New Zealand Gold Prospecting & Metal Detecting Forums Archive

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Has anyone upgraded and want to sell their old MD? - A potential newbie looking to get started

ShoreScot		Posted : Tuesday, 29 January 2013 8:55:12 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Nugget Groups: Registered Joined: 29/01/2013(UTC) Posts: 33 Location: North Shore Thanks: 16 times Was thanked: 5 time(s) in 5 post(s)		Hi folks, I've been lurking around for a while trying to figure out what kind of gear I need. I see that the norm seems to be starting with a less powerful machine before up-grading. Has anyone done this and is prepared to sell their older model? I'm hoping to get an established brand i.e. perhaps something akin to a Fisher F4. I'm asking on this forum because I know that you are all serious MD'ers and not someone who'd be looking to sell a piece of junk. If I have no joy, I'll bite the bullet and buy something brand new when I can afford it, but I'd rather get started now. Reading some of your websites has gotten me extremely keen to take up this hobby.

kiwisouth		Posted : Tuesday, 29 January 2013 10:11:09 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Medals: Groups: Registered Joined: 3/04/2010(UTC) Posts: 326 Location: Blenheim (Renwick) Thanks: 39 times Was thanked: 105 time(s) in 83 post(s)		Gidday Phil from the Te Tahi detector Club in Auckland is selling s whites Spectrum XLT and a Minelab Sovereign. They are his old machines before he upgraded. The Sov does not normally come with a screen but I can personally vouch that it is a bloooody good machine to learn the sounds different targets make. The next club meeting is Tues 5 Feb 7.30 pm at the Ellerslie War Memorial Hall. His number is 09 535 8887. A thoroughly nice bloke. Have fun looking around but if you get together with anyone at the club, they will help you a well as the fine folks on here. Cheers
		Nulli Illigitimi Carborundum
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ocarlier		Posted : Tuesday, 29 January 2013 11:40:12 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Flake Groups: Registered Joined: 31/07/2012(UTC) Posts: 11 Location: Massey East Thanks: 2 times Was thanked: 3 time(s) in 3 post(s)		Hi ShoreScot, Over the past few months I have been getting into this a little more seriously; I don't really have the experience to make recommendations on models other than what I own, but would recommend getting something of reasonable quality that fits your budget. I found using my Fisher F2 was a real blast at the beach, however paranoid that it wasn't water tight, no headphones (the speaker gobbles the expensive 9v batteries up) and small search coil made for a far less optimal experience relative to that in which my Fisher F75's has given me in this short time. That said, maybe there is a little bit of a hoarder in me that wants to keep the F2 for the rare opportunity I just happen to pass an ideal hunting ground unintentionally whilst driving somewhere and don't have anything else packed. Following on from the paranoia of not owning a waterproof detector, my search started a few weeks ago for something to accompany my collection (last one, I promised myself) - the following site was a great help choosing primarily due to the comparison function, and actually led me to a detector that was more suitable than the other ideas I had before doing so... http://metal-detectors.findthebest.com/ If you’re interested in my story [keep reading], I ended up ordering the Garrett Infinium LS (that arrived today from overseas, sorry Sheng of Tactical NZ) - was within my budget, the best fit in terms of versatility for the types of hunting I plan on doing and as advised by others on this forum (which I think is really only relevant when getting into higher end models) appears to be the only one in the local area of detectorists - which hopefully nets finds other detectors can't pick up, the same applicable in reverse, mine missing targets they can detect. [EDIT] One other factor taken into consideration was the type of detector, already owning a VLF machine, to me seemed logical to fill in the other side of the spectrum by getting a Pulse Induction one ;) Wow that turned into a big reply! Cheers, Olly Edited by user Tuesday, 29 January 2013 11:47:32 PM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified
		Fisher F2, Fisher F75 LE and Garrett Infinium LS

digger		Posted : Friday, 22 February 2013 1:49:50 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Nugget Groups: Registered Joined: 13/09/2012(UTC) Posts: 40 Location: Wellington Thanks: 14 times Was thanked: 3 time(s) in 3 post(s)		Originally Posted by: ShoreScot Hi folks, I've been lurking around for a while trying to figure out what kind of gear I need. I see that the norm seems to be starting with a less powerful machine before up-grading. Has anyone done this and is prepared to sell their older model? I'm hoping to get an established brand i.e. perhaps something akin to a Fisher F4. I'm asking on this forum because I know that you are all serious MD'ers and not someone who'd be looking to sell a piece of junk. If I have no joy, I'll bite the bullet and buy something brand new when I can afford it, but I'd rather get started now. Reading some of your websites has gotten me extremely keen to take up this hobby. Welcome to the forum, So where are you hoping to hunt mostly ? Say for example if you were mainly interested in parks and camp grounds then the Vlf (single frequency detectors will work nicely) If you are thinking of beaches then maybe any multi frequency machine will be a better idea. Sure a single frequency may work well in the sand, so long as the mineral levels are low (or there is a lack of black sand ) and the sand is dry. I tried my At-pro at Paraparamu Beach (Wellington) and the thing went nuts. Had to back sensitivity back to 2 bars and discriminate out to 35. If you want to use a single frequency detector at the beach, try searching "always parallel to the water line" for as you move closer to the sea with a Vlf ( if hunting in highly mineralised sands) it may become unstable again and require a ground balance again. I was thinking of selling my At-Pro but cant sell it yet as the coil ( it's Achilles heel ) has naffed out so it is falsifying all the time and, sounds like a banshee. Will have to order another one(Maybe an aftermarket one). But I have not heard anything bad about the Fishers or the Sov Gt's
		Current; (Garrett pinpointer), Fisher, Whites, (Old)Minelab. Previous; GC1009, Bounty Hunter 505, Gta-x 1000, AT-Pro
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oroplata		Posted : Friday, 22 February 2013 2:41:03 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered, Moderators Joined: 16/06/2011(UTC) Posts: 1,040 Location: Christchurch Thanks: 23 times Was thanked: 211 time(s) in 152 post(s)		Originally Posted by: digger I was thinking of selling my At-Pro but cant sell it yet as the coil ( it's Achilles heel ) has naffed out so it is falsifying all the time and, sounds like a banshee. Have you been using the coil in water? I used my GTI2500 oil in water once, and the day after it was falsing like there was no tomorrow. I left the coil outside in the direct sunlight for a day, and that appears to have fixed it. So give it a try.
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creamer		Posted : Saturday, 23 February 2013 8:41:33 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Medals: Groups: Registered Joined: 19/06/2011(UTC) Posts: 2,022 Location: Bay of Islands Thanks: 2289 times Was thanked: 525 time(s) in 391 post(s)		Originally Posted by: ShoreScot Reading some of your websites has gotten me extremely keen to take up this hobby. Same, I blame this forum for my uncontrolable addiction to metal detecting. .
		Garrett Ace 350 Xpointer www.nzfossickers.co.nz
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expat		Posted : Saturday, 23 February 2013 9:29:50 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 26/03/2012(UTC) Posts: 499 Location: Rangiora Thanks: 49 times Was thanked: 91 time(s) in 76 post(s)		I will certainly be selling my F4 soon but probably not within your time frame. Would really like to hold on to it till around April ish if poss.
		My greatest fear is that when I die my wife will sell my collection for what I told her it cost me.

Shilo		Posted : Saturday, 23 February 2013 9:30:45 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Medals: Groups: Registered Joined: 29/01/2011(UTC) Posts: 573 Location: Kawhia Thanks: 17 times Was thanked: 285 time(s) in 185 post(s)		Originally Posted by: oroplata Originally Posted by: digger I was thinking of selling my At-Pro but cant sell it yet as the coil ( it's Achilles heel ) has naffed out so it is falsifying all the time and, sounds like a banshee. Have you been using the coil in water? I used my GTI2500 oil in water once, and the day after it was falsing like there was no tomorrow. I left the coil outside in the direct sunlight for a day, and that appears to have fixed it. So give it a try. The AT Pro has a waterproof coil. It is solidly epoxy filled and works well in the water. The going nuts at Paraparaumu would have been from the black sands of the beach. Extreme mineralisation like this will effect all VLF detectors whether single or multi frequency, for a single frequency machine the AT Pro works well on a "white sand" salt water beach. If the coil is falsing on land then I suggest contacting Garrett and sending it in - is the machine still under warranty?
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Guardian		Posted : Saturday, 23 February 2013 10:32:05 AM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 30/10/2011(UTC) Posts: 716 Location: Dunedin Thanks: 42 times Was thanked: 222 time(s) in 185 post(s)		That is true Garrett Warranty is very good, Also remember a New Coil is about NZ$155 landed. Might also be best to see if someone local can try your coil or you try someone elses coil to confirm the fault. Edited by user Saturday, 23 February 2013 10:32:43 AM(UTC) \| Reason: Not specified

ShoreScot		Posted : Saturday, 23 February 2013 2:23:07 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Nugget Groups: Registered Joined: 29/01/2013(UTC) Posts: 33 Location: North Shore Thanks: 16 times Was thanked: 5 time(s) in 5 post(s)		Well, I have now bought a machine from TM - just can't wait to get my mitts on it. A Fisher Gold Bug DP.

mossline		Posted : Monday, 18 March 2013 4:54:20 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Dust Groups: Registered Joined: 6/09/2012(UTC) Posts: 6 Location: Liverpool		So how is your gold bug DP? What have you found so far??
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ShoreScot		Posted : Monday, 18 March 2013 5:26:29 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Nugget Groups: Registered Joined: 29/01/2013(UTC) Posts: 33 Location: North Shore Thanks: 16 times Was thanked: 5 time(s) in 5 post(s)		Originally Posted by: mossline So how is your gold bug DP? What have you found so far?? So far I've been searching really trashy areas, and figured out how difficult life was without a pro-pointer. About $9 in spendables, an 1891 penny and, ummmm lots and lots of crap. But I've gotten addicted, so when the cool stuff turns up I'll get posting.

sycotoad		Posted : Sunday, 24 March 2013 7:38:54 PM(UTC)
Rank: Gold Ingot Groups: Registered Joined: 9/08/2012(UTC) Posts: 569 Location: downunder Thanks: 120 times Was thanked: 126 time(s) in 97 post(s)		"I was thinking of selling my At-Pro but cant sell it yet as the coil ( it's Achilles heel ) has naffed out so it is falsifying all the time and, sounds like a banshee. Will have to order another one(Maybe an aftermarket one). But I have not heard anything bad about the Fishers or the Sov Gt's" Hi - I see you have had a coil issue with the AT Pro for quite a while - Have you contacted Garrett regarding your coil? - I have heard great things with their customer service - Also the only bad thing I have heard about the Fishers/Teknetics - are that some of the 11" DD coils don't appear to be waterproof as leakage can occur at the coils heal - If you do get stuck regarding testing your AT Pro's coil, I could send you my one up (coil) to confirm whether or not its just the coil - Just PM me
		Makro - Nokta - deteknix - GoldFinder
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