I would "I GOTCHA"

some smarty-pants remark. But You have helped me so much over the years....

Now Chris Coffee... Gosh what would have happened had you followed me out of the General Store?

Or spoked to me while you drove by going down Benson Gulch? Remember I bought you library of

books. I quenched when you started selling all of your gear... even your prospecting truck....

Gosh Chris... I KNOW you have great ability :)... makes me look pale... Just stop and think of all you

have accomplished!!

Now I have a thought. Are you still a member of SB Valley Prospectors??? Just asking... My e-mail

jimstraig - @ - earthlink.net. My spam blocker will catch you; but I check it out daily and will answer.

Got nothing to sell.. want nothing... just friendship... Hey at 85+ I need to constantly make new friends

or be the last one left... "tailgate"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jim, you will have my friendship for eternity. That day at the store still baffles me. I sure wish I could turn back time. I would certainly have done things different. If I had only known who you were. I also remember the night you bought my books. Your hospitality and generosity were overwhelming. My friend and I really enjoyed sitting at your table and chatting with you. I am in the process of trying to replace the books I sold to you since I have accepted the fact that I cannot get away from this hobby for good...lol.

I will shoot you an email with my contact information. I am now working in Colton so I am in your neck of the woods 5 times a week. I may just stop by and say hello again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.