A question...

austin_hunter · Aug 2, 2011

I was just wondering - now I am woefully behind on the current technology in metal detectors, but I wanted to ask y'alls opinion... Is there really any machine out there that does better than any other when it comes to identifying gold?

Since I'm primarily a coin hunter, though, I tend to disc out some aluminum, so I'm also not the best at determining myself what's good or not, but... and this leads me to my point (which it is just my somewhat uneducated guess), that no matter what machine you have or how much you paid for it - a pulltab and a ring are gonna look a helluva lot alike...

The way I look at it, the best discriminator you have is between your ears... it all comes down to 2 things:...... drumroll......

Dig it, or not.

Some days, I feel like diggin every signal; most days (especially now here in Texas), I don't, but I have recently been purposefully looking for gold here lately, and I'm learning a lot.

lookindown · Aug 2, 2011

mfitzy111 · Aug 3, 2011

best to talk to Mike (4H) from woodland detectors. he's on this board a lot...run what your looking for in a detector by him. he's got great prices, and the best customer service around.

as far as gold goes, I can't talk too much about it - my mine lab finds silver pretty darned good though..my last gold ring was found with my Ace 350-

Terry Soloman · Aug 3, 2011

austin_hunter said:
I was just wondering - now I am woefully behind on the current technology in metal detectors, but I wanted to ask y'alls opinion... Is there really any machine out there that does better than any other when it comes to identifying gold?

Since I'm primarily a coin hunter, though, I tend to disc out some aluminum, so I'm also not the best at determining myself what's good or not, but... and this leads me to my point (which it is just my somewhat uneducated guess), that no matter what machine you have or how much you paid for it - a pulltab and a ring are gonna look a helluva lot alike...

The way I look at it, the best discriminator you have is between your ears... it all comes down to 2 things:...... drumroll......

Dig it, or not.

Some days, I feel like diggin every signal; most days (especially now here in Texas), I don't, but I have recently been purposefully looking for gold here lately, and I'm learning a lot.

A Minelab GPX 5000 is THE best gold finder on the market, but bullets and pulltabs sound just like gold - even to this US$5,500.00 machine. Discrimination is for the ederly and handicapped, not for the treasure hunter.. :headbang:

Tom_in_CA · Aug 3, 2011

If anyone tries to answer this question, by saying they have a machine that can ...... with any degree of certainty, tell aluminum apart from gold, then do this: Quickly take them down to the nearest inner-city blighted ghetto park, and turn them loose. See how much gold they dig, while leaving the aluminum behind. I think you (and they) will soon see that ...... their ratios will turn out to be nothing much more than random chance.

The only reason they might *think* gold rings "sound different" than the 1000 pieces of aluminum they just dug, is the pyschological trap of "selective memory". Whenever we finally dig a gold ring, we selectively remember our premonitions, and think "aha! I KNEW it sounded different". But when it turns out to be junk, we subconsciously think "yeah, come to think of it, it DID sound kinda junky". ::)

Hosensack · Aug 3, 2011

Using a Gold Bug DP I found my first gold ring today, at a cellar hole site. There is a grove at the creek that runs through the same woods. Which I hunted on my way out, I found (3) aluminum can scraps that all had me thinking wow another ring? The numbers were different, but the ring is aged alot more and they were only off by 4. Sound, if there was a difference it was minimal. So safe to say I am in agreement with the other replies...although that trip to the ghetto...........

Smudge · Aug 3, 2011

I would say that a dedicated gold detector running at a much higher frequency will give your machine more sensitivity to small gold.

Beyond that, you are correct. You simply run your discrimination low and be prepared to dig every signal you get.

You already know that gold runs all over the conductivity scale, so anything set above "IRON" is going to cost you some of that yellow stuff.

That's my two cents on the matter.

pastorals · Aug 3, 2011

"Discrimination is for the ederly and handicapped, not for the treasure hunter." so says the White Plains Wimp! :headbang:

PARDON ME Terry for having an opinion. Discrimination might very well be for the lazy, infirm or coins only shooter! But I am 72...almost elderly ... and I dig all hits (and I know how to spell!) :laughing9:

lookindown · Aug 4, 2011

Tom_in_CA said:
If anyone tries to answer this question, by saying they have a machine that can ...... with any degree of certainty, tell aluminum apart from gold, then do this: Quickly take them down to the nearest inner-city blighted ghetto park, and turn them loose. See how much gold they dig, while leaving the aluminum behind. I think you (and they) will soon see that ...... their ratios will turn out to be nothing much more than random chance.

The only reason they might *think* gold rings "sound different" than the 1000 pieces of aluminum they just dug, is the pyschological trap of "selective memory". Whenever we finally dig a gold ring, we selectively remember our premonitions, and think "aha! I KNEW it sounded different". But when it turns out to be junk, we subconsciously think "yeah, come to think of it, it DID sound kinda junky".

Your right, when I finally find a gold item I say "That was the best sounding target Ive had all day" I seem to forget I thought the same thing about the 20 pulltabs I dug before that.