nuggethunting

Hello Reno Chris, Sure would love to try my hands at that California dredging sometime. When Leaverite and I visited Grubstake we drove down and checked out the Merced River. The dredge season wasn't open yet, but the water was crystal clear. I just wanted to jump in and snipe some crevices. How is the San Gabriel for gold dredging? Any sizeable nuggets been found dredging? P.S. WhatsforSupper, Thanks for posting the link. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Shep, Today Leaverite said he sure wishes he was back in California hunting. It's so freaking hot down here now! When it's 100 degrees outside, it's at least 150 degrees in the gullies. Leaverite also said he loved everything about California besides your hard liquor. P.S. Make sure you take care of my buddy Grubstake. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Guys, Leaverite and I went back this morning and done some more exploring. All the gold is local, coming from small stringers of quartz. Old-timers punched a lot of prospects on the veins. We found (12) gold nuggets from the nearby area for a total weight of just under 1/4 ounce. Take a gander at the picture below, or the new post I placed up. Rex - The "R-factor" was a coil that Coiltek designed a couple of years ago that never made production. I'm hoping Trev will consider the "Super Mono Pro" and "R-Factor" since the GPX-4000 perform best with a monoloop coil. Being the premier Coiltek dealer I get to test all the new stuff and give them my opinion on it. Jim P. - Surprised the crap out of me when Leaverite dug the 1/3 ouncer! There are a lot of deep areas, so a bigger nugget could be hiding down on bedrock. You and your Son should drywash all the overburden off so Glenn can snip the bedrock free of nuggets. Colorado Bob - Might have to bring in the heavy hitter, "Nugget" Bob to check out the slopes. Bob had a nose for hillside hunting. I'm more of a wash hunter, but trying to spend more time on the slopes in some areas. I'm sure there are nuggets on the hillsides in this area due to the character of the gold and the amount of prospects. Mike C. - Thanks. You been out much lately? Uncle Ron - Wouldn't want to show you the patch, would hate for you to waist your time with that SD2100! Just razzing you .... Sounds like your Custom Maps are selling well. I recommend them to most of the hunters I see in the field. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello All, Leaverite and I decided to head out early this morning for some more nuggethunting. We decided to explore around the new area we found. After about 3-4 hours we found a total of (12) gold nuggets. The total weight for all twelve was just under 1/4 ounce. All the nuggets were found with the Minelab GPX-4000's and Coiltek Joey Mono Searchcoils. Not a bad weekend for nuggets. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Guys, This spot really has opened my eyes to different spots I've seen in the past and just overlooked. I was checking out the geology and topo tonight and found other spots very similar in nature that need to be prospected this winter. Brandon - The last couple of years Glenn, Leaverite and I have found some good spots. Working systematically as a team and sharing ideas really helps. Your new GPX is here whenever you want to come pick it up. Grubstake - You better take it easy and rest my friend. Wishing you the best that your tests turn out good. Sure hope were able to hunt together again in the near future. Tool - It's very hard to beat this new Minelab GPX-4000. If you're hunting mineralized ground for different sizes of nuggets, there isn't anything that can beat it. Some people keep talking about "Dealer Hype," but no one wants to share their patches. Ted - Glenn is leaving for Moore Creek Monday morning. We will see what he can do with the GPX-4000. He doesn't think he can pull off another pound, but it only takes one nice nugget to do so. He will have the depth advantage this year with the GPX-4000 and the mono coil. If there was one guy that loved the Fisher Goldstrike, it would be Glenn. I personally seen him find a lot of nuggets in the Bradshaw's with it. Richard Doherty also found a lot of nuggets with the same unit. They seemed to like the two tone feature for nuggets. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Shep, The white tape is the Coiltek tape. Doc and I both sell it. It comes on the coils when you purchase them, but you can purchase a roll seperately if you want a heavier duty searchcoil tape. Electrical tape is also fine, but when it's hot out it don't hold as well. Also, electrical tape can get really sticky and attract dirt and grim. Shep, you're too hard on stuff! Stop bumping your coil into rocks, brush, trees .... LOL. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello All, This morning Glenn, Leaverite and I went back to a new spot that was recently found. Glenn actually found this spot years ago with a Fisher GoldStrike metal detector. He actually found his first biggest nugget in this wash, but couldn't find anymore. Glenn mentioned he went back into this wash with the GP3000 several years ago, but was unable to find a nugget. All along the main wash the old-timers punched small prospect pits on small quartz veins. At first glance, the geology of the area doesn’t look real hot for gold, but then "gold is where you find it!" All three of us hunted for about four hours. Glenn and I both found (8) apiece and Dennis found (4). However, Dennis dug up the best nugget weighing in at 7.3 Dwts (or 1/3 ounce). <Pictured Below> Four nuggets on the left side of the coil are Leaverite's, eight nuggets (8+ Dwt's) on the right are Glenn's, the eight (8.3 Dwt's) I found are on the bottom. Leaverite and I were using the Minelab GPX-4000's with Coiltek 14-inch Mono Searchcoils. Glenn was using his new GPX-4000 with my Coiltek R-Factor Mono. Wishing you the best, Rob Allison

Hello Glenn, Went back to the spot and found tons of dig holes and those knobby boot tracks? Who else did you tell about the spot? Hahaa ..... Just kidding!! I'm free Saturday and Sunday. Let's go dig some nuggets on the South side. Rob Allison

Hello Montana, Yep, can find really dinky nuggets on the East side of the Bradshaw's, but hate all the electrical interference some times. I also noticed the GP3500 and now GPX-4000 seem to find more of the small porous nuggets like you mentioned. I believe this is because we have more control over the timing on the GPX-4000, but I could be wrong. I have a couple of settings I think will work out well for deep gold. Just haven't been brave enough to battle the Summer heat in those spots. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello JW, Just curious where you purchased your Minelab? Also, forgot to mention a roll of electrical tape does wonders for fastening the coil wire to the shaft. It's also good for re-wrapping your searchcoil cover if you're not using the Coiltek coil tape. Keep us updated on what you find with the GPX-4000! Rob Allison

Hello JW, Thanks for joining the forum! I'm just like Montana, run the coil cable straight up the lower shaft until you hit the "Knuckle," or part between the upper and lower shaft. From the Knuckle I start wrapping the coil cable. You want to get it tight as possible, with as little cable movement for the best results. If you wrap the coil cable on the lower shaft, you could be loosing sensitivity to smaller gold. I've seen some that had the coil wire actually touching and bouncing off the searchcoil. This will create false targets! Take care, Rob Allison

Hello All, Just received a large shipment of the new DVD GPX-4000 Video's. There was a minor hold up due to the second DVD being a different format. However, everything is fine now and the video's are in stock. The GPX Factor - NEW!!! - Tips for mastering your Minelab GPX-4000 - Over 3 Hours of footage! - Exclusive interview with Minelab inventor Bruce Candy - Interviews with Minelab’s R&D Team - Actual nuggets being dug live to camera - In-depth look at the GPX’s new features & settings - 2 DVD Box Set Only $59.95 + S&H To Order by phone, call (623) 362-1459. Mastercard, Visa and Paypal are gladly accepted. If you would like to send payment, please email me at - auplacers@yahoo.com for payment/mailing information. Take care, Rob Allison

Hey Glenn, I need to get some pictures of your new nuggets you found. Also, have you been back to the spot yet? Let me know if you're going back soon. I also have to get that new battery to you. Wishing you the best of luck in Alaska with the GPX-4000. Rob Allison

Hello All, I pretty much think "Montana" Bob and I use setting on the GPX-4000 that are really similar. We both hunt the same general areas and have done well with all the Minelab PI's. When I first seen Chuck's post I couldn't believe it. I'm finding smaller gold not only deeper, but in areas where prior GP's struggled for me. I had to resort to a DD coil to hunt many of the spots. I'm now able to hunt those same spots with a small mono for better sensitivity and depth. ATTENTION: Keep in mind, not all gold responds the same. I've personally found nuggets under a grain that gave a decent response with a small mono near the surface. The flip side, I've tried nuggets up to 3-4 grains that will not respond! The rule of thumb for the Minelab PI's is - More Solid or Flatter the Better!! Gold nuggets that are dense like slugs or very flat solid pieces respond the best on the Minelab PI's. Hope this helps a bit, Rob Allison

Hello WhatforSupper, Like I have always done in the past, Custom Minelab Packages! If you don't like something, I will sub it out for something of equal value. If you don't want the coil, Li-Ion System or whatever, I will customize a package just for you. Done this for years, and many like to "pick an choose" their own accessories or goodies. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Guys, The way I look at it is, if you're going to invest all the time & energy searching for something, you want to buy the best equipment you can afford. By purchasing a GPX-4000, if your budget permits, you won't be looking back or having second thoughts. Funny, many of the ones that are talking down the GPX-4000 don't even personally own one. Go figure ... I know I haven't been skunked with the GPX-4000 as of yet, so I'm loving the detector. This winter I have a handful of spots to check out for deeper, bigger gold nuggets. I'm pretty positive by that time I will have figured out the best settings for deep, mineralized Arizona soil. Cougar Jim - Feel free to call anytime if you want to talk more about the GPX-4000. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello All, Good friend Glenn went out the second time with his new GPX-4000 metal detector and found some decent nuggets in a new spot. This spot is in the lower Bradshaw Mountain range, Arizona. Glenn mentioned the detector was running awesome with a mono searchcoil. Glenn went back about a week later and found another piece almost 3 Dwts and a smaller piece by just hitting the likely looking spots. He mentioned he skipped over a bunch of ground just "Cherry Picking," so there should be more left behind. Just over 1/4 ounce of gold in two trips with his new GPX-4000! <Pictured Below> The coarse gold nuggets he found the first day. Congrats, Rob Allison

Hello Jim, Thanks for joining the forum. The GPX-4000 is the best hand-held detector in my opinion if you're hunting for gold nuggets of all sizes. I would like to address Chuck T. for a moment. Chuck, I have sold more GPX-4000's than I can count and never had one customer mentioned anything wrong with sensitivity. You did mention your unit, or the one you used was repaired twice. Are you positive Minelab didn't do something ....? I would gather you are an experienced Minelab user, so I'm hoping you're using at least the Factory Presets [FP] on the GPX-4000. If you are using less than the FP settings, you probably will have less sensitivity to small gold nuggets. There are several things that can cause a loss in senstivity: (1) Not properly ground balanced to the soil (2) The use of a DD searchcoil (3) Not tuned property to electrical interference (4) Searchcoil cable wrapped too low to the searchcoil (5) Make sure you don't have any dirt or small metal bits under your coil cover These are some of the things to check. I sure wish I could see the test in person. I know my GPX-4000 and all the ones I have sold would perform much better than you stated. Hopefully you can get it resolved. Feel free to call me anytime if you have questions. Also, contact Dick Shultz at Minelab USA, Inc and tell him you talked with me about your GPX-4000 issues. There is something wrong .... Rob Allison

Hello Bob, Talked with Doc this afternoon over email. Everything is fine with him, he's just been extremely busy with the business. Said he made a small "Boo-Boo" when he moved one of the other business sites to the DocDetecting/Kamakazi.com website. Hopefully Doc will get on here soon .... Rob Allison

Hello Guys, Thanks for the comments. I'm anxious to get back to this spot cause I know more nuggets will be found. However, it's so hot right now, this spot will probably have to wait until cooler weather. Several of us are checking out a new spot tomorrow in the higher country. Never been to this spot, so have no clue what to expect. Going to give her hell with the GPX-4000 though! Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Guys, Talked with Steve on the phone a few nights ago. He did get the dozer out and sounds like a lot of places have been scraped. Really wanted to make it back up there this year, but looks like it will be next year for sure. Will probably do the 2nd or 3rd week if available. I'm sure spots will fill fast, so I wouldn't wait around too long. Get a hold of Steve H. and let him know you're interested in a spot before they all fill up. You won't regret the trip, it's a lifetime experience if you never seen the outback of Alaska. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Shep, Not sure on the locations, but I believe that was the first spot we tried. On the hillsides the Mono was going nuts, so I pretty tried everything before going over to the DD Pro coil. Later in the day I was using the DD Pro and the machine was working great. I ended up finding the crystalline nugget not far from where you found your nice one near the Mercury flask. I think I had more problems directly with ground noise rather than interference. Hope this helps, Rob Allison

Hello Chris and All, I know I read some time ago on the Internet about some very pure gold found in Novich Scotia. I can't seem to find the link after an Internet search, but I know it was talking about gold being as pure as .980 fine there. I believe the location was somewhere along the Saskatchewan River. Take care, Rob Allison

Hello Denny, I actually tried the "Specific" Ground Balance on the ground in California and it didn't make a difference. I was able to get the machine to settle down with a Gain setting of 5. However, after doing some tests with the Wallaby DD Pro, I was getting much more depth with a DD and a higher gain than a mono with a very low Gain. Just having the ability to lower/raise most settings on the GPX-4000 makes it a powerful metal detector. Some places I can run settings high, other places lower. Hope you're doing well over there with your. Rob Allison

Hello Montana, I would have to agree with you. I watched the entire new GPX-4000 Factor DVD's and there is some good info. However, JP talks a lot about lower "Gains" (6-8) and higher "Motion" (Medium & Fast) settings. To be honest, I would have missed almost all the smaller gold I've found recently with those settings. I prefer to hunt with a higher Gain (10-14) and slower Motion (Very Slow or Slow) setting. I've a very slow, methodical hunter, so these settings work best for me here in Arizona. To date, I've found places where I can't hunt with a Mono on the GPX-4000 and other places I can run a Mono with max. settings! I've also noticed most of the US hunters are hunting with a higher Gain and lower Motion speed. Take care, Rob Allison