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Date Posted: 00:54:52 11/15/02 Fri
Author: jim straight
Subject: Re: The Minlab machines, worth getting one or not?
In reply to: Gregg Blasingame (Porterville Ca.) 's message, "The Minlab machines, worth getting one or not?" on 11:20:28 11/14/02 Thu

Gregg--- unless you are rich my advice is to hang-tight and become more proficient with your detector. It is not so much the machine you use, but your skill in using it.

I started doing a little experimenting in "Electronic Prospecting" about 1975 when I realized the top surface of the ground at Nick Montoya's "Empty Wallet" claim has small flakes that were recovered by drywashing. However, as I was not too serious and the machines of the time, BFO and TR were not that good so I did not get into nugget shooting with any seriousness until about 1980 and then I started detecting drywash header and tailings piles and also gold mine dumps.

I found my first nugget on a mine dump near Manhattan on the day after Thanksgiving in 1981. I was using a (circa 1978) Garrett "Coinhunter" VLF-TR at 15.8 kHz. The first nugget is the hardest; I was lucky to have started in the early 1980's and found "my share" of gold at Middle Camp and also in Ryepatch as well as in the Randsburg area.

Today, gold is much harder to be found. Many go after the specks but I still concentate on looking for the bigger ones. If it doesn't weigh at least two pennyweight I'm not excited. However, you are looking for your "first one" and whether it is a subgrain flake or multi ouncer not that critical; finding it will break the ice. Be positive in your thoughts while digging signals and realize the "next one" will be your nugget!

George E. is probably one of the best local detectorists in the Randsburg area. He will be back in the area in a month or so. I will hook you up with George so you can see "how it is done." George uses a Goldmaster II and knows its parameters fully.

Since then I have found gold using a total of 24 different makes and models of machines; all of which I bought from my "moonlighting" adult school teaching. Some machines I worked "hard" to find gold: with others it came easy. The Compass Gold Scanner Pro and the original Gold Bug fit my hand well. Probably using these machines have resulted in my finding about half of my finds.

Three-four years ago I decided to mainly concentrate on one machine; but still experiment with other machines. I chose the Lobo SuperTrac to "cosy up to." I slept with it, ate with it, and used it for everything from coin to gold. And guess what?--- I'm still learning it. The more I use it the better I like it. I understand how I can get the best out of it and learn more all of the time.

Give your MXT (or "whatever") a chance. Just be persistant detect around areas where gold can be/has been found. As Smokey says: "You put the sound to the ground and leave tracks all around because that is how things are found."

Back nearly 50 years ago I could field strip a MI Garand blind folded faster than anyone else in my platoon. Today I couldn't ever remember how to open it w/o getting an MI thumb.

My advice is to stick to your MXT and learn it. It will find gold (and also coins and jewelry; just become proficient with it; take it out and use it locally looking for coins, etc, in Porterville area. You could find a nice gold ring in your quest.

My late Brother Tom found quite a bit of gold in the Hauchuca Mtns using an "el cheapo" Gold Mountain "Boss." He preferred it over the original Bug and even the Garrett Ground Hogs.

Jack L. cleaned up in the Quartzsite area with an old White's 5000 Series-2, a lower-end "coin machine."

Just my thoughts.

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