The "Prospecting" Forum

I see that there is a lot of people out there using the AT gold for relic hunting with good results , but I haven't seen any post on it as a good nugget machine , I was just wandering if someone out there has tried it out yet for prospecting ??

Well, it has a true all metal mode, it has great disc and has iron ID. The ATG is a Gold machine. Just get a nugget and do an air test, or, go to proven gold bearing areas and do a search. Not many people have ever found gold without doing a ton of hard work.

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Ray Giroux

{ If you dig it out pack it back in }


Infinium LS
Garrett AT Gold
Vibra-probe 580 (PI technology, waterproof, bulletproof - one 9v batt last forever)
Lesche trowel ---

If you think you are beaten, you are,
If you think you dare not, you don't.
If you like to win, but you think you can't,
It is almost certain you won't.

It will pick up nuggets and flakes. I tested mine on them. Using the ground balance window you can knock out bad minerals like ironstone and still pick up gold. I gave mine a trial run in the wood chips with a ground balance of 66. It picks up tiny stuff. Found 5 coins from 4 to 8 inches and I was using the 5x8coil. the 8 inch coin was a quarter. The Iron Audio is great for verifying the signal. Now I wish I could get back to gold country. Study the manual well and watch the Garrett videos.
Good Luck--Ron

Thanks for the info

I tried one against my Fisher Gold Bug 2, and the GB2 is more sensitive and has more depth.

DertNC - How can the GB2 have more depth than the ATG??? Doesn't the GB2 run at 70 Mhz - if so how can that get more depth?? More sensitive,yes - more depth????

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Ray Giroux

{ If you dig it out pack it back in }


Infinium LS
Garrett AT Gold
Vibra-probe 580 (PI technology, waterproof, bulletproof - one 9v batt last forever)
Lesche trowel ---

If you think you are beaten, you are,
If you think you dare not, you don't.
If you like to win, but you think you can't,
It is almost certain you won't.

I have used the Garrett AT Gold prospecting and found nine nuggets with it weighing a pennyweight total (about 1.5 grams). The smallest is only a few grains in weight. Most were found with the 4.5" sniper coil, which is slightly hotter on small nuggets than the stock coil, though it also gets less depth.


Nine nuggets found by Steve Herschbach with Garrett AT Gold

As Ken notes the Gold Bug 2 is hotter on small nuggets and can hit those small nuggets deeper. On larger gold that advantage is lost. The AT Gold has performance similar to many 15 kHz to 19 kHz detectors on the market if you pair them all up with a small coil. In other words I would say there is nothing remarkable about its general performance as a nugget detector, although the ground balance window is a unique feature that could prove useful in some situations.

What makes the AT Gold remarkable is that it is fully waterproof and has interchangeable coils. If somebody had asked me a couple years ago what VLF might make a good freshwater submersible detector for gold nuggets, I would have said the Tesoro Tiger Shark. But the Tiger Shark has a hard-wired coil and I do not get too excited about having to open the case to replace batteries. The AT Gold not only has interchangeable coils but a separate battery compartment and all the features one would expect of an above water detector, including a speaker. All at a ridiculously low price, though you do need the optional underwater headphones if you want to do true mask and snorkel sniping with the AT Gold. The bottom line is that much like Garrett set a new standard for how much detector you get for the money in the Ace 250, the AT series also sets new standards in what we can expect in waterproof detectors at very reasonable prices.

Finally, note that the AT Pro lacks the true all metal mode that is the main feature setting the AT Gold apart, and which I consider critical in any prospecting detector. The AT Pro is a great detector also but the AT Gold is the far better choice for prospecting.

Steve Herschbach

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Metal Detecting Since 1972 at DetectorProspector.com

Steve's Mining Journal - - Gold Prospecting & Metal Detecting "How To" Guides - - Equipment Information & Reviews - - Public Gold Prospecting & Metal Detecting Sites
Gold Mining Claims For Sale or Lease - - Steve's Guide to Gold Nugget Detectors



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/31/2012 12:17AM by steve herschbach.

Thank you for all the extra info