Garret Infinium Silver Rock Hunting - Revised Edition February 2011

[Jim Hemmingway]

Please click on the attached link to view an updated version of the Infinium report, which is located on the Canada sub-forum here on TNET... thankyou... Jim.

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/c...erfields-ontario-revised-february-2011-a.html

 

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[Eric Willoughby]

Jim, you have posted this at the most perfect time, at least to me. I just bought a Garrett Infinium myself, although I have not gotten to use it for prosecting much, it is the most stable machine on hot ground that I have ever had in my hands. I do have a hard time with it in high-iron, trashy grounds though, I have been in areas where there is so much iron, the Infinium starts sounding like a overly-hyperactive 5 year old boy with a harmonica in his mouth, at this point I have a vry hard time trying to tell the difference between the hi/lo and lo/hi tones. I have found that during air tests it doesnt want to respond very well to regular clad coins much, unless they are near-surface finds. However, this machine really loves non-ferrous metal as much as it loves iron. Everytime I hit something of non-ferrous nature, this machine really belts out the tones loud and clear. I would highly recommend this machine for prospecting, just be prepared to dig up alot of iron. This is not a bad thing when using this machine in the river for placer gold or silver, as the iron junk will fall and settle right where the silver and gold will be found. There is no way around it, when prospecting, dig all signals. It sucks, but its necessary.

 

[strickman]

Good post Jim, very informative . Glad to see you are still "The Silver Warrior " !!!!! very nice specimens -Looks Like you have been busy . Keep it up .

 

[russau]

that is a over the top excelent post on the Infinium .ive been wanting one of these to go along with my Mark 2 seahunter.

 

[Jim Hemmingway]

Thanks you guys, I know this one is a long read too, so if you want an original copy for your files, I suppose we could give that a try and see how it goes for awhile...if so PM your email address.

Jim.

 

[scott565]

Thanks very much for your excellent and detailed analysis.
Surely, it will be of help to everyone with an Infinium, regardless of the application.
I must confess, I envy someone who measures their finds by the pound - seems like most of us are giddy with sub-gram returns.
HH
-Scott

 

[Jim Hemmingway]

Thanks Scott...when you consider the attributes of the Infinium, for example the automatic tone ID system, waterproofing, very handy "AA" batteries, overall performance and simplicity of use, plus a price tag delivered to the door here in Canada at less than two-thirds of its nearest ground balancing PI competitor, this unit is an exceptional value.

Jim.

 

[trainermick]

The location in your photos looks very familiar to me. In fact, I also have taken several pounds of silver including leaf, nuggets, float, etc. I also got lost and spent a night in the woods near Her.... pond back in the late 80's. I use a VLF detector but the pulse would certainly do a great job. Thanks for the post. Brings back a lot of memories.

 

[Jim Hemmingway]

Thanks trainermick...yes I was roaming the area back in the 80's too. Hermann's Pond was quite the hike. You may remember having to walk across the beaver dam to conveniently get across to the other side. Last time in there, maybe 7 years ago I was a bit unsure about crossing over but did it anyway. It was still solid footing.

My research material (Ontario Geological Circulars) indicates a good amount of large float found back in there, but I only found a few small fist size chunks that had a fair bit of cobalt minerals. Some fellas from Tennessee and Texas found a dazzling 100+ lb float somewhere between Coleman Road and the Pond years ago. They found me at the end the day, drive right over and brought it out their car trunk. The most dazzling chunk of massive, character silver I've ever seen. There have been other major finds since then, several that I know about for certain.

I find that hole digging in the thick roots of the bush is really tough going. In past years VLF units would have me digging large iron implements, rusted tin cans, pots and lanterns...you name it....at depth. It wore me out. Nowadays, I put aside a small portion of my total time for float hunting, but the remainder is spent searching the abandoned camps. The Infinium will improve things a good deal, so I've been thinking of spending more time looking for float. Thats it for now, would be good to see you up there anytime after mid-September to early November is the best time for me. Its cooler for carrying gear and digging holes, bugs are minimal, and as the leaves fall you can see where the heck you're going. Come to Loon Lake and ask for Snowman...a nickname they gave to me many years ago.

Jim.

 

[Matt (CA)]

JIM, been reading this report over again. Its almost like being right there with the great pics and explanations. You have found some really impressive silver. Those are museum quality specimens. Your obvious success speaks volumes about the methods you describe in the report. Thankyou for sharing this information.

 

[Jim Hemmingway]

Thanks Matt. Your comment about museum quality rocks is timely because I’ve been thinking of donating some of these rocks to a mining museum located in a small northern Ontario community.

As noted in the introduction, I was delighted with Infinium’s performance for this application. Just beware you may not be too happy with the stem assembly…but that can be modified or otherwise replaced. I’ve done both and am happy with the results either way. Below are three photos. The first two photos illustrate modifications to the original Infinium stem.

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I drilled a few additional holes and added some quarter-inch bolts to firm-up the original Infinium stem as illustrated in the first Infinium photo above. The second Infinium photo shows an additional section added to the back of the original stem...a piece of aluminum tent pole cut to appropriate size... to facilitate installing the unit body further back behind the elbow. It made a big difference in balance, making the overall unit feel considerably lighter on the arm. I realize it’s a PITA to contemplate doing it to a new unit, but now I’m satisfied with it. For this prospecting application at least…this unit is well worth the hassle to get it right.

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The photo above shows the straight Andersen stem. It cost me $165 Canadian delivered to the front door from a supplier in Nova Scotia. I did drill some additional holes in it to accommodate my personal preferences but that took only a few moments to do. This stem feels fine on the arm…it is lightweight but quite firm.

Jim.

 

[Gold_Striker]

I enjoyed reading this and will come back to read it again to refresh my memory. It's nice to have people with such experience available to learn from.


thanks guys

 

[Jim Hemmingway]

Hi Gold_Striker...thankyou for commenting. Reading between the lines, you can see that I really enjoyed using this unit for this application. Those automatic tones are just so darn convenient if you can apply them to your situation.

Keep in mind that if you or anyone would like an original copy of this or any report of mine for your files...you need only to holler. All the very best

Jim.