nuggethunting

Hello Goldstudmuffin, I seriously doubt that range is hunted out, nor the smaller ranges near it. A lot of country from a few guys to cover. I'm sure digging will produce some more gold, but it's too damn hot to dig. I seen how you guys can trench out a hot spot in days, so I know this winter you will have it down to bedrock. When it cools off a bit we will hit some of those spots. I think there is more potential, just way too hot to even imagine hunting there right now unless you want to get up at 2am. Talk with you later, Rob Allison

Hello Ron, I actually have two different Mono's, really can't say a whole lot about them since they are test coils. They are hotter than the normal mono's, but not sure Coiltek is going to manufacture them. I'm hoping Trev will for the GPX-4000 users. I believe Gary got most of those coils originally from me. I think they are great coils, don't understand why someone woiuld want to get rid of them. Hit some of your other patches with the Coiltek 17-inch Wallaby Mono with a slow coil sweep. I know you will find more. Rob Allison

Hey Uncle Ron, The Coiltek 17-inch Mono Elliptical is a deadly searchcoil. I like both the Mono and DD Pro. I'm hoping Coiltek makes the "Super Mono" 17-inch elliptical. I have a prototype and it's awesome!! Hey, where did you get that coil? Congrats on the new nugget find. Rob Allison

Hello Gaine, No, the Rich Hill nuggets I found with the GPX-4000 are not pictured. I know I found a 7.5 & 8 Dwt piece, and a bunch of 2 Dwt and smaller nuggets. I'm thinking about 3 ounces of Rich Hill gold not pictured and even some nuggets from the Goldstudmuffin Range that are not pictured. The group of nuggets in front are from the Western Bradshaw's. A very old placer area, tons of old trash and rubbish, but nuggets can be found if you have the patience of the POPE! Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Guys, I'm starting to believe it might be cheaper to buy the nuggets rather than going out and finding them! However, that would take all the fun out of it. I forgot to tally in the Rich Hill nuggets I found with the GPX-4000. I actually went back through the forum archives and found a bunch of nuggets I forgot I found with the GPX-4000. I can add a good 2-3 ounces to that total, so I have well paid for the GPX-4000 in gold nuggets. If the weather would cool off a bit, I would give some of those old patches that produced some 1+ ouncers a whirl. Will be interesting to see what the 4000 can turn up. Take care, Rob Allison

Hey Guys, Thanks for the comments. As for bigger gold, pretty much all the places I've been hunting have been new shallow spots, or old spots where majority of the bigger stuff has been plucked away. I have some spots I need to re-visit to see if the GPX-4000 can pluck some deeper nuggets that prior SD's & GP's have missed. Also, the bigger nuggets are much more scarce, and maybe of them might be within normal detection range. There might only be a very small percentage of big nuggets that are within the GPX-4000 window that have been missed by prior detectors. Ron, here is how I break that question down. I found many pounds of nuggets with the SD2100, some of them way over an ounce in size. However, I know for a fact the SD2100 will not find the smaller nuggets, nor the smaller nuggets at depth like the GPX-4000, but the GPX-4000 will get the same depth, if not more than the SD2100. So the question I have for all you is - "Why would I give up a couple hundred small nuggets per year using the SD2100?" Talk with you all soon, Rob Allison

Hello All, Here are some of my Minelab GPX-4000 gold nugget finds. Not all my nuggets are pictured, about 40 are absent from this picture. The gold nuggets in the picture weight right at 5 ounces total. Most of them are small, some very small. The biggest in the picture is just over 1/2 ounce and was found in California. All these gold nuggets were found with either the Coiltek Joey 10x5 Mono or the Coiltek 14-inch Mono Round. Both of these searchcoils are awesome for finding small and large gold at depth. I'm hoping to find some more sizeable nuggets this Winter season. Have a handful of spots in mind, just not enough time to check them out. P.S. Believe I've found about 6.5 Troy Ounces to date with the GPX-4000. Not too shabby for only a weekend warrior. Thought you might enjoy, Rob Allison

Hello Guys, Wonderer - Thanks! Been wanting to get back to the claims, but been very busy. I'm sure there are more nuggets in push 1 if you can dig all those darn dozer fragments out. I'm excited about the new season on the 24K Gold Hunters Club. Karl - Been working a bunch, but still getting some time in the field. Most of my finds have been small, but picking up an average of 5 gold nuggets per trip out. Not sure how many I found so far with the GPX-4000, but I know it's over 100! Haven't heard much about the club or starting push dates as of yet. The minute I hear something solid I will post it. If you hear something, let us all know. Take care, Rob Allison

Hey Grubstake, Replied back you to! Thanks.

Hello All, I agree with all you guys. I finally purchased a large plastic tote and placed all my gear in there. Hopefully I have all the important stuff that I need. Another good rule of thumb is to bring a friend along or at least let someone know "where to look" if you don't return home on time. Take care, Rob Allison

Hey Grubstake, Glad to hear your Uncle got a new set of Wheels! Hey, I used to own a 83 Honda 185S 3-wheeler. I ran that SOB so hard and it never quit! Those 3-wheelers can take a lot of abuse, but if you do just the basic maintence on them, they will run forever .... Tell your Uncle Hi for me. Rob Allison

Hey Bunk, Ya, I received a bunch of PM's and emails asking about what happened to me. A lot going on over here right now, so I haven't had much time besides a bit of browsing on the forums. Thanks for the comments on my recent nuggets. Have you been out pounding dirt lately? Ever go back to the spot where you found the nice one? P.S. Ralph Bond is back out at Stanton. If you're around the 24K claims you might bump into him. Need to get out there and give him some tips on his new GPX-4000. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello 29, Been pretty busy myself with work and the business. Have some new ideas for the business this year, so hopefully I can get them complete before the Winter season. Was curious how you been doing, figured the heat was keeping most out of the goldfields. Been doing pretty well over here with the GPX-4000 on small gold. Haven't found anything real big, but pretty much been crumb crunching old spots and hitting a few new ones. Hoping I can get out California way with Winter to meet you. Hope you continue to contribute on the forums like you have done in the past. Wishing you the best, Rob Allison

Hello Grubstake, Miner Matt ordered a bunch of stuff when I was out of town. He mentioned through a PM that you guys were coming up, so I was curious what you guys might turn up. I'm sure there is gold there, you just have to get that searchcoil over it! Thanks for sharing the story and pictures with us. Rob Allison

Hello Guys, I've been around, just away from the PC. Been working out of town a bunch, even down in Mexico! Colorado Bob - What's new on your end of the State? Have you heard anything from Elly about the club this year? Mike C. - Nice guess, but not anywhere close to the Ponderosa Placers. This place is probably just as trashy though ... Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Reg, Today Leaverite (Dennis) asked about you, and when you might be coming out to Arizona? Can't remember what you told me. Also, tried to locate one of the placer areas that we went to several years ago, but forgot how to access it? The area is now being developed and the roads are different ... Talk with you soon, Rob Allison

Hello All, This morning I decided I needed to get out for a short nugget hunt. I've been working out of town the last couple of weeks, so I needed to get behind that detector and dig some metal! I decided to hit a very old placer location on the West side of the Brashaw's. I've found some nice nuggets over the years at this location, but it's loaded with old iron rubbish/trash. The area was rich in gold and was placered in the late 1800's. Today I located (7) gold nuggets, all pretty much small, but also dug a ton of iron rubbish. It's amazing how much crap the old-timers tossed back into the gullies. Didn't weigh the nuggets, but would guess a couple of Dwt's in total weight. Was using the Minelab GPX-4000 with the Coiltek 14-inch Round Mono along with the Coiltek Joey 10x5 Mono. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Whats4Supper, Great post and agree with everything you said. Here in Arizona, I've seen all colors and lusters of gold nuggets. I've also found different types in the same areas, or even same drainages. Hope everything is well on your end, Rob Allison

Hello Guys, This is a great thread. I've had my breakdowns over the years in the Goldfields. The last time I was out deep in the Bradshaw Mountains with a friend. It was during the hottest Summer month and we were heading back to the truck after a short hunt. We jumped into my 2000 GMC 4x4 and headed down the dirt road. We both spotted an interesting side gulch, and decided to jump out and examine it for a few minutes. I shut the truck down, we took a short walk and decided we would hit it another time. Jumped back into the truck and the battery was dead! Just that quick, the vehicle was running and now the battery was dead. I tried the cell phone, but there was no service, even using Verizon Wireless. I dug through all my stuff, and found an old battery jump box that I stored away. However, I was worried it would even work, since I knew it hasn't been charged in many months. We hooked the box up, and started the truck. The first time it done nothing, and the charge light was now "Yellow," meaning I have one more try. I waited a few minutes and tried it again, ZooM ... the truck started! Without that cheap "Jump Box" I picked up about a year prior, we both would have been walking out of there with very little water and food. I just planned on a short hunt, but it lead to a dead battery and we didn't plan on a breakdown. Just goes to show how fast something can change out there. Will post more later, Rob Allison

Hello All, Uncle Ron - There are tons of gold locations in the Bradshaw's. Not sure where you and Mike C. was, but I'm sure it was an old patch. Many of the old patches contain ironstones, fragmented quartz and red dirt. However, some of my best spots have not of those ... go figure... DrKillStick - I'm sure there is quartz in the soil. The country rock is Granite, which is made up mostly of quartz, feldspar and mica. This spot was very rich about 100 years ago, couldn't dream of what the old-timers found there. Karl - Everything is well on my end. Got another promotion at work, business is good and the house is holding up. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello DrKillStick, Thanks for posting the pictures. Depending how clean you want your nuggets, I try to keep the nature luster. The best bet is just to use water and soap. Sometimes if you clean the nuggets too much, they look fake and collectors might not look at them. I actually keep most of my nuggets dirty, just like I found them from the ground. If I ever decide to sell them, the buyer can do whatever he chooses with them. Wishing you more luck, Rob Allison

Hello All, Went out today with a few friends to find some more of those gold nuggets! We started off in an area that has been hit pretty good in the past, but we all were hoping the water moved some stuff around. The wash did get some action, but nothing like we all were expecting. I ended up snagging a nice 1.8 Dwt piece down about 5 inches (pictures 1, 2 & 3). Later in the day I tried another spot and snagged (4) more gold nuggets with the Coiltek Joey. Ended up with (5) nuggets and a total weight of 4.05 Dwts for about 5 hours of swinging. The weather was awesome today with a complete cloud cover. P.S. One of my parters snagged (2) nuggets not pictured below. Take a look at the pictures below. Rob Allison

Hello DrKillStick, Congrats on the nuggets and new area. It tough to find new areas, but once you do, they sure are fun to detect! Woulc love to see some pictures when you get a chance. Keep up the great hunting. Rob Allison

Hello Steve, There are plenty of spots I have missed, just have to figure them out. There's a few spots in that nearby area that needs a good checkout. There is also an old patch that I haven't been back to in like 10 years. I remember it was some very nasty ground, just loaded with Ironstones, Basalts and Blood Red Dirt! Will be interesting to see how the GPX-4000 does there, but it's a good hike over a couple of hills. Hope you and Kitty do well this weekend. Looks like I'm working Saturday. Rob Allison

Hello Seeker, Glenn borrowed my Coiltek 17-inch "R-Factor" Elliptical Mono and brought his Coiltek Wallaby DD Pro along. He said the GPX-4000 and the "R-Factor" found nuggets/specimens he knows he missed the year prior. Sure wish I could have been there. Good to hear you're loving the GPX-4000. There is no questions it's an amazing metal detector. Take care, Rob Allison