Coin Shooter looking to try nugget hunting for 1st time

[adobisky]

Hi Guys,

I am new to this web site - relatively new to SoCal and have never tried Nugget hunting!


I moved to Murrieta, Ca from the east coast about 6 years ago. Back east I used to to a lot of coin shooting and relic hunting.

Now that I live out here - I want to try nugget hunting.

I have a whites DFX Spectrum - I know its not ideal for gold but I can't afford a new detector. At least not until I find $4500 worth of nuggets

Any ideas of places to go that aren't too far from Murrieta or too far off the beaten path? I am about to have both knees replaced so I dont want to do a lot of hiking to get to the hunting grounds.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Andy

 

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[atomicscott]

Hi Guys,

I am new to this web site - relatively new to SoCal and have never tried Nugget hunting!


I moved to Murrieta, Ca from the east coast about 6 years ago. Back east I used to to a lot of coin shooting and relic hunting.

Now that I live out here - I want to try nugget hunting.

I have a whites DFX Spectrum - I know its not ideal for gold but I can't afford a new detector. At least not until I find $4500 worth of nuggets

Any ideas of places to go that aren't too far from Murrieta or too far off the beaten path? I am about to have both knees replaced so I dont want to do a lot of hiking to get to the hunting grounds.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Andy

Hey Andy,
I'm in the menifee area. There are a couple of spots not too far away that may still have some detectable gold. Out about 1.5 hours into the desert near 29 palms there are some spots that have done well. I'm hoping to plan a trip out soon. 2 weeks ago I made the trip and was about 5 miles from the nugget shooting areas when my battery and fuel pump died (fuel pump was just a fuse)! I believe you can reach the areas by truck so you may not have to hike too far. Some of the old mines in the area have a fair amount of hot rocks, but not too many. Adjustable ground balance will really help in these areas. Let me know if you are interested in exploring some of the local areas. Good luck, Scott

 

[Terry Soloman]

Hi Andy. I don't want to be "Debbie Downer," but nuggetrshooting is THE hardest form of metal detecting. There are no "Easy" areas to get into and detect that have not already been pounded since the 1980s. You MUST have a dedicated VLF of PI machine to find gold nuggets - period. You should look into drywashing or highbanking if you want to do a little prospecting with bad knees. Nuggetshooting is expensive, hard physical work. If you are going to do it, get a used Fisher Goldbug II; Whites GMT; or a Tesoro Lobo Super Traq. You are just wasting your time with a DFX. Check out GoldProspectingLessons.com Good Luck!

Hi Guys,

I am new to this web site - relatively new to SoCal and have never tried Nugget hunting!


I moved to Murrieta, Ca from the east coast about 6 years ago. Back east I used to to a lot of coin shooting and relic hunting.

Now that I live out here - I want to try nugget hunting.

I have a whites DFX Spectrum - I know its not ideal for gold but I can't afford a new detector. At least not until I find $4500 worth of nuggets

Any ideas of places to go that aren't too far from Murrieta or too far off the beaten path? I am about to have both knees replaced so I dont want to do a lot of hiking to get to the hunting grounds.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Andy

 

[nuggetshooter323]

I've read too many threads on this forum about guys with DFX's trying to get them set-up for gold, but is just doesn't work out. Any detector will find the really big nuggets, but the small nuggets out number them pretty significantly. If you have a dedicated gold machine and your good with it, you can do well in a good area by finding pickers and big flakes. Those add up pretty quick.

 

[atomicscott]

Hi Andy. I don't want to be "Debbie Downer," but nuggetrshooting is THE hardest form of metal detecting. There are no "Easy" areas to get into and detect that have not already been pounded since the 1980s. You MUST have a dedicated VLF of PI machine to find gold nuggets - period. You should look into drywashing or highbanking if you want to do a little prospecting with bad knees. Nuggetshooting is expensive, hard physical work. If you are going to do it, get a used Fisher Goldbug II; Whites GMT; or a Tesoro Lobo Super Traq. You are just wasting your time with a DFX. Check out GoldProspectingLessons.com Good Luck!

Great way to put it Terry. I didn't want to put a wet blanket on the DFX, cuz you never know, there could be that 1 oz'er waiting out there! lol.

 

[Lanny in AB]

Hi Guys,

I am new to this web site - relatively new to SoCal and have never tried Nugget hunting!


I moved to Murrieta, Ca from the east coast about 6 years ago. Back east I used to to a lot of coin shooting and relic hunting.

Now that I live out here - I want to try nugget hunting.

I have a whites DFX Spectrum - I know its not ideal for gold but I can't afford a new detector. At least not until I find $4500 worth of nuggets

Any ideas of places to go that aren't too far from Murrieta or too far off the beaten path? I am about to have both knees replaced so I dont want to do a lot of hiking to get to the hunting grounds.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Andy

I too started my nugget hunting with a detector that was less than perfect for the occasion--I had a blast regardless. I didn't find any nuggets, but I did find old round shot from muzzle-loaders in 4th of July Gulch in Montana!

Since then, with the proper machines (The Minelab 2100 was very good to me--they're an excellent entry-priced machine for a wonderful PI that's totally geared for finding gold.), I've found many a sassy nugget. Take a read through my thread--Bedrock and Gold The Mysteries--there's lots there on how to find the gold.

All the best, and welcome to the passion of a lifetime,

Lanny