Hey Andy! A question about the Xterra 70 and gold.

[willy]

It doesn't seem like anybody has addressed this question, and (for me at least) it's a major one in a detector (I prospect). Have you, or anyone else tested it to see just how small of a gold target it can see (preferably a nugget)? There are a lot of detectors out there that people say "are very sensitive to gold", but they are usually talking about rings 'n such. How 'bout bits that weigh less than a grain? For example, an MXT with the 5x10" DD coil can find stuff down to 1/3 grain when running in max boost and Hypersat (which is how I was hunting) in heavily mineralized soil. Can the X70 match or better this? How does the prospecting mode handle wildly fluctuating mineralization? Also, how does the 0 disc. mode compare to the prospecting mode? I'll be looking for a chip chaser as a backup for my Infinium on my claims and am waffling between getting a GMT, an LST, or something else. The GMT would find the smallest stuff, but has no disc. Thing is, some detectors with a lower frequency than the GMT/GB2 can come mighty close in small gold performance. I'm thinking about the MXT & Troy X5, to name 2. So, if the X70 can better these detectors it might be just the ticket. I really don't care if people get ticked off about a comparison between these and other detectors, I'm just interested in results, not egos. Think you can help? That's about it for now. ...Willy.

 

[Andy Sabisch]

Willy,

Let me preface my answer by saying that while I have done a lot of prospecting over the years, where I currently am living, gold prospecting is not a big possibility in terms of finding much in terms of size. Yes, gold was first found here near Charlotte and I'm sure others have found nuggets, but I had enough other testing requirements that needed ot done for coins, relics and ocean beaches to really spend a lot of time in the woods looking for that rice-sized piece of gold.

With that said, I have a fair amount of gold to test and did so with the X-70 . . . both natural nuggets and tiny jewelry pieces such as ear ring backs. When Minelab developed the Prospecting mode on the X-70, they used the Eureka Ace as a benchmark. Obviously it does not replace the Eureka but it can keep up with it in the field. The HF elliptical coil was extremely hot on small gold . . . . as good as other sub $2,000 gold detectors I have used before.

As far as the Ferrous reject capabilities, that is what they have called IRON MASK. So, for those of you that thought IM did the same as on the Explorer's, sorry . . . . it only works in the Prospecting mode and allows for some ferrous discrimination to be used if needed with the understanding that as it is increased, some small gold will more than likely be lost.

Do I think the X-70 is a potent gold detector? Based on the abbreviated testing I did locally, it looks like it should be a powerful dual-purpose detector where you can switch from one to the other with one touch pad.

This is one aspect that you guys (and gals) on the west coast, Alaska and elsewhere who have access to the gold fields will have to report on . . . .

If you want some photos of the nuggets I tested and what depth they were detected at let me know and I can try to get something up tonight.

Andy Sabisch

 

[willy]

Thanks for answering Andy. The photos would be great. You mentioned a HF elliptical coil for the X70... any idea as to the release date on it and possible price? I mention this because, for prospecting purposes, a HF concentric coil would be next to useless (at least where I hunt) and that's what I'd be using it for. I suppose that the X70 would only come with the mid-frquency coil as stock, as this so or do dealers/customers have a choice. It would be nice to have the lowest freq. coil for coins & such and the highest (DD .. it is a DD isn't it?) for gold & low conductors. ...Willy.

 

[Andy Sabisch]

Joe DeMarco has said he would give buyers a choice if the coil they wanted was available and swap then stock coil out with the one they wanted for a specific application - not sure if anyone else is doing that.

They do have a HF Concentric coil that looks like the stock coil . . . I was referring to a test coil which is an elliptical DD HF coil . . .

Andy

 

[willy]

I'm a big fan of DD elliptical coils. They're really nice for getting between rocks whilst prospecting. I've seen some people nuggetshooting with round coils and often they're 4-5" (sometimes more) than the elliptical coils... goodbye small nuggets. Another beautiful thing about DD coils is not needing to use the pinpoint feature like with a concentric. Just quickly drag the coil back while wiggling and it's under the tip. This is especially useful when hunting in confined areas where sometimes only the tip can be fitted in. As an aside, how aggressive is the ground tracking? Does it track positive or neutral? Is it risistant to tracking onto iron or tracking out small targets? I know it's a lot of questions, but hopefully germane and informative to others. ..Willy.

 

[alaskaseeker]

Who finds the first one in Alaska will be determined by whether or not how successful I am in distracting Steve H long enuff to grab it and run, if not the honor will be his..... LOL.....HH...Geo

 

[richs]

We will be watching for some tests once the snow clears here a bit in the 'Great White North'.... Enjoy all your insights.
...best...Rich in Rocky