The Many Lost Treasures of Mariposa, CA (Photos Added)

Lanny in AB

Gold Member
Apr 2, 2003
5,664
6,379
Alberta
Detector(s) used
Various Minelabs(5000, 2100, X-Terra 705, Equinox 800, Gold Monster), Falcon MD20, Tesoro Sand Shark, Gold Bug Pro, Makro Gold Racer.
Primary Interest:
Prospecting
Eagle,

I'm enjoying your adventures in book writing.

Isn't it interesting the silly things we did when we were starting out? Throwing gold back in the stream--but I guess it all went back in for nugget seed regardless.

As a writer of gold tales, I know how much time it takes to write stories, and I admire you for writing your book, and I admire you for your great thread that's being read like a book already.

By the way, my outdoor "prospecting" temperature is slightly colder than yours is this time of year.



All the best with your project--the world of gold prospecting will be a better place because of it,

Lanny

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/metal-detecting-gold/69-bedrock-gold-mysteries.html

 

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EagleDown

EagleDown

Bronze Member
May 13, 2010
1,857
629
California
Detector(s) used
Whites MXT, Whites TDI
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Eagle,

I'm enjoying your adventures in book writing.

Isn't it interesting the silly things we did when we were starting out? Throwing gold back in the stream--but I guess it all went back in for nugget seed regardless.

As a writer of gold tales, I know how much time it takes to write stories, and I admire you for writing your book, and I admire you for your great thread that's being read like a book already.

By the way, my outdoor "prospecting" temperature is slightly colder than yours is this time of year.



All the best with your project--the world of gold prospecting will be a better place because of it,

Lanny

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/metal-detecting-gold/69-bedrock-gold-mysteries.html
Halito Brother,

Thank you for your comments and encouragement!! Well, I've done even sillier things during my learning process. Most of them are too embarrassing to tell about. (lol)
Incidentally, I was sitting here nice and warm........until I saw that picture. I love your scenery, but this one chills me to the core. (lol)
 

Oakview2

Silver Member
Feb 4, 2012
2,807
3,348
Prather CA
Detector(s) used
Whites GMT
Primary Interest:
Other
Love the Canadian swimming. Spent some time years ago in the norther territories years ago, and you are a hardy bunch.
 

chupacabra

Jr. Member
Jul 23, 2013
77
74
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Message received eagle i'm shooting for sunday ( depends on work load ) and i definetly want to come by and discuss your findings and if you'd like to come down to bagby and detect we can do that too
 

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EagleDown

EagleDown

Bronze Member
May 13, 2010
1,857
629
California
Detector(s) used
Whites MXT, Whites TDI
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Message received eagle i'm shooting for sunday ( depends on work load ) and i definetly want to come by and discuss your findings and if you'd like to come down to bagby and detect we can do that too
Hokay Brother, sounds like a plan. Looking forward to your visit, if you can make it.
 

Lanny in AB

Gold Member
Apr 2, 2003
5,664
6,379
Alberta
Detector(s) used
Various Minelabs(5000, 2100, X-Terra 705, Equinox 800, Gold Monster), Falcon MD20, Tesoro Sand Shark, Gold Bug Pro, Makro Gold Racer.
Primary Interest:
Prospecting
Hey Eagle,

I was told today that gold has a kHz response of 48. That's why the GXT is tuned to that. So anything higher is a waste. According to this other salesperson. So according to him, if I got the GB2, it'd be a waste. Plus, the GXT tracks the iron.
Then he was telling me about the TDI SL.
I think it's funny about White's guys. They sure push there product, and everybody else's product doesn't compare.
I'm sure there products are good, but I just don't know if I believe the frequency thing. Have you heard of this. It seems that the fine gold might be found with the higher kHz like the 72 of the GB2.
Or is it better to go to the PI

If you don't mind Eagle, I'll jump in here about khz in gold detectors.

Garrett,

the higher the khz the tinier the gold the machine will see. The lower the khz, the deeper it will punch through the mineralization for bigger gold. So, the "responses" to khz depends on mineralization in the ground and the size of gold they're best suited for to find. All of the VLF's with varying khz will find gold--all of them. At least, that's what I've read about and been told.

So, the pitch about the khz is just that. It's a pitch by a salesman trying to sell his machine. Don't buy into a certain khz only mindset--that's salesman nonsense and somewhat disingenuous.

Do your research and get a machine you feel you'll be comfortable with and get it over some gold. Vlf vs. Pulse has to do with mineralization in the ground. Pulse machines excel in extreme ground. VLF's don't. Both machines find lots of gold, it just depends on the ground conditions as to whether you'll ever need a pulse machine or not.

Every day I'm hearing more and more good things about the Gold Bug pro, but I don't have one, yet. . . . However, the guys that are using them and loving them sure do know about nugget shooting, and they love that little machine. It's a VLF running at 19 khz I believe. Here's a field test for you to review: Fisher Gold Bug Pro Field Test

All the best,

Lanny

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/metal-detecting-gold/69-bedrock-gold-mysteries.html
 

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EagleDown

EagleDown

Bronze Member
May 13, 2010
1,857
629
California
Detector(s) used
Whites MXT, Whites TDI
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
If you don't mind Eagle, I'll jump in here about khz in gold detectors.

Garrett,

the higher the khz the tinier the gold the machine will see. The lower the khz, the deeper it will punch through the mineralization for bigger gold. So, the "responses" to khz depends on mineralization in the ground and the size of gold they're best suited for to find. All of the VLF's with varying khz will find gold--all of them. At least, that's what I've read about and been told.

So, the pitch about the khz is just that. It's a pitch by a salesman trying to sell his machine. Don't buy into a certain khz only mindset--that's salesman nonsense and somewhat disingenuous.

Do your research and get a machine you feel you'll be comfortable with and get it over some gold. Vlf vs. Pulse has to do with mineralization in the ground. Pulse machines excel in extreme ground. VLF's don't. Both machines find lots of gold, it just depends on the ground conditions as to whether you'll ever need a pulse machine or not.

Every day I'm hearing more and more good things about the Gold Bug pro, but I don't have one, yet. . . . However, the guys that are using them and loving them sure do know about nugget shooting, and they love that little machine. It's a VLF running at 19 khz I believe. Here's a field test for you to review: Fisher Gold Bug Pro Field Test

All the best,

Lanny
Thank you Brother!! Since almost all of my experiences center on gold dredging, when I get this type of question, I can't answer with any kind of confidence. I've only owned 5 metal detectors over the past 45+ years. (Bounty Hunter, [my first], Garrett ADS2, [both of which paid for themselves in coins and jewelry],The Gold Bug [when it first came out] Whites MXT [I'm still waiting for it to pay for itself (lol)] and Whites TDI. Of the 5 detectors, I believe I prefer the Whites TDI.

Unfortunately, I use to be the type that never asked for help in learning the operation. The first three, I barely read the instruction manual. I sold the B.H. when I came back to CA, because of the mineralization. I couldn't get rid of the noise. Probably because I didn't know how to tune it properly. The Garrett I sold because I couldn't get it to register a 2gram nugget sitting on a wood stump. (Actually, I was so disgusted with it, I practically 'gave it away'. (One 5th of what I paid). [Later, I found if I had read the manual, I would have known that it wouldn't detect raw [placer] gold while in discriminate mode. It doesn't pay to be too macho and think you can figure out everything on your own. (lol) And, the Gold Bug? Kind of the same thing, but with impatience added as a negative bonus. I took it out twice and didn't find any gold. I was too dumb to realise that since I was finding very small lead shot from shotguns, it would have found gold if I had patience and looked in the right places. But, again, I was too macho to spend the time finding out what I was doing wrong. (These are some of the silly things I mentioned in an earlier post).

I realise now, (hopefully not too late) that you have to have enough patience to learn all you can about your chosen machine, before and after you purchase it. Hey, I was also one of those macho types that spent all night Christmas Eve, trying to assemble the childrens toys before I'd give up and read the instructions. (lololol)
 

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chupacabra

Jr. Member
Jul 23, 2013
77
74
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Eagle the first dredge i had was a 2 inch keene 3.5 hp briggs with a stand alone pump, I fidled with that dredge, old hoses, tried running it in bagby once and never could get it to prime, I almost sent it out into the river LOL I then worked on that suction hose to get better seal I actually put tub and tile sealant inside the hose fitting it over the pump and then added 2 clamps . I took it up to the stanislaus river up by my dads cabin around mi wuk I believe, above sonora and got it running great, I ran a whole tank of gas out in a big pool area, there was a nice looking gal sun bathing there all day with me and she lived up there and had fun just watchin me dredge in THE SAND ,so I did a cleanup and didnt find but 2-3 little specks of gold, then i found out why. Another person pulled up a bit later and informed me that 2 weeks earlier a few guys had come in with a 6 inch dredge and dredged the whole pool out in about a week, hence, no gold but i had a great day that day, good conversation , dredge ran great , BTW that was the last time i ran that dredge i was given a 3 inch that summer by a friend who was done dredging and doing nothing but metal detecting in mariposa areas and doing real good . HEres a pic of myt first dredge, which i still have DSCF0324.JPG
 

chupacabra

Jr. Member
Jul 23, 2013
77
74
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Pump1.jpg
Thats the mess i had on the end of the pump LOL what a pain if I knew then what I know now.........


pump impaler.jpg
plastic impellar all chewed up :)
 

chupacabra

Jr. Member
Jul 23, 2013
77
74
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Me and dredge Bagby.jpg

|PRIDEFULLY standing over a non functioning dredge in bricebug LOL see the foot? it was ready to shove that thing in the current and give up and there were many more days of total frustration pissed off yelling at the Gods , yet 8 years later i still am not giving up.......YET
 

GarretDiggingAz

Hero Member
Dec 5, 2012
850
243
Mesa, AZ
Detector(s) used
Garrett ATG and thinking about another nugget hunter
Primary Interest:
Prospecting
Lanny and Eagle,
I appreciate the input and I truly didn't believe his hype. Not that the MXT isn't a bad machine, but I feel in all honesty it's close to my ATG. Not just in kHz, but if you understand your detector you can find the path of the iron. Plus I feel there's some common sense to it.
This is mainly about having a good backup, plus a secondary for taking others out with me. My secondary is a BH Pro 505. Got good kHz as well and actually handles the minerals fairly well when tuned right. Just like all the others. However, if I got the PI. Then I could have both bases covered. I've just been told by many prospectors to get the GB2 because of it's higher kHz. Especially for our smaller size gold we've got here.
I honestly feel that if you understand how a detector works and where you use it. You could find gold. Though I've still not found that sassy girl yet. I'm still looking.
I will say on my last outing I found some good spots to hit. I just didn't bring my detector up because the hike was uphill and I was trying to locate the claim corners. The hike initially started down in the wash we were working. The claim itself was uphill and very steep. Plus with my balance issues I wanted to make sure my hands were free. Next time, I'm packing it in my backpack to the area. Then it's detecting time. I know she's there. I'll post some pics of some bedrock areas I think you'd drool over. I just can't believe we didn't get but a couple specs in the wash. I'm thinking the area was too shallow and narrow. So when it floods it pushes the gold out to the slower area. Maybe 10'. Maybe 100' from where we were. We even thought about bringing the dredge. There was enough water there in our pool that we could use it and hopefully find what we were missing. Though I will say with all our test holes. There wasn't enough to give us a lot of confidence in the area. At least that spot.
Thx again
 

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EagleDown

EagleDown

Bronze Member
May 13, 2010
1,857
629
California
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Whites MXT, Whites TDI
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Damm look at them cannons, we use those for tossing cobbles.
That looks a lot like my borrowed 3" dredge, except for the floats. Complete with the belt driven water pump. (lol)

A little off of the subject, but I have a friend who is very intelligent in most respects, but he will not believe that "chemtrails" truly exist. Can you deny this picture that I took a couple of days ago?
 

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EagleDown

EagleDown

Bronze Member
May 13, 2010
1,857
629
California
Detector(s) used
Whites MXT, Whites TDI
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
|PRIDEFULLY standing over a non functioning dredge in bricebug LOL see the foot? it was ready to shove that thing in the current and give up and there were many more days of total frustration pissed off yelling at the Gods , yet 8 years later i still am not giving up.......YET
I know that you meant Bagby, so I won't comment on that. (lol) Looking at the 'water line', that was well after the dam was finished, which all in all, makes that a pretty old dredge. No wonder you were having problems with the foot valve. My first 4" dredge had the same type foot valve. For the first year it worked pretty good, but by the second year, I was having trouble with the rubber 'flapper' in it not sealing properly. I finally replaced the 'flapper' with a piece of rubber I cut out of an innertube. Then, I was back in business. (For awhile). (lol)
 

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EagleDown

EagleDown

Bronze Member
May 13, 2010
1,857
629
California
Detector(s) used
Whites MXT, Whites TDI
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Well darnit! I believe this is the first year since I've been with Tnet that I didn't get any birthday wishes on the 27th, Actually, my birthday was on the 26th, but due to one of my typos, Tnet has it for the 27th. Or maybe I was trying to hold off the occasion. (lol)
 

shepcal

Full Member
Mar 19, 2003
217
149
Oakhurst,CA
Detector(s) used
modded 4500, CTX30-30, Gold Monster1000
Primary Interest:
Prospecting
Didn't know. Happy belated Birthday!

Headed to AZ tonight. When I get back, I'll take you to a BD lunch!

Shep
 

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EagleDown

EagleDown

Bronze Member
May 13, 2010
1,857
629
California
Detector(s) used
Whites MXT, Whites TDI
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Well darnit! I believe this is the first year since I've been with Tnet that I didn't get any birthday wishes on the 27th, Actually, my birthday was on the 26th, but due to one of my typos, Tnet has it for the 27th. Or maybe I was trying to hold off the occasion. (lol)
Sounds good. Make sure you bring along your new finds, so that I'll have some desert to look at. (lol)
 

familyhunter

Jr. Member
Oct 13, 2011
51
26
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Damn Eagle I didnt know it was your birthday happy bday hope it was a good one and chemtrails most certainly exist I dont know who this friend is but he needs to open his eyes
 

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