Stream prospecting tips and gear

[questaur]

Hi All
This is my first post and question;
I want to go prospecting in permitted streams in gold country with my new XTerra 705, with stock 9"CC and Elliptical DD.
If I get a signal from some rocks in the water, what should I do with the XT, so I can dig and poke?
Any other tips on useful gear would be much appreciated.
The forum has already answered many other questions; thanks.

 

[Digger]

Welcome to the forum. Glad to hear we've already been able to answer some of your questions. As to the coils, the 9-inch concentrics are all waterproof. So no worries about getting them soaked in the streams. However, the elliptical coil is rated as "water resistant" and steps should be taken before submersing it. Some folks have found it beneficial to run a bead of silicon sealant around the lip where the coil cover meets the coil, as well as placing some on the connection where the coil enters the cable. With the waterproof coils, you can submerge them the length of the rods. But DO NOT get the housing wet. The detector housing is NOT water proof or water resistant. Getting any water in there will likely damage the electronics. One thing that some folks don't consider is raising the coil up in the air, and allowing water to run down the rod, toward the housing. The design of the X-TERRA (with the housing mounted to the grip) is not as succeptible to water infiltration in that manner as some of the detectors whose housing is mounted directly to the upper rod. But still be cautious to not get any water near the housing. If you are going to be using both hands to "dig and poke" around in the stream, you might consider some sort of harness that connects to your upper body and keeps the detector dry. I'd also suggest placing the control housing in a zip lock bag and seal it as well as possible. It won't make it waterproof or allow you to dunk the detector. But any protection you can provide may keep some drips, drops or splashing water from ruining your dectector. Frankly, with the cost of detector gear, if I were wading in a small stream and got a signal I wanted to investigate, I'd probably mark the spot with a spade or rod, go lay my detector on the bank where it is out of harm's way, and go back and investigate the target signal with one of the waterproof electronic probes that are available. One that is fully waterproof that I've found works well with the X-TERRA is the Vibra-Probe 580. If you have a problem sorting out some of the small pieces of (hopefully) gold, scoop up a bucketful and pan it out. Best of luck to you and let us know how those streams work out for you. JMHO HH Randy

 

[TURNMASTER]

You will likley be working with one hand. Or... you will come up with an inovative technique which you may share with the rest of us.

Good luck
Jeff

 

[Terra1959]

I would say get the 6" HF DD coil if u can ...its waterproof I think
Try a simple lanyard ( I made one from a long boot shoelace) around your neck and under one arm tied to the detector in case u slip and drop it...or a harness as Digger suggested
Get a long handled shovel with a rounded small head ...rounded off trenching shovels work ok
Have something to shovel straight into like a basin/bucket.
Happy prospecting

T59

 

[David]

With the 705, you've chose wisely one of the very best metal detectors for land, but in a stream you may also consider buying a Minelab Excalibur II detector as the housing is fully submersable waterproof and it has very good strong disrimination, but with no TID meter. It is used by ocean water hunters to find gold jewelry at the beach and underwater so it will be fine to find gold nuggets about 1 gram and bigger is maybe all you want. But it will not find the micro subgram-grain sized gold that the 705 will find. The other option is a waterproof machine that is a bit deeper than the 705 and Exc. II being a PI, the Garrett Infinium LS(both DD and Mono coils for it) but it has very poor trash discrimination is its disadvantage.

Otherwise use the waterproof 6" and 9" coils on your 705. The rest are only water resistant and as Randy(Digger) instructed how to water-proof these coils with silicone(or Lexel is better).

Also the round 10.5" HF DD is also a good 'gold' coil, some use the MF version.

If you get too many trash targets in Prospecting Mode in All Metal(AM), then try the Iron Mask(IM) set at various levels to experiment on different sizes of iron targets like nails seeing where they blank out, set at 1 which some people use for gold nuggets, factory preset 5, then try maximum at 20. Also see what sizes of gold you can tolerate to lose(blank out) at what levels.

Someone said the 705's new Off-Set Tracking(not on the 70 which I have) helped with hotrocks, I do not know whether he set the Off-Set at + or - , so get a hotrock from your area and test it for yourself at home.

If all else fails and the hotrocks and/or ground is still too way too noisy then hunt for gold nuggets in C & T Mode in All Metal(AM), or block-out all the negative numbers -8 to -2 and also +48(hot rocks) in a custom pattern to look for gold nuggets.

Set the Sensitivity setting to suit the ground in either Mode, the higher the better. There you are!

 

[questaur]

Thanks to all for suggestions for equipment for stream hunting - lots of fuel for further research.
So far, I have decided to look into prices for the 6"DDHF coil as the 9" may be less manageable in running current/tight spots. The Vibra Probe 580 looks an ideal companion wet or dry, but I can't find an Aussie stockist (yet). Am still working on harness ideas and will report when further advanced.
Thanks again all!

 

[nugget71]

I have had good success with the 6" DD coil in small shallow streams. Totally waterproof this coil is fantastic for this purpose. It gets in and around rocks well enough and is not big and bulky like some of the other coils. I also wrap a plastic bag around the electronics just in case I do happen to goof up and slip my detector into the water by accident. Another good idea is a bungy cord from your machine which acts like a harness so your detector dangles from your waist when you want your hands free. All metal is the main mode I use when hunting in water as I want to miss nothing when it comes to targets. Its amazing what people loose in the water and what mother earth can offer. I use a very long flat head screw driver with a magnet when digging for targets and shifting rocks. I also use wet suit shoes for good grip and protection from unwanted objects that may cut or damage your feet. Hope this helps.
Cheers!