nuggethunting

Hey Cowkiller, During this time of year, I always recommend prospecting with a partner. However, that is not always the case, so if you're going alone, make sure you bring plenty of liquids, wear lightweight clothing, sun screen and carry a cell phone if possible. I also recommend a 12v battery jump box, as I have came back to my vehicle several times during this time of the year and the battery was dead! Be safe and good luck! Rob Allison

Hey Guys, The piece was found in the Northern Bradshaws from what I have been told.

Hey AzNuggetBob, I think we actually agree on most stuff, just wanted to keep it simple. Without a doubt, researching ore bodies, mineralized and contact zones, low angle faults can help in finding nuggets. The major kicker is, someone might research a hardrock zone that produced 200,000 ounces of gold and lets say 50,000 ounces of silver in the late 1800's. When reading this alone, anyone and their brother would say we need to search there! However, without knowing the makeup of the gold, it all could be microscopic and locked up in sulphides. There might not be any free milling gold in this system, meaning the probability of finding nugget gold would be very low, especially below the "zone of oxidation." Many rich hardrock districts produced very minimal amounts of placer gold, while others having the right geology, lets say more "free milling and pocket bearing" veins might have produced historically placers. The subject is very complex, but is very interesting to discuss on all fronts. Rob Allison

Hey Guys, I think my partner is playing games, not answering my phone calls. He knows I'm trying to get info ...

Hello All, The migration is now complete. Hopefully it was seamless for all of you.

P.S. The picture is pretty small, so guessing he took it with his phone camera?

Hello All, A friend and hunting partner just sent this picture over. Not sure on the story as of yet, but hoping he will tell me more. From the picture, almost looks like he took it at night, maybe a Summer night hunting or something. He said he believes the nugget is around 1.75 ounces, but hasn't weight it offically as of yet. They are out there ..... found with a Minelab GPX 5000 and NF 14-inch Solid elliptical lightweight searchcoil. Rob Allison

Hey AZNuggetBob, Great looking nugget. Sure wish I knew where that one came from. I think when it comes to finding gold vs. finding gold nuggets, they are different. To detect a nugget just anywhere in my opinion is a lot more difficult than finding a speck of gold with a pan. When I was younger I enrolled in college to become an exploration geologist. I had to study structural, physical and economic geology, along with all the mineralology classes. We also had to spend time in the field plotting, mapping and surveying geologic structures, faults and such. Along with all this studying, I tried to purchase any old bulletins, books and whatever I could collect on gold geology and ore deposits. I have hundreds of books, from the early 1800's until present on just about any subject on gold. With all this information I had and studied, I thought I had this "gold thing" licked. Heck, it's going to be a piece of cake now, as I know all this information on what to look for, I'm going to find pounds of gold. Don't get me wrong, all this information I studied and obtained was great and did help, but by no means did it make me find anymore gold or patches than not knowing any of this. I actually had better luck exploring and just using common sense than using all this geologic information. In my opinion, gold nuggets are different when it comes to geology. There are no books that really explain why nuggets are formed, what makes then bigger or anything along those lines. Gold nuggets can pop out just about anywhere, whether the geology looks "text book" or not. It don't take a major quartz vein running across the hillside, but rather just a tiny, narrow stringer can produce some of the best gold nuggets. Gold nugget hunting is unique in a way. If you "text book" yourself and only look for what the text books say are good areas for gold, then you're probably walking over and past a lot of gold nugget areas. One last thing, you don't need or have to see quartz to find gold. Quartz is the most abundance mineral on the surface of the Earth, so you will find more of it than any other mineral. There is by far more barren or "bull" quartz out there then mineralized "metal bearing" quartz. This is a great subject and I'm not sure there are any real experts.

Hey Guys, Ya, its great when you can prospect and explore with your best mate or family, even close friends. My wife and I used to spend a lot of time in the hills, more so dredging back then. She loved to tender the sluice boxes on the dredge and then get to pan down the concentrates half way through the day. As you have read above, she had her fair share of finding nuggets, most of the time in places I wouldn't hunt. This would include extremely trashy areas, where you would hit targets every few feet. Another time she hit a nice, smaller specimen in a very remote area we hiked into one Winter season. This is another story, but she found another patch with her Minelab Eureka Gold metal detector, another place now off limits due to claims. Back in the early to mid 90's, the price of gold was down in the $300-400 range and most places were pretty much open. The interests in gold mining was down due to the price of gold. Most good places were open, only a handful of good locations under claims at that time. Now it's just the opposite, just about everything is claimed and you have to pay close attention to where you're at. The gold is still out there, it's been there for thousands of years just waiting for that searchcoil to find it!

Hey Hendo, It's for a short bed. I was going to get some pictures, but my truck is still in the shop getting an AC Compressor installed. I can't think of the name brand right off hand, but will get more info soon. I purchased it at "Little Dealer, Little Prices." Its been a great shell, hate to let it go, but Im wanting to install a truck box and remove the shell so I can haul the quad out for short trips within the trailer. Get back with me if you're interested or have more questions. Rob Allison

Hey Guys, Without a doubt, that shell has seen some places over the past 10 years. If it had a memory chip, the shell would be worth $$$ The shell kept me from the Rye Patch Winds, Southwestern Summer Sun, High Country Hail Storms and more ....

Hey Cowkiller, Back in the early 90's when I first picked up a detector, my thoughts were the same as yours now. I heard all the stories of patches, big gold and such, wishing I could have been part of the early 80's era of nuggethunting. That being said, I learned what I could, mastered my detector and spent thousands of hours in the field. I never let anyone discourage me, which their were many at the time. I couldn't honestly tell you how much gold I have found to date, but I do know it's thousands of nuggets. There are hundreds of square miles that have never been covered with modern metal detectors that are available today. There will be just as much gold found in the next 20 years as the previous 20. You can either be one of the guys that believes the gold is all gone, or get out there like you have and in 10-15 years you will have a very rewarding collection of gold nuggets and unforgetable memories. You're advantage is your have a very trustworthy Brother that enjoys the same hobby you do. Get out there together, enjoy and cheerish the good times together and you will both find a bunch of gold. Wishing you both the most success possible. Rob Allison

Hello All, I have a GMC or Chevy Truck Shell, Pewter in color for sale. I can get some pictures up soon, but looking for anyone interested in one. I payed over a $1000 new, make me an offer. The shell is the same height as a standard truck, has the back pull up window, windows on side that can open with screen. Located in the Northern Surprise, AZ area. Call me at 602-909-9008 or email me at - auplacers@yahoo.com Rob Allison

Hello All, Back in the early 90's when the Minelab SD2100 was released I used to spend a lot of time out in Western Arizona. A matter of fact, my girlfriend at that time (now wife, Dawn), used to spend a lot of time with me, occasionally detecting for a few hours. There was a pretty remote area that I had fair luck at, finding a few nuggets here and there. We decided to branch out a bit on early morning, Dawn going one direction while I went another. After a few hours Dawn was within sight and I seen her swinging her SD2100 over her head. Obviously I knew she must have found something, so I made my way that direction. Upon arrival, Dawn was down in a small gulch with a nice smile on her face. She then decided to show me her new find, one of her better finds at the time. The piece wasn't huge by any means, but it was a new specimen in a new area. See Dawn's specimen below – After looking over the spot for a few minutes, I ended up leap frogging above her to see what else was in this small gulch. Within just a few short swings up the narrow gulch, I hit several good targets. Both of these targets were smaller, solid gold nuggets in the 1-2 Gram range. I yelled back and told Dawn I found a couple right away and was going to leap up further and she could hunt in this spot. The wash was choked full of brush and old trees, so I was in and out of the wash just listening for decent targets. As I got up the gulch about 100 yards from the last couple of nuggets, I got a nice, mellow "Wee-Woo" sound right in the center of the gulch. At this point, Dawn or I have hit a single piece of iron rubbish, so the excitement meter went way up hearing this target. I started to peel back several inches to make sure it wasn’t some type of surface rubbish and the target got much cleaner, but still pretty faint. I ended up digging down further, now about 8-10 inches and the target really started to sing! I yelled down for Dawn, letting her know I might have a good one here. She proceeded up the gulch and upon her arriving at the spot; I was now down 14-16 inches. I had to use the plastic scoop, as the hole was tight and dirt kept filling back in. Dawn helped me dig the hole down to around 20-22 inches and we re-checked. The target was gone, now tossed out of the hole onto one of the dirt piles we dug out. As I passed my Minelab SD2100 over the pile, it SCREAMED!" I told Dawn to cross her fingers, hoping it wasn't a horse shoe or some large iron nail. The first handful of material I grabbed, I felt a bit of weight and as I passed it near the 14-inch searchcoil, it SCREAMED once again. All I had to do is open my hand and see this beautiful, palm sized gold specimen staring at me. Holy shit was my first thought..... As I tossed it up and down trying to get an idea what this piece might weight. Like always, I was thinking at least a pound. See the specimen below – Well, after this find, we both were excited and I had to hear about how she found the spot.... blah .... blah ... blah Ya, she found it alright, but it was time for me to clean it out. We spent several weekends returning, hunting in the early AM. After it was all said and done, we took well over a pound of specimens and nuggets from this location. Some of the solid nuggets are displayed below on an older Minelab detector box. The biggest solid nugget was around 1/4 ounce. We also found another nice specimen at 2.31 ounces down below the first one hidden in the brush I ran around originally. This spot is now pretty heavily claimed, but I'm hoping someday it might open up. The last time I was there, I used an early GP series, either the Extreme or 3000. I would love to revisit this spot with a GPX series, especially the Minelab GPX5000. Until then I can only dream of returning with a modern Minelab PI. Rob Allison

Hey Local Digger, Those are great pieces and lifetime finds for the majority of the US nuggethunters. I've heard of some biggies from Virginia, maybe some of those stories were your nuggets. The word travels fast when big nuggets are discovered. Thanks for sharing those great finds with us! Rob Allison

Hello All, The forum migration is now complete. We were able to re-direct without any issues. Even though we have the redirect on the old URL, I will change all links on my website and forums to the new URL. Hope we didn't loose any of you in the process. You should notice the forum running much quicker now that we are hosted with Invision Boards. Rob Allison

Hey Guys, Without a doubt, biggies can be found anywhere. That being said, if I was a betting man, I would put my odds in locations where larger nuggets have been found before. Reason being, at least you know the plumbing systems were able to produce and make big gold. I guess another questions would be, "What are big nuggets?" Some consider 1/4 ounce nuggets big, some might say over an ounce is big, while others might claim big nuggets are 10+ ounces. There is no question big nuggets (let's say an ounce or better) can be found just about anywhere. However, when I look at my personal collection along with some partners collections, majority of the big nuggets over an ounce were found within a given range of "known big gold country." This is a great subject, cause I think ultimately we are all looking to join that "One Ouncer" club and beyond. Hope to hear from more of you.

Hey Guys, That is correct, a friend found this location and found a lot of gold. The area was pretty hammered, all surface nuggets and specimens long gone. The person was curious on how the Minelab PI's would perform on mineralization and depth. After about 4 hours of roaming around, four of us didn't find anything. I ended up walking back to the vehicle and down a very small side gulch. At the bottom I got a faint targets where I could only detect it one direction. I ground balanced several times, figuring it might be mineralization. I ended up scratching over 6 inches off before it actually became a decent target. With a coil any smaller than what I was using or if I wasn't scrubbing the coil on the ground, I would have missed this 9+ ouncer. Even with the 14-inch right on the ground, the sounds was so faint most wouldn't have even heard it orginally. Will write more later, have to run out for a bit.

Hey Flake, There were two Richard D's, the one I'm talking about was from Rock Springs, Arizona. I think you might be talking about Richard D. from the Southern California area, but maybe not. Either way, both were stand up guys and will be missed. Without my mentor, I doubt I would have continued metal detecting due to my lack of patience. Majority of my success was contributed from this guy spending hundreds of hours teaching and allowing me to tag around the various goldfields of Arizona. Ok, back to those big nuggets ...... where are they?

Hello All, The subject of finding or metal detecting big gold nuggets is always interesting. My personal thoughts on targeting trophy gold nuggets (large ones) is to hunt in or around areas that have produced them historically before. There are a number of historical placer districts throughout the US that have been known for larger gold nuggets. Many of these historical placer areas also had "pocket vein" systems or at least the plumbing systems that were capable of making large gold nuggets that would later erode away. To date, my biggest solid gold nugget is a 283 Grammer found back in 2001 when the Minelab GP Extreme was newest Minelab PI. I found this beauty with a Coiltek 14-inch solid round Monoloop Searchcoil at approx. 28-inch deep. A 9+ ounce solid gold nugget is far from the largest found in Arizona, but then again it's not considered a small nugget by any means. Historically in this area, nuggets up to 40 ounces were found. My mentor, Richard Doherty, found thousands of nuggets, but only had one that was over an ounce. Hard to believe a guy that found thousands (probably 10's of thousands) of gold nuggets only found one nugget over an ounce. Due to where he was hunting 90% of the time, the nuggets were known to be from a few grains to maybe a 1/4 ounce in weight. Anything over 1/2 ounce or better was a huge nugget for that area. I personally believe if you want to target "trophies," then you need to research where "trophies" have been found and target those areas for the best overall chance. That being said, you could hunt those areas your entire lifetime and never find a single one. Just my thoughts, Rob Allison

Hey Boulder, Ya, it could be. I have been told it's about three types, not sure exactly which one. The "Pinks" are fairly common in this area, stumbled onto dozens of them over the years. They have the wider head and the small horns on the head if you look closely. They are more agressive than the typical "coon tail" from this area. Rob Allison

Hey Doug, Great the package was received quickly. The voltage range you mentioned is about right. They can vary a bit, but for the most part a good, fully charged battery is 8.3 - 8.5 range. Keep in touch, Rob Allison

Hey Trev, Thanks for the update.

Happy Birthday Blake!!

Hello All, Thanks to two new couples, Patrick and Girlfriend from Tucson & Mike and wife from New York that deciced to head out for training during the warmer months. Both couples had a great time and had some time with multiple instructors including Doc from Doc's Detecting. One couple found their first gold nugget, which they were pretty excited about. Mike and his wife were unable to locate a nugget on their first outing. However, they purchased some claims in the Vulture region in hopes of finding some nuggets and digging up some smaller placer gold. Thank you all for your business with Rob's Detector Sales. Don't hesitate to call, email or catch us here on the forums anytime. We truely mean it when we say "unlimited support beyond the sale." Wishing you all a success season with your new Minelab GPX 5000's. Your friendly Minelab dealer, Rob Allison