Low Cost Detector help

[mountainman22]

Ive been lurking around her for a long time and finally joined! I want to thank you all for help from the past and future prospecting help! I caught gold fever and looks like ill be under the fever for good! I have been running a sluice and pan for a few weeks with hardly any luck(besides four flour flakes). I was on a claim working my butt off all day and got nothing! Meanwhile a 17 year old kid comes right next to me with a detector and pulls out a 4 oz. nugget! I am seriously limited to under $240 for a detector and have scoured for information. I know the good nugget/placer detectors are usually around $600 plus, but have read some good finds with a cheap detector. I am looking at getting a bounty hunter tracker IV and buying their gold nugget coil all for around$150. However I heard that a whites gm2 is under $300 but it seems impossible to find. Can anyone please shed some new light and help a new prospector out? Thanks so much in advance. MM

 

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[nuggetshooter323]

That's not really true. It depends on the operator, coil, and the conditions. Whereas, the LST may not have the number of features as more expensive detectors, it will still find sub gram gold just as well. With no visual read out at all, it requires more practice to succed, but I think a dedicated user will find more gold because you have to dig everything. If you dig everything you will not miss gold, simple. Also, the coil selection blows away any other brand, and you can use those same coils on 4 different detectors.

I noticed mention of the Tesoro Lobo. When I read some of the reviews they seem to agree it does not do so well with smaller/fine gold. Is it more for "nugget"?

 

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[nuggetshooter323]

I must add one more thing, I know that when you have visual aids you tend to cherry pick your targets. The reason why I know this is when I use my GMT, I tend to lean a little too heavily on the graphic display for the iron analyzer. My first detector was an LST, so everytime I don't dig a target, my habits I developed over several years of only owning a beep only detector start to scream at me. No matterr how I try to justify cherry picking, I always feel like I'm leaving gold behind.

 

[Phanntom]

I've got a GM vsat in perfect condition...only used it twice. The battery cover is missing. I've got one on order but there seems to be some conflicting info. Some say it's discontinued, others say they can get it. White's gave me the part# and didn't say anything about it being discontinued. I figured if I couldn't get one, I'd make a new one. It's just a flat piece with two tabs and an expansion rivet for a lock, which is why so many get lost. After I get the cover on it, I'm going to put it up on ebay...as good a gold detector as it is...I just don't have occasion to use it and am tired of hauling it around all the time. If you want it for $300 as is...it's yours. I will put new a new battery in it to make sure the "as is", is actually working. The only thing I know is wrong with it is the missing cover. If you or anyone else is interested...I'll be glad to take some photos. It has always had a coil cover on it.

 

[Reg]

MM,

You should be able to find an older Whites Goldmaster (black case model and not the very old blue units) in the price range you mentioned if you are patient. In fact, I sold one for $200 a while back. Patience is the key. Watch Craigslist also. Heck, I even bought a very rough GMT for $250. It is rough but works well and for me, that is all that counts. Being pretty or without marks or dents doesn't make it work better.

Detectors are tough. In fact, many years ago I loaned a friend a couple of detectors and wouldn't you know it, his wife ran over them deliberately. She didn't know she managed to hit mine also. Well, they were twisted and bent but still worked fine. The friend's detector got the worse of it and ended up needing a new case, but still worked just fine. Worse case is I Loaned a friend in AZ a ML VLF gold machine. I think it was an XT17000. Well, he managed to roll his truck and the detector took an extended air borne trip a couple of hundred feet past where the truck stopped. Bent and bruised, it still worked just fine. So, they are tougher than people realize.

Don't be afraid of buying used. Most US manufacturers will repair their units for a reasonable fee if they do fail. Fortunately, I own a bunch and have owned a lot more and only had a couple of detectors fail out of the 60+ I have owned over the years.

Right now I have a GM 4 and a Minelab XT 18000 I am thinking about selling but it would probably be a little more than what you are willing to pay, but let me think about it. Both work well as does an older Lobo (I might sell) I modified that also kicks butt. All three will find gold with the GM 4 finding the smallest. The XT 18000 is the easiest to use because of the auto ground balancing. However, the old Lobo has been modified and will double as a coin hunting detector also.

Changing the subject, are you saying someone found a 4 gram nugget at Point Bar? If that is where the guy claims to have found the nugget, I suspect he was joshing you. There is a small chance something like that could happen up at Cash Creek because I know some larger gold has been found up there, but I never heard of any found at Point Bar. That location is known for its super small gold.

There is a prospecting club in Florence if you are interested. I don't know much about it, but it is close to you. Maybe some of the club members have detectors and will show them to you.

BTW, I live down the road from you in Pueblo. Email me if you have any questions, especially before buying a detector. I have been around them for a very long time and have owned a large number of gold detectors. I still own quite a few right now. So, I should be able to give you an opinion. I might even own one of them or something similar you could try to see what you think.

My detectors range from very old to some of the latest. Heck, I was fooling around with a very old Gardiner 202A the other day. This detector was built in the 70's and was used for gold hunting during its time. The other day I did a little testing and was really surprised that this old of a detector would ground balance very well for its time and detect a 2 grain nugget I use as one of my test pieces out to about 2+ inches. Now, I don't recommend any detector that old but it is surprising just what works reasonably well and what doesn't.

Reg

 

[charlotte49er]

A Tesoro Tejon, is a decent cold hunter. At $460 it's a better alternative than the reg Gold Bug, IMO. Now the Gold Bug Pro & GBII kick tail when it comes to sniffing out gold. Or save up for a GBII, GBPro or Tesoro Lobo.

 

[trinityau]

The Tesoro Lobo is a fine gold detector. I am very partial to my GB Pro but there is nothing wrong with the capabilities of the Tesoro. I have found many sub-grain pieces with one. Come on John, lets gang up. In fact I just posted a Tesoro find a few months back that a friend of mine made. Here are the pictures. The Tesoro works fine on large and small/tiny gold. TRINITYAU/RAYMILLS

 

[NeoTokyo]

Wow thats a beauty!

 

[Reg]

Be careful, there are two different Lobo's, the original Lobo and the LST. Both work well but the older Lobo is a manual ground balance detector and the disc feature sucks. I modified mine so this feature worked much better.

Both will find gold down to the grain size or so, but the LST is easier to use because of the auto ground balance feature.

BTW, I field tested both for LT many years ago, so I am familiar with both.

Reg

 

[nuggetshooter323]

Reg,
If you have any of the 20khz, 4-prong accessory coils for the orginal Lobo that you ever want to sell let me know. I bought a Diablo II on ebay and just got it back from a check out and retune at Tesoro. It has the stock 10" elliptical on it, but I'm on the look out for any of the others, Thanks.

 

[nuggetshooter323]

The Tejon is WAAAAY too sensitive to go anywhere near any amount of black sand, hot rocks, cold rocks, or any kind of dispursed minerlization in the soil. It just won't ground balance.

A Tesoro Tejon, is a decent cold hunter. At $460 it's a better alternative than the reg Gold Bug, IMO. Now the Gold Bug Pro & GBII kick tail when it comes to sniffing out gold. Or save up for a GBII, GBPro or Tesoro Lobo.

 

[trinityau]

Reg, you are making me feel old talking about those White's detectors that have a blue box. Has it been that long? My how time flies when you are having fun. I remember finding gold at the Golden Eagle in Nevada with a 6000 DI, those were nice nuggets ranging up to an ounce, nothing less than qurter of an ounce and we could hear them all really good as long as they were only an inch deep. LOL Yes, those were the days. TRINITYAU/RAYMILLS

 

[Reg]

Trinity,

I go back metal detecting to the 60's so those old detectors are quite familiar. In fact, I remember I used to read the ads for the old Gardiner detectors back in the 70's but never believed them. Well, some time back I picked up a used 202A and finally got around to trying it on small gold. To be honest, I am impressed. For its day it worked very well.

To explain what I mean, that old detector will detect a 2 grain nugget with reasonable depth (2" plus) and ground balanced quite well. It even had a form of auto tuning. Right now, the 2 grainer is the smallest I have. Someone wanted my smaller test nuggets and managed to get away with them, so I need to find a couple more when time permits.

Reg

 

[Reg]

323,

I have a Vaquero and have used it for nugget hunting. It is quite sensitive, but it is also very touchy when it comes to ground balancing. I need to try the LST DD elliptical coil on it to see how much it helps. I have the LST also, so it is simply a matter of swapping coils. If it isn't sufficient in calming the ground balance problem, I will probably add a vernier pot when time permits.

Now, as to your question about old coils for the original Lobo, I have one of the smaller elliptical coils I need to reinstall a connector on, but first I have to find the coil. Many years ago, I tried that coil on a different detector and had to change connectors. It worked but not well so I abandoned the idea but never replaced the connector.

BTW, as you know, those old coils are as rare as hen's teeth.

I don't know how technically inclined you are, but if you can solder well, there are a few mods that work well on that old Lobo should you ever get one. As you probably know, the disc feature on the old Lobo sucks both for gold and for coins. Well, the reason is because Jack Gifford felt it was best to dig any target that fell into the range of possibly being gold, so the design was sort of opposite of what one might expect. You dig what doesn't sound off.

Anyway, the Lobo is a 3 filter detector and by eliminating the first filter by simply shorting two caps, the disc feature works a lot better. Add another more complicated mod and it really works better. This second mod requires cutting the pc board, adding a jumper and some parts, but makes the disc mode much more reliable to the point it is great. One grain nuggets I have tested will give a good signal quite reliably. Prior to this last change, my 2 grain nugget was iffy at best in the disc mode.

There are a couple other mods I have done that help further, but again, they are not something I will post for fear people will not fully understand what is necessary to do or not have the skills and mess up their detector. I use a $400 desoldering station when I remove parts so I have far less problems with ruining the pc board. Others may be more skillful that I was with the older desoldering equipment which I used to use with reasonably good results. However, there is always that one time when things don't go as planned.

So, as I mentioned on a different post or maybe it was on a different forum, my old Lobo kicks butt.

Reg

 

[nuggetshooter323]

The V with the 10" elliptical is a great combination. It was so silent in minerlized soil, I had to check to make sure the batteries hadn't died Thanks for the info on those mods, I've worked on my radios, but never tried to mess with any of my detectors. If you ever come across any of those coils, I'm a buyer for sure.

 

[Reg]

Nuggetshooter 323,

Well, I found that small elliptical coil that fits the old Lobo and found another complete with the connector. I am not sure if it is a concentric or a DD, but I suspect it is a concentric.

BTW, the small elliptical missing a connector is a DD. Be careful, it is really hard to find the 4 pin connectors for the older units like used on the Lobo. I have one but it isn't complete. There is a part that is used to keep the cable in place I don't have. I am hoping I can find an old 5 pin connector and it has the same part.

Reg

 

[Gramps43]

Hey guys I've got a GOLD SNOOP sitting in L.A. customs at the moment, it was designed in Austraila and manufactured in China to save on costs. It is marketed by Jack Lange a gold detecting guru in OZ at goldhunterdetectors.com. It was made to deal with the highly mineralized soils in OZ so it should handle anything we could throw at it. When they get it from the manufacturer they give it a few tweaks and it's ready to go. The price to usuns up here is USD $290 + $89 shipping, the price in OZ $279 RRP When the bureaucrats get finished and send it to me I'll, with my limited smarts, give it a check out and report on what goes down.

Gramps

 

[Reg]

Gramps,

I wish you would have asked about the Gold Snoop before buying it. A couple of people in OZ took the Gold Snoop apart and compared it to the discovery MD1023 and found them to be the same. One of the guys who compared them is someone I have communicated with quite often in the past and would believe.

A while back, you could buy the MD1023 for as low as $50 here in the US. Since then, the price has gone up and now they are about $120 to $180 depending upon where you buy it.

The detector doesn't work bad and will detect smaller gold reasonably well. At least the one I have does detect the small stuff quite well.

Reg

 

[Gramps43]

Thanks Reg for the info, we'll see how it goes. I checked the tracking # with USPS and it was reported logged in to Portland today so I should get it tomorrow. It took one day to make it to LA and 14 days for customs to fiddle around with, so much for gov. efficiency.

Gramps

 

[Hoser John]

The only thing missing here is the smaller coil for the TLST as it makes it MUCH MORE sensitive than the stock coil to tiny TINY nuggets,also gets inbetween rocks better,gets around trash better and is lighter to swing also. BUT--always one a them--- The tiny elliptical coils that were originally sold for the TLST are NO longer available as the DD in a elliptical form was indeed a REAL pain to make and rather troublesome. I absolutely loved mine but taken from my truck along with others. So now the coil is the round coil,still great for tiny stuff ,just not as skinny as every tiny amount of versatility make a HUGE difference to me-Swung what ya brung. Steve Herschbach wrote a opinion(if my ol'noggn' is working right after massive rain/wind storm last night,sleep NO) but he said the Compadre relic machine was a low cost entry unit into nugget shooting. Yet again COILS make good much better-swung what ya brung and pay for your toys first-John

 

[schmidtnstein]

i think a good detector for you would be the'' tosoro silver saber umax.''...or the ''cibola''....also ''garrets ace 250....