THE BASICS OF METAL DETECTING
A hobby metal detector is intended for locating buried metal objects. When searching for metals, underground or on the surface, you have the following challenges and objectives:
1. Ignoring signals caused by ground minerals.
2. Ignoring signals caused by metal objects that you do not want to find, like pull-tabs.
3. Identifying a buried metal object before you dig it up.
4. Estimating the size and depth of objects to facilitate digging them up.
5. Eliminating the effects of electromagnetic interference from other electronic devices.
Your Gold Bug metal detector is designed with these things in mind.
1. Ground Minerals
All soils contain minerals. Signals from ground minerals can interfere with the signals from metal objects you want to find. All soils differ, and can differ greatly, in the type and amount of ground minerals present. You therefore want to calibrate the detector to the specific ground conditions where you are hunting. The detector incorporates automated ground balancing which will eliminate false signals from most types of soils. To maximize the detector’s target identification accuracy and depth of detection, use the GROUND GRAB (GG) function to calibrate the detector to the ground where you are searching. See the section on GROUND
BALANCING for details.
The Basics continued on next page
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GOLD PROSPECTING
Because most gold nuggets are tiny, and are usually found in soil which is high in iron oxide minerals, serious gold prospecting requires a detector with high sensitivity and true ground balanced All Metal operation. Run the machine with the sensitivity high enough to hear some noise from ground minerals, and learn the language of the sounds you hear. Headphones are recommended unless consideration for safety (for instance rattlesnakes) rules them out. Move the searchcoil slowly and deliberately, carefully controlling its height above the ground to minimize noise from iron minerals in the soil. If you hear ground noise, your GND BAL setting could be a bit off, so perform the ground balancing procedure again. As you walk even a very short distance, ground conditions can change. The ground geology typically associated with gold will tend to change over very short distances.
The Fe
3
O
4 bar graph indicates the amount of iron mineralization in the soil. In most gold fields, especially alluvial (placer) deposits, gold tends to be associated with iron minerals, especially magnetite black sand. If you know this to be the case in the area you're working, you can maximize your gold recovery by concentrating your effort on areas where the bar graph indicates higher amounts of iron mineralization.
Gold prospectors are mostly a friendly bunch, and willing to spend some time showing a beginner how to increase his odds of finding the yellow stuff. Many will invite you to search on their claims (if they have any) once they get to know you. In some gold areas, a lot of the terrain is under claim, so you need to learn how to recognize posted claims and stay off of them unless you have the claim owner's permission. Prospecting clubs such as the Gold Prospector
Association of America (GPAA) often own claims which are open to its members and sponsor group outings to productive gold prospecting areas.
It’s a thrilling experience to dig into the ground and pull out a precious piece of yellow metal that you are the first person on earth to see. If you love being outdoors, have patience, and can stay motivated by the prospect of finding that next nugget, then beeping for gold may be the hobby for you. While only a few get rich prospecting, if you are not among them, think of it as outdoor recreation where your finds defray the expense of having fun!
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