This is your one stop shop for all matters regarding the hobby of metal detecting and treasure hunting in general. Discuss different detectors, pros and cons, equipment, EMI, PMS, legal constraints, tips and hints. All makes and models welcome including gold panners and divining rod users.
This is a great pick for gold prospecting. Walco brand. 6mm steel blade, 65cm hardwood handle. Extra well balanced, I carry it in my hand but you can get pickholders to hang them off your harness. This model retails for around $80 and they come in larger/smaller sizes. Not practical for beaches or parks, but ideal for most goldfields.
Was gonna get a Garrett AT pro from America because of the great exchange rate. But went for 4 more 10oz dragons with the intention of flipping them @ greater spot and getting a detector with profits... Hope it works out. Anyone have any thoughts about local as opposed to OS? So much cheaper from america
I am currently thinking about buying a Garret AT Pro from the US. But got a bit turned off when I read a review saying they were crap for finding gold at any depth. Has anyone here used them or own one ? How do you find it for finding coins and/or gold ?
O/S prices have to be attractive at the moment. Warranty is always the worry. Dont be surprised if local dealers/distributors refuse to help you if you dont buy in Aus. They will be a lot more helpful if you buy the product off them and keep them in a job. Minelab detectors are manufactured in Aus. so if you buy from them you are helping out other Aussies. Just some thing to consider as well as bottom line. Every brand claims their machines will find gold. Sensitivity (the ability to find small targets) and depth performance are what the top end machines do best and what you are paying for. I dont know anyone who uses a Garret for gold hunting and how good they are for it. Ive only used Minelabs. Both brands are great coin and relic machines for sure.
Just looking at an ad by Garrett detectors in the latest "Gold, Gem & Treasure" magazine. It states "PLEASE NOTE:- PURCHASES FROM OVERSEAS DO NOT CARRY AN AUSTRALIAN WARRANTY." Listed underneath it are the contact details for 19 dealers in all States plus NT. Sorry ACT no dealers there. Still hoping to hear from anyone using a Garrett (or any other brands) regarding their capabilities and performance.
Does it does have an impact as a statement though, doesn't it? "After a relic finder that is water proof... is the Excalibur the best minelab option?" That's what I'd go for if I was doing the beach scene and going into the water. If it was just on the sand, I'd personally go the Sov GT.
All slutty contributions are welcome. Personal preferences and bias regarding brands and equipment are all good and in no way breach Chatter etiquette. Are Minelab paying you a retainer yet auspm? The Buggers wont give me a cracker.
Detectors rock. We get small sub gram grains and gold fines liberated from VMS (very massive sulfides) here (flour gold) and a bit of secondary nugget country. I have found quite a few gram and sub gram nugget with a Minelab embedded in sandstone (a few inches down) so know they are fabulous for small stuff. Its nearly impossible to detect flour gold or fines though. So, I mostly used the detector to locate heavy trash accumulations like bottle tops and nails, bullets etc. The Gold naturally follows and seems to sit in the hallows along with the junk too. You could do it with a $20 detector i guess, but i just love the minelab sound when it hits gold too much to swap. its a lovely soft buzz We got a lot of rain last night so im still hanging out to get into it. i Found a 1 inch wide crack about 4 foot long with a nice detector tone down the bottom of it, (its the edge of a drop off) that converges on 4 gold bearing creeks right across the middle of it, with a 22oz nugget being the biggest out of the field, Fingers crossed. I would never have noticed it if the detector didn't pick it up.
Personally I would go for a Aquapulse 1B (Pulse Induction) Detector. I use one for underwater detecting, and surface. A few years back I put it to test against the GPX4000 and was finding gold just as deep with it on land. The only downside to the aquapulse is its price! But you get what you pay for. You can also get some niffty heads for it too! Like this wand, for hard to get at places.
Liked the GP extreme,didn't like the 3000,liked the 3500 it was the bomb at the time. Used the 4000 and 4500 but have not spent enough time with them to evaluate properly. As for the pickshumbugTake the mattock anytime for deep adventures. How do users rate the 4000 to 5000 range-worth the extra doe?
I am looking at the same thing, with the strong AU$ I can get one of them and a Garret Pro Pointer delivered cheaper than I can buy the detector alone locally. This is not for Gold prospecting in WA. I have read a lot on them and feel that the Garret is fine for metro areas, playgrounds, parks and beaches etc... It would still find Gold but not as good as the Minelabs. I will hire a Minelab 5000 or similar for my initial prospecting trips until I am confident of continuing, then I will look at a S/H 4500 probably. I want something nice and lightweight that my daughter can come with me and use it as well for a bit of fun. It will be a good backup as well on trips.
Ive seen these used in videos before. Mainly female operators. They seemed very impressed esp with the nifty attachments. Maybe more suited to indoor use?
Jholmes" the wand, has been in a few caves, and tight crevices in its time ...........That underwater type mind you
I drive a pro, mine is the us version which i think is a better model as far as tones go, the international gives a high tone in 20 & 50 cents, where the us only chirps on the goldies. It is a weapon in the park and handles really well on the wet sand and shallow sea where all the goodies are. I added nearly 200g of sterling and 2g of 9 carat in a week over xmas to the stack with the pro. It also sniffed out enough coin last year to pay for a roll of dragons and a weeklong trip to the margaret river from qld. The standard mode finds deep predec silvers quite well and the pro mode sorts the good from the bad stuff on bottlecap graveyards. My brother drives a ml sovereign and it is a much more powerful machine, but i always get more faster with the pro because of the meter and tone differences. The pro is waterproof, but keep the metal clean and oiled after saltwater. Minelab makes some hard hitting machines in a similar pricerange, xterra series which give as good results, but the pro is great value for a beginner machine. If you are detecting outside of brisbane i highly recommend it, if you are in brissy, i would pefer you get a kmart beep and dig. ;-
Hello, I am currently using a Garret At Pro. I got it last year in june and it was my first detector of my adult life. I must say for the price it's a great machine. I detect once a week usually and have found over 80.00 in modern clad, silver rings and charms and a gold high school class ring which I was able to return to the owner. I sent it back to the manufacturer to upgrade the shaft and their service was top notch. I will say though, garret has released a similar model called an AT Gold which like the name states, is probably more suited for the yellow. The At Pro has no threshold sound (like the AT Gold) just tones that variate in loudness depending on how deep / size of the object. I've had no problem in digging a dime at 10 inches but any deeper and I might confuse the sound for detector chatter. The only thing I wish is that I had some gold fields around me...
