Hello, my name is Jess and i was wanting to buy a mine lab 305 as my first detector ever. However I don't want to blow my money. I want to know what is the prospecting mode on the 705, and what dose it do? Would the 305 be safe in a highly minerlized ground, or would it just go crazy and beep at ever thing? I just don't hear a bunch about the 305 and its prospecting ability's. I would like to see the difference in the field. Just wanting some helpful info on the 305. I'm sure its a good one for coins and relics, but how about prospecting. Finlay, could it block out or discriminate some of the iron since it don't have a iron mask? Well I would appreciate any helpful feedback. And may your adventures be fun.
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Mine lab 305 is it any good at prospecting?
- Thread starter Jessgo33
- Start date
I have an X-Terra 70 so I do not know exactly about the 305, but I will tell you that in the Coin & Treasure Mode(discrimination mode) it can be run to eliminate hotrocks, all mineralization, iron mineraization, and iron junk-trash running very stable and will pick up about 1/2 gram and bigger gold nuggets just fine but with less depth than Prospecting Mode which it does not have.
Coin & Treasure Mode(discrimination mode): When detecting goldfield areas thick with junk, its best to sacrifice the tiny nuggets and select a coin mode where the discriminator will reject all iron and aluminum foil. At least it will pick up bits of gold as big as this letter O or bigger.
About the 30:
Xterra 30
Is a very simple to use and the most powerful in its class of coin-jewelry detector but forget about it for the goldfields as it has no ground balance control to reject mineralization. The discriminator works well in rejecting junk but is not as good as the Xterra 50 or 70. This is a suitable detector for those on a low budget and do not expect to detect on the goldfields. Its great for kids too.
To be honest, as a first choice get a Whites GMZ if you want the cheapest price and very easiest to operate gold prospecting metal detector. Or look at a cheaper second hand-used metal detector to save costs is the way to go. Like a Teknetics T2, Tesoro Lobo SuperTraq, Tesoro Eldorado, Tesoro Vaquero(inexpensive and very lightest weight), Whites GMT, GM3, or MXT, Minelab GT or FT 16000, XT-17000 or 18000, Eureka Gold, or X-Terra 70 in only the VLF units. I found gold with a Compass Gold Scanner that are no longer made. I do not recommend a Fisher Gold Bug for a newby because you will not be looking for micro sized gold and it is harder to tune.
Also you must use a DD coil on a VLF, at least 5 kHz to 7.5 kHz, but preferrably 10 kHz to 20 kHz is better. The GMZ and GMT are at about 50 kHz.
Then there are also Pulse Induction units that are deeper but very expensive. Hope this helps.
Coin & Treasure Mode(discrimination mode): When detecting goldfield areas thick with junk, its best to sacrifice the tiny nuggets and select a coin mode where the discriminator will reject all iron and aluminum foil. At least it will pick up bits of gold as big as this letter O or bigger.
About the 30:
Xterra 30
Is a very simple to use and the most powerful in its class of coin-jewelry detector but forget about it for the goldfields as it has no ground balance control to reject mineralization. The discriminator works well in rejecting junk but is not as good as the Xterra 50 or 70. This is a suitable detector for those on a low budget and do not expect to detect on the goldfields. Its great for kids too.
To be honest, as a first choice get a Whites GMZ if you want the cheapest price and very easiest to operate gold prospecting metal detector. Or look at a cheaper second hand-used metal detector to save costs is the way to go. Like a Teknetics T2, Tesoro Lobo SuperTraq, Tesoro Eldorado, Tesoro Vaquero(inexpensive and very lightest weight), Whites GMT, GM3, or MXT, Minelab GT or FT 16000, XT-17000 or 18000, Eureka Gold, or X-Terra 70 in only the VLF units. I found gold with a Compass Gold Scanner that are no longer made. I do not recommend a Fisher Gold Bug for a newby because you will not be looking for micro sized gold and it is harder to tune.
Also you must use a DD coil on a VLF, at least 5 kHz to 7.5 kHz, but preferrably 10 kHz to 20 kHz is better. The GMZ and GMT are at about 50 kHz.
Then there are also Pulse Induction units that are deeper but very expensive. Hope this helps.
Hey Jess, welcome to this wonderful hobby and the X-Terra forum. With research, patience and a little luck, you'll find more than you ever thought possible!
Any of the X-terras are capable of rejecting the notch segments that represent ferrous targets such as iron. The X-Terra 305 will work fine in highly mineralized ground, if you adjust it properly. Noise Cancel, Ground Phase, Sensitivity, Threshold etc. Just keep in mind the 505 and 705 offer more options for each of those settings, making them a bit more "refined" for specific applications.
As far as Prospecting, the 305 would not be my first choice. As you said, it is a good choice for coins and relics. And the ability to use the higher 18.75 kHz coil could help find nuggets. But if I were serious about buying a detector specifically for Prospecting, I'd be shopping for a detector that was designed for that purpose. A few things I'd look if I were in the market for a Prospecting detector would be the ability to electronically adjust to highly mineralized ground, DD coil options, iron mask and/or variable ferrous discrimination. If, however, I wanted a detector that I could use both as a coin/jewelry detector as well as a nugget hunter, it would be the X-Terra 705. JMHO HH Randy
Any of the X-terras are capable of rejecting the notch segments that represent ferrous targets such as iron. The X-Terra 305 will work fine in highly mineralized ground, if you adjust it properly. Noise Cancel, Ground Phase, Sensitivity, Threshold etc. Just keep in mind the 505 and 705 offer more options for each of those settings, making them a bit more "refined" for specific applications.
As far as Prospecting, the 305 would not be my first choice. As you said, it is a good choice for coins and relics. And the ability to use the higher 18.75 kHz coil could help find nuggets. But if I were serious about buying a detector specifically for Prospecting, I'd be shopping for a detector that was designed for that purpose. A few things I'd look if I were in the market for a Prospecting detector would be the ability to electronically adjust to highly mineralized ground, DD coil options, iron mask and/or variable ferrous discrimination. If, however, I wanted a detector that I could use both as a coin/jewelry detector as well as a nugget hunter, it would be the X-Terra 705. JMHO HH Randy
It's only a big investment if you don't use it. Once you get it, and find those first few nuggets, you'll forget all about that "upfront cash". If the 705 is a bit more than you planned to spend, you might consider a good used X-Terra 70 for less money. And, getting a good used X-70 could save you enough $$ that you could get the additional coil(s) you would find useful in Prospecting. JMHO HH Randy
croakersmoker78
Member
that's what i want to know about the 505 how is it for jewelry
croakersmoker78
Member
is the 505 good for rings and jewelry I'm not looking for gold nuggets just coins and jewelry and relics
I will ues it defentley, they found a 54 lb nugget about 20 minutes from my houes in the 1800's and Iv been itching to walk the river bed were they found it. I havent seen anyone use a metal detector at all around here. Im wanting to be the first to find a 1/4 ozer. well tks. Anymore info about the 305 would help.
TURNMASTER
Active member
If you know for sure you will be prospecting then buy a gold machine! If you will also be coin/relic hunting then buy a dual purpose machine.
Go to the FAQ/FAQ and look for the posts about prospecting from B.T. and read them. Very good info. He says the 70/705 will hit on gold that other machins simply miss.
If you have no intententions of coin hunting then buy a gold machine. I got a 705 so that I could do both. Because I knew when I purchaced it, I would do both.
Be realistic about what your needs and desires are in a metal detector and in yourself. Don't overspend but don't underspend either. If you spend to little you may find that you like the hobby and need a more capable machine. That is how I came into the hobby. If you buy a better machine and it collects dust instead of gold or silver you will probably not be happy. Better machine will likley mean longer learning curve, but that is OK.
Either way keep in mind that if it was easy, then everybody would be doing it.
I vote Xterra 70/705 used if possible and with extra coils. It should run there. Also ask some locals what they use, or works in your area. Tesoro Lobo and GMT get some good reports.
Hope this helps some
Good luck, See ya in Trinity
Jeff
Go to the FAQ/FAQ and look for the posts about prospecting from B.T. and read them. Very good info. He says the 70/705 will hit on gold that other machins simply miss.
If you have no intententions of coin hunting then buy a gold machine. I got a 705 so that I could do both. Because I knew when I purchaced it, I would do both.
Be realistic about what your needs and desires are in a metal detector and in yourself. Don't overspend but don't underspend either. If you spend to little you may find that you like the hobby and need a more capable machine. That is how I came into the hobby. If you buy a better machine and it collects dust instead of gold or silver you will probably not be happy. Better machine will likley mean longer learning curve, but that is OK.
Either way keep in mind that if it was easy, then everybody would be doing it.
I vote Xterra 70/705 used if possible and with extra coils. It should run there. Also ask some locals what they use, or works in your area. Tesoro Lobo and GMT get some good reports.
Hope this helps some
Good luck, See ya in Trinity
Jeff