Is Gold as detectable as Silver, Aluminum, Copper or Iron?

[AVXVA]

1) Being as noble as it is, gold doesn't form a mineralization/oxidation aura like other metals. When you detect a long buried, high Au content object, there is no mineralization/oxidation surrounding it (at all.) On the other hand, with a long buried Fe object, (as we all know,) the dirt in the surrounding area will resonate and magnify the electromagnetic field generated by the detector. Cu and Ag will do the same. But with gold, it's like the object was buried inside a plastic bag, the metal does not react or interact with the surrounding soil whatsoever.

2) Gold is also so very dense. I suspect the electromagnetic energy required to energize it far surpasses aluminum. The reason why Al is so loud and powerful in the ground may have something to do with Al oxidation, but more probably with a low metallic densitity that rings at low energy levels and positively sings at high ones.

3) Gold is noble and dense. Does this mean it's harder to detect at depth? (Any large coin sized Au object buried 3" deep will be detected, but how about 10" to 12" deep?

Thoughts?

I've never detected a 22 carat Au object in the wild. I would be very interested in hearing from people who have. How is highly conductive Au different than Ag or Cu in the wild?

Bronc

 

[NebTrac]

The only two gold items I've found with the E-Trac were a man's wedding ring and a F.O.E. pin. The man's ring was just a simple band and the only marking was "Solid Gold" on the inside, so I assume 24 carat. It came in right at a nickle (12-13) at about 4 inches.

The F.O.E. pin is about the size of a dime and came in at 12-06 (.22 short casing). I probably wouldn't have dug that in a park, but it was in a field.

So I would say the smaller the gold the lower the Co numbers. I am surmising that the larger gold would go up on the Co. numbers. I know I've seen E-Trackers find gold class rings with Co's. up in the 30's.

NebTrac

 

[sprchng]

Size matters to a point but don't overlook the factor of purity. It's the elements that gold is alloyed with that lower the conductivity readings. Gold is not only highly conductive it is also highly resistant to corrosion(noble) which is why it's often used for the electrical connectors while wire and solder are often made of copper and silver for economics. A large nearly pure (90%) gold coin like a kruggerand will scream at 12-44 on an etrac and air test out to a foot.

 

[david bull]

I would have to say,that because gold falls on such a wide spectrum of vdi numbers,it's not that we aren't hearing gold signals,it's more likely we are simply ignoring them,since the same signals also cover trash.If all gold had its own vdi,like a nickel(12-13),we would be digging gold everyday.

 

[Dale(Ia)]

I would have to say,that because gold falls on such a wide spectrum of vdi numbers,it's not that we aren't hearing gold signals,it's more likely we are simply ignoring them,since the same signals also cover trash.If all gold had its own vdi,like a nickel(12-13),we would be digging gold everyday.

Exactly! You hit the nail on the head!!

Iowa Dale

 

[AVXVA]

I went out and did a depth test with a NEL ‘BIG’ (15” x 17”) coil. The target was a long buried 12” diameter iron (Fe) pipe buried 63” (5’ 3”) below the surface of the ground. Soil conditions were abnormally dry.

The E-Trac was set up as follows:

Sensitivity: Manual 22 –> 30
Threshold Level 13
Volume Limit 8
Volume Gain 30 << !!
Response Long
No. of Tones 1 << !!
Sounds Conduct, alternating with Ferrous
Variability 1
Limits 30
Recovery Deep Off << !!
Recovery Fast On
Trash Density On
Ground Neutral
Noise Cancel 2
Pinpoint Sizing

On Conduct, with Sensitivity set to 25, the E-Trac detected the pipe. On Pinpoint Mode, detection was solid and consistent. On Conduct/26, detection was consistent and repeatable, and the Ferrous/Conduct numbers were accurate and solid.

On Ferrous, with Sensitivity set to 22, the E-Trac detected the pipe. On Pinpoint Mode, detection was solid and consistent. On Ferrous/23, detection was consistent and repeatable, but Ferrous/Conduct numbers were unreliable and bouncing.

However: on Conduct, AUTO +3 (Sensitivity = 25) the E-Trac failed to detected the pipe. On Ferrous, AUTO +3 (Sensitivity = 25) the E-Trac failed to detected the pipe. On Pinpoint Mode, detection was solid and consistent.

Set on Multi, Conduct and Ferrous, Variability 24, Manual 27, the E-Trac failed to detect the pipe. On 28, it barely detected it, and it took 30 to reliably detect it.

VLF detectors are exquisitely sensitive to long-buried iron (Fe) and the E-Trac is especially powerful in this regard. For maximum depth on iron, the E-Trac should be set to the above settings, and Conduct is slightly deeper and more reliable on everything except iron. Also, the Noise Cancel feature DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO DEPTH. In my tests, 1 and 2 are the deepest on EVERYTHING. (1 is sometime unavailable because of EMI.)

Bronc

 

[AVXVA]

Question: Is lead (Pb) a reasonable substitute for gold in a ground test. My plan would be to melt 10 pounds of lead into an ingot, paint it (so it will not oxidize), and bury it at various depths. A freshly buried lead ingot would replicate the nobility of gold (no halo). Lead is a little more than 1/2 as dense as gold, but that's still much better than anything else, like copper. And it's on the 11/12 line with moderately high Conduct numbers.

Anyone?

Bronc