What detector would be best for gold and maybe coins? Budget $1000

Hello I had recently went detecting with a couple friends in Ballarat had the most amazing time as I love the outdoors!

So I have set myself a $1000 budget for a detector only new or used.

I will mainly be in the search for gold as I have some friends with property not to far from Ballarat. But would also search the local parks and beaches for coins and jewelery.

I have a few in mind they are Minelab Safari, Gold Bug 2 & Whites GMT. << Please share your thoughts on which one would be best for what I'm going to use it for.
I have heard that Ballarat has one of the highest heavily iron mineralised ground in the world



Thanks,

Jamie

I'd also be interested in some advice about this. I'm in the same boat with a budget of around $1000. I'd be looking around the Hill End / NSW area.

Any help would be much appreciated!

Thanks

Gee I would have thought someone would have chimed in with something on this one WOW..

Best on coins with some gold Teknetics T2/Fisher F75, Whites MXT
Best on gold with some coins Whites GMT
Best on gold - 5000?

My Teknetics T2 hits a 0.2g nugget in hot ground at a couple of inches in DISC mode. Not too bad...

Sorry for the late response boys, welcome to the forum.Sometimes we all need a little cage rattling to get us going.For that sort of budget,Ben78 has given you some sound advice,lest my preference of the Gold bug 2 for small shallow gold in bedded rocky gullies or creeks.For $1000 bucks,there's a chance of scoring an SD2000 coupled to the old 14 inch terracotta mono or DD coil for the heavier sections of mineralized ground,which will surpass most VLFs on targets at depths.
If its a two in one your after(gold and coins etc) Garret A/T Gold,A/t Pro,Minelab Eureka Gold,Xterra 705.

Cheers guys kon61.

A mate just bought a SD2000 with a 8" mono for $500 so yep, that is well within budget

kon61 wrote: Sorry for the late response boys, welcome to the forum.Sometimes we all need a little cage rattling to get us going.For that sort of budget,Ben78 has given you some sound advice,lest my preference of the Gold bug 2 for small shallow gold in bedded rocky gullies or creeks.For $1000 bucks,there's a chance of scoring an SD2000 coupled to the old 14 inch terracotta mono or DD coil for the heavier sections of mineralized ground,which will surpass most VLFs on targets at depths.
If its a two in one your after(gold and coins etc) Garret A/T Gold,A/t Pro,Minelab Eureka Gold,Xterra 705.

Cheers guys kon61.

WELCOME GUYS,

********If you buy a Minelab SD......make sure it has'nt been modified !!!

Sany2010,
Please excuse my show of ignorance, but how could I tell, just by looking at it? (apart from asking the seller)

There are 2 knobs on the front of the box and 2 on the rear.....if it has been modified there will be an extra knob(or switches) or 2 with dymo type labels stuck on the panel.
The reason I say avoid mods is that Minelab refuse to repair modified machines(understandably).

juwilliamson wrote:I'd also be interested in some advice about this. I'm in the same boat with a budget of around $1000. I'd be looking around the Hill End / NSW area.

Any help would be much appreciated!

Thanks

While there is still plenty of gold to be found at Hill End, finding it while on a budget is the tricky part.
While the GPX-4000 to the 5000 makes life easier there, you still have to work for it.
The ground ranges from heavily mineralized to garden soil in many places which is why the GPX range excel there. However, a good VLF has its place there as well due to the rubbish factor, and if your on a budget, you may well do ok. One of the reasons iv now employed a VLF detector is for places like this. (Whites GMT)
Using the 4k and 4500 there over the years has served me well, but its time to employ the services of an older technology. Seeing is believing, and that iv done. Seeing the VLF find gold over the ground iv worked with the PI is enough to know it will work to ones advantage there. Many of us ...self included will not venture into the trash zone with our PI machines....especially if using a large mono coil, the amount of targets going off under the coil at once will cause most of us to lift the coil and walkaway. Knowing full well there is gold there due to finding it close by in the past. Enter the VLF with its much better discrimination/iron ID capabilities.

Advice, target the know trash areas of our common goldfields with your nominated VLF machine. The easy gold has gone....and the trash zones will soon become the easy gold areas.
Hill End has enough trash areas to keep gold coming out for some time yet with a dedicated VLF operator. If your on a budget, consider the above from a PI operator and dont feel disadvantaged. Put the time in on your chosen machine and dont compare it with a PI....this is where you'll come undone thinking your missing out on gold. Target the areas better suited to VLF operations and make good use of the disc/iron ID they offer. The VLF wont compete on depth with the PIs, knowing this, dont try to compete with that aspect.

Research the various models and remember that high frequencies may have trouble in hot ground....low frequencies punch deeper yet are less sensitive.
User discrimination setting pose problems...too much or too little, tho none are 100% accurate... i chose one that has this feature preset and just IDs the target leaving you to decide whether to dig or not. Ones that disc out the target completely can possibly disc out gold in ironstone. Id rather make that choice, than not knowing it was there to start with. (This area is known for ironstone coated quartz species that WILL stick to a magnet.)
Many that have discrimination will also ID without completely discriminating out the target. Again, user input is needed and maybe a worthy consideration when choosing a model.?
I prefer the GMTs ID which is 3x notification...ID by visual only....ID by visual and audio....and analyze. This feature does not discriminated out the target, but allows you to make the choice to dig or not. Very fast method.

Thanks Sandy2010, simple and uncomplicated advise, much appreciated.

Thanks, Narrawa. So much great information.

All I gotta do now is remember most of it. (gulp!)

sspocko wrote:Hello I had recently went detecting with a couple friends in Ballarat had the most amazing time as I love the outdoors!

So I have set myself a $1000 budget for a detector only new or used.

I will mainly be in the search for gold as I have some friends with property not to far from Ballarat. But would also search the local parks and beaches for coins and jewelery.

I have a few in mind they are Minelab Safari, Gold Bug 2 & Whites GMT. << Please share your thoughts on which one would be best for what I'm going to use it for.
I have heard that Ballarat has one of the highest heavily iron mineralised ground in the world



Thanks,

Jamie

Safari:
http://www.minelab.com/__files/f/4418/Safari_Product_Report.pdf

This is an excelent salt beach machine and coin and relic detector.
The safari is not so flash in highly iron mineralised ground but there are some gold fields where it will work OK.
The GB 2 is a good gold detector but does not like salty ground or wet beach sand. It is OK on the dry sand.
The GMT is primarily a goldfield metal detector and is not real flash on the wet beaches....Ok over the dry sand.

Of these three metal detectors I like the safari because it will operate over a very wide range of ground mineral conditions but if I wanted a gold only detector I would chose the GMT out of these three.
The AT Gold is not good on salt beaches. The AT Pro can be used in salt conditions with carefull adjustment. This is a nice coin and relic metal detector.

Just my opinion, not gospel

Equinox 800 might be worth a look when they become more widely available and there is more information accumulated.