New Gold Bug or Gold Bug Pro :confused:

[Old Nick]

Anyone/Everyone, I'm just getting into the "sport". I have a Minelab Quattro for coins / grandson, an old Bounty hunter Sharp Shooter II that I picked up at a rummage sale for $8.00 (And it works!)

BUT,,, my favorite pastime is panning/sluicing gold. I spend 2 to 3 months each spring/summer in the Black Hills of South Dakota near Deadwood. Last year I panned a 100+ year old Chinese coin and accidentally found an 1876 Seated Liberty Dime under a square nail that I picked up on the trail to my camper. I always find some gold.... Anywhere from 1/2 to 1 1/2 ounces each trip. I know that that is Nothing,,, BUT IT'S FUN.

Well,,, over the last few years I've gone from 5 gallon buckets of screened material to run through my sluice down to 3 1/2 gal buckets, and last year I started filling them only 1/2 full. I'm just getting old I guess!! For that reason I decided to start metal detecting, but I still want to get the gold.

I have a place where I can get 1/4 gram & smaller to .41 gram flakes from a shale wall. I have to work a lot of shale to find even 1 flake, but they are nice course pieces, so it's worth it. I'd like to be able to use a detector against the face of the wall to find the bigger flakes!!

I am planning on getting a gold machine,,, either the New Gold Bug (for about $479 new) or the Gold Bug Pro (for about $649). Is the Pro worth the extra money?

How small of a flake will each machine detect??

Will the Pro be OK on coins if I use an 11" coil?

Sorry about all the history and rambling.

Old Nick

 

[Bryan V]

Nice Gold! Looks like you have a nice site to work.
Check out Steves Guide to Gold Detectors. It lists all the differences between the different models.
http://www.detectorprospector.com/gold-prospecting-guides/steve-guide-gold-nugget-detectors.htm
The Fisher F19 might be a good choice too if you want to do some coin hunting.
It performs like the Gold Bug Pro but has a few extra features to make coin hunting a little easier.
It can be bought for under $700.00 if you shop around.
Bryan

 

[dfmike]

You might want to put a WTB (want to buy in the classifieds) for either a Gold Bug Pro, F19, G2 or G2+ They come by once in awhile for much cheaper than new.
I personally find the extra options on the F19 well worth the money but I bought the detector to find relics and coins as well as gold. If you are only after gold with it, the extras might not be worth the added expense. The G2+ is the Teknetics equivalent and it has the grip handle that many prefer to swing.

 

[lytle78]

Nick - I have a new G2 still in the box. I have to use it for a planted hunt on Saturday, but then it's for sale. I'd take $400 shipped and the factory will accept you as the original owner so you get the warranty.

 

[Digger70pa]

Why wouldn't you guys suggest a gold bug II ? That's a true gold nugget machine right? If he has a coin machine already that'd be the ticket. I've heard there really hot on small gold. Justy two cents worth. HH

 

[supertraq]

Why wouldn't you guys suggest a gold bug II ? That's a true gold nugget machine right? If he has a coin machine already that'd be the ticket. I've heard there really hot on small gold. Justy two cents worth. HH

Do you count as one of the guys? If so you just told him,lol
Yes the gb2 will find tiny flakes no other machines can.
Used one should findable for under $500.00

 

[Jackpine Savage]

Gold Bug II or the Makro Gold Racer at 56Khz would be the best for those tiny flakes. The Gold racer is decently priced and comes loaded with options that make it useable for more than just gold nugget hunting. Not sure how ergonomic it would be holding it up horizontal for hunting a "wall" tho.

Tom

 

[dfmike]

Old Nick said "Will the Pro be OK on coins if I use an 11" coil? "

Because he mentioned coins, I had the impression he wanted 1 machine that could do a little of everything. I've never used a Gold Bug II but I assume that at 71 khZ, it's not a coin machine.

 

[Digger70pa]

Why wouldn't you guys suggest a gold bug II ? That's a true gold nugget machine right? If he has a coin machine already that'd be the ticket. I've heard there really hot on small gold. Justy two cents worth. HH

Do you count as one of the guys? If so you just told him,lol
Yes the gb2 will find tiny flakes no other machines can.
Used one should findable for under $500.00

I'm one of the guys lol. HH

 

[Grumpie]

+1 on the gold racer. Or I can sell you a almost brand new fors gold plus with three coils for $475

 

[Ed in SoDak]

Howdy Old Nick, You prospect about 40 miles north of where I live. Good to hear you have a site in the Black Hills that's productive year to year.

Stomping around the old mines is a favorite pastime of my wife and I, but we just don't have (or make!) the time to get out often enough. I have a CD full of old pics and history on the Black Hills and the Deadwood area. I'd enjoy sending a copy of it to you.

As to wall scanning, detach the lower shaft with coil attached and use that like a dust sweeper. Or just use the coil itself to sweep it with one hand. No need to hold the whole thing up against a rock wall if you can make it a lot lighter and easier to scan. Just keep in mind that any metal on your person will be more likely to make false signals because you'll be closer to the searchcoil.

Prop the handle and control box in one of your buckets that is weighted so it won't topple. If you weight the bucket with rocks or wet soil, protect the detector's shaft from dings with some foam pipe insulation or something and plug the end of the shaft to keep dirt out. If the cable is short, extension cables can be bought or made DIY. Then you may be able to just rest the detector on the ground while you scan an area nearby. Some machines can be removed entirely from the shaft so you can carry it on a belt or harness.

One issue might be you can only scan so deep into the wall face when the gold is small. When broken up and removed, you can scan all sides of the rocks. Small crannies and crevices might also benefit from a smaller coil and maybe a sensitive pinpointer to really sneak in there.

HH
-Ed

 

[Unknownroad]

The Gold Bug pro can be manually ground balanced and from some things I have reserached from long-time users, may be tuned to be more sensitive than the regular Gold Bug.

I have a like-new Gold Bug Pro for sale if you are interested. PM me.

 

[Rob in (Ca)]

The current 5 offerings from fisher as of 3/17

1# (Gold-bug 2) with 6 ½” or 10” Elliptical Search Coil (No Display screen) Knobs & Switch's only, Operating Frequency: 71 kHz Extreme Sensitivity to Small Gold Nuggets on a S shaft. been in production since 1995 with very little change.


#2 (Gold Bug) with 5 inch DD coil (has Large Display screen) with Large VDI Numbers, Runs at 19 KHz, Depth Readout, Continuous Ground Readout, Signal Strength Indicator, 2 Search Modes: All Metal and Discriminate, 1/4 and 1/8-Inch Headphone Jacks, Ground Grab®, Computerized Ground Balancing (NO Manual Ground Balance) 2 tone audio, Tone 1 is Iron Grunt, Tone 2 is a computerized single tone. No Volume control, No Display back light, mounts on a S Shaft.


#3 (Gold Bug Pro) with 5 inch DD Coil, Same as #2, with added (Manual Ground balance) & (Tone 2 is a VCO tone) gives more audio information on size and depth of Target.


#4 (Gold Bug Pro DP) with 11" DD elliptical coil, Exactly The Same as #3 but with 11" DD Coil (DP) stands for (deep penetration)


#5 (Fisher F-19) With 10" Elliptical coil, Same as # 3 with added 2 tone Volume control, VDI Notch, Adjustable back light

 

[Talvez]

The Gold Bug pro can be manually ground balanced and from some things I have reserached from long-time users, may be tuned to be more sensitive than the regular Gold Bug.

I have a like-new Gold Bug Pro for sale if you are interested. PM me.

I'm sorry, I'm a noob. I am interested in the GB Pro. How do I PM you?

 

[coast40]

The Gold Bug pro can be manually ground balanced and from some things I have reserached from long-time users, may be tuned to be more sensitive than the regular Gold Bug.

I have a like-new Gold Bug Pro for sale if you are interested. PM me.

I'm sorry, I'm a noob. I am interested in the GB Pro. How do I PM you?

You have to have a certain number of posts to send and receive PMs.